Vladimir Putin's ‘Napoleon complex’ explained by a therapist

Does Putin have a Napoleon complex? A British psychotherapist has given their assessment of the Russian President's mind.

Russian President Vladimir Putin Napoleon complex therapist
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Russian President Vladimir Putin Napoleon complex therapist

Russian President Vladimir Putin has been making headlines recently as reports about his alleged cardiac arrest spread like wildfire. Putin had a pretty rough upbringing and has ruled Russia with an iron fist as Prime Minister and President for over a decade. In an interview with Times Radio, therapist Lucy Beresford revealed what she thinks of the claim that Putin suffers from ‘little man syndrome’.

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Putin suffers from 'little man syndrome'

Vladimir Putin's size, which is not officially known, has always been a controversial topic of discussion, even in political circles. Ex-Prime Minister Gordon Brown told the Telegraph, just a few days ago, that Putin is a ‘relatively small man wearing high heels’. Beresford senses the calculation behind the constant mention of his height. In the interview, she explained the allegations in the following words:

It was an attempt to belittle Putin, as if to say: you are such a bad person, you are so small that you have to go around showing everyone how great you are to compensate for your own shortcomings.

Wmd.de explained what Napoleon complex, aka the ‘little man syndrome’, is:

The Napoleon complex assumes that short men always have something to compensate for their lack of height.

Is Putin also self-destructive?

In Putin's case, that would be overcompensating by showing strength and power by invading Ukraine and persisting, even when Russia is suffering massive losses as their military struggles. The psychotherapist also suspected another reason behind his behaviour:

He's very confident and surrounded by yes-men, but at the same time he also has the potential to be very dramatic and he might also harbour a self-destructive death wish, almost a wish to finally be hunted down because he thinks he's invincible.

This could be true, but so far the rumours about Putin's death claim that he suffered a naturally occurring cardiac arrest. These claims are yet to be verified and are generally seen to be gossip.

This article is translated from Gentside DE.

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Sources used:

Youtube: Times Radio

The Telegraph: Gordon Brown: ‘This is the beginning of the end for Boris Johnson’

Wmd.de:Der Napoleon Komplex: Kleine Männer sind aggressiver, aber besser im Bett

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