The solipsism was born as a purely philosophical concept. It comes from Latin solus ipse“only himself,” indicates the idea according to which the only reality we can be certain of is our mind: everything else – people, the external world and events – may not really exist, that is, it may be a construction of our thoughts or a projection of our consciousness. An extreme and obviously theoretical hypothesis.
Yet the term has entered common parlance to indicate a person so centered on himself to behave as if others were not entirely real. “Solipsist” therefore, is often used to describe a individual unable to escape his own point of viewconvinced that what he thinks, feels or believes automatically coincides with reality.
The term returned to the center of attention just a few days ago after a ANSA articlein which the psychiatrist Claudio Mencacci he defined Donald Trump “solipsist”. It was not a diagnosis, but an interpretative key to describe a style of thought and relationship with reality.
Solipopism from a psychological point of view
In psychology, solipsism nIt’s not a clear-cut diagnosisnor an official category. Rather, it is used to define some behavioral functioning styles. In clinical language, speaking of solipsistic traits means referring to people who struggle to recognize the other as an autonomous subject. People exist, yes, but more as a background than as real individuals: in short, extras in their own narrative.
The most significant characteristics that outline a solipsist are:
- poor ability to really put yourself in other people’s clothes;
- tendency to interpret each event alone as a function of itself;
- implicit belief that one’s point of view coincides with reality;
- difficulty accepting criticisms, limitations or alternative versions of facts;
- inability to conform to the rulestendency to lie And irritability.
To get a concrete idea of what it means, we could compare solipsism with theinfantile cognitive egocentrism. Jean Piagetone of the most influential psychologists of the twentieth century, in fact described a phase of development, called cognitive egocentrism, in which the child is not yet able to fully distinguish himself from others. In the first years of life (from 2 to 7, to be precise), the child lives as if the world revolved entirely around his own experience. What he sees, hears or desires is perceived as universal: if he feels something, then everyone feels it; if he sees something, then everyone sees it the same way. It is not moral selfishness, but cognitive immaturity. The other is simply not yet recognized as having an autonomous mind, with thoughts and emotions different from one’s own.
With growth, in most cases, this phase is overcome: we learn that they exist perspectives different from oursthat the world does not coincide with what we think or feel, and that the other can count as much as us. But if we can grant this functioning to a child (since it is natural and innate), in adults the situation changes.
The adult with solipsistic traits in fact, it seems to bring with it something from that early phase: not so much naivety, but the implicit idea that one’s experience remains the yardstick of reality. In this sense, he is not just a very selfish person. He is someone who tends to move through the world as if his own point of view were the only truly valid one and everything else, at most, a secondary variable.
Solipsism vs narcissism: the differences
Very often there is some confusion between solipsism and narcissism. While sharing a strong investment in the self, the narcissist lives from the gaze of the other: needs admiration, recognition and continuous confirmation. The other exists and, indeed, is indispensable for one’s own validation, even if he is often devalued and manipulated.
In the solipsistic functioning instead, the gaze of others loses importance: the other is not truly perceived as having an independent mind. One’s point of view is experienced as objective, uniquely valid, inevitable. The solipsist therefore does not want to be admired, but be the only reference of reality. The other is not devalued, but made irrelevant. To summarize:
Narcissism:
- THE’other exists, but is used or devalued;
- Strong need admiration;
- Self-esteem fragile behind a grandiose image;
- The implicit message is: “Look at me!”
Solipsism:
- THE’other struggles to be conceived as an autonomous subject;
- Poor perception of mind and of emotions others;
- Your point of view coincides with the reality;
- The implicit message is: “Only I am real”
It is not a pathology, nor a diagnosis, but a way of being in reality which can have profound consequences on relationships, communication and the exercise of power. Because when the ego is no longer enough, the risk is not only that of feeling superior, but also of thinking that we are the only truly real ones.
