Analysis of the Personality of Adolph Hitler

Cornell Law School Library ^ | October, 1943 | Henry Murray

[w6ai5q37b]

In 1943, the Allied forces wanted to understand Hitler's psychological makeup in order to predict, to the extent possible, his behavior as the Allies continued their prosecution of the war and his response to Germany's defeat. The Allies were also seeking to understand the German national psyche to gain an understanding of how to convert them into a "peace-loving nation." This report was written for the OSS by Dr. Henry A. Murray, pre-war Director of the Harvard Psychological Clinic and head of the OSS. Dr. Murray obviously was forced by circumstances to psychoanalyze his subject from a distance. He gathered information from a variety of second-hand sources, such as Hitler's genealogy; school and military records; public reports of events in print and on film; OSS information; Hitler's own writings, Hitler biographers; and "Hitler the Man - Notes for a Case History," an article written by W.H.D. Vernon under Dr. Murray's supervision. From these resources and his "needs theory" of personality, Dr. Murray created a psychological profile that correctly predicted the Nazi leader's suicide in the face of Germany's defeat.

With the benefit of hindsight and more than 60 years of scientific advances, one can appreciate the analysis of Hitler's personality and also catch a glimpse into an early application of personality psychology by one of the discipline's founders. Dr. Murray's Explorations in Personality (NY: Oxford Press, 1938) established personality psychology as a behavioral science. Murray explored a theory of personality in which the interplay of 20 psychogenic needs of varying strength produced distinct personality types. Murray pegged Hitler's personality as "counteractive narcism," a type that is stimulated by real or imagined insult or injury. According to Dr. Murray, the characteristics of this personality type include: holding grudges, low tolerance for criticism, excessive demands for attention, inability to express gratitude, a tendency to belittle, bully, and blame others, revenge, persistence in the face of defeat, self-will, self-trust, inability to take a joke, and compulsive criminality. Dr. Murray concluded that Hitler had these characteristics (and others) to an extreme degree but lacked the offsetting qualities that round out a balanced personality.

The language of needs theory may seem unfamiliar to today's readers since personality theory moved on to new terminology and theories. However, Dr. Murray's writing style and descriptive language make this report as intelligible to the lay reader of today as to the World War II era psychologist.

Cornell Law Library is pleased to share this report in a pdf version of its original format. The Law Library added the montage of photographs* on the home page and this explanatory material, but the rest of the site is devoted to the OSS report from 1943. The report is part of our Donovan Nuremberg Trials Collection.

[w6ai5q37b]

The report cites Herman Rauschning. Rauschning, in a book by Samuel Igra "Germany's National Vice" (Quality Press, 1945) claims that according to a Vienna Police dossier, Hitler was a male prostitute from 1912 to 1914 while living as a vagabond in Vienna.

For a related story, see Portrait of the Führer as a dreamer with a complex about his sexuality

[SteveMcKing]

It's one thing to study Hitler. Dwelling on him gives him undue attention, which is one thing he wanted to achieve.


Don't make him into an enigma. He was just a bum. An evil bum.

[w6ai5q37b]

Hitler was a male prostitute from 1912 to 1914 while living as a vagabond in Vien

Erratum: It was from 1907 to 1912 which the dossier claimed Hitler was a male prostitute in Vienna. According to Rauschning, Hitler occuppied the same profession in Munich from 1912 to 1914.

[TheHound]

Cornell Law Library is pleased to share this report in a pdf version of its original format.

Do you have a link to this report?

[U S Army EOD]

Do you think they are checking on John Kerry now or got the files switched or something?

[w6ai5q37b]

Do you have a link to this report?

I can't find the exact address of the pdf file, but click on the link above, then click on the picture when the link comes up, next page, click on "pdf version" then finally click on "HERE" and the full pdf file will come up.

[niteowl77]

I wonder how this fits in - if at all - with Walter Langer's psychological report on Hitler that was done for William Donovan in 1943.

[Bob Eimiller]

I think this more like Bill Clinton's personality analysis.

[EagleUSA]

Oh Heck, I thought we were analyzing Hitlery....the Marxist Medusa...

[Bob Eimiller]

counteractive narcism," a type that is stimulated by real or imagined insult or injury. According to Dr. Murray, the characteristics of this personality type include: holding grudges, low tolerance for criticism, excessive demands for attention, inability to express gratitude, a tendency to belittle, bully, and blame others, revenge, persistence in the face of defeat, self-will, self-trust, inability to take a joke, and compulsive criminality.

Yep... That's definitely Bill Clinton

[U S Army EOD]

All jokes aside, it fits Clinton and Kerry very close.

[TheHound]

Thanks

[Waco]

Just as I figured, a closet Democrat!

[WorkingClassFilth]

"[Hitler's psychological profile] fits Clinton and Kerry very close."

Except that they have been male prostitutes mostly in and around Washington, D.C.

[U S Army EOD]

If you were a male prostitute, how much would they have to pay you to sleep with Hillery? Poor Bill.

[IronJack]

bookmark

[Howlin]

And John Kerry.

[WorkingClassFilth]

I always hoped to see them (the krintons) convicted and sentenced to serve their time in the same cell. A pay-per-view webcam could catch all the action and raise money for conservative causes...

[Fitzcarraldo]

Hitler can be summed up in one word: EVIL.