Solipsism began as a purely philosophical concept. It comes from Latin solus ipse“only himself,” indicates the idea that 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, be a construction of our thoughts or a projection of our consciousness. An extreme and obviously theoretical hypothesis.
Yet the term has entered common language to indicate a person who is so centered on himself that he behaves as if others were not entirely real. “Solipsist” therefore, is often used to describe an individual incapable of moving away from his own point of view, convinced 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 an article by ANSA, in which the psychiatrist Claudio Mencacci defined Donald Trump as a “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 is not a full-blown diagnosis, nor an official category. Rather, it is used to define certain styles of behavioral functioning. 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 shoes;
- tendency to interpret every event only as a function of itself;
- implicit belief that one’s point of view coincides with reality;
- difficulty accepting criticism, limitations or alternative versions of facts;
- inability to conform to rules, tendency to lie and irritability.
To get a concrete idea of what it means, we could compare solipsism with infantile cognitive egocentrism, only for immersive and informative purposes. Jean Piaget, one of the most influential psychologists of the twentieth century, 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 there are perspectives different from ours, that the world does not coincide with what we think or feel, and that others 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 seems to bring with him something from that early phase: not so much naivety, but the implicit idea that his own 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. Despite sharing a strong investment in the self, the narcissist lives from the gaze of the other: he 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 solipsistic functioning, however, the gaze of others loses importance: the other is not really 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 to be the only reference to reality. The other is not devalued, but made irrelevant. To summarize:
Narcissism:
- The other exists, but is used or devalued;
- Strong need for admiration;
- Fragile self-esteem 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 the mind and emotions of others;
- One’s point of view coincides with reality;
- The implicit message is: “Only I am real”
It is not a pathology, nor a diagnosis, but a way of being in reality that 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.
