Why We Elect Narcissists and Sociopat..., Bill Eddy
Why We Elect Narcissists and Sociopat..., Bill Eddy
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Why We Elect Narcissists and Sociopaths—And How We Can Stop!

Author: Bill Eddy

Narrator: Tom Dheere

Unabridged: 5 hr 32 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Ascent Audio

Published: 05/21/2019


Synopsis

Bestselling author, therapist, lawyer, and mediator Bill Eddy describes how dangerous, high-conflict personalities have gained power in governments worldwide-and what citizens can do to keep these people out of office.

Democracy is under siege. The reason isn't politics. It's personalities: too many countries have come under the sway of high-conflict politicians (HCPs). Most of these HCPs have traits of narcissistic personality disorder, antisocial (i.e., sociopathic) personality disorder, or both. This is the first and only guide for identifying and thwarting HCPs. 

Bill Eddy says the key to understanding HCPs is their use of what he calls the Fantasy Crisis Triad:
1. There's a terrible crisis!
2. It's caused by this evil person or group.
3. I'm the only person who can solve it and save you.

Using Hitler, Stalin, Putin, Berlusconi, Chavez, Nixon, Trump and others as case studies, Eddy shows how HCPs create or exacerbate conflict to manipulate our emotions and rise to power. But he also shows how we can spot HCPs early on (he includes a checklist of forty typical behaviors), respond to them effectively, and identify and give our support to genuine leaders.

About Bill Eddy

Bill Eddy is the cofounder and training director of the High Conflict Institute and is senior family mediator at the National Conflict Resolution Center. He is also a lawyer and licensed clinical social worker and currently serves on the part time faculty of the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution at the Pepperdine University School of Law. He is the author or coauthor of fourteen books and has a popular blog on the Psychology Today website with over two million views.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Corrie on April 26, 2026

Filled with great insight and historical precedents and similarities to how people like Trump, Putin, and (in Alberta) Danielle Smith came to power, what they do with it when they have it, and what they'll sacrifice to keep it. The section on McCarthy was very interesting, as well as Newt Gingrich, a......more

Goodreads review by Rodrigo on April 07, 2023

This is a curious take on the highly complex matter of politics. Although the analysis is well-structured and the intentions of the author are good, I don't believe we would be able to implement his proposals. Electing narcissists looks like an organic political dynamic. And very complex, especially......more

Goodreads review by Faisal on May 17, 2025

Adakah buku yang bisa menggambarkan fenomena keterpilihan para pemimpin-pemimpin dunia "strongman" (pemimpin negara yang [terus] berambisi meraih/mempertahankan kekuasaan) di abad ini? Buku terjemahan ini, walaupun judulnya, baik asli maupun setelah diterjemahkan terkesan "nyeleneh" dan memicu stigm......more

Goodreads review by Dan on June 23, 2019

What we have here is not an intellectual tour-de-force, a beautifully designed or written book, or a neutral look at political science. Instead, it is a two-fer: an examination of high conflict personalities (people who need to argue, always) and an anti-Donald Trump screed. Now our President is most......more

Goodreads review by George W Creasy on January 17, 2024

A Hidden Agenda The profile of an HCP is interesting and helpful. The examples of HCP people is supportive when there is enough history to complete the profile. Unfortunately, Mr Eddy, and most news outlets at the time, were convinced of “Russian Collusion” which as of 2024 has been totally debunked......more