Psychobiographical Study Research Articles

Narcissistic female serial killers: A psychobiographical study of Cecilia Johanna Steyn

This article examines the psychobiography of Cecilia Johanna Steyn, a female serial killer from South Africa. The study analysed Cecilia Steyn’s childhood development to suggest possible adverse childhood experiences predisposing her to instigate murders on her demand. Drawing on the narcissistic theoretical frameworks of Heinz Kohut and Robert Hare, we analysed Cecilia Steyn’s childhood development, indicating the occurrence of narcissistic injury. We found that Cecilia Steyn could be considered a highly manipulative, narcissistic female serial killer. The analyses provided a profile of a gendered female serial killer, highlighting similarities and differences based on narcissism and psychopathy.

Cross-cultural experiences and self-development: a psychobiographical study of Bruce Lee

A common challenge people face in today’s cross-cultural world is how to solve a series of adaptation problems caused by cultural conflict. Exploring Bruce Lee’s successful cross-cultural experiences through psychobiography offers some inspiration and thoughts. How did Bruce Lee successfully integrate martial arts, symbolising the Eastern culture, with films representing the Western culture, finally propelling kung fu films onto the international stage? Numerous publicly available materials about Bruce Lee were collected for this study, and the research data were evaluated using thematic analysis. Bruce Lee’s success benefitted from reconstructing cultural environment information and exercising his initiative to shape a new cultural environment. His life experiences reflect individual cognition behaviour and social and cultural environments as two aspects of a dynamic circulation system and show that the two have reached internal and spiralling harmony through mutual integration. In the context of the Oriental collectivism culture’s family narrative, Chinese adults’ personality development features the unique theme of ‘inheritance and innovation’. Dealing with the relationship between self-actualisation and familism is another important and challenging task in developing the Chinese personality.

Cultural foundations of a mathematician’s thinking: a Psychobiographical exploration of Zoltán Paul Dienes and his cognitive development

This psychobiographical study utilises Lev Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory to explore the impact of diverse cultural experiences on the intellectual growth of Zoltán Paul Dienes, a prominent mathematician and theorist of mathematical education. Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory is particularly relevant for understanding the impact of culture on intellectual development. According to Vygotsky, cognitive development is shaped by social and cultural interactions, and the tools and practices of a given culture. The study employs a taxonomy of cognitive tools to categorise the influences young Dienes encountered in Hungary, Austria, France, United Kingdom and elsewhere. By examining the presence and frequency of these tools in his formative years, the research sheds light on the origins of Dienes’s principles in mathematical education. The research enriches psychobiography by integrating sociocultural theory, providing valuable insights into the relationship between culture, cognitive tools, and intellectual growth in knowledgeable individuals. Ultimately, this study contributes to a better comprehension of the origins and principles behind Dienes’s theory of mathematical education.

"You gotta give them hope": A structural psychobiography of Harvey Milk (1930-1978).

In this psychobiographical study, we examined the life and times of social change agent Harvey Milk, one of the first openly gay public officials in the United States. Milk is remembered as a gay hero who fought for the rights of marginalized people, often by invoking the importance of hope. Milk was assassinated less than 1 year after his election. We adopt a structural psychobiographical approach, foregrounding social, cultural, political, and historical forces that intersect with personal factors to explain Milk's ascension to the status of social change agent. This psychobiography tells the story of a man not destined to become a social change agent but who became one anyway because of shifting tides in the political climate of San Francisco in the 1970s, because of a series of catalytic events that started him down this path, because of a history of persecution as a gay Jew, and because of his enduring need for a stage upon which he could express his generative concern. Our analysis raises questions about the story that "belongs" to the agent of social change, and the story that "belongs" to the rest of us, as we remember him.

A trans agent of social change in incarceration: A psychobiographical study of Natasha Keating.

This psychobiography focuses on the advocacy work of Natasha Keating, a trans woman incarcerated in two male prisons in Australia between 2000 and 2007. Incarcerated trans women are a vulnerable group who experience high levels of victimization and discrimination. However, Natasha advocated for her rights while incarcerated and this advocacy contributed to substantial changes in the carceral system. This psychobiography uses psychological understandings of resilience as well as the Transgender Resilience Intervention Model (TRIM) to investigate the factors that enabled this advocacy. Data consisted of an archive of letters written by Natasha and interviews with individuals who knew her well. This psychobiography was guided by du Plessis' (2017) 12-step approach and included the identification of psychological saliencies and the construction of a Multilayered Chronological Chart. Natasha's life is presented in four chapters, with each chapter including a discussion of resilience based on the TRIM. The TRIM suggests that during incarceration, Natasha was able to access more group-level resilience factors than at any other time in her life. This, combined with individual resilience factors, enabled her advocacy. This finding has implications for advocacy in general as it highlights the importance of both individual- and group-level factors in enabling individuals to effectively advocate for change in their environments.

Meaning and Wellness: A Comparative Psychobiography on Helen Suzman and Beyers Naudé.

This comparative psychobiographical study provides an in-depth exploration of meaning in the lives of two extraordinary individuals, Helen Suzman and Beyers Naudé. A comparison of the construction of meaning, as an important aspect of wellness within the holistic wellness model, is given for these South African anti-apartheid activists. Suzman (1917–2009) dedicated her career to opposing apartheid policy as a parliamentary politician. Naudé (1915–2004) was a renowned public figure dedicated to social justice in his role as a theologian. The holistic wellness model views the Neo-Adlerian life task of spirituality as crucial to ascribing meaning to life events, acknowledging multiple potential sources of meaning. The differences and similarities pertaining to the domains of meaning-making of these two subjects are explored. The subjects, who differed regarding biographical variables, were found to share a common sense of purpose within the same socio-political milieu. The study findings confirm that commitment to diverse sources of meaning and generativity are central to meaningfulness. This comparative psychobiographical study contributes to the eugraphic exploration of the meaning-making processes of these exemplary individuals.

A fortunate self-actualised man: A psycho-biographical study of Yuan Longping

To develop a psycho-biographical profile on Yuan Longping, a tireless hybrid rice research scientist, we performed a content analysis of personality adjectives. For dependability of the analysis, we utilised the methods of “prototypical scenes” and “key factors of growth”. Our analysis suggests Yuan Longping’s primary personality traits include optimism, selflessness, generosity, carefree, spontaneousness, and innovativeness. Influences on his predispositions were quite varied and spanned a caring family with abundant financial resources, harmonious relationships, a knowledge-oriented environment, and a loving mother. These personal, material, and relationship affordances helped Yuan Longping overcome adversities in personal life, with thriving and self-actualisation as a hybrid rice research scientist.

A Writer’s Creativity Across the Life Span: Paulo Coelho in Psychobiographical Perspective

This study on the world-known writer Paulo Coelho uses a psychobiographical single case study approach to explore creativity across his life span. Coelho is one of the best known in- ternational contemporary writers. Throughout his life he has shown a huge amount of artistic creativity. Creativity, in this study, is viewed as a form of mental activity which needs the sys- temic interaction of the individual thinking and the socio-cultural context. It therefore takes the person, process, product and environment into account to manage the areas of investiga- tion. Methodologically, this single psychobiographical case study is based on Dilthey’s modern hermeneutics. First- and third-person data were collected and analysed through content anal- ysis. Findings show the development of creativity in terms of mini-c, little-c, Pro-c and Big-C creativity throughout Paulo Coelho’s life span. Conclusions are drawn and recommendations for theory and practice are given.

Psycho-Historical Perceptions of Gandhi

The literature on leadership has its roots in the “Great Man” Theory of Thomas Carlyle, who declared that “The history of the world is but the biography of great men”. These works which emphasised only political, economic, and social motivations for events, gave way to Erikson‟s, “Gandhi‟s Truth: On the Origins of Militant Nonviolence”, is an attempt at understanding Gandhi through a Psycho-biographical study. Psycho-history analyses the incidents that left a deep impression on Gandhi and examines these experiences that Gandhi used on his techniques such as fasting, Ahimsa and Satyagraha later on. The present paper is a historiographical account of the psycho-historical writings on Gandhi. Erikson‟s seminal work which actually gained for Psychohistory its recognition, forms the major source of this paper and also includes some more recently published works such as Wolpert, Richards and Lelyveld. These narratives have explored the varied facets of his personality and his identity which had blurred between myth and history. Gandhi in most writings is raised to the stature of the Mahatma, but psycho-history has done justice to his character as it brings out the human side of the leader with all his frailties.

IDENTITY FORMATION AND ITS ROLE IN OPTIMAL HUMAN DEVELOPMENT: A PSYCHOBIOGRAPHICAL STUDY OF ARTIST JACKSON POLLOCK

Celebrated artist Jackson Pollock challenged the concept of art by moving beyond paintbrush and easel to throwing paint across canvasses laid out on the floor, and using his entire body to create an abstract image. However, despite this capacity for originality, Pollock’s life was bracketed by severe binge drinking, alcoholism, and emotional instability. The importance of identity formation for healthy development is illustrated by a psychobiographical study of Jackson Pollock. Pollock’s difficulties in establishing a stable identity seemed to play an integral part in impeding a positive life course. The developmental theory of Erik Erikson was the lens through which Pollock’s life was studied, with a focus on Erikson’s proposed fifth stage of development, Identity versus Role Confusion. From the study it emerged that it was largely the individuals who surrounded Pollock who shaped him into what they wanted him to be with Pollock lacking the stable sense of self to protect him from a society that treated both him and the art he poured himself into as a commodity to be celebrated and vilified on whim. Alcoholism would cause his death at the age of 44, when, while heavily intoxicated, Jackson Pollock drove his car into a tree.

A Psychobiographical Study of Intuition in a Writer's Life: Paulo Coelho Revisited.

Intuition is defined as a form of knowledge which materialises as awareness of thoughts, feelings and physical sensations. It is a key to a deeper understanding and meaningfulness. Intuition, used as a psychological function, supports the transmission and integration of perceptions from unconscious and conscious realms. This study uses a psychobiographical single case study approach to explore intuition across the life span of Paulo Coelho. Methodologically, the study is based on a single case study, using the methodological frame of Dilthey's modern hermeneutics. The author, Paulo Coelho, was chosen as a subject of research, based on the content analysis of first- and third-person perspective documents. Findings show that Paulo Coelho, as one of the most famous and most read contemporary authors in the world, uses his intuitions as a deeper guidance in life, for decision-making and self-development. Intuitive decision-making is described throughout his life and by referring to selected creative works.

The Symmetry of Life: The Sermonic Insights of Phillips Brooks

This article focuses on the sermon “The Symmetry of Life” by Phillips Brooks (1881), a late-18th-century American clergyman who was known for the depth and inspirational quality of his sermons. To set the context for consideration of the sermon, I discuss the religious journey of young men as presented in Striking Out (Capps 2011b) and my related article on Ernest Thayer (Capps 2015b); my psychobiographical study of young clergymen (Capps 2005) and employment of Levinson’s (1978) life structure model in my interpretation of Brooks’s young adulthood; the implications of preaching and the sermon structure for pastoral counseling (Capps 1980); and William James’s (1987) positive view of Brooks. Following brief commentaries on Brooks’s preaching style (Scarlett 1950) and a presentation of the sermon itself, I note several parallels between the implicit developmental model presented in the sermon and Levinson’s developmental model. I conclude with a brief discussion of Benjamin Franklin’s (1964) empirical study of the potential impact of George Whitefield’s preaching and the methodological implications of this study for pastoral theology.

Essential Others and Spontaneous Recovery in the Life and Work of Emily Carr: Implications for Understanding Remission of Illness and Resilience

Artist Emily Carr1 A majority of paintings by Emily Carr are in the permanent collection of the Vancouver Art Gallery. Others may be viewed in the National Gallery of Ontario and the British Columbia Archives in Victoria, BC. They are also available as photographed reproductions on the web at vancouverartgallery.bc.ca.1 (1871–1945) has attained iconic status in Canada and throughout the world for her prodigious output as a painter and writer of the Pacific Northwest. This article describes how the arrival of three “essential others” at pivotal moments in middle life helped lift Carr out of a serious, lifelong depression and nurtured and inspired her creative output. I propose that Carr’s productivity and psychological recovery were facilitated by sequential, cumulative input from these generative human contacts. The creative partnership formed between an artist and her muse has features akin to the patient/therapist dyad, ranging from sparking new and healthier adaptations, to reshaping the internal landscape via internalization, to facilitation and promotion of unique talent. This psychobiographical study of Emily Carr is a vehicle for clinicians to further contemplate elements imbedded in our daily work that give rise to greater resilience, spontaneous recovery from illness, and personal transformation in the lives of our patients.

The career development of Christiaan Neethling Barnard: A psychobiography

This study employs a psychobiographical case study to describe and interpret the career development of Christiaan Neethling Barnard, who performed the first human heart transplant. It interprets Barnard's life history according to the career development model of Greenhaus, Callanan and Godshalk (2010), which proposes the following four stages: occupational and organisational choice, early, middle, and late career. Generally, Barnard's career progression matched the stages proposed by Greenhaus et al. (2010). Exceptions were noted that relate to the first and fourth stages: Barnard experienced an extended occupational and organisational choice stage, while he showed no signs of career disengagement during the late career stage. The study confirmed the usefulness of the career development model of Greenhaus et al. within the psychobiographical research tradition.

The spiritual wellness of Beyers Naudé: A psychobiographical study of a South African anti-apartheid theologian

The study explores and describes Beyers Naudé's (1915–2004) spiritual wellness across his lifespan. Naudé's life history was uncovered through the systematic collection and analyses of life history materials. Data were interpreted applying the Wheel of Wellness model (WoW) by Sweeney and Witmer (1991, 1992). Findings suggest that spirituality, as the major life task of the WoW, characterised Naudé's earlier years and also epitomised his later years. Underlying life-span and life-space influences included important life-forces such as the roles of the community, religion, government and politics in his life. Hope and optimism embodied Naudé's belief about promoting and preserving human dignity, human rights and respect for life.

The Dracula killer: A psychobiographical illustration of the Schahriar syndrome model for serial murder

This psychobiographical study of Richard Trenton Chase (1950–1980), a serial murderer, has the aim to uncover the psychic mechanisms characteristic of his functioning. The study included primary and secondary data sources. All materials collected and analysed, were published and publically available. The Schahriar syndrome model served as the conceptual framework for data framing and interpretation. Findings suggest that Chase exhibited five primitive psychic mechanisms namely: omnipotence, sadistic fantasies, ritualised performance, dehumanisation and symbiotic merger. The Schahriar syndrome model has utility to explain the psychological functioning of a serial murderer.

Case Study in Psychobiographical Ethics: Bobby Fischer, World Chess Champion

This article addresses ethical issues relative to the conduct and reporting of psychobiographical research. The author's recent psychobiographical study of World Chess Champion Bobby Fischer (1943-2008) is used to illustrate particular ethical challenges and responses in six areas: (1) institutional review board (IRB) evaluation and informed consent; (2) balancing objective research with respect for psychobiographical subject; (3) inviting subject or next-of-kin to read and comment on working drafts of psychobiography; (4) reporting never-before-revealed sensitive information on a subject; (5) role of interdisciplinary consultation in conducting psychobiography; and (6) the value and cautions of including psychological diagnoses as part of the psychological profile. A "bill of rights and responsibilities" for the psychobiographer is introduced as a stimulus for ongoing discussion and empirical research on ethical practice in psychobiography.

The Dynamics of Becoming a Psychologist of Religion: The Case of Heije Faber

This paper offers a psychobiographical study of the connection between the life and work of Heije Faber (1907-2001), the internationally best known Dutch psychologist of religion. Initially, Faber studied theology, qualifying in philosophy of religion; in later years, he studied psychology (second doctorate: 1956). As a politically active pastor, he had to hide from the Nazi-occupation of The Netherlands during World War II. In 1970 he became the first professor of the psychology of religion at a Dutch theological faculty. Faber was interested in a psychoanalytic approach to religion, by the end of his life particularly in selfpsychology as developed by Heinz Kohut. There is a curious contradiction in his work: although Faber employs several types of psychology in his autobiography to interpret aspects of his own development, he neglects the Kohutian psychology that he had himself helped to introduce to The Netherlands. This article tries to solve the paradox and suggests some psychological hypotheses as to the relationship of Faber psychodynamics and his contribution to psychology.

Psychobiography: A Research Method in Search of a Home

This paper explains the interdisciplinary narrative research method of psychobiography, using examples from the author's psychobiographical work about Dian Fossey. Dr Fossey was the primatologist and occupational therapist famous for saving the highland mountain gorillas from extinction. She is known worldwide from her popular book, Gorillas in the Mist, and from the 1987 film of the same name. She sustained her research centre in Rwanda successfully for 18 years before her murder in 1985. Prior to her primatology career, Fossey graduated from an occupational therapy programme in the United States and worked with children for 10 years. The paper details the steps to write a psychobiography, the strategies for analysis and the markers of a good psychobiography. It is suggested that psychobiography is a method that can find a home in occupational therapy and occupational science. The reasons that psychobiography can mesh with occupational therapy are discussed. A second paper, a psychobiographical study of Dian Fossey, is in press.

Handbook of psychobiography

PART 1: HOW TO WRITE A PSYCHOBIOGRAPHY 1. Introducing psychobiography 2. Evolving conceptions of psychobiography and the study of lives: Encounters with psychoanalysis, personality psychology, and historical science 3. How to strike psychological paydirt in biographical data 4. What psychobiographers might learn from personality psychology 5. If the glove fits: The art of theoretical choice in psychobiography 6. How to critically evaluate alternative explanations of life events: The case of Van Gogh's ear 7. Divide and multiply: Comparative theory and methodology in multiple case psychobiology 8. Diane Arbus' photographic autobiography: Theory and method revisited PART 2: PSYCHOBIOGRAPHY OF ARTISTS 9. Nothing alive can be calculated: The psychobiographical study of artists 10. Twelve ways to say 'lonesome': Assessing error and control in the music of Elvis Presley 11. Mourning, melancholia, and Sylvia Plath 12. Margaret's smile 13. Edith Wharton and Ethan Frome: A psychobiographical exploration PART THREE: PSYCHOBIOGRAPHY OF PSYCHOLOGISTS 14. The psychobiographical study of psychologists 15. Freud as Leonardo: Why the first psychobiography went wrong 16. Four, two or one? Gordon Allport and the unique personality 17. Nietzsche's Madness 18. Erikson and psychobiography, psychobiography and Erikson 19. From the book of Mormon to the operational definition: The existential project of S.S. Stevens PART FOUR: PSYCHOBIOGRAPHY OF POLITICAL FIGURES 20. Alive and kicking: The problematics of political psychobiography 21. Osama Bin Laden: The sum of all fears 22. In his father's shadow: George W Bush and the politics of personal transformation 23. Hunting the Snark: Methodlogical Considerations in Studying Elusive Politicians 24. Psychobiography in context: Predicting the behaviour of tyrants