Ponerology

= "the study of the nature, causes, and dynamics of evil, particularly evil expressed through human behavior and social systems".

Description

Via ChatGPT:

"Ponerology is the study of the nature, causes, and dynamics of evil, particularly evil expressed through human behavior and social systems.

The term comes from the Greek poneros (πονηρός), meaning evil or wicked, and -logy (λόγος), meaning study or discourse.

The concept is most closely associated with the work of Andrzej Łobaczewski, a Polish psychologist who developed a framework called “political ponerology” during the Cold War. He used it to analyze how psychopathic individuals and pathological personalities can infiltrate and dominate political systems, leading to “pathocracies”—regimes governed by people with severe personality disorders."

Characteristics

Via ChatGPT:

"Key ideas in ponerology include:

• Evil can be studied scientifically, not just morally or theologically.

• Psychopathology plays a central role in the rise of oppressive systems.

• Pathological individuals often create ideologies that mask their true nature.

• Over time, these individuals can reshape institutions and societies around their pathology."

More information

* Book: Andrzej Łobaczewski. Political Ponerology: A Science on the Nature of Evil Adjusted for Political Purposes.