The Terrible Narcissistic Triad: Addressing Hubris, Humiliation, and Revenge in War and Peace

Thomas Reimer/AdobeStock

PSYCHIATRIC VIEWS ON THE DAILY NEWS

“Don’t you ever want revenge?” - President Trump to Mike Johnson¹

I am forever harping on psychiatrists to at least try to use our unique expertise in responding to our major social psychiatric conflicts, beyond our personal beliefs as citizens and other aspects of one’s identity that influences political beliefs. From the February 20th meeting of Presidents Trump and Zelenskyy to Friday’s meeting of Presidents Trump and Putin, and then yesterday’s follow-up meeting of President Trump and Zelenskyy, the triad of hubris, humiliation, and revenge seems to fit our wheelhouse, perhaps as it has so many times in history.

Hubris usually comes first. Overconfidence leads to over-optimistic and careless mistakes. That seemed to have occurred in the successful invasion of Israel by Hamas on October 7, 2023, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine after weeks of sitting on their eastern border.

The hubris can then consequently cause feelings of humiliation. Humiliation is commonly relieved by some sort of revenge. Hence, we have Israel with a continuing conquest of Gaza no matter the civilian deaths, and Russia continues to escalate when their sudden invasion stalled and Ukraine did not give up as likely expected.

If President Zelenskyy was humiliated in the first meeting, he did not show public signs of seeking revenge. Zelenskyy, dressed all in black, and whatever that was intended symbolically, seemed to show interpersonal narcissistic insight by praising the letter that the First Lady, Trump’s wife Melania, sent to Putin with her very appropriate concern for children. Such an approach of hers would be unlikely to feel humiliating to the target. Maybe it would elicit some guilty feelings if the recipient had that capability. Perhaps Zelenskyy’s presentation has something to do with less power and more need. In the meeting yesterday, President Trump, dressed in the US colors red, white, and blue, greeted him warmly and positively, also publicly showing no signs of revenge.

However, perhaps revenge emerged elsewhere. After the meeting of Trump and Zelenskyy with the European leaders, Putin’s initial response—with all its possible symbolism—included shooting a barrage of drones to meet their targets in Ukraine.

Something parallel happens in individuals who have undue narcissism to the degree of a personality disorder or what is called malignant narcissism. A strong feeling of being humiliated is common, along with some quest for revenge.

We see this process commonly in the clinical treatment of those with narcissistic disorders, even if such people are reluctant to even start treatment, interpreting that as a humiliating personal failure and weakness. The psychotherapist must be very sensitive to avoid making the patient feel worse, otherwise they will leave treatment.

The narcissistic triad formula here seems to be: Hubris-> Humiliation-> Revenge.

Revenge is one way to feel better, and we are beginning to understand why scientifically.² There is what might be called a “pain network” in the brain’s anterior insula that is activated when we feel wronged. Reflexively thinking revenge releases dopamine in the pleasure circuitry at the nucleus accumbens and dorsal striatum.

Taken all together then, because human nature is human nature wherever we are, psychiatry may be able to contribute to these risky situations with our expertise about narcissism. That expertise is used in everyday clinical care and, in parallel, can perhaps be successful with larger groups.

What is needed can be applied to any part of the triad. Control hubris by careful self-examination of success and accepting objective feedback. Parents have the challenge to fit feedback to their children to real performance with just a touch of expecting a bit better next time. It is often difficult to stop feeling humiliated in certain situations, but after the initial reaction, there is an opportunity to temper one’s response to obtain pleasure in some other way than revenge, such as the satisfying and healthy relief that can come with forgiveness.

At its best, narcissism can be a guiding force to doing good if guided well for the benefit of all involved. In the current war examples, that may mean secure peace in Ukraine and Israel, along with a place for Palestinians to thrive in peace, and an ongoing working through problems relationship of Russian and the United States. The pathway to that out of the terrible narcissistic triad may be paved with:

Hubris to Introspection-> Humiliation to Acceptance-> Revenge to Forgiveness.

Dr Moffic is an award-winning psychiatrist who specialized in the cultural and ethical aspects of psychiatry and is now in retirement and retirement as a private pro bono community psychiatrist. A prolific writer and speaker, he has done a weekday column titled “Psychiatric Views on the Daily News” and a weekly video, “Psychiatry & Society,” since the COVID-19 pandemic emerged. He was chosen to receive the 2024 Abraham Halpern Humanitarian Award from the American Association for Social Psychiatry. Previously, he received the Administrative Award in 2016 from the American Psychiatric Association, the one-time designation of being a Hero of Public Psychiatry from the Speaker of the Assembly of the APA in 2002, and the Exemplary Psychiatrist Award from the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill in 1991. He presented the third Rabbi Jeffrey B. Stiffman lecture at Congregation Shaare Emeth in St. Louis on Sunday, May 19, 2024. He is an advocate and activist for mental health issues related to climate instability, physician burnout, and xenophobia. He is now editing the final book in a 4-volume series on religions and psychiatry for Springer: Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, Christianity, and now The Eastern Religions, and Spirituality. He serves on the Editorial Board of Psychiatric Times.

References

1. Cortellessa E, Popli N. How Mike Johnson became Trump’s speaker. TIME. August 7, 2025. Accessed August 19, 2025. https://time.com/magazine/us/7308151/august-7th-2025-vol-206-no-5/

2. Kimmel J Jr. The Science of Revenge. Harmony; 2025.