Psychiatrist Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, Founding Rector of Üsküdar Üniversitesi, was a guest on Burcu Ürge's Her Şey Dahil program broadcast on HT Spor. Tarhan made striking remarks regarding 'The Psychology of Evil and Toxic Relationships'. Stating that managing the bad part within a person is a skill, Tarhan said that evil is part of existence, emphasizing the dynamic balance of opposites. Expressing that the perspective on evil starts from a person's inner world, Tarhan underlined the necessity of managing evil instead of fighting it.
“Being able to manage the bad part within us is a skill”
Psychiatrist Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, stating that evil is a part of existence, emphasized the dynamic balance of opposites. Tarhan said; “The first evil that emerged with the beginning of human history dates back to the issue of Cain and Abel. Since human existence, there has been a balance of good and evil. Just as there is a balance of hot and cold, light and dark in nature, there is also a balance of behavioral good or evil in the universe. Within a person, there is a good part and a bad part. When good decreases, evil spontaneously increases. When good increases, evil decreases. This is the dynamic balance of opposites. Therefore, evil is a part of existence. From a psychological dynamic perspective, whichever part we feed within us, that part grows. Our personality is formed according to the rule of dynamic balance of opposites. Being able to manage the bad part within us is a skill.”
“If good people do not say no to evil, evil spreads spontaneously”
In the program discussing Tarhan's latest book, 'Psychology of Evil, Toxic Relationships,' Tarhan emphasized the balance of freedom and responsibility; “The balance of freedom and responsibility has worked against responsibility in this era. Freedom came to the forefront more. When good and evil have equal freedom, evil has a sixfold greater tendency to spread. In fact, there are danger circuits in the human brain. Electrodes are attached to the brain, and evoked potentials are observed. A button is given to the person. They are told to press the red button if it's a negative topic, and the white button if it's a positive topic. The person's brain response is measured. For negative topics, the brain shows an N50 wave after 50 milliseconds, but for positive topics, the brain shows a P300 wave after 300 milliseconds. This means the brain thinks 6 times more when deciding on something positive. Since the brain is programmed for survival, it has a tendency to perceive even the slightest event as a threat. As a tendency, evil is currently viral. Goodness requires effort and investment. There is such a balance. If good people do not say no to evil, evil spreads spontaneously,” he said.
“When these three norms are disrupted, evils increase very easily”
Referring to environmental influences in having a bad personality, Tarhan said; “Our perspective on evil starts from our inner world. Environmental factors always exist. That is, if a person has a malevolent environment, the probability of becoming evil is high. If one is in a benevolent environment, evil is less likely to occur. There are three types of norms. Firstly, legal norms, such as laws, regulations, and directives. Secondly, social norms. There are rules within society, like not being able to go out in pajamas. Thirdly, conscientious norms. They are found within our inner world. These three norms need to be balanced. For example, moral rules define conscientious norms. Traditions and customs define social norms. Legal norms are already determined by law. When these three norms are disrupted, evils increase very easily. In other words, leaving a prison door ajar is enough for evils to spread. Evils can spread easily. For example, when an earthquake occurs, the first people to go there are thieves. So, ignoring evil is not realistic. It would be nice, but it's not possible. There is such a balance. The dynamic balance of opposites. We need to accept this,” he said.
“The most questioned concept in evil is empathy”
Stating that loneliness emerges as a result of a lack of empathy, Tarhan said; “The most questioned concept in evil among people is empathy. It is the lack of empathy. If you fill a room with all evils, lack of empathy opens its door. Lack of empathy is observed in individuals with Type B personality, which refers to narcissistic, antisocial, borderline, and histrionic people. They interpret every event according to their own interests, looking from their own perspective. Individuals lacking empathy are selfish. They always look from their own window, not seeing the whole picture. They live self-focused. In this era, individualism has been seriously encouraged under the name of modernism. Individualism was perceived as selfishness. As a result, people remain alone. When a person is not social, the danger circuits in their brain are activated. They become active. When they are activated, the person feels lonely and their internal stress increases. Subsequently, a Ministry of Loneliness was established in the UK. So, this is a global situation. The United Nations announces the three biggest dangers in the future. Firstly, climate change, secondly, income inequality, and thirdly, loneliness. As a society, we are a warm society, but the word of 2024 chosen by the Turkish Language Association is 'Crowded Loneliness'. This means we appear to have increased social contact, but we are alone in the crowd…” he stated.
Evils are a part of perfection…
Drawing attention to the necessity of managing evil instead of fighting it, Tarhan said; “Bad experiences are always present in human life. Here, our way of handling the situation is important. If the correct stance is taken against evil, if it is met correctly, and if it is managed correctly, it can be beneficial in terms of its results. In other words, evils, mistakes, and flaws are part of perfection. There is such an order in the universe. Therefore, instead of fearing, escaping, or fighting evils, it is necessary to manage them. When you fight, there is constant tension. You would have done harm to yourself. However, you will not fight, you will manage. This is the ability to remain calm under stress. Humans can achieve this. Instead of dealing with traumas, one should evaluate future opportunities. That is, in a way, we need to manage our future. We will see evil and look at what it taught us. We will learn a lesson from it. In other words, if we constantly fight with the past, traumas, and evil, we will lose our future. When we attribute evil to external causes and adopt the role of a complainer, victim, or sufferer, we cause our own suffering,” he said.
“The method to combat evil is to increase goodness”
Stating that one should not fear evils and create a paranoid future, Tarhan said; “Some schools of thought recommend being paranoid to protect oneself from evils. However, a study was conducted between paranoid and non-paranoid individuals. Paranoid individuals constantly keep themselves on alert because they suspect everything. Their likelihood of making mistakes turned out to be the same as that of non-paranoid individuals. In other words, the lives of people who suspected something but didn't dwell on it and set positive goals for themselves were examined, and their likelihood of making mistakes was the same. At least optimistic thinkers spend that time well. Therefore, let's not promise people a paranoid future by fearing evils. There are suspicious people who trust no one and say, 'The world is getting worse.' They call this 'Bad World Syndrome'. That is, there are recommendations for an isolated lifestyle. This is a behavior that does not align with the human psychological dynamic internal structure. The method to combat evil is to increase goodness. Like fighting darkness. When a person does this, they can comfortably combat both the bad part within themselves and malevolent behaviors coming from the environment, and they can manage it,” he said.
Living in harmony with nature's speed and rhythm…
Emphasizing the importance of Psycho SWOT analysis in achieving goals, Tarhan said; “Imagine a map. You will go somewhere on the map. If you don't know where you are, you cannot go. First, you will know your location. Then you will determine your destination. After that, navigation shows you the way. We cannot progress on the path of life without knowing ourselves. That's why we need to do a Psycho SWOT analysis. Here, a person has a purpose. On the way to that goal, they have strengths and weaknesses. They analyze themselves. Then they look at the opportunities and threats awaiting them. Accordingly, they engage in goal-oriented time management, and target and strategy-focused work. It is the same in the journey of life. That is, instead of avoiding struggles with difficulties and obstacles, a person needs to be constantly alert. Someone riding a bicycle falls if they ride too fast, and also falls if they ride too slow. They need to know where to speed up and where to slow down. It is actually living in harmony with nature's speed and rhythm. A person living in harmony with nature's speed and rhythm is patient when necessary and proactive when necessary. They maintain this balance,” he stated.
“The best way to combat evil is to revise our value judgments”
Stating that instead of complaining about the past, value judgments should be put on the table, Tarhan said; “Currently, we are in a digitally-based universe. We are not matter-based or energy-based. We are in a digitally-based universe. The moment we correct our current beliefs and value judgments, our value judgments from 20 years ago also get corrected. In quantum, when you correct today, it also corrects in the past. Because in quantum, there is no concept of time. A universe independent of matter and time. We live in a simulation. In quantum physics, the objective observer is important. If there is an objective observer, you are a wave. If there is no objective observer, you are just a particle. It is the presence of an objective observer that distinguishes between particle and wave. The Double-Slit Experiment is the experiment that revolutionized quantum. It is the experiment that explains quantum. This is the most accurate and scientific explanation. Given that we live in such a universe, instead of complaining about our past, we need to put our present and our value judgments on the table. Therefore, in recent years, our value judgments and mistaken beliefs appear to be the biggest treatment area in psychology. The moment we replace our mistaken value judgments with correct ones, our value judgments become like traffic signs guiding us on our path of life. Our brain scans the past, looks at the present, and references our value judgments when making decisions. This is how our brain works. It creates a shortcut in our value judgments. If our value judgments are wrong, we make wrong decisions. Therefore, the best method to combat evil is to revise our value judgments,” he said.
“What's important is to tame the wild horse within us”
Stating that in the struggle with the ego (nefs), one needs to manage misleading thoughts, Tarhan said; “The name of the bad part within us in our belief system is 'nefs'. It is known as 'nefs-i emmare'. The 'nefs' that commands evil. If you train it, the 'nefs' progresses one level. For example, it recognizes good and evil, but it becomes the faculty that tries to do good. Later, it develops itself further. It reaches a level where it can easily say no to evil. We need to recognize the part that would lead us astray and manage it like a wild horse. If we manage it, it will lead us to our goal. You cannot destroy it. Because it is an energy, it resides within us like nuclear energy. It is jealous, greedy, ambitious, selfish. There is such a wild horse within us. What's important is to tame the wild horse within us,” he said.
“The most toxic personalities are formed by the combination of these three”
Speaking about the characteristics of toxic individuals, Tarhan said; “Toxic people are poisonous people; they poison others. In close relationships, they make a person feel bad about themselves. Sometimes their intentions are not bad. They act according to their character. We need to develop the skill to say no to them. Toxic individuals constantly try to dominate you by devaluing you. They try to establish control over you. They put you down completely. And then they say, 'I'm doing all this for you.' That is, they make you dependent on them. There is even a toxic personality known as the 'three horsemen of darkness'. This is the most dangerous. Firstly, they are Machiavellian. According to them, everything is permissible to achieve their goal. They have a goal and use everything to achieve it. Secondly, being Machiavellian and antisocial. They crush rules to achieve their interests. Thirdly, they are narcissistic. They only think of their own interests. The most toxic personalities are formed by the combination of these three,” he stated.