View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by South East Academic Libraries System (SEALS) A PSYCHOBIOGRAPHICAL STUDY OF JOSEPH STALIN Vuyiswa Matsolo Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Magister Artium Psychology (Research) in the Faculty of Health Sciences at the Nelson Mandela University April 2019 Supervisor: Dr. A. Sandison ii Photography of Joseph Stalin Source: Khlevniuk, 2015. iii Abstract Joseph Stalin was the dictator of the Soviet Union from 1929 to 1953. Stalin ruled by terror and millions of people died during his term as leader. Stalin was known as an evil man, however, he was also hailed as a hero who was able to transform Russia into a major super power. Stalin died in 1953 at the age of 74, after suffering a massive stroke. The aim of the current study was to explore and describe the personality development of Stalin, by applying Alfred Adler’s theory of Individual Psychology and Theodore Millon’s Biopsychosocial Model of Personality to the context of his life experiences. The research design is a psychobiography, which is a single case study, and non-probability purposive sampling was used to select Stalin. The data consisted of primary and secondary data sources that described Stalin’s life experiences, and Yin’s (1994) guidelines for data collection were followed for data collection, which include using multiple sources of evidence, creating a case study database, and keeping and maintaining a reliable chain of evidence. The data was analysed in accordance to Miles and Huberman’s (1994a) model of data analysis. The findings of the study indicated that Stalin’s striving for significance was largely influenced by the social environment and cultural context in which he lived. These factors influenced his need for perfection and superiority, which became prevalent in his behaviour within his childhood years and throughout his quest for power in the Soviet Union. Stalin presented with Adler’s active-destructive lifestyle, which aligns with Millon’s antisocial personality pattern which focuses more on meeting the needs of the self at the expense of others. Key Concepts: Alfred Adler, Individual Psychology, Joseph Stalin, Psychobiography, Theodore Millon iv Table of Contents Declaration ....................................................................................................................................... i Photography of Joseph Stalin ......................................................................................................... ii Abstract .......................................................................................................................................... iii Table of Contents ........................................................................................................................... iv List of Appendices ....................................................................................................................... xiii Chapter 1 ....................................................................................................................................... 1 Introduction and Problem Statement ......................................................................................... 1 Chapter Preview .............................................................................................................................. 1 Overview of the Psychobiographical Approach ............................................................................. 1 Overview of Theoretical Framework .............................................................................................. 1 Adler’s Theory of Individual Psychology .................................................................................... 2 Millon’s Biopsychosocial Model of Personality .......................................................................... 3 Overview of Joseph Stalin’s Life .................................................................................................... 4 Aim and Methodology of the Research .......................................................................................... 5 Overview of the Dissertation .......................................................................................................... 6 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................................... 6 Chapter: 2 ...................................................................................................................................... 7 Psychobiography: Overview and Methodology ......................................................................... 7 Chapter Preview .............................................................................................................................. 7 Underpinnings of Psychobiography................................................................................................ 7 Biographical Research .................................................................................................................. 7 Psychohistory ............................................................................................................................... 8 Life Story and Life History .......................................................................................................... 8 Psychobiography ............................................................................................................................. 9 v Defining Psychobiography.............................................................................................................. 9 History of Psychobiography ......................................................................................................... 10 The Value of Psychobiography ..................................................................................................... 12 The uniqueness of the individual case within the whole. .......................................................................... 12 The socio-historical context. .................................................................................................................... 12 Process and pattern over time. ................................................................................................................. 12 Subjective reality. ..................................................................................................................................... 13 Theory testing and development. .............................................................................................................. 13 Methodological Considerations of Psychobiography ................................................................... 13 Research bias. ........................................................................................................................................... 13 Reductionism. ........................................................................................................................................... 14 Cross cultural differences. ........................................................................................................................ 15 Analysing of absent subject. ..................................................................................................................... 16 Inflated expectations. ................................................................................................................................ 16 Infinite amount of biographical data. ....................................................................................................... 17 Elitism and easy genre. ............................................................................................................................. 17 Validity and reliability. ............................................................................................................................. 18 Construct validity. .................................................................................................................................................. 18 Internal validity. ..................................................................................................................................................... 18 External Validity. ................................................................................................................................................... 19 Reliability. .............................................................................................................................................................. 19 Research Aim ................................................................................................................................ 19 Research Methodology ................................................................................................................. 20 Research Design............................................................................................................................ 20 Sampling Method .......................................................................................................................... 22 Data Collection and Analysis........................................................................................................ 23 Data collection matrix. ............................................................................................................................