Contemptuous Political Partisanship: An Adlerian Conceptualization and Call to Action

Abstract:Political engagement, particularly in the United States, has become increasingly contentious, contemptuous, and divisive. Politicians and political parties wage ideological warfare, using rhetoric, misinformation, and attempts to silence and belittle one another in competitive strife. These politicized forms of striving for superiority are—within an Adlerian framework—predictable results of a lack of Gemeinschaftsgefühl, or "community feeling." This article provides an Adlerian conceptualization of divisive sociopolitical trends and identifies their manifestations in current political discourse. Specific attention is given to the use of politicized contempt as a mistaken method of competitive striving. The article also proposes that the Adlerian community must model healthy political engagement by acting out Gemeinschaftsgefühl in political discourse with each other and the community at large.