Human beings are a gregarious species. That is, since ancient times we have lived in community. For that reason, I think that trying to understand how the brain works by separating it from the culture and society to which it belongs is as artificial and absurd as trying to study the habits of a fish by taking it out of the water. We are social beings, our identity is built partly on the basis of the gaze of others.

The same is true for self-esteem . The opinion we have of ourselves is the final amalgamation of the interaction of many internal factors, such as our temperament and personality characteristics, with external factors; that is, everything that comes from the environment, such as the education our parents gave us or the neighbourhood in which we grew up.

It is not unusual then to state that our sense of personal worth depends largely on the group to which we belong. The concept we have of ourselves is shaped not only by our personal identity, but also by a social identity .

The link between self-esteem and fanaticism

The feeling of belonging that comes from being a member of a group can thus contribute to strengthening or weakening our self-esteem. Therefore, the more positive characteristics we give to our group, whether it is a political party, a football club or whatever, the better we will feel about ourselves .

Social identity merges with personal identity, and that has a direct impact on self-esteem. If I think that the group that has taken me in is fantastic, that also makes me, as an individual, a fantastic being. And it is here that we find the germ of fanaticism : Those who fight tenaciously (and often even literally die in that fight) to defend the group’s banners, are ultimately defending their own self-esteem, which they feel is in danger.

Research in psychology postulates a simple equation: the poorer our self-esteem, the greater the need for identification with a powerful community that will help us repair it or at least sustain it. The more insecure we feel and doubt what we are worth, the stronger is the urge to save our personal pride by associating it with a solid group of belonging.

Of course, this equation is not mathematical; that is, it does not apply to 100% of people. But it does apply to many of them. At least in the West, which is the side of the planet from which the research comes, the correlation between low self-esteem and fanaticism is significant.
What I feel I don’t have, I look to the group to provide. We have here the fertile soil on which stands, often uncritically, some of the worst defects we have as a species. Here are some examples.

1. Nationalism

Configured as the absurd belief that we are better than the citizens of the neighbouring country simply because we were born randomly on this side of a border , and not on the other. The patriotic pride increases notably when it is accompanied by a feeling of morality that we believe is inherent to our society, such as the idea that God is on our side, or that good always triumphs over evil, and we are the good ones.

2. Religious Sectarianism

Leaving aside fundamentalism (because of its obviousness) one of the most notable cases in this sense is that of 1978 in Guyana, where more than 900 people who made up the People’s Temple community committed submissive and thoughtless suicide following the orders of Pastor Jim Jones, the spiritual leader of the group.

3. The dogmatism of ideas

Polarization into antagonistic groups that attack or defend a certain cause is often a bad symptom. The recent debate on the decriminalization of abortion in Argentina is a clear example, which led much of society to be divided into two opposite and irreconcilable camps, where the moral aspects and scientific arguments were relegated to the background , eclipsed by a superficial discussion in which it was not important to reach logical conclusions, but the victory of one’s own position over the other. In this sense, blaming someone else or demonizing the opponent provides the perfect excuse for not taking on board our own frustrations.

3. Political affiliation at all costs

The great merit of Adolf Hitler, and which allowed him to come to power in the 1930s in Germany, was to tell the people exactly what they needed to hear, at the right time . German morale had been devastated after the Great War. In this context of widespread crisis and low social self-esteem, Hitler knew how to channel people’s frustration and talk to them so that they would begin to feel proud of who they were again.

With such a deteriorated self-esteem, even an educated people like the German could not help but resist empowering Hitler with the results we all know. “It’s easier to fool people than to convince them that they’ve been fooled,” said Mark Twain.

4. The sports “passion”

Especially in football, in whose stadiums many times real pitched battles take place . In relation to this last point it is common to hear many people say things like: “We won, we are the best!” (when the team they are sympathetic to wins) showing the personal desire to achieve the greatest possible identification with their group. On the contrary, we will hardly hear anyone exclaim: “We lost, we are the worst!” (in the face of bitter defeat). In this second case, we should not get involved and distance ourselves from the defeated team so as not to be associated with dishonour: “You lost, you’re the worst!”

Conclusion

Only those who don’t feel good about themselves try to improve their self-image by linking it to successful people . They do not seek prestige in their own achievements, but in someone else’s. At the other extreme, those who have a good opinion of themselves do not need to reinforce it by appealing to the glory of others.

The premise is valid that the more intransigent an idea or doctrine is, the more deteriorated is likely to be the self-esteem and sense of personal identity of the individual who preaches it. We come to feel superior (in every way possible) to the same extent that we convince ourselves that our group is the best, and this is one of the worst fallacies into which we can fall.