Exploring Mind and Soul of Social Character: Dialectic Psychodynamics of Economism and Humanism in Society, Organizations, and Individuals

Abstract Building on and extending previous theorizing, this contribution draws on the critique of neoliberal ideology in conjunction with radical humanism to deconstruct the ambivalent normative foundations of applied psychology and related fields of social science. Presented is a systemically embedded and integrated dialectic and dynamic model of ideological undercurrents shaping the political-economic, social-institutional, and psychodynamic structures of society, organizations, and individuals. Integrating dialectic antipodes of genuine ideas versus interest-guided ideology with social character theory, neoliberal economistic doctrines and antithetical humanist philosophical concepts are contrasted as opposing political, social, and psychological or “fantasmatic” logics. Based on psychoanalytic theory, neoliberal fantasies of success, superiority, and submission are derived from these and positioned against humanist consciousness of evolution, equality, and empowerment. This normative fabric of advanced capitalist societies is interpreted with reference to the conference theme as the mind and soul of social character. Economistic psychodynamics are linked to social alienation, humanist antipodes to psychological fulfilment. Personal meaning is introduced as a meta-dimension of existential alienation, respectively, wellbeing. Stressing the fundamental unity of insights regarding external and internal realities, complementarity of denaturalization and critique of societal ideologies with critical self-reflection and personal development is recommended. In this sense, the presented analysis aspires to contribute to clearing the mind and strengthening the soul by cultivating radical humanist philosophy versus neoliberal economistic rationality. KEYWORDS: Neoliberal ideology, radical humanism, dialectic analysis, psychodynamics, social critique, ethical issues