Paranoia

Paranoia Definition

Paranoia refers to a state characterised by paranoid reactions, which sociologically can be understood as the projection of internal, threatening feelings onto the external world. This process results in an experience where the external environment is perceived as persecutory or hostile.

Psychoanalytic Context

The concept is often explored within psychoanalysis, examining how internal psychological states manifest in social perception and interaction with the external environment.

Sociopolitical Mobilisation

For scholars interested in society, the study of paranoid reactions extends to investigating how these modes of reaction can be mobilised for political purposes. This line of inquiry links individual psychological experience to broader social and political dynamics, as illustrated by research such as that presented by T. Adorno et al. in The Authoritarian Personality (1950).