Psychological Analysis of “Joe” Character in “You” Series

Joe Goldberg; He is a character with behaviors of becoming obsessed with certain women, ‘stalking’ them, somehow gaining their attention and killing people he believes are unfair to them.

Despite all his terrible behavior and crimes, the character of Joe, who managed to impress even the audience on the screen with his charm, even attracted the attention of psychology experts. For those who do not know what the series is about, let’s take a quick look at its subject before moving on to how it is evaluated psychologically.

The plot of the series “You”, which reached a large audience in a short time:

‘You’ is an American psychological thriller television series based on the 2014 novel by Caroline Kepnes.

The narrator and main character of the series, Joe, becomes obsessed with the women he meets somewhere and commits murders while putting them in a “love” circle full of manipulations.

Joe Goldberg’s character does not fall under the category of ‘psychopath’ in psychology.

“Psychopath” is the colloquial name for antisocial personality disorder. It is commonly used to describe a person whose behavior defies social norms and traditional notions of right/wrong. But according to mental health experts, Goldberg’s mental health is more complex than a single label.

According to Pamela Rutledge, a social scientist who studies the intersection of media, human behavior, and neuroscience, one reason why it’s difficult for Goldberg to pinpoint a single mental health condition is that “You” was created for television.

The fact that she looks so attractive signals narcissism.

Rutledge, for Goldberg, “seems to be a mix of abnormal levels of personality traits built to create a good story and to create a character that, despite killing people, arouses a certain amount of empathy in the audience. Few people act that way in real life.” says.

The fact that Joe Goldberg looks extremely attractive from the moment he is first introduced to the audience also indicates that he may be a narcissist.

We come across with different personality disorders in different seasons.

While Goldberg showed signs of antisocial personality disorder, narcissism and interdependence in season 1, in season 2; She points out that she actually has an attachment disorder by experiencing flashbacks to her past traumas.

There are two most obvious diagnoses for Joe.

According to the National Institutes of Health, people with antisocial personality disorder lack empathy and, as a result, may act in ways that society deems morally unsound, such as manipulating others to get what they want or violating another’s privacy.

According to the Mayo Clinic, people with narcissistic personality disorder typically have an inflated sense of self-importance and a lack of empathy for others, which are mechanisms used to mask low self-esteem.

It contains signs of antisocial personality disorder and narcissism.

In some ways, Goldberg embodies both situations, as he consistently resorts to violence when he believes someone has wronged him.

For example, in season 1, Beck’s girlfriend, whom he was obsessed with, hit him on the head, locked her in a glass box, and killed him a few days later. In the following episodes, Beck didn’t like his best friend’s interference in his relationship, so he killed her too.

Therapist Kelly Scott said that Goldberg committed all these heinous and illegal acts without remorse, and that he did it for his own benefit, which can be described as antisocial personality disorder.

According to some experts, the diagnosis of antisocial personality disorder is inappropriate.

According to Scott, Goldberg’s violence arose not because he lacked empathy and had antisocial personality disorder, but because of the attachment disorder he developed from his violently turbulent childhood.

Some scenes, such as the season 2 scene where Joe appears distraught after learning that his host has been murdered, prove that Goldberg does indeed have empathy and therefore does not have antisocial personality disorder.

He is sickly dependent on someone.

According to Rutledge, Goldberg’s tendency to harm or kill those close to his obsession also indicates that he is morbidly dependent on someone.

People who are severely interdependent tend to control their partner or dependent and define them by their relationship with their partner rather than their own identity.

insecure-anxious attachment

In season 2, he delves deeper into Goldberg’s past and uncovers clues that he actually has an attachment problem. The probability of having the type of attachment referred to as “insecure-anxious attachment” in psychology is quite high.

The person with this attachment type adopts a needy and clingy role in their relationship. The character of Joe also focuses his whole mind on his partner and perceives everyone as a threat. When a negative situation occurs between him and his partner, he panics and starts to give unhealthy reactions.

We can catch clues that he has a “disliking schema”.

Joe, who develops a “disliking scheme” due to the traumatic events he experienced in his childhood, loses his belief that he will be loved all the time. In order to get rid of this unlovedness, he approaches women in an obsessive manner with the “overcompensation” method, perceiving everyone around them as a threat and killing them.

A must, “mommy issues”

Scott continues his analysis of Joe’s character:

“He depended on his mother, who was unresponsive, inconsistent, and insecure. His mother abused and neglected him. That’s why, later in life, Goldberg becomes obsessively attached to women he believes can give him what he needs and is motivated by the idea of ​​getting love.”