Batman may be a great crime fighter, but he's a lousy expert at mental health.
So says forensic psychiatrist Vasilis K. Pozios, M.D., a physician specializing in forensic and adult psychiatry who is also a big comics fan.
Although he says Batman deserves accolades for his detective work, the superhero would do well to go back to school to learn more about mental health as it relates to criminal behavior.
"As a mental health professional, Batman comes across as insensitive," Pozios told HuffPost Weird News. "He could definitely use more training in that area."
Bender uses the example of the Joker, the most famous Batman villain, as a character who has incorrectly been called "psychotic" many times throughout Batman's 72-year history.
"Someone who is 'psychotic' is experiencing symptoms of psychosis, a mental disorder, which can include auditory hallucinations, such as hearing voices; visual hallucinations, where they see objects that are not truly there; or have delusional thoughts, despite evidence to show that such beliefs are incorrect -- such as believing that one's movements are being tracked by deep space satellites -- or disorganized behavior," Bender said. "In the vast majority of depictions, the Joker is not experiencing such symptoms; rather, the Joker has shown symptoms of psychopathy."
Bender says psychopathy is a personality construct and not a diagnosis of a mental disorder.
"Psychopathy reflects interpersonal characteristics and behavior that are often rooted in a lack of empathy," Bender said. "In the comics, television shows, and films, the Joker is much more akin to a psychopath and is not psychotic." http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/21/batman-villains-psychoanalyzed_n_901913.html
