The "Napoleon complex", known informally as small man syndrome, is a syndrome normally attributed to people of
small stature
Small may refer to:
Science and technology
* SMALL, an ALGOL-like programming language
* Small (anatomy), the lumbar region of the back
* ''Small'' (journal), a nano-science publication
* <small>, an HTML element that defines smaller text
...
. It is characterized by overly-aggressive or domineering social behavior, such as lying about earnings, and carries the implication that such behavior is compensatory for the subject's physical or social shortcomings. In psychology, the Napoleon complex is regarded as a derogatory
social stereotype
In social psychology, a stereotype is a generalized belief about a particular category of people. It is an expectation that people might have about every person of a particular group. The type of expectation can vary; it can be, for example ...
.
Etymology
The Napoleon complex is named after
Napoleon, the first
Emperor of the French
Emperor of the French (French: ''Empereur des Français'') was the title of the monarch and supreme ruler of the First and the Second French Empires.
Details
A title and office used by the House of Bonaparte starting when Napoleon was pro ...
.
Common folklore supposes that Napoleon compensated for his lack of height by seeking power, war, and conquest. This view was fostered and encouraged by the British, who waged a propaganda campaign to diminish their enemy in print and art, during his life and after his death. In 1803, he was mocked in British newspapers as a short-tempered small man.
According to some historians, he was actually tall, an inch or so above the period's average adult male height, depending on the source chosen. Other historians assert that he was because he was measured on a British island 28 years after the French adopted the metric system.
Napoleon was often seen with his
Imperial Guard, which contributed to the perception of his being short because the Imperial Guards were tall men. Other names for the purported condition include Napoleonic complex, Napoleon syndrome and short man syndrome.
Research
In 2007, a study by the
University of Central Lancashire concluded that the Napoleon complex (described in terms of the theory that shorter men are more aggressive to dominate those who are taller than they are) is a myth. The study discovered that short men were less likely to lose their temper than men of average height. The experiment involved subjects dueling each other with sticks, with one subject deliberately rapping the other's knuckles. Heart monitors revealed that the taller men were more likely to lose their tempers and hit back. University of Central Lancashire lecturer Mike Eslea commented that "when people see a short man being aggressive, they are likely to think it is due to his size, simply because that attribute is obvious and grabs their attention".
The Wessex Growth Study is a community-based
longitudinal study
A longitudinal study (or longitudinal survey, or panel study) is a research design that involves repeated observations of the same variables (e.g., people) over short or long periods of time (i.e., uses longitudinal data). It is often a type of ...
conducted in the UK that monitored the psychological development of children from school entry to adulthood. The study was
controlled for potential effects of
gender
Gender is the range of characteristics pertaining to femininity and masculinity and differentiating between them. Depending on the context, this may include sex-based social structures (i.e. gender roles) and gender identity. Most cultures us ...
and
socioeconomic status
Socioeconomic status (SES) is an economic and sociological combined total measure of a person's work experience and of an individual's or family's economic access to resources and social position in relation to others. When analyzing a family's ...
, and found that "no significant differences in personality functioning or aspects of daily living were found which could be attributable to height"; this functioning included generalizations associated with the Napoleon complex, such as risk-taking behaviours.
Abraham Buunk, a professor at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands, concluded that he had evidence of the small man syndrome. Researchers at the university found that men who were were 50% more likely to show signs of jealousy than men who were .
In popular culture
Singer-songwriter
Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the ...
referenced the Napoleon complex in her 2009 song "
Obsessed", accusing someone of being "''all fired up with
heirNapoleon complex''"''.'' The song is widely believed to be a response to rapper
Eminem
Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINƎM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing hip hop in middle America and is critically acclai ...
,
who had made disparaging remarks about Carey in multiple previous songs. Eminem stands at .
In the
visual novel
A , often abbreviated as VN, is a form of digital semi-interactive fiction. Visual novels are often associated with and used in the medium of video games, but are not always labeled as such themselves. They combine a textual narrative with sta ...
''
Doki Doki Literature Club!
''Doki Doki Literature Club!'' (''DDLC'') is a 2017 freeware visual novel developed by American independent game studio Team Salvato for Microsoft Windows, macOS, and Linux. The game was initially distributed through itch.io, and later became av ...
'', a character named Natsuki has an after the same complex, aggressiveness offsetting for her small stature. Natsuki stands at .
In the
video game
Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device to gener ...
''
Marcello's Fun House'', a character named Bambi also has an after the same complex, offsetting his low stature with a hothead personality. Bambi stands at , which is the two hotdogs height.
See also
*
Human height
Human height or stature is the distance from the bottom of the feet to the top of the head in a human body, standing erect. It is measured using a stadiometer, in centimetres when using the metric system or SI system, or feet and inches when us ...
*
Heightism
*
Inferiority complex
In psychology, an inferiority complex is an intense personal feeling of inadequacy, often resulting in the belief that one is in some way deficient, or inferior, to others.
According to Alfred Adler, a feeling of inferiority may be brought a ...
References
{{Reflist
Slang
Pejorative terms for people with disabilities
Napoleon
1800s neologisms
Eponyms