The hero syndrome is a phenomenon affecting people who seek heroism or recognition, usually by creating a desperate situation which they can resolve. This can include unlawful acts, such as arson. The phenomenon has been noted to affect civil servants, such as firefighters, nurses, police officers, and security guards.[1] Acts linked with the hero syndrome should not be confused with acts of malicious intent, such as revenge on the part of a suspended firefighter or an insatiable level of excitement, as was found in a federal study of more than 75 firefighter arsonists.[2] However, acts of the hero syndrome have been linked to previously failed heroism.[3] The hero syndrome may also be a more general yearning for self-worth.[4]
Carl Gustav Jung, Swiss psychiatrist and founder of analytical psychology, found that the phenomenon of fragmented identity can result in what he referred to as complexes.
There are various categories of complexes. Each category is rooted in a particular archetype. Major categories include: father, mother, brother, sister, hero, child and animus or anima.
An archetype is a generic, idealized model of a person, object, or concept from which similar instances are derived, copied, patterned, or emulated. In psychology, an archetype is a model of a person, personality, or behavior.
In Jung's psychological framework archetypes are innate, universal prototypes for ideas and may be used to interpret observations. A group of memories and interpretations associated with an archetype is a complex, e.g. a mother complex associated with the mother archetype.
Indeed, the contents of complexes are as varied as human experiences. We can have complexes about love, status, intelligence, competition winning, being recognized, money, food, addictions, honor, and so on, and so forth. Each complex produces a "knee-jerk" reaction to certain sets of circumstances.
The Hero Complex is an inherent desire to help others. It is a compulsion to help make their world right. Not officially a disorder or disease, there are an increasing number of people who 'suffer' from it.
Comic book heroes also suffer from this disorder, having the need to help others. May also be associated with Zoological Altruism- Instinctive cooperative behavior that is detrimental to the individual but contributes to the survival of the species.
A screening method has been developed, based on the case that those who commit the acts are generally young and are looking for an opportunity to prove or flaunt their bravery.[5] However, there are no formal scientific studies on the hero syndrome.[6] Some claim that those with the syndrome are "narcissists in a slump", pointing to people who have failed to achieve their dreams and ambitions, downtrodden by society's infatuation with fame.[7]