Chapter 8 Fromm: Humanistic Psychoanalysis 249colleagues (2006) sought to test these central components of Fromm’s theory
through the use of self-report measures in a sample of undergraduate students in
Great Britain. Specifically, the researchers wanted to test whether or not discrepan-
cies between a person’s own beliefs and the way the person perceived the beliefs
of his or her society led to feelings of estrangement.
Seventy-two participants completed a questionnaire consisting of several values
that had been identified by previous research as being present in many different cul-
tures (such as the importance of freedom, wealth, spirituality, etc.). First, participants
rated each value for how much it was a guiding principle in their lives, and then they
rated the same values on how much each was a guiding principle for their society.
Administering the questionnaire in this manner allowed the researchers to compute
the extent to which each participant held values that were different from their society
in general. Second, estrangement was assessed by having participants complete a
questionnaire with items that asked them how much they felt different from their
society and the extent to which they felt they were not “normal” in their culture.
The findings of the study were as predicted. The more a person reported that
his or her values were discrepant from society in general, the more likely he or she
was to have a strong feeling of estrangement (Bernard, Gebauer, & Maio, 2006).
This is not surprising. Basically, if your values are different from those of your
society or culture, you feel as though you are different and not normal. This is also
precisely what Fromm’s theory predicts. The more distant people feel from those
around them in their community, the more people are likely to feel isolated.
To further test Fromm’s ideas, Bernard and colleagues (2006) next examined
whether having a feeling of estrangement from one’s culture was related to
increased feelings of anxiety and depression. The same participants who com-
pleted the self-report measures of values discrepancies and estrangement also com-
pleted a measure of anxiety and depression. Just as the researchers predicted, and as
Fromm’s theory contends, the more estranged from society people felt in general, the
more anxious and depressed they were. Although estrangement from society in general
was detrimental to well-being, there was a specific type of estrangement that was bad
for people. Those who felt a sense of estrangement from their friends reported
increased feelings of anxiety and depression. This finding suggests that feeling
estranged from society in general may make people more susceptible to feelings of
depression, but these feelings can be lessened if a person can find a group of people
who share their beliefs, even if those are not the beliefs of the society in general.
It is particularly harmful, however, if people feel estranged not only from society in
general, but also from those closest to them.
Taken together, these findings clearly support the ideas of Erich Fromm. The
modern society in which we live provides us with innumerable conveniences and
benefits. But those conveniences do come at a cost. Personal freedom and a sense
of individuality are important, but when those forces lead people to be estranged
from their community, it can be harmful to their well-being.
Authoritarianism and Fear
Foundational to Fromm’s (1941) theory is that freedom is, ironically, frightening.
Individuals seek to escape freedom through mechanisms like authoritarianism,
destruction, or conformity to ease the fear of isolation. Shortly after Fromm’s