fei75766_ch06_179-205.indd 193  02/06/20 11:32 AM
Chapter 6    Horney: Psychoanalytic Social Theory193
Theneed for perfection refers tothedrive tomold thewhole personality intothe
idealized self.Neurotics arenotcontent tomerely make afewalterations; nothing 
short ofcomplete perfection isacceptable. They trytoachieve perfection byerecting 
acomplex setof“shoulds” and“should nots.” Horney (1950) referred tothisdrive as
thetyranny of the should. Striving toward animaginary picture ofperfection, neurot -
icsunconsciously tellthemselves: “Forget about thedisgraceful creature youactually 
are;thisishowyoushould be ”(p.64).
Asecond keyelement intheneurotic search forglory isneurotic ambition, that
is,thecompulsive drive toward superiority. Although neurotics haveanexaggerated 
need toexcel ineverything, theyordinarily channel theirenergies intothose activities 
thataremost likely tobring success. Thisdrive, therefore, maytakeseveral different 
forms during aperson’s lifetime (Horney, 1950). Forexample, while stillinschool, a
girlmaydirect herneurotic ambition toward being thebeststudent inschool. Later, 
shemaybedriven toexcel inbusiness ortoraisetheverybestshow dogs. Neurotic 
ambition mayalsotakealessmaterialistic form, suchasbeing themost saintly or
most charitable person inthecommunity.
Thethird aspect oftheneurotic search forglory isthedrive toward a vindictive 
triumph, themost destructive element ofall.Theneed foravindictive triumph maybe
disguised asadrive forachievement orsuccess, but“itschief aimistoputothers to
shame ordefeat them through one’s verysuccess; ortoattain thepower ...toinflict 
suffering onthem—mostly ofahumiliating kind” (Horney, 1950, p.27).Interestingly, 
inHorney’s personal relationship withmen, sheseemed totakepleasure incausing 
them tofeelashamed andhumiliated (Hornstein, 2000).
Thedrive foravindictive triumph grows outofthechildhood desire totake
revenge forrealorimagined humiliations. Nomatter howsuccessful neurotics are
invindictively triumphing overothers, theynever losetheirdrive foravindictive 
triumph—instead, theyincrease itwitheachvictory. Every success raises theirfearof
defeat andincreases theirfeelings ofgrandeur, thussolidifying theirneed forfurther 
vindictive triumphs.
Neurotic Claims
Asecond aspect oftheidealized image isneurotic claims. Intheirsearch forglory, 
neurotics build afantasy world—a world thatisoutofsyncwiththerealworld. Believ -
ingthatsomething iswrong withtheoutside world, theyproclaim thattheyarespe-
cialandtherefore entitled tobetreated inaccordance withtheiridealized viewof
themselves. Because these demands areverymuch inaccordance withtheiridealized 
self-image, theyfailtoseethattheirclaims ofspecial privilege areunreasonable.
Neurotic claims grow outofnormal needs andwishes, buttheyarequite differ -
ent.When normal wishes arenotfulfilled, people become understandably frustrated; 
butwhen neurotic claims arenotmet,neurotics become indignant, bewildered, and
unable tocomprehend whyothers havenotgranted theirclaims. Thedifference 
between normal desires andneurotic claims isillustrated byasituation inwhich 
many people arewaiting inlinefortickets forapopular movie. Most people nearthe
endofthelinemight wishtobeupfront, andsome ofthem mayeventrysome ploy
togetabetter position. Nevertheless, these people know thattheydon’t really deserve 
tocutahead ofothers. Neurotic people, ontheother hand, trulybelieve thattheyFinal PDF to printer