(calm instrumental music) - People say
I'm the best YouTuber.
They say I've never watched a YouTuber like this before.
If you are as big of a fan of "The Office" as I am,
you are in for a treat because today I'm going to
psychoanalyze the regional manager
of Dunder Mifflin Scranton, Michael Scott.
And obviously Michael is a fictional character
and my assessment of his behaviors
are for entertainment purposes only.
But stayed tuned until the end when I reveal what, if any,
diagnosis I feel fits Michael's character.
Now, Michael has a lot of interesting characteristics.
The first one I want to address
is his elevated sense of self.
From the very first episode, he demonstrates his belief
that he is better than other people in the office.
In this clip, it's him proving to Jim
that he is a better salesman.
- All right, Jim, your quarterlies look very good.
How are things going at the library?
- [Jim] Oh, I told you, couldn't close it, so.
- So you've come to the master for guidance.
Is this what you're saying, grasshopper?
- [Jim] Actually, you called me in here.
But yeah.
- This is also shown in many, many episodes.
Like that time he challenged the guys in the warehouse
to a "friendly" basketball game.
Or when he tells Dwight that he can't see
his old award speeches because people would remember
what he'd said.
As if.
And when he gets offended that Pam set him up
with her landlord, when she is kind, attractive,
and, most importantly, his age.
Now I know, Michael's egotistical behavior
is really just overcompensation for how badly
he feels about himself
but I felt like this personality trait had to be mentioned.
(basketball clacks) - Okay Ryan, you have Darryl.
I have Roy.
- Really?
I thought I'd take Roy.
(basketball clacks) - No, actually I think
Roy's their best player.
Not lying.
- Next, I want to address his incessant need for attention
and to be liked.
Again, this trait is shown throughout the seven seasons
Michael is a part of but one of the earlier examples of it
is the episode called "The Injury".
This is where Michael burns his foot
on his George Foreman grill
and wants special treatment all day.
He insists on using crutches and wants them to treat him
as if he has a physical disability and gets so upset
that they aren't doing what he wants
that he calls a meeting in the conference room
where he compares his injury to the property manager's need
for a wheelchair.
(phone rings)
- Morning everyone.
Don't freak out.
I forbid anybody to freak out.
Clearly I have had a very serious accident
but I will recover, God willing.
I just want to be treated normally today.
Normal would actually be good considering the trauma
that I've been through.
- You missed two big conference calls today,
one with corporate.
- Oh, did you explain why?
- No, I didn't mention that you cooked your foot.
- Burned my foot, Pam.
- Another great example of this is when it's his birthday
and Kevin is waiting to hear back from his dermatologist
about a possible skin cancer scare.
He had some mole removed
and he was waiting to get the results.
Michael cannot handle that he is not
the center of attention.
He wants the entire day to revolve around him
and to take everyone's mind off of Kevin's issue,
insists on going to the skating rink
so that he can show off his skating skills,
which are pretty good, I'll be honest,
and a huge happy birthday, Michael banner.
Oh, and when he gets upset about not being invited
to Ryan's get-to-know-you weekend in the woods,
and does his own "Survivor Man" episode,
that's a really good one, too.
And I could go on and on for this one
but please feel free.
Share in the comments your favorite examples.
I would love to read those.
Michael is quite an egotistical jerk
and needs a lot of attention.
If you're following the behaviors and symptoms
I've touched on, you could see how maybe
I could initially believe that Michael
has narcissistic personality disorder.
Thinks very highly of himself, needs attention,
can't handle any threat to his ego,
but we aren't finished just yet.
So let's see if there are other traits that line up
with MPD or possibly another diagnosis altogether.
Next up is his belief that his relationships
are closer or more intimate than they really are.
The first example of this is how he kisses Jan once
and immediately thinks that they're in
a serious relationship.
Do you remember when he calls her for work purporses
and says, "I miss you."
And she's like, "What?"
And then he's like, "Oh, never mind."
All they did was kiss once.
Come on, Michael.
Or when he first decides that he likes Holly.
He doesn't try to get to know her before telling Jim
that he's in love with her.
Oh my God, and how he says that everyone in the office
is his family or how he meets the waitress at Benihana
and says she's the one, although he doesn't really remember
her name and he has to mark her arm
to tell her apart from her co-worker.
Oh my God.
Oh my God, Michael, so bad.
Oh and also, how he proposes to Carol
at the Diwali celebration after only dating for a few weeks.
And finally, his need to be a part of Phyllis' and Bob,
as well as Jim and Pam's weddings.
He even gets upset when Phyllis' father wants to try
and walk down the aisle instead of being in the wheelchair.
Meaning that his job of pushing
the wheelchair isn't necessary.
Oh my God, sometimes Michael, he's just the worst.
And another endearing trait of Michael Scott's
is that he constantly makes inappropriate comments
about and to his co-workers.
First off, he comments on how Pam--
Like how good she looks or how she should be looking
all the time.
- Ah, Pam has been with us for forever, right Pam?
- Well, I don't know.
- If you think she's cute now,
you should have seen her a couple of years ago. (roars)
- What?
- Ah, any messages?
- And Michael also objectifies Ryan, of all people,
throughout the entire show.
And my favorite example of this is when they read his diary
in the deposition and they ask who this Ryan woman is
and how Michael describes him as just as hot as Jan
but in a different way.
Oh my God, Toby can't even keep it together.
It's just so hilarious.
Not to mention his constant use of the phrase,
"That's what she said."
Which is awesome, I'll be honest, but there are,
like examples of this are just endless.
Also, Michael is incredibly dramatic
and everything that happens to him or things he's apart of,
he exaggerates situations and definitely
has a flare for this.
Whether it's his response to not being invited
to the real launch party in New York
or him trying to shove his burned foot into the CAT scan
that Dwight is receiving for his concussion,
Michael always takes things to the extreme,
especially when it comes to his relationship with corporate,
mainly David Wallace.
Michael calls him over so many various issues,
whether it's about the possible downsizing,
his struggle to co-manage with Jim,
or his issue being managed by Charles,
every small upset is huge in Michael's eyes.
Oh, and also his response to leaking Jim's secret
about liking Pam.
Jim talks to Pam, deals with it like an adult,
meanwhile Michael starts crying
when coming clean to Jim about it.
He's just so over the top.
And finally, Michael is so suggestible.
If he thinks someone is cooler or better than him
in any way he'll go along with whatever they say.
Like the first example of this is how Michael is told
he has to fire someone by the end of the day.
If you don't recall, he tries to fire Creed
but Creed talks him out of it.
"Hetetetetete, I forget so fast," right,
and he persuades him to fire Devon instead.
And when Devon gets mad and tells him that Creed deserved
to be fired because who knows what Creed does
but he definitely doesn't do any work,
Michael wants to go along with him, too.
But then pushes back, "I can't not fire him and fire, ugh."
And so it's over.
So he ends up firing Devon.
And a small example of his suggestibility is how Michael
mimics Ryan's facial hair.
And then after they both cut off their goatees,
you know Dwight finally has grown his out.
It's pretty funny.
And also, when my least favorite character,
you guessed it, Todd Packer, ugh,
when he tells Michael that is he's planning Bob Vance's,
of Vance Refrigeration, if he's planning his bachelor party,
he has to have a stripper.
He's like, "No bachelor party is complete
"without a stripper.
"What are you trying to throw here?"
Michael goes along with it,
even though Bob already told him he didn't want a stripper,
and especially not to come to like a workplace party
at like 3 p.m. on a Wednesday, or whatever,
in the warehouse.
There are obviously a lot of other examples,
not to mention other personality traits
that make up Michael Scott.
However, based on what I believe to be his main traits,
I would have to diagnose him with, drum roll please,
(purrs) histrionic personality disorder
because, and let me read the diagnosis as follows,
a pervasive pattern of excessive emotionality
and attention seeking beginning by early adulthood
and present in a variety of contexts as indicated by
five or more of the following:
is uncomfortable in situations in which he or she
is not the center of attention.
Sound familiar.
Interaction with others is often characterized by
inappropriate, sexually, seductive, or provocative behavior.
That's what she said.
Three, displays rapidly shifting
and shallow expressions of emotions.
Four, consistently uses physical appearance
to draw attention to one's self.
Five, has a style of speech that is excessively
impressionistic and lacking in detail.
Six, shows self-dramatization,
theatricality, wow, that's a mouth full,
and exaggerated expression of emotion.
Seven, is suggestible, like easily influenced
by others or circumstances.
And finally number eight, considers relationships
to be more intimate than they actually are.
And I believe that Michael Scott has at least five,
is not more, of those characteristics.
And also, just keep in mind that I would need to see him
for at least six months, ideally a year,
in order to rule out other diagnoses
and ensure that histrionic personality disorder
is the appropriate diagnosis for him.
But what do you think?
Do you agree?
Do you think there's another diagnosis that would fit?
I would love to hear your comments down below.
Thank you so much for watching and I will see you next time.
Bye.
(upbeat instrumental music)