Crowd Psychology in the Harry Potter Saga

This paper seeks to uncover the hidden meaning of psychological leadership in the “Harry Potter” universe. It analyzes the roles of both Albus Dumbledore and Harry Potter as a point of departure in its argument. It argues that they rely on psychological elements to influence others, accentuate their beliefs, and even sway the public. The most used of which is prestige, which stems from their fame in the wizarding world as well as their wealth and leadership. This paper challenges both characters’ leadership models to put forward a novel understanding, whereby proving that Dumbledore and Potter are not as benevolent as they seem to publicize. To cement this claim, the study will mainly make use of Gustave Le Bon’s book “The Crowd: A Study of the Popular Mind” and Kathleen Taylor’s book “Brainwashing: The Science of Thought Control” to display the fundamental difference between a leader and a psychological leader alongside their key differences. Those differences are highlighted when scrutinizing the leading techniques employed by both characters to review their capacity as leaders and success, or lack thereof, in this role. This paper also tackles the impact of media in steering crowd psychology, which provides a new psychological threshold for studying the “Harry Potter” universe and its characters.