Which book by a psychiatrist is most critical of Trump's personality?

1. The book named and why it’s the lead candidate

The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump is repeatedly identified in reporting and reviews as the central psychiatrist‑authored volume that is highly critical of Trump’s personality and potential dangerousness; the collection was edited by Bandy X. Lee and originally gathered essays from 27 psychiatrists and mental‑health experts assessing risk and traits they find alarming ^{[1] [2]}. Summaries and publisher material emphasize that contributors use public statements and behavior to illustrate patterns—narcissistic, impulsive, and ruthless—that they regard as consequential for a head of state ^{[2] [5]}.

2. What the psychiatrists actually argue in the book

Contributors frame their essays around three themes—“the Trump phenomenon,” “the Trump dilemma” (whether clinicians have a duty to warn), and “the Trump effect” on society—and several authors apply forensic concepts (dangerousness, psychopathy checklists, narcissistic traits) to public evidence about Trump’s behavior, warning those traits could lead to national harm ^{[2] [6]}. One reviewer notes chapters that explicitly describe Trump as impulsive, arrogant, chaotic, and self‑important, and the work includes forensic assessments of possible dangerousness ^{[2] [4]}.

3. Professional controversy: the Goldwater Rule and pushback

The book provoked professional disagreement because the American Psychiatric Association’s Goldwater Rule prohibits psychiatrists from offering professional opinions about public figures they have not examined; reviewers and journals note that the contributors try to navigate or avoid a formal diagnosis while making strong public claims about risk and personality ^{[4] [1]}. Critical reviews—such as in the Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law—challenge parts of the book, warning that some linkages (e.g., from narcissism to delusional thinking) verge on poor science and may undermine psychiatry’s credibility ^[4].

4. Broader public and media reaction

The collection quickly became a focal point in public discourse: it was a bestseller, widely excerpted by outlets like Bill Moyers’ site, and used by opinion writers and commentators to argue for urgent consideration of Trump’s mental state ^{[7] [5]}. At the same time reviewers in outlets such as The Wall Street Journal characterized some of the essays as partisan or “paranoid,” demonstrating that media reception split along lines of perceived urgency versus concerns about methodology and professional ethics ^[1].

5. Updates, spin‑offs, and allied voices

Subsequent editions and related public commentary expanded the original project—reporting indicates an updated edition (sometimes referenced as The More Dangerous Case of Donald Trump) added more contributors and chapters, and other clinicians and family members (for example Mary Trump, a clinical psychologist) published parallel critical takes, reinforcing a cluster of psychiatric and psychological critiques in the public arena ^{[8] [7]}. These parallel voices have been used by advocates to quantify traits via tools such as psychopathy checklists, though critics caution about the limits of such retrospective public‑figure assessments ^{[8] [4]}.

6. Limitations, what sources don’t say, and why it matters

Available sources document the book’s prominence and the basic contentions of its contributors, but they do not provide a definitive clinical diagnosis of Trump (and the book’s contributors generally avoid an official diagnostic pronouncement because they have not personally examined him) or unanimous consensus across psychiatry; in fact, reviewers note internal disagreements and methodological concerns ^{[4] [1]}. Where readers seek a single psychiatrist’s most scathing single‑author book, the assembled collection is the clearest, best‑documented answer in current reporting; other individual clinicians have written op‑eds or participated in briefings, but the multi‑author volume is the standout psychiatric work cited in the available coverage ^{[2] [1]}.

7. Takeaway for a reader deciding where to look next

If you want the psychiatrist‑oriented text most widely referenced as critical of Trump’s personality and dangerousness, start with The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump and its later expanded editions; then read the Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law review and mainstream press coverage to understand both the book’s arguments and the professional and methodological critiques that tempered its reception ^{[2] [4] [1]}.