Musk's Chainsaw Fueled By American Need For Chaos

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When political psychologists introduced this concept of“need for chaos” in 2021 , they described it not as a psychological trait, but as a character adaptation that occurs when some people experience a cultural and political situation that makes them feel like they are losing status and power.

For some people, this feeling triggers a desire to“burn it all down” –“it” being society, institutions, the world – maybe to rebuild it all anew, or maybe just to see it all destroyed.

Only a small percentage of the US population – less than 15% – tends to score high in need for chaos. But even so, understanding this minority is important to gaining insight into this political moment.

For example, people who score high in need for chaos exhibit greater support for political violence and a willingness to knowingly share hostile and false information online . And in our data, those higher in need for chaos report holding more trust in Musk, DOGE and Trump than people who score lower in the need for chaos measure.

Who wants to burn it down

We are political psychologists who study the link between psychological traits and political beliefs. Last month, the University of Delaware's Center for Political Communication ran a national survey that we designed to understand where the public stands on various political issues and how those beliefs relate to psychological traits, including need for chaos.

In our national study of 1,600 Americans conducted between February 27 and March 5, 2025, by YouGov, we asked respondents how much they agreed or disagreed with the following statements:

.“I fantasize about a natural disaster wiping out most of humanity such that a small group of people can start all over”

.“I think society should be burned to the ground”

.“We cannot fix the problems in our social institutions; we need to tear them down and start over”

.“I need chaos around me – it is too boring if nothing is going on”

Similar to prior work by author Kevin Arceneaux and his colleagues , our data shows that a very small number – fewer than 20% of the sample – agrees strongly or agrees somewhat with each item.

However, looking at the need for chaos among groups of varying ages, education levels and media habits, we find the highest need for chaos scores among people under age 40, those with less education, and those who pay the least attention to politics.