Polycrates complex

In psychology, a Polycrates complex is a desire to be punished.

Origin

This complex was named after the tyrant Polycrates who, instead of heeding his daughter's prophecy of his impending death, went to visit a treacherous would-be benefactor and was murdered.

Common usage

It is used by psychoanalyst criminologists to explain crime. During the ages 4–6, (the phallic stage), a male child undergoes what Freud calles the "Oedipus complex", meaning the desire to kill one's father and commit incest with one's mother. This desire is the cause of unconscious guilt which makes the child wish to be punished, thus reaching catharsis. Therefore, the criminal act in this context is considered a means to a goal (i.e., punishment).