Narcissitsic personality disorder
Jesus Ramos
Psychology
Per.4
Narcissistic personality disorder
• Narcissistic personality disorder is a condition in which
people have an inflated sense of self-importance and an
extreme preoccupation with themselves.
Signs of narcissism:
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React to criticism with rage, shame, or humiliation
Take advantage of other people to achieve his or her own goals
Have excessive feelings of self-importance
Exaggerate achievements and talents
Be preoccupied with fantasies of success, power, beauty, intelligence, or ideal love
Have unreasonable expectations of favorable treatment
Need constant attention and admiration
Disregard the feelings of others, and have little ability to feel empathy
Have obsessive self-interest
Pursue mainly selfish goals
Like other personality disorders, narcissistic personality disorder is diagnosed based
on a psychological evaluation and the history and severity of the symptoms
Narcissistic personality disorder personality
on the DSM-IV-TR
Symptoms of narcissism might develop in the early adult years.
(1) Has a huge sense of self-importance.
(2) Is preoccupied with fantasies of unlimited success, power,
brilliance, beauty, or ideal love.
(3) Believes that he or she is "special" and unique and can only
be understood by, or should associate with, other special or
high-status people.
(4) Requires excessive admiration.
(5)Takes advantage of others to achieve his or her own goals.
(6) Lacks empathy: is unwilling to recognize or identify with the
feelings and needs of others.
(7) Is often envious of others or believes that others are
envious of him or her.
Etiology of narcissism
the etiology of narcissistic personality disorder which, while
not new, is at variance with the commonly held position
that this disorder is the outcome of the insufficient
gratification of the normal narcissistic needs of infancy and
childhood. The contrary thesis is presented: that
narcissistic personality disorder is the outcome of
narcissistic overgratification during childhood. A fixation to
this overgratification interferes with the normal maturation
and integration of the superego, leading to difficulties in
self-esteem regulation and to a tendency to narcissistic
behavior.
prevalence of narcissism
• Narcissism traits are very common in adolescents.
• But, the prevalence of Narcissistic Personality Disorder
is less than 1% of the general population
• This disorder is more frequent in males (50% to 75%)
than females.
• But most adolescents grow out of this behavior.
Unfortunately, for some, this narcissistic behavior
persists and intensifies into adulthood; thus they
become diagnosed with this disorder.
Treatments for narcissism.
• Medical treatment: such as hospitalization, due to the severity
of the disorder that a person could become impulsive or selfdestructive.
• Individual psycho therapy: help the patient use his or
her narcissistic characteristics to reconstitute an
intact self-image. The patient must find a
balance between being super-human and
devalued.
• Group therapy: To help the patient develop a healthy
individuality, and to see others as equals.
Prognosis of narcissism
The symptoms have caused and continue to cause
significant distress or negative consequences in different
aspects of the person's life. This will lead to an inflated
sense of self worth, alcohol and drug abuse, and problems
with relationships, work, and family.
References
Blais MA, Smallwood P, Groves JE, Rivas-Vazquez RA. Personality and personality
disorders. In: Stern TA, Rosenbaum JF, Fava M, Biederman J, Rauch SL, eds. Massachusetts
General Hospital Clinical Psychiatry. 1st ed. Philadellphia, Pa: Mosby Elsevier;2008:chap 39. website
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001930/
Narcissistic personality disorder. In: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders DSM-IV-TR. 4th
ed. Arlington, Va.: American Psychiatric Association; 2000. http://www.psychiatryonline.com. Accessed
Sept. 8, 2009
Young JQ. Narcissistic personality disorder. In: Ferri FF. Ferri's Clinical Advisor 2009. St. Louis, Mo.:
Mosby; 2008. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/157868696-3/883355123/1701/392.html#4-u1.0B978-0-323-04134-8..50017-3--subchapter1_8371. Accessed Sept. 8, 2009.
Questions for discussion
• What causes narcissistic personality disorder?