DEFINITION:
The phrase “narcissistic personality disorder (NPD)” refers to a long-established pattern of excessive feelings of self-importance or grandiosity, as well as an excessive need for others’ admiration, together with an inability to empathize with others.
ETYMOLOGY:
The category of “narcissistic personality disorder” was introduced into the literature by the Austrian-born American psychoanalyst Heinz Kohut (1913–1981) in the 1960s. His conception of NPD was presented in his magnum opus, The Analysis of the Self: A Systematic Approach to the Psychoanalytic Treatment of Narcissistic Personality Disorders (1971, and later editions).
The term “narcissism” originated as narzissismus in the German medical literature in the early nineteenth century. The term was derived from the ancient Greek myth of Narcissus—a beautiful young shepherd who, according to the long Latin narrative poem Metamorphoses by Ovid, fell in love with his own reflection in a pool of water, could not tear himself away from the captivating image, and eventually starved to death.
For the etymology of the term “personality,” see the Glossary entry, personality.
For the etymology of the term “disorder,” see the Glossary entry, borderline personality disorder.
DISCUSSION:
While patients with NPD appear superficially to be prone to boastful and attention-seeking behavior, which may superficially give the impression of self-satisfaction, underneath they harbor feelings of worthlessness, shame, and self-loathing.
Above all, NPD sufferers’ sense of self is weak, being excessively dependent on other people’s approval. At the same time, they are thin-skinned and prone to displays of anger towards anyone who offers them insufficient praise or outright criticism.
As a result, NPD patients tend to avoid close personal relationships out of fear of rejection, failure, or loss of control. These feelings of inferiority often lead NPD sufferers to compensatory behavior, such as monopolizing conversations, expressing a sense of entitlement, showing contempt for others, boasting, name-dropping, and exaggerating their own achievements, family background, or personal connections.
At the same time, they may find it difficult to accept help from others, instead cultivating fantasies of revenge upon their perceived enemies.
Patients with NPD may also have a reduced capacity for understanding the meaning of others’ facial expressions and body language. While they may not be wholly incapable of feeling empathy for others, NPD sufferers are likely to overestimate the degree or the extent of such feelings.
Narcissists generally lack self-awareness, which makes it difficult for them to understand their own proclivities and actions. For this reason, they may reject a professional diagnosis of NPD—stoutly maintaining that it does not apply to them—in an effort to sustain their fragile self-image.