Narcissistic Disorder Information
Article Series on Narcissism and Narcissistic Personality Disorder
Quick links to help you easily find the recent Suite101.com articles on the Narcissistic personality, including basic information, assessment and current research.
Overview of Narcissism
The term narcissism is derived from the Greek myth of Narcissus, a handsome youth who became obsessed with himself, falling in love with his own reflection. Some degree of narcissism is considered normal; however, when narcissistic traits are so predominant that they significantly impair an individual’s social functioning, this merits a psychological diagnosis of Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD). Yet, the spectrum of narcissistic behavior can extend far beyond NPD to include even more serious forms of self-obsession including malignant narcissism and psychopathy (Kernberg 2003, 2004).
Links to Articles on Narcissism:
Narcissistic Personality Disorder
NPD is a type of psychological personality disorder characterized primarily by grandiosity, need for admiration, and lack of empathy. Narcissism occurs in a spectrum of severity, but the pathologically narcissistic tend to be extremely self-absorbed, intolerant of others’ perspectives, insensitive to others’ needs and indifferent to the effect of their own egocentric behavior.
Malignant narcissism is like NPD on pathological steroids, manifesting additional antisocial features, paranoid traits, and ego-syntonic aggression. Kernberg believed that malignant narcissism was part of a spectrum of narcissistic behavior; ranging from NPD, at the low end, to malignant narcissism, and with psychopathy representing the high end of narcissistic severity.
Narcissistic Disorder Diagnosis
This article describes the use of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR), the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10, the Millon™ Clinical Multiaxial Inventory (MCMI™), and the Narcissistic Personality Inventory (NPI) in the assessment and diagnosis of Narcissistic Personality.
The NPI, NPI-JO and NPQC are used to measure narcissistic traits in adults, juveniles and children respectively. These tests are not used for clinical diagnosis of NPD. Their purpose is to assess narcissism in subjects of psychological research.
When is Narcissism a Disorder?
What’s the distinction between “normal” narcissism and psychological disorder? In a new study appearing in the May issue of Personality and Individual Differences, two American psychologists examined the contrasting perspectives on narcissism held by social psychologists and clinical psychologists.
Cluster B Personality Disorders
Personality disorders are grouped into one of three clusters based on common characteristics. Cluster B represents the dramatic and erratic, and includes: Antisocial, Borderline, Histrionic and Narcissistic PD.
These articles explore the similarities and differences between the two Cluster B disorders of narcissistic and antisocial personality.
More Information on Personality Disorders
There are numerous on-line and in print resources with additional information on personality disorders, including: Psychology Prof Online and The Mayo Clinic: Mental Health Center.
This article is a brief summary narcissism. The contents of this article are not meant to be used for diagnosis and are not a substitute for professional help and counseling.
Additional PD Sources
American Psychiatric Association APA (2000) Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR).
Dobbert, D. (2007) Understanding Personality Disorders: An Introduction. Greenwood Press.
Kernberg, Otto (2004) Aggressivity, Narcissism, and Self-Destructiveness in the Psychotherapeutic Relationship: New Developments in the Psychopathology and Psychotherapy of Severe Personality Disorders.
Kernberg, Otto and Akhtar, Salman. (2003) Broken Structures: Severe Personality Disorders and Their Treatment.
Millon, T. (2004) Personality Disorders In Modern Life. John Wiley & Sons.
Vaknin, S (1999-2007). Malignant Self Love: Narcissism Revisited.
