Everyone to a certain extent is selfish. But, some people are so selfish that they are willing to do anything it takes to make themselves known. The specific term for a person who is like this is a narcissist. Narcissism is a personality disorder that is a mental condition in which people have an inflated sense of their own importance (“Narcissistic Personality Disorder”). This disorder is important to note because it can have a great impact on other people’s lives who know a narcissist. People diagnosed with narcissism make a negative impact on friendships, relationships, school, and their work environment. How can this personality disorder be dealt with? Is there a treatment?
To truly understand how this personality disorder came to be, it is best to first start looking at where it originated. The term narcissism originated from the mythological person named Narcissus, who claimed his name from becoming obsessed with his reflection after discovering it from looking into a pond. He became so obsessed with how he looked that he eventually died at the water! Thus the term narcissism was born. This mental disorder was studied more in the early 1900’s.
“The concept of excessive self-admiration has also been explored by various
philosophers and thinkers throughout history. Austrian psychoanalyst Otto Rank
published one of the earliest descriptions of narcissism in 1911, in which he connected it
to self-admiration and vanity. In 1914, the famous Sigmund Freud published a paper
titled, On Narcissism: An Introduction. He felt that infants directed all of the libido
inward, a state he referred to as primary narcissism (Cherry).”
The two main people who brought up more conversation about narcissism were Otto Kernberg and Heinz Kohut.
“According to Kohut, the child’s self develops and gains maturity through interactions with others--primarily the mother--that provide the child with opportunities to gain approval and enhancement and to identify with perfect and omnipotent role models. Kohut goes on to say that narcissism is in effect developmental arrest—a halt in the child’s development at what was a normal and necessary stage, with the result that the child’s self remains grandiose and unrealistic. At the same time, the child continues to idealize others to maintain self-esteem through association (Rhodewalt).”
On the other hand, Kernberg has a different approach to how people develop the disorder. It results from the child’s reaction to coldness and lack of empathy on the parents’ part, perhaps stemming from their own narcissism (Rhodewalt). In this view the narcissistic defense reflects the child’s attempt to take refuge in some aspect of the self that evokes admiration in others—a defense that ultimately results in a grandiose and inflated sense of self (1). In this view the narcissistic defense reflects the child’s attempt to take refuge in some aspect of the self that evokes admiration in others—a defense that ultimately results in a grandiose and inflated sense of self (1).
Both views of narcissism from Kernberg and Kohut are accurate representations of how a person can develop this disorder from childhood and only worsen with age. The theories of Kernberg and Kohut both characterize narcissists as individuals with a childhood history of unsatisfactory social relationships who as adults possess grandiose views of the self that foster a conflicted psychological dependence on others (Rhodewalt). Knowing both of these psychoanalyst’s views on how narcissism affects an individual is important to note in order to know how to treat the disorder.
Narcissism can also have great effects on today’s society. Individuals who are diagnosed with the narcissistic disorder always feel unfulfilled when they are not praised for every task they complete. Narcissists feel that they need approval because they “deserve” it. This strong characteristic can have a great impact on an individual’s relationships, friendships, and work environment.
“In one experiment, narcissistic and non-narcissistic men were interviewed by a woman whose responses were scripted; thus, all the men received the same social feedback. The narcissistic men, however, assessed the woman’s attraction to them more highly than did non-narcissistic men (Rhodewalt).”
This is just one experiment and example of how narcissist interact with. Narcissists constantly need praise, and when they do not get the reaction they had hoped for from an individual or a group of people, things can take a dark turn quickly. From destroying relationships to distancing themselves from others, narcissists will do anything to show that they need the praise they “deserve.” Research has shown that people describe their narcissistic acquaintances as trying to impress others by bragging and putting down others (Rhodewalt). These studies help conclude that the biggest impact narcissists have on society is putting other people down in order to raise their self esteem. This mostly affects the people around them which damages relationships with friends, family, partners, and even coworkers.
Not only do narcissists affect their social life, but also their own. They pollute their own minds with thoughts that are far from the truth.
“They like to hear that everything they do is right and better than what anyone else can do. This 'Me' attitude is highly dangerous as it starts affecting the personal and professional lives of the individual and people around them. Slowly people [narcissists] start realizing the lies and the betrayal and everything comes crashing down. They expect automatic compliance of their wishes or special treatment wherever they go. They should always be able to go first everywhere, and then others should follow (Raghuvanshi).”
It is very sad to know that there are real people in the world that think this way because once they are exposed to the truth and reality, their entire world comes crashing down.
As scary as it may be, there are famous people known for being a narcissist! Rap singer Kanye West has displayed narcissistic traits on many occasions (Famous Narcissists: You'll Never Guess #5). Stepping up the microphone during an acceptance speech for a music award given to Taylor Swift, he proclaimed another artist should have been the winner, humiliating Swift publicly, making himself the center of attention (Famous Narcissists: You'll Never Guess #5). Not only is Kanye a narcissist, but his wife, Kim Kardashian, is one as well. Her claim to fame is pretty much being “herself” – an image she perpetuates through self-posting online updates of daily activities on platforms such as Twitter and Instagram (Famous Narcissists: You'll Never Guess #5). Another narcissistic characteristic, if true, is she is rumored to have released controversial material, including a sex-tape, herself to make her name more famous (Famous Narcissists: You'll Never Guess #5).
So what are some ways narcissists can address their disorder? There is only one true way to do so, unfortunately. The most effective, but difficult, diagnosis is counseling, otherwise known as psychotherapy. It does take some time to convince a narcissist that they need counseling, but once they agree to try it, a psychotherapist talks with the individual about how to generally approve how to be aware of others. The psychotherapist also talks with the narcissist about how to properly deal with relationships, emotional conflict, and having sympathy for others. This has been found to be the most effective way to diagnose the disorder.
In conclusion, narcissist are very self-centered and definitely cause problems in our society. But there are ways to diagnose and deal with them. It is important to be aware of such people because it allows you to be courteous and more patient with narcissists or even just very self-centered people. Being kind to people like this, even when it seems impossible, can make a big difference in their lives. You never know what could happen even with a small act of kindness!
Psychoanalysts are always creating new experiments and studies to try and help narrow down what the possible factors are that contribute to narcissism. One experiment was performed by the well-known psychoanalysts, Otto F. Kernberg and Heinz Kohut, to test some theories about narcissism. The scientists tested their suspected theories on 70 college undergraduates. Thirteen of the 14 most narcissistic subjects (from the NPI data) participated in three experimental sessions during which the subject was exposed to one of three subliminal stimuli administered tachistoscopically (Shulman & Ferguson). Each of the experimental stimuli represented an aspect of Kernberg's or Kohut's clinical theory of narcissism (1).
Kernberg and Kohut used each of their theories, Narcissism-Projective and Self Focus Sentence Completion, to measure the amount of narcissism the college students did or did not have. After the results were recorded and concluded, it was found that Kernberg's theory proved to have more significance that Kohut’s. It is concluded that methodologically rigorous investigations of psychoanalytical questions of theoretical and clinical significance are possible and necessary (Shulman & Ferguson).
There was also a more recent study created by Ohio State University that used the method of simply asking random people if they think they are a narcissist. “People who are willing to admit they are more narcissistic than others probably actually are more narcissistic,” said Brad Bushman, co-author of the study and a professor of communication and psychology at The Ohio State University (“Just One Simple Question Can Identify Narcissistic People.”). The sampled students were required to rate themselves on a scale from one to seven. One being not narcissistic at all and seven being fully narcissistic. Brad Bushman added, “People who are narcissists are almost proud of the fact. You can ask them directly because they don’t see narcissism as a negative quality – they believe they are superior to other people and are fine with saying that publicly”(1).
The main purpose of this experiment was for two main reasons: to see if the individual knew and accepted that they were a narcissist and to identify the key characteristics a narcissist had, such as lack of empathy and high confidence. After the data was recorded, Ohio State’s results showed that people’s answer to this question lined up very closely with several other validated measures of narcissism, including the widely used Narcissistic Personality Inventory (1). Overall, this experiment helped psychoanalysts verify some of their main studies about this problematic disorder.
How can an individual who is diagnosed with narcissism be treated? Like mentioned before, the only true way to help treat this personality disorder is through psychotherapy. There is no doubt that it is difficult to convince a narcissist that he or she needs help, but if the person consents to getting help, there are some steps they must take in order to be mentally prepared for their first psychotherapy appointment.
In order to prepare for a narcissist’s first treatment session, they need to write down, whether by themselves or with someone else, some key things in order to identify and verify their main root issue. Some pointers that the diagnosed individual should write down are symptoms, personal background information, any medical information, and if they are taking any current medications. These key factors will help the psychotherapist narrow down what the issue with the narcissist is in order to help the narcissist with their issue.
There are different types of psychotherapy that are effective to help treat a narcissist's problem or multiple problems. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), family therapy, or group therapy are types of psychotherapy. CBT helps the patient identify negative beliefs and behaviors, in order to replace them with healthful, positive ones (Nordqvist). Although it is a timely process to treat the disorder with solely communication, it has been found to be the most impactful on a diagnosed narcissist.
Why is psychotherapy the most effective way of treating this personality disorder? Psychoanalysts say that because there is presently no known greatly effectual medication that can help with this disorder, talking with a narcissistic individual has been the only known effective way to deal with it. There have been multiple studies trying to discover a physical cure besides talk therapy but nothing has been found more successful.
How does Camus’s absurdity theory relate or not relate to narcissism? Narcissism, in a way, does relate to his absurdity theory because it is an extreme personality trait. It is so extreme to the extent that it became a personality disorder that people can legitimately be diagnosed with! With the background knowledge that he ignored or opposed systematic philosophy, had little faith in rationalism, asserted rather than argued many of his main ideas, presented others in metaphors, was preoccupied with immediate and personal experience, and brooded over such questions as the meaning of life in the face of death (Aronson), it is easy to put together what this man was like.
But what specifically would Camus think about this so-called social epidemic? He would see it as an extreme characteristic that humans have made for themselves, that is surprisingly good to have. Knowing a little bit of his background and what kind of personality Camus had, if he knew about what narcissism was and what narcissists were like, he would enjoy them and support their motives and thinking. He would most likely be against psychotherapy for them. Instead of trying to help narcissists fix their crooked ways of thinking about others and themselves, Camus would probably encourage them to stay the way they are and embrace their ways of thinking.
In conclusion, we see that the Narcissistic Personality Disorder is real and causes harm to others. Narcissism is definitely a dangerous trait to have or grow into over time, but there are ways to help people with this personality disorder. Although psychotherapy may not be the most convenient, it is slowly helping people with real problems to improve in their thinking and actions to help the world and community be a better place.
Work Cited
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S “Famous Narcissists: You'll Never Guess #5.” Depression Alliance, DepressionAlliance, 1 Mar.
S “Just One Simple Question Can Identify Narcissistic People.” Ohio State News, 5 Aug. 2014,
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Medical News Today, MediLexicon International, 2 Jan. 2018, www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/9741.php.
S Raghuvanshi, Kulbhushaan. “Alarmingly Perfect Examples of Narcissistic Behavior.”
PsycholoGenie, PsycholoGenie, 26 Mar. 2018, www.psychologenie.com/examples-of-narcissistic-behavior.
S Rhodewalt, Frederick. “Narcissism.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 19
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Theories of Narcissism.” Journal of Clinical Psychology, U.S. National Library of Medicine, May 1988, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3384975.
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