The Psychology of Narcissism [Traits, Symptoms, Origins & How to Protect Yourself]

Some experts call them inhuman, along with psychopaths and sociopaths, because of their significant lack of empathy and immense capacity for destruction. They don’t fight shy of systematic abuse and often leave a trail of misery when they move from prey to prey. And those who are associated with them, let it be family, friends, spouses, coworkers, business partners, are left disillusioned and, in many cases, crushed.

Along with the lack of empathy goes a lack of personal responsibility. The environment they destroyed, ironically, also gets the blame for it, while they, themselves, seem to get out unscathed. Or, so it seems. Because how can something be damaged when it’s already broken? I’m talking about a specific group of individuals also known as people with Narcissistic Personality Disorder - in short: NPD - or simply referred to as ‘narcissists’.

So, what’s narcissism? What are the symptoms and traits? Where does it come from, and how can we identify a narcissist? There’s a lot of hype around narcissism and NPD; some describe narcissists as real-life demons that are only out there to cause misery, while others put more emphasis on that fact that they’re wounded souls that need healing.

This video is an exploration of the psychology of narcissism that will hopefully lead to a better understanding. Last decade, the term ‘narcissism’ has become widely popular and as ‘fashionable’ as autism as far as mental health conditions are concerned. Narcissism in itself (as opposed to NPD) isn’t necessarily a mental health disorder, but more of a character trait that appears as a pursuit to maintain an idealized self-image.

Narcissism is derived from the mythological character Narcissus, who fell in love with himself after looking in a pond. He was so obsessed with his reflection that he wasn’t able to part himself from it - a bit like Gollum and the ring. So he drowned. Narcissus, the handsome man that couldn’t love anyone but himself, therefore, became the paragon of vanity and self-absorption.

So, is narcissism getting more common nowadays? According to a German study, there’s empirical evidence that narcissism is increasing in Western societies. They refer to certain symptoms like a change in language that has become more “I” centered, not only in books but also in song lyrics. There’s also a significant increase in people that call themselves ‘important’, and there’s a stronger emphasis on fame in TV shows.

And scores of self-reported grandiose narcissism among American college students increased by 30% between 1979 and 2006. Most people have some narcissistic traits. Sometimes, it’s great to look in the mirror and enjoy what we see and to share things about ourselves with others. And a little bragging won’t do harm, and it’s fine to be selfish occasionally.

But there are individuals with such high levels of narcissism that their behavior has become extreme and pathological. If that’s the case, they might be viable for the diagnosis ‘Narcissistic Personality Disorder’. Around 1% of the population has NPD, which means that a much larger group has narcissistic traits. There’s a huge difference between narcissism, including healthy forms of narcissism, and NPD.

People are often quick to label someone a ‘narcissist’, but someone with narcissistic behavior doesn’t automatically have a personality disorder. Some experts tell us that we are currently experiencing a narcissistic epidemic. This only gets worse as we live in a society that’s more and more turning into a narcissistic playground.

In today’s culture of social media, the increasing lack of true human connection, the growing importance of the individual, and the deification of money and status, it simply pays to be a narcissist. Because what a narcissist is looking for is a specific form of attention, known as narcissistic supply, that functions as fuel for a terribly fragile ego.

Today, everyone can put themselves on display through various platforms on the internet. It’s not just easy to acquire this superficial attention in the form of likes, views, and comments; the ongoing pursuit of online attention has become the norm. For some, it has even become their ultimate concern. Now again, not everyone who does this has a personality disorder. Many people simply have narcissistic traits, but they are not out of control, and in some cases, they’re even helpful.

So, how can we identify a narcissist? What are the symptoms? To answer this question, it’s probably best to explore what mental health professionals that are trained to diagnose people with NPD are up to. NPD is officially recognized in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (in short the DSM), which is often referred to as the ‘bible’ of psychiatry.

The DSM describes a pervasive pattern of grandiosity, need for admiration, and lack of empathy that all starts in early adulthood. Officially, there are seven criteria, and if one meets five out of seven, this individual can be diagnosed with NPD. According to the DSM, someone with NPD...

(1) Has a grandiose sense of self-importance (for example, exaggerates achievements and talents, expects to be recognized as superior without commensurate achievements).

(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 (or institutions).

(4) Requires excessive admiration.

(5) Has a sense of entitlement, i.e., unreasonable expectations of especially favorable treatment or automatic compliance with his or her expectations.

(6) Is interpersonally exploitative, i.e., takes advantage of others to achieve his or her own ends.

(7) Lacks empathy: is unwilling to recognize or identify with the feelings and needs of others.

Narcissists can come in the form of tyrants, exploitative bosses, unfaithful spouses, so-called ‘toxic’ friends, and so forth. They typically don’t respect boundaries, and their relationships are entirely based on what they can get, and not on what they can give.

Over time, narcissism has been subdivided into different types. Two main distinctions are overt narcissism and covert narcissism. The first one is much easier to spot, while the second one often flies under the radar. Typical and overt narcissistic traits aren’t difficult to recognize.

We all know people who are overly arrogant, have the inclination to show off, and boast about themselves, and have an insolent sense of grandiosity. We see this in some world leaders, who put more emphasis on their self-proclaimed greatness than the needs of the people. However, unfortunately, many narcissists aren’t so easily recognized because they tend to be very manipulative.

This means that they’re masters at keeping up appearances, make great first impressions, and know exactly how to lure in their victims. They act more covertly, meaning that they basically crave the same things as the overt narcissist, and also have a fragile sense of self. They’re just much better at hiding it.

So, what are the origins of narcissism? It’s always difficult to decide where specific human behavior comes from. There’s evidence that the origins of narcissism lay partly in the genes. But it’s more likely that narcissism is a consequence of environmental factors. Parents play a huge role when it comes to the development of narcissism in a child.

A core characteristic of narcissism is a fragile sense of self, which is likely the consequence of parental abuse. There are many different forms of abuse. When a child is neglected by overly authoritarian parents, for example, who love him conditionally based on performance, the child is abused. But when a child is put on a pedestal by the parents, and repeatedly regarded as ‘special’, the child is also abused.

In both cases, he or she gets spoon-fed a distorted reality, which has probably more to do with the parent’s own need for approval and a sense of specialness than the child itself. Unfortunately, the child is used as a vessel for the parent’s gratification.

In one way or another, a child that grows up to be a narcissist has learned that validation is to be found exclusively outside of them. They’ve learned that they’re only deserving of love when they are the best. Thus, they must be more important than the average Joe, because if they aren’t, they have no value.

So, their lives are built around this craving for attention that confirms a false self-image, that could vary from blatant grandiosity to silent and covert convictions of superiority. There are some typical narcissistic behaviors that are destructive to the people around them, and eventually to themselves as well.

One of them is that they never apologize and always blame other people. Their fragile egos just cannot handle the idea that they could be wrong, and, therefore, see apologizing as a form of weakness. Another one is that they repeatedly put people down in order to elevate themselves. For them, this is just a way to reassure themselves that they’re better than the rest and, therefore, worthy.

It’s no surprise that narcissists cannot handle criticism. I mean, how dare they, those inferior people, criticize them! Another one is gaslighting, which is a form of psychological abuse used to make people doubt themselves. This could be done by telling lies, projecting their ugly behaviors, denying that they ever said certain things, and creating all kinds of illusions around their victims, so they’ll question their sanity.

A narcissist might tell you, for example, that your friends are against you, or your colleagues think you’re a bad employee, and that he is the only one who, despite everyone disapproving of you, will put up with you. Now, what can you do to protect yourself against narcissists?

Well, the most common advice that you’ll encounter is ‘going no-contact’. This is the best and most effective way to keep the destructiveness of the narcissist out of your life. When going this route, it’s important to be consistent with this, so you won’t be tempted to engage with this person again, who will try to manipulate you back into orbit.

However, chances are that you’re not in the fortunate position to cut ties completely, because you cohabitate with this person, or you work in the same office. In that case, there’s another strategy called the Gray Rock Method, and you’ll find a separate video about this method on this channel.

All in all, as long as there’s enough supply, the narcissist feels great. But when it runs out, he or she quickly becomes desperate for new supply, and often damages and discards people without mercy in the process of achieving it. There is no question that narcissistic behavior is manipulative and abusive, but there seems to be no consensus about the motives of the narcissist.

Do they wake up in the morning with a conscious desire to do evil? Or could it be that they’re so wounded that they’ve unconsciously developed highly destructive coping mechanisms, and that they’re hardly aware of having them? Thank you for watching.