Narcissistic personality disorder is characterised by a pervasive pattern of feeling superior (grandiosity), needing admiration, and lacking empathy.
- Individuals with narcissistic personality disorder overestimate their abilities, exaggerate their achievements, and tend to underestimate the abilities of others.
- Medical professionals diagnose narcissistic personality disorder based on specific symptoms, such as an exaggerated, unfounded sense of self-importance and talents, a need to be unconditionally admired, and a sense of entitlement.
- Psychotherapy that focuses on underlying conflicts may help.
Personality disorders are long-lasting, pervasive patterns of thinking, perceiving, reacting, and relating that cause an individual significant distress and/or impair an individual’s ability to function.
Individuals with narcissistic personality disorder have an inflated view of self-worth (called grandiosity).
They also have problems with self-esteem. To bolster their sense of superiority and self-esteem, they do the following:
- Associate with special people;
- Become a part of superior institutions; and
- Devalue other people.
They also want to be praised.
Narcissistic personality disorder occurs in up to 6% of the general population. It is more common among men.
Other disorders are also often present. They include one or more of the following:
- Depression.
- Anorexia nervosa.
- A substance use disorder (especially cocaine).
- Another personality disorder (histrionic, borderline, or paranoid).
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