What is Narcissistic Personality Disorder (Part 1)
This Blog is in two parts and focuses first on what Narcissistic Personality Disorder is. Part 2 focuses on the legal standards governing custody determinations, the role of mental health in assessing parental fitness, and the court's approach to ensuring the child's welfare.
What is Narcissistic Personality Disorder?
Narcissistic personality disorder has features such as arrogance, lack of empathy, and self-centeredness.
How is Narcissistic Personality Disorder Diagnosed?
Only a professional psychologist can diagnose narcissism. An individual with this personality disorder will typically have an extremely high or exaggerated sense of self-importance, a strong desire to be admired virtually at all times, and struggle to have empathy for others. However, behind the grandiose feelings, sense of superiority, and excessive confidence is a fragile ego that can be easily damaged by criticism. Individuals can also become very envious if others receive praise and validation.
People with narcissistic personality disorder try to belittle and put down others to inflate their self-esteem. These individuals also tend to prioritize their own thoughts, feelings, and needs above those of others, including their children and spouse, and often disregard what others might say or feel.
The Narcissistic Personality Disorder Criteria According to the DSM-5
To diagnose a narcissistic personality disorder, a professional determines that the following criteria are met:
A. Significant impairments in personality functioning manifest by:
Impairments in self-functioning (a or b):
a. Identity: Excessive reference to others for self-definition and self-esteem regulation; exaggerated self-appraisal may be inflated or deflated, or vacillate between extremes; emotional regulation mirrors fluctuations in self-esteem.
b. Self-direction: Goal setting is based on gaining approval from others; personal standards are unreasonably high to see oneself as exceptional or too low based on a sense of entitlement, often unaware of their own motivations.
Impairments in interpersonal functioning (a or b):
a. Empathy: Impaired ability to recognize or identify with the feelings and needs of others; excessively attuned to reactions of others, but only if perceived as relevant to self; over- or underestimate of own effect on others.
b. Intimacy: Relationships are largely superficial and exist to serve self-esteem regulation; mutuality constrained by little genuine interest in others‟ experiences and predominance of a need for personal gain
B. Pathological personality traits in the following domain:
Antagonism, characterized by:
a. Grandiosity: Feelings of entitlement, either overt or covert self-centeredness; firmly holding to the belief that one is better than others, condescending toward others.
b. Attention seeking: Excessive attempts to attract and be the focus of the attention of others; admiration seeking.
C. The impairments in personality functioning and the individual’s personality trait expression are relatively stable across time and consistent across situations.
D. The impairments in personality functioning and the individual’s personality trait expression are not better understood as normative for the individual’s developmental stage or socio-cultural environment.
E. The impairments in personality functioning and the individual’s personality trait expression are not solely due to the direct physiological effects (e.g., a drug of abuse, medication) or a general medical condition (e.g., severe head trauma).
There are Nine (9) Narcissistic Personality Disorder DSM 5 Traits.
Again, traits associated with narcissists cannot be diagnosed by a litigant or a judge. Only a qualified professional can determine if a litigant has Narcissistic Personality Disorder. According to the DSM-5 narcissism guidelines, there are nine features of narcissistic personality disorder that professionals should look for when diagnosing the condition:
Inflated self-esteem or a grandiose sense of self-importance or superiority
Craving admiration
Exploitative relationships (i.e., manipulation)
Little to no empathy
Identity is easily disturbed (i.e., can’t handle criticism)
Lack of attachment and intimacy
Feelings of depression or emptiness when not validated
A sense of entitlement
Can feel like others are envious of them, or may envy others
Causes and Effect of Narcissistic Personality Disorder
The personality disorder may be caused by environmental factors such as a person’s upbringing. For example, being excessively praised or overvalued by parents, peers, or teachers can lead to an inflated sense of self-importance and arrogance seen in the disorder. Abuse, neglect, and criticism can also be contributors, and this may lead to the attention-seeking behaviors that are characteristic of narcissistic personality disorder. Like manipulation and a lack of empathy for others, certain behaviors can also be learned from those around them early on in life.
Genetics and neurobiology can also be important when it comes to the development of narcissistic personality disorder. Some characteristics can be inherited, and changes or differences in brain chemistry can contribute to the disorder.
Treating Narcissistic Personality Disorder DSM 5 Criteria
Narcissistic personality disorder is one of the most difficult mental health conditions to treat because many people with the disorder feel that they don’t have a problem, even though it causes them distress and impairs their ability to function. There are no known medications that treat the disorder.
See Part 2 – Dealing with a Narcissistic Spouse in the second part of this Blog.
Livingstone Law, APC has been dealing with narcissistic litigants for nearly 30 years. Contact us at livingstonelawsd.com to schedule your free consultation.
