标题:6SignsofNarcissismYouMayNotKnowAboutHowcanyourecognizethefragilitybehindthenarcissist’sgrandiosity? source:psychologytoday丨byLeonFSeltzer 欲翻译的小伙伴,可评论领稿,并把已完成的译文贴在评论处或发在自己的心理圈内。请领稿的小伙伴,尽量在一个星期内完成翻译,谢谢!! Therecentlypublished5theditionoftheDiagnosticandStatisticalManualofMentalDisorders(DSM)listspreciselythesameninecriteriafornarcissisticpersonalitydisorder(NPD)asdidthepreviousversion,published19yearsearlier。Sotheselongstandingdiagnosticyardsticksarebynowquitefamiliarnotonlytoprofessionalsbuttointerestedlaypeopleaswell。Becauseonlytheextreme,orclassic,narcissistfitsallofthesecriteria,DSMspecifiesthatanindividualneedmeetonlyfiveofthem(barelymorethanhalf)towarrantthisunflatteringlabel。 Asastartingpoint,I’llreiteratetheseselectedcriteriabefore,thatis,addingsiximportantonesofmyown,whicheithercomplementorextendtheseofficialyardsticks。Myparticularmeasuresforidentifyingpathologicalnarcissistsarebasednotonlyonmyexposuretothevoluminouswritingsonthischaracterdisorder,butalsoon30yearsofclinicalexperience。Thisexperienceincludesdoingpersonal,couples,andfamilycounselingwithsuchtroublesomeindividuals。Butitalsoinvolvesworkingindependentlywiththoseinvolvedwithnarcissistswhethertheirdistressedchildren,spouses,parents,friends,orbusinessassociateswhorepeatedlyexpressenormousfrustrationintryingtocopewiththem。 Tobegin,however,hereareDSM’srequirements(linkisexternal)(slightlycondensed,andwithminorbracketedamendments)forearningtheunenviablediagnosisofNarcissisticPersonalityDisorder: 1。Hasagrandiosesenseofselfimportance。 2。Ispreoccupiedwithfantasiesofunlimitedsuccess,power,brilliance,beauty,orideallove。 3。Believesthatheorsheisspecialanduniqueandcanonlybeunderstoodby,orshouldassociatewith,otherspecialorhighstatuspeople(orinstitutions)。 4。Requiresexcessiveadmiration〔regularlyfishesforcompliments,andishighlysusceptibletoflattery〕。 5。Hasasenseofentitlement。 6。Isinterpersonallyexploitative。 7。Lacksempathy:isunwilling〔or,Iwouldadd,unable〕torecognizeoridentifywiththefeelingsandneedsofothers。 8。Isoftenenviousofothersorbelievesthatothersareenviousofhimorher。 9。Showsarrogant,haughty〔rudeandabusive〕behaviorsorattitudes。 Sowhat’sleftouthere?Actually,asregardsidentifyingdescriptors,quiteabit。AndI’venodoubtthatothertherapistscouldaddfurthertothesixadditionalcharacteristicsI’llprovideherefeaturesthat,althoughregrettablyminimizedoromittedfromDSM,I‘veroutinelyseendisplayedbythemanydysfunctionalnarcissistsI’veworkedwith。So,toenumeratethem,suchindividuals: 1。Arehighlyreactivetocriticism。Oranythingtheyassumeorinterpretasnegativelyevaluatingtheirpersonalityorperformance。Thisiswhyifthey’reaskedaquestionthatmightobligethemtoadmitsomevulnerability,deficiency,orculpability,they’reapttofalsifytheevidence(i。e。,lieyetwithoutreallyacknowledgingsuchprevaricationtothemselves),hastilychangethesubject,orrespondasthoughthey’dbeenaskedsomethingentirelydifferent。EarlierforPsychologyTodayIwroteaposthighlightingthissuperchargedsensitivitycalledTheNarcissist’sDilemma:TheyCanDishItOut,But。。。。Andthisaspectoftheirdisturbanceunderscoresthattheiregooversized,orratherartificiallyinflatedcanhardlybeviewedasstrongorresilient。Onthecontrary,it’sveryeasilypunctured。(Andnotehereanotherrelatedpieceofmine,OurEgos:DoTheyNeedStrengtheningorShrinking?)。Whatthesecharacteristicssuggestisthat,atbottomanddespitealltheiregotisticgrandiosity,they。。。 2。。。。Havelowselfesteem。Thisfacetoftheirpsycheiscomplicated,becausesuperficiallytheirselfregardwouldappeartobehigherandmoreassuredthanjustaboutanyoneelse’s。Additionally,giventheircustomarydrivenness,it’snotuncommonforthemtorisetopositionsofpowerandinfluence,aswellasamassafortune(andseeheremypostNarcissism:WhyIt’sSoRampantinPolitics)。Butifweexaminewhat’sbeneaththesurfaceofsuchelevatedsocial,political,oreconomicstatureortheiraccomplishmentsgenerallywhattypicallycanbeinferredisadegreeofinsecurityvastlybeyondanythingtheymightbewillingtoavow。 Thatis,invariouswaysthey’reconstantlydriventoprovethemselves,bothtoothersandtotheirnotsoconfidentinnerchildself。Thisistheselfdoubting,recessivepartoftheirbeingthat,thoughwellhiddenfromsight,isnonethelessafflictedwithfeelingsandfearsofinferiority。Inasmuchastheirelaboratedefensesystemeffectivelywardsofftheirhavingtofacewhattheirbravadomasks,they’rehighlyskilledatexhibiting,orposturing,exceptionallyhighselfesteem。Buttheirdeeperinsecuritiesareyetdiscernibleintheirsooftenfishingforcomplimentsandtheirpenchantforbraggingandboastingabouttheir(frequentlyexaggerated)achievements。Thatis,they’reexpertsatcomplimentingthemselves!Andwhendespitealltheirselfaggrandizementothersarecriticalofthem,they。。。 3。。。。Canbeinordinatelyselfrighteousanddefensive。Needingsomuchtoprotecttheiroverblownbutfragileego,theirevervigilantdefensesystemcanbeextraordinarilyeasytosetoff。I’vealreadymentionedhowreactivetheytypicallyaretocriticism,butinfactanythingsaidordonethattheyperceiveasquestioningtheircompetencecanactivatetheirrobustselfprotectivemechanisms。WhichiswhysomanynonnarcissistsI’veworkedwithhavesharedhowdifficultitistogetthroughtotheminsituationsofconflict。Forinchallengingcircumstancesit’salmostasthoughtheirverysurvivaldependsonbeingrightorjustified,whereasflatout(orhumbly)admittingamistakeor,forthatmatter,utteringthewordsI’msorryforsometransgressionseemdifficulttoimpossibleforthem。 Further,theirmywayorthehighwayattitudeindecisionmakingtheirstubborn。competitiveinsistencethattheirpointofviewprevailbetrays(evenasitendeavorstoconceal)theirunderlyingdoubtsaboutnotbeinggood,strong,orsmartenough。Andthemoretheirpretentious,privileged,exaggeratedlypuffedupselfimagefeelsendangeredbyanother’sposition,themorelikelytheyareto。。。 4。。。。Reacttocontraryviewpointswithangerorrage。Infact,thischaracteristicissocommoninnarcissiststhatit’salwayssurprisedmethatDSMdoesn’tspecificallyrefertoitamongitsninecriteria。Repeatedly,writershavenotedthatangryoutburstsarealmostintrinsictobothnarcissisticandborderlinepersonalitydisorders。Andalthough(unliketheborderline)it’snotparticularfearsofabandonmentthatbringouttheirsocallednarcissisticrage,bothpersonalitydisordersgenerallyreactwithheatedemotionwhenothersbringtheirdeepestinsecuritiestooclosetothesurface。 Thereasonthatfeelingsofangerandragearesotypicallyexpressedbythemisthatinthemomenttheyexternalizethefarmorepainfulanxietyorshamerelatedemotionshidingjustbeneaththem。Whenthey’reonthevergeoffeelingorrefeelingsomehurtorhumiliationfromtheirpast,theirconsequentrageconvenientlytransferstheseunwantedfeelingstoanother(andseeheremyPTpostAngerHowWeTransferFeelingsofGuilt,Hurt,andFear)。 TheaccompanyingmessagethatgetscommunicatedthroughsuchantagonisticemotionsisI’mnotbad(wrong,stupid,mean,etc。),youare!Or,itcouldevenbe:I’mnotnarcissistic,orborderline!Youare!(Or,inslightlymilderversion,IfI’mnarcissistic,orborderline,thensoareyou!)Andifthementallyhealthierindividualhasnoclueastowhatprovokedtheiroutburstinthefirstplace,suchasuddenexplosionislikelytomakethemfeelnotonlybaffledbuthurt,andmaybeevenfrightened。Butwhatcannotbeoveremphasizedhereisthatnarcissists。。。 5。。。。Projectontoothersqualities,traits,andbehaviorstheycan’torwon’tacceptinthemselves。Becausethey’recompelledfromdeepwithintoconcealdeficitsorweaknessesintheirselfimage,theyhabituallyredirectanyunfavorableappraisalofthemselvesoutwards,unconsciouslytrustingthatdoingsowillforeverkeepatbaytheirdeepestsuspicionsaboutthemselves。Gettinganywhereclosetobeingobligedtoconfrontthedarknessattheirinnermostcorecanbeveryscary,forinrealitytheiremotionalresourcesarewoefullyunderdeveloped。 Broadlyrecognizedasnarcissistsbytheirfundamentallackofselfinsight,veryfewofthem(depending,ofcourse,onhowfarouttheyareonthenarcissisticcontinuum)canachievesuchinteriorknowledge。Forinavarietyofwaystheirrigid,unyieldingdefensescanbeseenasmoreorlessdefiningtheirwholepersonality。Andthat’swhyoneofthemostreliablewaysforthemtofeelgoodaboutthemselvesandsafeintheworldthey’reessentiallysoalienatedfromistoinvalidate,devalue,ordenigrateothers。Sothey’llfocusonothers’flaws(whetherornottheyreallyexist)ratherthanacknowledge,andcometotermswith,theirown。Andinmanycuriouswaysthishabitcausesthemto。。。 6。。。。Havepoorinterpersonalboundaries。It’sbeensaidaboutnarcissiststhattheycan’ttellwheretheyendandtheotherpersonbegins。Unconsciouslyviewingothersasextensionsofthemselves,theyregardthemasexistingprimarilytoservetheirownneedsjustastheyroutinelyputtheirneedsbeforeeveryoneelse’s(frequently,eventheirownchildren)。Sinceothersareregarded(ifthey’reregardedatall!)aswhatintheliteratureisoftencallednarcissisticsuppliesthatis,existingchieflytocatertotheirpersonaldesirestheygenerallydon’tthinkaboutothersindependentlyofhowtheymightusethemtotheirownadvantage。Whatevernarcissistsseektogivethemselves,theygenerallyexpecttogetfromothers,too(whichisyetanotherdimensionoftheirfamousorinfamoussenseofentitlement)。 Evenbeyondthis,theirporousboundariesandunevenlydevelopedinterpersonalskillsmaypromptthemtoinappropriatelydominateconversationsandsharewithothersintimatedetailsabouttheirlife(thoughsomenarcissists,itshouldbenoted,candisplayanextraordinary,howeverMachiavellian,socialsavvy)。Suchprivateinformationwouldprobablyfocusondisclosingfactsotherswouldbeapttowithhold。Buthaving(atleastconsciously)muchlessofasenseofshame,they’relikelytosharethingsthey’vesaidordonethatmostofuswouldbetooembarrassedorhumiliatedtoadmit。Still,withanattimesgrossinsensitivitytohowothersmightreacttotheirwords,they’relikelytoblurtoutthings,orevenboastaboutthem,thatotherscan’thelpbutviewastasteless,demeaning,insulting,orotherwiseoffensive。 Theymight,forinstance,shareandwithconsiderablepride!howtheychewedsomeoneout,andexpecttheotherpersontobeimpressedbytheircourageorcleverness,wheninfactthelistenermaybeappalledbytheirlackofkindness,tact,orrestraint。Additionally,theymayaskothersquestionsthatarefartoopersonalorintimateagainunwittinglyirritatingorupsettingthem。Andsuchasituationcanbeparticularlydifficultfortheotherpersonifthenarcissistisinapositionofauthorityoverthemsothatnotrespondingcould,practically,puttheminsomejeopardy。 Toconclude,Icanonlyhopethattheseadditionalcharacterizationsofthepathologicalnarcissist(vs。thosewithlesspronouncednarcissisticqualities)maybehelpfulinenablingyoutoidentifythembeforetheirmalignancydoesanumberonyou。Andifyou’vealreadybeendupedbytheirmachinationsormanipulations,perhapsthispiecewillbeaheadsupforyoutopreventthemfromwreakinganyfurtherhavocinyourlife。