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Fig 2.21 – Narcissism

Text: Page 91

In Analysis of the Self: A Systematic Approach to the Treatment of Narcissistic Personality Disorders, Heinz Kohut realized that trying to directly confront the narcissist was fruitless because the narcissist felt empty, with no sense of self. Narcissism was the product in childhood not good or bad, but of no meaningful self-object. Interpretative confrontation would only humiliate the narcissist and deepen their feelings of inadequacy. He found that the narcissist oscillated between grandiosity and despair and felt little joy from any of their accomplishments. Kohut believed that there was a normal and healthy narcissistic self-object that everyone could develop because it resulted in a stronger sense of self and a psychological vitality, self-esteem, and the drive to achieve lifetime goals.

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