Narcissism Essay

Neurobiology One can argue that there are aspects of narcissism which can be construed as healthy and advantageous, while other aspects can be construed as unhealthy and damaging to the narcissist and the people in whom they interact. Krusemark (2012) underscored the point that those who exhibit heightened narcissistic traits generally exhibit high degrees of extraversion, reward focus, and approach motivation (taking action to bring something positive into one’s life). These skills are essential to those on the narcissistic continuum because it allows them to constantly obtain in order to make up for what they lack in inner qualities. Unfortunately, many who are narcissistic or have been diagnosed with NPD also cannot empathize with others,
Researchers noted that narcissists were likely to keep a romantic relationship if they felt the person was highly ‘communal’ (warm, mutual, and supporting) (Thomaes & Bushman, 2012). Therefore, researchers were able to test that if narcissistic people were primed to see themselves as possessing communal attributions, they were likely to act as such (Thomaes & Bushman, 2012). In another experiment, it was found that narcissistic people were able to keep aggressive behaviors at bay if they were able to perceive a similarity (real or constructed) within the people in which they interact (Thomaes & Bushman, 2012). Subsequently, Thomaes and Bushman (2012) concluded that therapy, which incorporated components of communal behavior–such as Mindfulness-based interventions that include aspects of empathetic meditation–or well-directed Cognitive Behavioral Therapy can assist narcissists with relationship failures, aggressive behaviors, and self-defeating practices. To complement Thomaes and Bushman (2012) abilities to empirically test strategies for treating NPD, Diamond and Meehan (2013) was able to present insight for managing a session with a narcissistic