Comment: We can add Dr. Samek to the list of psychopathy apologists.
Interesting that the diagnosis was invented in 1980, but that fits. Can't have the successful psychopaths classified as psychopaths, now can we?
1 All about me: It's a character disorder in which a person tends to: have an inflated sense of self-importance; be preoccupied with thoughts of his or her great success, power, brilliance, or beauty; believe that he or she is special, unique or better than everyone else; desire, expect, or demand excessive admiration from others; have a sense of entitlement; exploit and take advantage of others; lack empathy and emotional connection to others; and be arrogant and act superior.
2 Deep down: People with narcissistic personalities, in spite of their thoughts and behaviors, unconsciously feel inferior and inadequate.
Comment: Oh, horse hockey!!! See: Do Narcissists Dislike Themselves "Deep Down Inside"? where we read:
These results suggest that narcissists do not uniformly dislike themselves "deep down inside." Rather, narcissists report high explicit and implicit self-views on measures of agency, and neutral self-views on measures of communion.
3 Successful treatment: Many experts believe narcissistic people can never be successfully treated. In fact they can be successfully treated. Treatment usually needs to be compelled, is long term (several years), and often requires both a mental health professional with special expertise in treating narcissistic personalities and another person or institution that has the power to require that the narcissistic person completes treatment. Treatment is usually best done in group therapy with other individuals who have narcissistic personality problems.
Comment: If the condition is true NPD, there is no treatment. If it is just "narcissistic traits", common to all humans with neurotic issues, then they can possibly be helped. This guy is blurring boundaries and muddying the water. Therapy only teaches true Narcissists how to be better predators.
4 Dysfunctional childhood: Narcissistic personality disorders are often caused by poor parenting and a dysfunctional childhood. The parents of a narcissist either overly spoiled and pampered the child or they were overly harsh and abusive. Either extreme may cause a child to develop a narcissistic personality.
Comment: Sorry bud, you can't have it both ways. There are too many studies showing that narcissists and psychopaths (and NPD may be merely sub-criminal psychopathy) come from good, normal families where there is neither over-indulgence nor abuse. But, of course, psychopaths want the diagnosis muddled so they can have legal defenses that get them off the hook.
5 Mild to severe: Narcissistic personality disorder comes in all levels of intensity, from very mild to very severe. Mild forms are attracted to and may become leaders in industry and government.
Comment: Ooooh! There it is, right out in the open: those aren't psychopaths, they are just "mild narcissists."
- Dr. Samek is an executive board member of the Dade County Psychological Association.
[they] "lack empathy and emotional connection to others"
without these components they have no way of understanding that they may have faults. they have no marker measure themselves with or at least no way of seeing and feeling what others feel. they think this is how everyone is and will fight and hold on to this position even when reason and logic are used to show them their errors. they do not dislike themselves, they dislike those who do not agree with them.