Internalizing problems and their impact on the relation between callous-unemotional traits,narcissism, and aggression

Narcissism and callous-unemotional (CU) traits have demonstrated relations with youth aggression across studies. However, different forms of narcissism and internalizing problems may exacerbate the relation between CU traits and aggression. To that end, the current study examined the degree to which interactions among internalizing problems, CU traits, and dimensions of narcissism related to aggression in a sample of 219 adolescents (83.1% males), ages 16–19, enrolled in a military-style residential program. Consistent with previous research, psychopathy-linked narcissism significantly moderated the relation between CU traits and aggression. Addtionally, self-reported aggression was highest among adolescents who endorsed high levels of CU traits, psychopathy-linked narcissism, and internalizing problems. The same pattern of results was not evident for other forms of narcissism. These results suggest that internalizing problems further increase the probability of aggression among adolescents with psychopathic tendencies (i.e., CU traits, psychopathy-linked narcissism). Further implications are discussed.     

Identity, narcissism and the emotional core

This paper describes the course of an analysis which demonstrates how borderline and narcissistic functioning can be understood in terms of a struggle with issues of identity. It shows how such functioning can come to exert a profound hold on the individual and why it seems, at times, a matter of life and death to the patient to avoid states of separation from the analyst. The paper suggests that these complex phenomena can be understood, perhaps surprisingly, in the simple terms of the nature of affect itself. The concept of the emotional core is introduced to embody and highlight that which lies beneath both Jungian and Freudian models (offering a potential bridge between the two models)--namely the psyche's essentially affective nature. It is suggested that the emotional core can serve as an organ of perception giving the individual both their primary relation to reality and an emotional attachment to others. This emotional core is understood to function in a narcissistic manner to preference experiences of sameness and in aversion to experiences of difference--a view consonant with Stern's understanding of infant development where the infant is able to distinguish self from other from the beginning of life (as Fordham also held); taking up Stern's terminology, it gives the individual a 'core' sense of being. There is, however, no stable, on-going sense of 'I' associated with this form of functioning as the individual is immersed in the latest affect to enter consciousness (as in the borderline state of mind) and consequently the individual comes to rely intensely on the other to determine their sense of being (the other becomes a self-regulating other in Stern's terms). The development of ego-functioning gives a more stable and on-going sense of 'I' to the individual, giving contact with the broader personality, allowing the individual to be less reliant on the other and orientating them to reality in a way more fitting to their overall needs. The paper describes how consciousness, which is not seen as identical with the ego, moves between the mode of functioning of the ego and that of the emotional core, i.e., shifting in and out of states where projective identification predominates. It elaborates the range of self-experience encompassing spiritual experience and states of disintegration (which are understood to have a similar structure) on one side, to ego-based experience (which can itself be defensive and rigid at times) on the other. It explores the consequences of such a view for analytic technique and relates it to the Jungian view of the self and the Freudian unconscious.     

Is psychoanalysis a matter of subjectivation?

We are not born subject but become one, in a two‐and‐fro process between what is played out on the intrapsychic stage and the field of intersubjectivation. The author proposes to examine two of the main movements of psychic life brought into play in this process. In the domain of the ‘subjectivating link’, becoming a subject depends on the relationship with another, authentically taken into account as a desiring subject and not simply as an object for oneself. In the course of history, this intersubjectivation is only internalized as a lasting preconscious predisposition if sufficient trust is established in the possibility of mutual recognition. When this perspective recedes, the subject tends to fall back on narcissistic positions, in search of an end to lack. Such a narcissistic tendency drives the subject to constitute himself by subjugating his objects, striving to rob them of their otherness. A plurality of subject positions will be recognized in every analytic encounter. Psychoanalytic work can allow for a lasting change insofar as it modifies the equilibrium between diverse psychic trends. The multiplicity of the issues at stake in subjectivation allows us to integrate theoretical pluralism while encouraging us to reflect on the diversification of our practices.     

Development and validation of a revised measure of codependency

This study assessed the factor structure, internal consistency, and concurrent validity of a revised instrument, the Composite Codependency Scale (CCS), a 19‐item measure designed to assess codependent traits. Exploratory factor analysis of the CCS, using data from 301 adults from the general population and 49 attending members of Codependents Anonymous (CoDA), yielded three factors: self‐sacrifice, interpersonal control, and emotional suppression. The scale and its subscales exhibited good internal consistency. Consistent with the tenets of the codependency model, higher codependency scores were significantly associated with higher levels of depression, anxiety, stress, and familial dysfunction and lower levels of narcissistic tendencies, self‐esteem, and emotional expressivity. Furthermore, the revised measure effectively discriminated members of CoDA from those in the general population.     

Under the mirror of the sleeping water: Poussin's Narcissus

Examined in conjunction with a close reading of Ovid's Metamorphoses, Nicolas Poussin's four paintings on the preoccupying theme of Narcissus and Echo reflect a developing aesthetic interpretation of its textual source. Poussin's reflective vision supports a radical reappraisal of the enigmatic myth at the heart of psychoanalytic theory and practice, in which Narcissus is construed as a far more object‐related figure that seeks the formative, affirmative mirroring of the other. This in turn encourages a more versatile conceptualization of narcissistic disturbance, in which an etiologically heterogenous constellation of issues stems from a variety of disturbances in the myriad dynamic and developmental aspects of mirroring and attunement: the narcissisms.     

An overview of the treatment of severe narcissistic pathology

This paper provides an overview of narcissistic personality disorders as they present clinically along a spectrum of severity ranging from the best functioning forms of pathological narcissism to the most threatening to the patient's psychosocial and physical survival. It proposes a general interpretive psychoanalytic stance with all these clinical syndromes that range from standard psychoanalysis to a specific psychoanalytical psychotherapy for the most repressive and life threatening conditions that may not respond to standard psychoanalysis proper. This general psychoanalytic approach is placed into the context of related developments in contemporary psychoanalytic understanding of pathological narcissism and its treatment.     

自恋与心理健康:适应性自恋与病理性自恋的不同作用

目的:探讨适应性自恋与病理性自恋对个体心理健康的不同影响。方法:750名大学生完成了一套由自恋人格问卷(NPI)、病理性自恋量表(PNI)和症状自评量表(SCL-90)组成的测验。利用结构方程模型对变量间的关系进行分析。结果表明:病理性自恋的二阶因子自恋易损性对个体心理健康具有显著的负向预测作用,自恋易损性水平越高,个体心理健康水平越低。自恋夸大性和适应性自恋(自恋人格问卷,NPI)对心理健康的正向预测作用达到边缘显著,自恋夸大性和适应性自恋得分越高,心理健康水平越高。结论:病理性自恋的二阶因子自恋易损性对心理健康具有明显的破坏作用,而自恋夸大性和正常/适应性自恋可能对心理健康存在微弱的保护作用。     

Parenting and Adolescent Grandiose Narcissism: Mediation through Independent Self-Construal and Need for Positive Approval

While particular parenting styles and parenting qualities have been linked to adolescent narcissistic tendencies, their association is likely indirect. Parents aim to indoctrinate adolescents with dispositional tendencies, such as self-confidence independence and a focus on peer acceptance, which incidentally manifest in narcissism. The authors investigated whether mothers' and fathers' positive parenting and lax discipline were linked indirectly to adolescent grandiose narcissism through a need for positive approval and independent self-construal. Adolescents (n = 460; 58.5% girls; age range = 15–18 years) completed several measures online. Structural equation modeling revealed that maternal positive parenting and discipline were indirectly linked to grandiose narcissism through adolescents' need for positive approval. Fathers' positive parenting was linked directly and partially through independent self-construal to grandiose narcissism. Fathers' discipline remained directly associated with adolescent grandiose narcissism. Discussion focuses on the nuanced association between parenting and grandiose narcissism in adolescents and the implications for upholding behavioral standards.     

Feeling at home in the occupied territories: Emotion work of the religious settler movement

Religious settlers exhibit a strong desire to settle the entire Land of Israel despite resistance among the local Palestinian population and among opposition within Israel. The return to the Promised Land and the establishment of settlements elicit strong emotions that are connected to the socio-spatial identities of the settlers. Introducing the concept of emotion work the article focuses on the collective construction of emotions inside the movement and on active practices directed at the Israeli audience at large. Emotions are elicited and regulated in the political process in order to make and defend territorial claims. After discussing the concepts of emotional geographies, emotion regulation, and emotion work, the article analyzes the multi-layered passions of the settlers and strategies of creating an emotional attachment to the conquered territories in the Israeli public. Finally, the Second Intifada revealed tensions between the desire for the land and a contracting geography of fear. The article discusses how the settlers dealt with violence, threats, and experiences of conjoint emotions.     

Spiritual barriers to humility: a multidimensional study

Many spiritual and religious traditions view spiritual pride as contrary to humility; however, the rising empirical research on spirituality and humility has involved limited investigation of the variety of spiritual barriers that inhibit a humble disposition. The present study investigated three distinct spiritual barriers (spiritual grandiosity, insecure attachment to God, and hunger for idealisation) as independent predictors of dispositional humility among graduate trainees in the helping professions (N?=?162) from a Protestant-affiliated university in the USA. Results indicated that each construct of interest predicted lower levels of humility when controlling for both spiritual impression management and the other spiritual barriers. These findings supported theoretical assertions of the discriminant validity of each independent variable in predicting lower levels of humility and supported construct validity of the humility measure. Conceptual considerations and suggestions for future research and graduate training are discussed.