Thank you for returning for the discussion on criteria #9 in the series on Narcissistic Personality Disorder. I have already discussed the first 8 criteria in previous blogs so check those out as well. Today I will go over the final criterion for Narcissistic Personality Disorder according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition, or DSM-5. If you haven’t already checked out the other blogs, take a look at those so you can get a full understanding of who the narcissist is.
Today I will discuss the ninth and final criteria in the DSM-5 for Narcissistic Personality Disorder: “shows arrogant, haughty behaviors or attitudes”.
Let’s start with defining arrogance. Arrogance is an attitude of superiority that is presented with a sense of overbearing pride. Arrogance is in your face, with the person who is arrogant ensuring you know what their superior qualities are and giving you no choice but to take note. The person who is arrogant believes they are better than everyone else and wants to make sure you believe it too. The person who is arrogant doesn’t allow you to consider their superiority as false, because to them there is no possibility it is false.
Being a narcissist who is arrogant is not the same as a non-narcissist who is arrogant. A non-narcissist who is arrogant talks a big game to make themselves look better, but it doesn’t go beyond a few annoying statements. An example might by the arrogant non-narcissist who says they only started studying for the test last night and still made an A while everyone around them discusses how much they studied and only got Bs. For the narcissist that is arrogant, their accomplishments and how they excel in comparison to everyone else is discussed in a manner to put others down. The narcissist will use their superiority as a way to belittle people so they can make themselves feel better.
Another distinction between arrogance in a non-narcissist and arrogance in a narcissist is that someone who is arrogant is likely acting rudely, but the narcissist is being mean. The non-narcissist who brags about their accomplishments or how easy something was for them is being rude and even annoying. However, the annoyance is centered around the specific examples and is not meant to be mean to you. With the narcissist, they are arrogant and mean. Their discussion of how they are better than everyone else is meant to make you feel worse about yourself.
The narcissist can be mean and arrogant due to their lack of empathy and inability to understand and take the perspective of someone else. The arrogance is meant to boost their own ego, while ensuring the other person is kept in their place – which is below them. The narcissist must always function in the belief they are better than everyone else and the only way they can do this is to ensure you know how much better they are than you.
Arrogance is an attitude of superiority and isn’t based in fact. It is the person’s belief that they are better than everyone else and the only person who can maintain that belief is the narcissist. If they suspect people are starting to doubt ways in which they are superior or question their accomplishments, they will swoop in, cut you down, and belittle to re-gain the upper hand.
The narcissist lives in a fantasy world, designed by them, and protected by a wall of false beliefs. If the narcissist believes someone might be onto them and see who they really are, they attack in their words and enter into narcissistic rage to ensure they can again get the upper hand in their game of control and manipulation
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