S. Murat Paker

(*) This article was first published on January 19, 2026, in the Turkish online magazine Yeni Arayış and was translated into English by Murat Özbank.

 

Abstract

This article aims to discuss pathological narcissism not merely as an individual personality problem, but as a distinctive logic of the self that advanced capitalism reproduces, reinforces, and puts into circulation. It proceeds from the premise that narcissism has a healthy developmental foundation, but that under certain social conditions this foundation may fracture and give way to pathological patterns. The psycho-political framework developed nearly thirty years ago in the article “Narcissism Against Socialism” is revisited here in the context of neoliberal capitalism, the achievement society, and the economy of visibility. The article argues that the advanced capitalist order reshapes the self under the pressures of competition, speed, and self-promotion, making empathy, mutuality, and emotional continuity costly. Under these conditions, narcissistic defenses become increasingly widespread as functional and even rewarded forms of adaptation that reinforce individual pathologies. It examines the erosion caused by pathological narcissism in everyday relationships, professional life, and emotional life, and argues that the solution cannot be confined to individual psychotherapy but requires a sociopolitical and ethical horizon.

Keywords: Pathological narcissism; advanced capitalism; neoliberal subject; self; achievement society; relational psychoanalysis

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Introduction: Why Does Pathological Narcissism Seem Like the Norm Today?

In the first two articles in this series, I discussed narcissism first as healthy narcissism, a necessary and constitutive developmental foundation (Paker, 2025), and then as pathological narcissism arising from the fracture of this foundation (Paker, 2026). At this point, however, the discussion inevitably needs to be broadened: Why is pathological narcissism so widespread, visible, and even commonplace today? Why do narcissistic patterns appear less as manifestations of a marginal personality disorder than as a form of selfhood commonly encountered in everyday relationships, the workplace, and cultural representations?

This question is not new. Nearly thirty years ago, in my article “Narcissism Against Socialism,” published in Birikim, I discussed at length how narcissism is not merely a matter of individual psychology, but a psycho-political orientation that erodes empathy, equal worth, and mutuality within capitalist social relations (Paker, 1997). The relationship established in that article between capitalism and narcissism (and between fascism as a specific form of capitalism and psychopathy as a specific form of narcissism) has become even more visible in the now-digitalized historical phase we call advanced capitalism or neoliberalism. This article revisits that earlier framework in light of contemporary psychoanalytic and psycho-political literature.

In this context, rather than confining pathological narcissism to the domain of individual psychopathology, I aim in Narcissism 2.1 to discuss it as a logic of the self that advanced capitalism reinforces, spreads, and puts into circulation. I will argue that the neoliberal order, built on performance, productivity, competition, speed, and visibility, not only enables narcissistic defenses but, in many contexts, makes them functional and even rewarded solutions. From a psychoanalytic and psycho-political perspective, I seek to examine the digitalized, accelerated, and institutionalized forms taken today by the process Christopher Lasch pointed to half a century ago with his concept of the culture of narcissism (Lasch, 1979).

[A brief note: This article focuses on the relationship between capitalism and pathological narcissism; topics such as the relationship between fascism and psychopathy and narcissistic-psychopathic leadership will be addressed in subsequent articles in the series.]

Advanced Capitalism and the Remaking of the Self: The Subject as Entrepreneur of the Self

Like every social formation, advanced capitalism produces a comprehensive rationality that determines not only economic relations but also how the self is constituted and sustained. Neoliberal reason redefines the subject as human capital charged with maximizing its own value in every sphere; every domain, from education and health to career and emotional life, is conceived in terms of investment, return, and performance (Brown, 2015). Within this framework, the self is compelled to derive its internal continuity and worth not from mutuality and recognition, but from measurable achievement and visibility.

In what Byung-Chul Han calls the achievement society, the subject is no longer disciplined by an external authority—there is no longer any need for this. Instead, the subject has become self-coercing and recognizes no limits (Han, 2015). As the imperative to succeed is internalized, failure is experienced not as a moral or structural problem, but as a personal shortcoming and a source of shame. Under this affective pressure, narcissistic defenses such as grandiose fantasies, the heightened sensitivity associated with narcissistic vulnerability, and dependence on approval become mechanisms of affect regulation that sustain the self. The most extreme examples can be seen among salaried employees in sectors such as finance, industry, and law—sectors that drive the system in advanced capitalist countries. These employees voluntarily sacrifice themselves to advance their careers and increase their earnings—in short, to succeed. They work excessively long hours and consequently pay a wide range of medical and psychosocial costs. This phenomenon is not confined to these countries or sectors; throughout the capitalist system, to varying degrees, we see a pattern in which people sacrifice themselves to the system in pursuit of success. It would not be an exaggeration to say that this new construction of the subject is neoliberal capitalism’s greatest achievement.

The process Richard Sennett describes as the corrosion of character reveals this transformation's temporal dimension. Fragmented careers, short-term goals, and constant uncertainty erode the self’s sense of long-term continuity; individuals come to define themselves not through enduring values but through moment-to-moment performances (Sennett, 1998). This logic applies not only in the workplace but also in emotional and intimate relationships: the self becomes a project that must be continually presented and optimized in order to be lovable and desirable (Illouz, 2007).

In this context, pathological narcissism should be understood not as an incidental response to the conditions of selfhood generated by advanced capitalism, but as a form of adaptation that becomes functional under those conditions.

The Normalization of Pathological Narcissism: Cultural and Institutional Mechanisms

One of the main reasons pathological narcissism is so widespread and visible today is that these patterns have become normalized and legitimized culturally and institutionally. The phenomenon Lasch described half a century ago as the culture of narcissism takes shape as public and traditional bonds weaken and individuals are increasingly left alone with their own fragile selves (Lasch, 1979). People seek to compensate for this fragility through consumption, status, and admiration; they derive self-worth from outside rather than within.

Platform capitalism has further accelerated these compensatory mechanisms: social media brings the narcissistic dynamics of the society of the spectacle into everyday life (Debord, 1967/1994). The economy of visibility rewards grandiose performances while pushing those who remain invisible into cycles of shame rooted in vulnerability. Values such as humility, solidarity, compassion, and empathy are now passé; they have no place in this order.

Empirical research also supports this picture. In their cross-generational comparisons, Twenge and Campbell (2009) link rising narcissistic traits to the ideology of celebrity, consumerism, and self-centered narratives of success.

Neville Symington’s definition of narcissism as an ethical withdrawal from truth and the other illuminates this normalization (Symington, 1993). Recognizing the other’s subjectivity requires patience, slowness, emotional labor, and tolerance of uncertainty; by contrast, the advanced capitalist order rewards speed, competition, and control. Narcissistic defenses therefore come to function as adaptive solutions not only at the individual level but also within institutional rationality.

The critical point here is this: In this context, pathological narcissism functions not as a deviation but as a character orientation encouraged under certain conditions. A loss of empathy or superficiality in relationships is reframed not as a personal failing, but as efficiency, professionalism, or strength. This reframing plays a central role in the proliferation of narcissistic patterns.

The structural fit between advanced capitalism and narcissistic and psychopathic traits can be observed not only in cultural norms but also in organizational selection mechanisms. Empirical studies conducted over the past twenty years show that narcissistic and psychopathic traits are significantly more prevalent among senior executives and CEOs of large corporations than among the general population (Babiak et al., 2010; Chatterjee & Hambrick, 2007). The system rewards these traits—with ethically troubling aspects such as a lack of empathy and the instrumentalization of others—because they enable those who possess them to make decisions with a short-term focus, take risks, and act independently of emotional ties in competitive environments. Narcissistic and psychopathic patterns thus move beyond the boundaries of individual pathology and become leadership styles compatible with institutional rationality. This is a critical indicator for understanding why pathological narcissism is not marginalized in advanced capitalist structures but instead becomes normative.

Pathological Narcissism in Everyday Life: Relationships, Work, and Emotional Erosion

The normalization of pathological narcissism under advanced capitalism is felt most concretely in everyday relationships. Intimate relationships, friendships, and workplace ties increasingly become instruments of self-regulation rather than spaces of mutuality and continuity. People may use relationships not as spaces for shared experience, but as sources of validation, status, or emotional nourishment.

In everyday relationships, narcissistic patterns often operate not through overt aggression but through devaluation, the creation of uncertainty, and the erosion of emotional boundaries. In such relationships, the person being harmed may internalize the emotional toll as a personal failure, in keeping with the neoliberal subject’s tendency to feel continually responsible.

In intimate relationships, this often takes the following form: One person begins by showing the other intense interest and idealizing them, but over time leaves them emotionally uncertain by withdrawing, becoming distant, or adopting devaluing attitudes. This withdrawal is not experienced as an explicit rupture; instead, it is attributed to “a demanding schedule,” “being busy,” or “sensitivity.” When the other person voices their unease, they are accused of being “overly sensitive,” “too demanding,” or “not being understanding.” The problem is thus removed from its relational context and reframed as an individual flaw. This pattern is a common mechanism of emotional erosion in narcissistic relationships (Hirigoyen, 2000).

A similar dynamic appears in the workplace. Under pressure to perform, relationships become instrumental; while teamwork and solidarity are rhetorically extolled, arrangements based on competition and individual prominence come to the fore in practice. This contradiction further strengthens narcissistic defenses: individuals develop a grandiose shell to conceal their vulnerability and dependence, or become trapped in a vulnerable position marked by continual approval-seeking.

The long-term consequence of these processes is a pervasive state of emotional weariness and mistrust. The dominant affect of our age is not guilt, but inadequacy and burnout (Ehrenberg, 2010). Pathological narcissism functions as one of the defenses developed against this sense of inadequacy; yet it simultaneously reproduces that feeling, creating a vicious cycle.

Conclusion: Is Pathological Narcissism a Deviation, or a Regime of the Self Long in the Making?

In this article, I have treated pathological narcissism not merely as an individual personality problem, but as a distinctive logic of the self that advanced capitalism produces, reproduces, reinforces, and puts into circulation. Built on performance, competition, speed, and visibility, this order makes empathy, equal worth, mutuality, and emotional continuity costly, while turning narcissistic defenses such as grandiosity and instrumentalization into functional and even rewarded solutions in many contexts. Pathological narcissism therefore proliferates not as an exceptional deviation, but as a normative character style under certain social conditions.

This observation does not mean that pathological narcissism is inevitable or immutable. It does, however, show that the solution cannot be confined to the individual level—for example, to psychotherapy. Questions about how the self is constituted; which qualities are valued and which are punished; and which affects are made visible and which are suppressed must also be addressed at the social and institutional levels. At this point, relational psychoanalysis's emphasis on mutuality, recognition, and the equal worth of subjects may offer a horizon that is not only clinical, but also ethical and (anti-capitalist) political.

The extent to which pathological narcissism has proliferated under advanced capitalism also confronts us with more difficult and disturbing questions: How does this logic of the self harden in moments of crisis? Under what conditions is empathy more radically suspended? At what thresholds does pathological narcissism evolve into darker forms of psychic organization devoid of empathy? These questions will be addressed separately in subsequent articles in the series by examining the relationship between fascism and psychopathy and forms of narcissistic-psychopathic leadership.

 

References

• Babiak, P., Neumann, C. S., & Hare, R. D. (2010). Corporate psychopathy: Talking the walk. Behavioral Sciences & the Law, 28(2), 174–193.

• Brown, W. (2015). Undoing the demos: Neoliberalism’s stealth revolution. New York, NY: Zone Books.

• Chatterjee, A., & Hambrick, D. C. (2007). It’s all about me: Narcissistic chief executive officers and their effects on company strategy and performance. Administrative Science Quarterly, 52(3), 351–386.
• Debord, G. (1994). The society of the spectacle (D. Nicholson-Smith, Trans.). New York, NY: Zone Books. (Original work published 1967)
• Ehrenberg, A. (2010). The weariness of the self: Diagnosing the history of depression in the contemporary age. Montreal & Kingston: McGill–Queen’s University Press.
• Han, B.-C. (2015). The burnout society (E. Butler, Trans.). Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
• Hirigoyen, M.-F. (2000). Stalking the soul: Emotional abuse and the erosion of identity (H. Marx, Trans.). New York, NY: Turtle Point Press.
• Illouz, E. (2007). Cold intimacies: The making of emotional capitalism. Cambridge, UK: Polity Press.
• Lasch, C. (1979). The culture of narcissism: American life in an age of diminishing expectations. New York, NY: W. W. Norton.
• Paker, M. (1997). Narsisizm sosyalizme karşı [Narcissism against socialism]. Birikim, 101 (June 1997). (Reprinted in T. Bora [Ed.], Yeni bir sol tahayyül için [Toward a new vision of the left]. Istanbul: Birikim Yayınları, 2000.)
• Paker, M. (2025, December 18). Narsisizm 1.0: Sağlıklı narsisizm [Narcissism 1.0: Healthy narcissism]. Yeni Arayış. [English Translation].
• Paker, M. (2026, January 5). Narsisizm 2.0: Patolojik narsisizm [Narcissism 2.0: Pathological narcissism]. Yeni Arayış. [English Translation].
• Sennett, R. (1998). The corrosion of character: The personal consequences of work in the new capitalism. New York, NY: W. W. Norton.
• Symington, N. (1993). Narcissism: A new theory. London, UK: Karnac Books.
• Twenge, J. M., & Campbell, W. K. (2009). The narcissism epidemic: Living in the age of entitlement. New York, NY: Free Press.

 

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