Narcissism and the self: psychoanalytic considerations

This article addresses the relation of narcissism to the concept of the self. Based on the concept of the self-as-person, distinction is drawn between the self as a substantial, relatively autonomous source of agency and of both conscious and unconscious mentation and action on one hand and the self as the object of narcissistic investment on the other. The argument presumes abandonment of both the concept of narcissism as libidinal drive cathexis of the self (the most common understanding of narcissism among analysts) and the converse proposition defining the self as derived from and reflecting narcissistic origins. It is proposed that development of self structure arises on the basis of other than narcissistic considerations, but once established it can become the object of narcissistic investment. As such the self cannot be reduced to or defined in terms of narcissistic derivation. Implications for the understanding of self-esteem are explored and clinical implications suggested.