Noted Narcissism Expert Wrote that Barack Obama Appears to be a Narcissist – Truth! & Fiction!

Noted Narcissism Expert Wrote that Barack Obama Appears to be a Narcissist Truth! & -Fiction!

Summary of eRumor:

A forwarded email with a story by an expert in the field of Narcissism, Dr. Sam Vaknin, that says that after observing the actions and conduct of Barack Obama he believes the President to be a narcissist.

The Truth:

Dr. Sam Vaknin told TruthorFiction.com that he is not the author of the article in the eRumor but has written about the psychological make-up of Barack Obama.

The forwarded email appears to be a commentary written by someone else taken from an article written by Dr. Sam Vaknin called “Barack Obama – Narcissist or Merely Narcissistic?”

Vaknin told us that he is not a mental health professional but has dedicated the last 12 years to the study of personality disorders in general and the Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD) in particular. Vaknin has authored nine books about these topics, one of which, “Malignant Self-love: Narcissism Revisited”, is a Barnes and Noble best-seller.  According to the bio on his website, Dr Sam Vaknin was born in Israel in 1961, served in the Israeli Defense Force as a trainer and education and earned a PHD in Philosophy at Pacific Western University in California. 

Vaknin wrote several articles about Barack Obama including an article by the title of “Barack Obama – Narcissist or Merely Narcissistic?” expressing his observations of the President saying that “Barack Obama appears to be a narcissist.”   Vaknin also said that only after a series of tests by trained professionals can one get an accurate diagnosis of the condition   “But, in the absence of access to Barack Obama, one has to rely on his overt performance and on testimonies by his closest, nearest and dearest.”   Click for Vaknin website

Vaknin’s article points out the problems with narcissistic leaders such as over exaggerated feelings of self importance and entitlement.  Narcissists lack empathy, behave arrogantly and can display symptoms of paranoia. The article also pointed out that psychologist, Eric Fromm, had diagnosed both Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin as malignant narcissists.

updated 03/10/09