Individuals who match this personality disorder type are arrogant and
self-centered, and feel privileged and entitled. They have a grandiose,
exaggerated sense of self-importance and they are primarily motivated by
self-serving goals. They seek power over others and will manipulate, exploit,
deceive, con, or otherwise take advantage of others, in order to inflict harm
or to achieve their goals. They are callous and have little empathy for others’
needs or feelings unless they coincide with their own. They show disregard for
the rights, property, or safety of others and experience little or no remorse
or guilt if they cause any harm or injury to others. They may act aggressively
or sadistically toward others in pursuit of their personal agendas and appear
to derive pleasure or satisfaction from humiliating, demeaning dominating, or
hurting others. They also have the capacity for superficial charm and
ingratiation when it suits their purposes. They profess and demonstrate minimal
investment in conventional moral principles and they tend to disavow
responsibility for their actions and to blame others for their own failures and
shortcomings.
Individuals with this personality type are temperamentally aggressive and have a high threshold for pleasurable excitement. They engage in reckless sensation-seeking behaviors, tend to act impulsively without fear or regard for consequences, and feel immune or invulnerable to adverse outcomes of their actions. Their emotional expression is mostly limited to irritability, anger, and hostility; acknowledgement and articulation of other emotions, such as love or anxiety, are rare. They have little insight into their motivations and are unable to consider alternative interpretations of their experiences.
Individuals
with this disorder often engage in unlawful and criminal behavior and may abuse alcohol
and drugs. Extremely pathological types may also commit acts of physical
violence in order to intimidate, dominate, and control others. They may be
generally unreliable or irresponsible about work obligations or financial
commitments and often have problems with authority figures.
