1) What is collective/group narcissism?
Group Narcissism consists of people who feed on
the narcissistic supply. As a result, they can create more drama from the group
and use the power of the group to create havoc on others, creating more
emotional supply.
Malignant Narcissists feed off drama. Research,
including brain scans, shows that their brains operate differently. MG's may
not feel or get enough supply for healthy human emotions created from love,
bonding, and empathy. Instead, their brains light up, are fed when admired, and
when they see and or create intense negative emotions like drama, fear, pain,
and discord. These emotions create the MG's "Narcissistic
Supply."
2) What are social
Narcissism's potential consequences in societies and groups?
The most serious is emotional contagion, just
like a small group yelling and taunting can create a large crowd to stir to
anger an attack like the crowd torch-bearing scene in the classic movie
Frankenstein, a toxic group, can contaminate not just those inside that group
and those outside the group
In group narcissism, we see unquestioning loyalty and admiration
for the group and its ideals and an intense fervor in the persecution of any
person who questions the authority of the overarching ideals of the group. The
group will do anything to ignore any bad behavior of their fellow narcissists,
give him a pass and then another pass, normalize bullying, yelling, crazy,
abusive, and even dangerous behavior. They will defend one of their own kind
for fear of losing the group. They will even attack any innocent person or
persons who threaten the group's status quo. The group is their breath, their
life, their sustenance, their "supply." In the presence of other
narcissists, who reflect "like" behaviors, they don't see their dark
selves. In the group, they are whole and belong. They may see damage in others,
yet it only serves to make them feel superior. And in fact, their very acceptance of
the dark damage in their fellow tribe members may make them think they are good
people. They don't consider that dark damage behaviors are unacceptable in a
healthy group. They only see reflections of themselves.
Patti Wood is a body language expert with degrees emphasizing Nonverbal Communication. She writes and speaks to corporate clients about body language and honesty, integrity, credibility, deception, narcissism, and psychopathology. She is also an expert on Hitler's body language.
