Transference-counter-transference constellations and enactments in the psychotherapy of destructive narcissism

Abstract

Destructive narcissism, characterized by a perverse alliance between the self and an omnipotent bad internal object, constitutes a serious obstacle to psychoanalytic psychotherapy. This paper draws together various object relations theories of destructive narcissism, and presents a case study of a failed psychotherapy to illustrate the transference-counter-transference constellations and their associated enactments in treatment of this disturbance.