Kohut's theory of narcissism and adolescent drug abuse treatment.

Examined whether changes in narcissism among adolescents occurred during treatment for substance abuse and determined if and how narcissism might relate to progress and persistence in such treatment. Ss were 95 13–21 yr olds entering or already in long-term treatment for drug abuse, surveyed 3 times over 6 mo. Narcissism was measured by 2 instruments based on H. Kohut's (1971 and 1977) theory of narcissistic development. Findings indicated that many, but not all, narcissistic characteristics did change during treatment. Theorized relations were found between narcissism scores and progress in treatment for most narcissistic manifestations. The ability to relinquish angry acting-out behavior distinguished dropouts from persisters. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)