/* The Superiority Complex Defence Mechanism Disorder of each cluster <3 [ Just a tongue-in-cheek meme, not a statement of every single person with these disorders ]
… That said, here's a breakdown of the feelings of superiority of these three disorders and how they differ. As usual, these are general frameworks. Actual individuals may not have all these traits/have different ones, or may have overlapping ones [ especially, but not necessarily, if they are comorbid ].
Schizoid Personality Disorder
Goal: Safety
Defence against: Feelings of intrusion
Manifests as: Doing everything alone, secrecy [ to avoid other people's input and thus "control" of their decisions ], unclear goals and expectations of both themselves and others, distaste for emotions and seeing it as "dramatic", distaste for people and refusal to be in relationships
Differences from NPD and OCPD: Does not tend to impose their own standards/expectations on others [ preference to avoid people altogether ]; does not seek outward validation/may be uncomfortable with positive acknowledgement and reassurance, relatively more apathetic to failure and criticism [ may feel unaffected or unconsciously shut down negative emotions ]; tendency to give up more easily
People with ScPD, due to their detachment from emotions and preoccupation with thoughts, are often more adept at objectively assessing the thoughts and behaviour of other people. Coupled with their buried hypersensitivity to emotions, this often leads the schizoid to see others as dramatic and sometimes stupid.
In reality, the schizoid may not necessarily genuinely see themselves as a "great" person [ although seeing themselves as "incompetent" is not necessary either ]: rather, their apprehension towards other people [ or specifically, emotions, both other people's and their own ] leads them to adopt a "superiority complex" as a method of protecting the self. The schizoid learns to be hyper-independent, convincing themselves they are capable of doing everything alone to avoid the need to ask for help, disclosing their emotions to others or entering relationships as much as possible.
The schizoid's mechanism of shutting down their own emotions due to the inability to handle them leads to a mindset where emotions are seen as a "frivolous" thing, and other people who more readily display them may be devalued for this reason.
Unlike people with NPD, who are more likely to want to show their competency to other people, the schizoid prefers to keep things to themselves, and may be unwilling to share things they are genuinely passionate about/good at [ for example, works of art ] due to the belief the perception/input of others are intrusive and controlling.
People with ScPD often feel "helpless" and unable to control their situation similar to those with OCPD. However, they respond by shutting down their emotions in general and passively accepting things as they are. They may often think that reacting to things "dramatically" is beneath them.
Maladaptively, this leads to struggles in relationships because the schizoid often has difficulty sympathising with other people, and may find their genuine attempts at kindness annoying or even dangerous. The schizoid may also be unable to manage their own tasks or needs alone due to the inability to disclose their emotions, ask for help or commit to things that are too difficult.
Narcissistic Personality Disorder
Goal: Self-worth
Defence against: Feelings of worthlessness
Manifests as: Desire to "prove" self to others, taking on leadership roles, comparison with or devaluation of other people, extreme reaction to failure and criticism, high need for admiration
Differences from ScPD and OCPD: More willing to form relationships or work with others [ especially to achieve validation ]; often has genuine (if nebulous/volatile) confidence in their own capabilities; better decisiveness and ability to finish the tasks they set out to do [ People with ScPD may be too apathetic/anhedonic/unmotivated to have clear goals, people with OCPD may be too preoccupied with doing things a certain way to be efficient ]; tendency to feel negative judgments about them are undeserved/incorrect; higher tendency to change their preferences, standards, behaviour, etc. in accordance to what others expect
People with NPD often feel the need to be admirable due to an ingrained belief that this is the only way they can be worthy of love.
As such, they will often take on tasks with the aim of "proving" they are "worthy" of admiration. Unlike the schizoid who prefers to keep things to themself, the narcissist will often want to display the things they are good at in order to receive validation from others.
This can lead to them wanting prominent roles in their endeavours, or actively seeking out relationships with others to receive validation or to have somebody to "prove" their competency to.
Similar to those with OCPD, they are sensitive to criticism. However, unlike people with OCPD who may obsessively feel the need to "fix" themselves and adhere closer to rigid rules to escape reproach, people with NPD may instead devalue other people's opinions or to shift their goals/standards to deflect the feeling of "falling short."
Maladaptively, they may devalue or put down other people, which can lead to struggles in maintaining relationships or cause conflicts among others. They may also take on more work than they are capable of due to overestimation of their own abilities and/or the desire to prove their own competency to others, leading to burnout and exhaustion. They may be ill-equipped to handle the feelings of insecurity and shame that come with failure or criticism, which can be the cause of other more maladaptive behaviour such as intense withdrawal, lashing out or self-destructive habits.
Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder
Goal: Control
Defence against: Feelings of helplessness
Manifests as: Doing everything alone, preoccupation with what they do/how to do so, imposing rigid rules on others, extreme reaction to failure and criticism, high need for validation
Differences from ScPD and NPD: Higher or more rigid standards/rules/processes of how things "should" be navigated; tendency to get "stuck" on the same goal or to keep abiding to the same standards to their detriment [ People with ScPD will tend to abandon things instead, people with NPD may feel confident enough in their own work to have a decisive "finish line" or will change their goals/standards to better suit what they are already doing ]
People with OCPD feel a higher level of anxiety than most people, and thus adopt the "superiority complex" to combat this. Like people with NPD, people with OCPD tend to be more sensitive to failure and criticism, and their adherence to strict standards is often due to the belief that other people will have nothing to criticise them for if they are able to perform "perfectly" enough.
People with OCPD often have rigid standards of behaviour, whether it comes to their ethical standards, the process of which tasks must follow, or the rules people must abide to. They often want to do their tasks in only a specific way, and like the schizoid will often want to do everything by themself due to believing other people will only slow them down. However, while people with ScPD may primarily believe others are too emotional/frivolous, but not necessarily incompetent, people with OCPD may be more critical of how others perform due to wanting them to abide to their personal standards.
Similar to people with ScPD, people with OCPD often feel a high sense of obligation and responsibility to the things around them and are made to feel helpless because of this. Unlike the schizoid who responds to this by avoidance and passivity, people with OCPD are more likely to "redirect" the feeling into certain tasks [ or the way these tasks are performed ], in order to regain a sense of having control/influence over their situation.
The belief that there is an undeniably "correct" way to do things makes OCPD somewhat similar to OCD [ of which the comorbidity rates are higher than that with other personality disorders ], however they are not the same due to the lack of egodystonic obsessions/compulsions that present the way they do in OCD.
Maladaptively, their rigid standards can make relating to others difficult as they may become critical or distrustful of others for not understanding or complying with their expectations. They may also often struggle with inefficiency, due to the inability to follow their own standards or the preoccupation with perfectionism. The belief that their own method of living is superior makes unfamiliar situations highly distressing.
Traits in Common
Low/no empathy; downplaying of other people's emotions
Difficulty assessing the effect they have on other people; either overestimating or underestimating the depth of their relationships, or vacillating between doing the two
Difficulty trusting other people, which often leads to hyper-independence [ NPD: Higher tendency to work with others but may want to take on leadership roles/decide who does what ]
Difficulty disclosing their genuine emotions due to fear of being perceived negatively [ ScPD: Fear of people interfering in an attempt to "help"; NPD: Fear of being seen as incompetent and unworthy of love/relationships; OCPD: Fear of losing their "grasp" of themselves/their circumstances and being subjected to the criticism or demands of others ]
Desire for an extreme degree of control over their own circumstances; difficulty accepting the input of others [ ScPD: Less negative reaction to criticism, but still unlikely to actually put it into practice due to apathy or devaluation of other people's opinions ]
Repetitive and stagnated tasks/habits; inability to try new things [ ScPD: Apathy/anhedonia/avolition and refusal to ask for instruction makes the schizoid unlikely to have clear goals; NPD/OCPD: Fear of failure and criticism makes them unlikely to do something if they are not certain they can do it well ]
Honourable mention: ASPD also often comes with feelings of superiority. They have a more similar subjective experience to ScPD, where there is a higher preoccupation with safety. Other people are seen as unnecessary and unreliable and thus they would rather do things on their own. Unlike the schizoid's more passive behaviour of avoidance, the antisocial may more actively try to push people away. There is a more similar outward presentation to NPD where they take on leadership roles, want to present themselves as competent individuals or be antagonistic towards others.
The "superiority complex" is often something people with these disorders are stigmatised for, with them being viewed as snobbish, arrogant or impossible to compromise with.
While it is true that people with these disorders will often have maladaptive behaviours due to their feelings of "superiority", it is important to acknowledge that this is a defence mechanisms adopted often as a response to adverse experiences where other people have constantly put their own feelings down and demanded they act in a specific way.
These feelings of superiority do not necessarily need to be rid off completely, and for many people with personality disorders this may not even be possible. Instead, these feelings can be managed and redirected into more productive behaviour:
People with ScPD can be more well-equipped to handle tasks alone, and if anhedonia/avolition is managed can lead to highly efficient behaviour. They can also more readily find practical solutions due to their ability to look past emotions and see things from a more logical point of view.
People with NPD can take their drive to take on tasks as motivation for genuine improvement and self-growth. The desire to "prove" themselves can be managed so that they can take on positions where they teach and encourage others, simultaneously accomplishing their tasks and building up relationships.
When perfectionism is managed, the attention to detail and meticulous devotion to work of people with OCPD can be beneficial especially in certain tasks or professions where specific standards or step-by-step instructions are necessary. Their strong conviction can make them disciplined people with a powerful sense of justice.
These are easier said than done, and requires a lot of work that is deeper than merely "turning your ego down a notch": it involves the ability to accept that there are things one cannot control, to ask for help and to recognise when other people are genuinely acting in good faith. All of these are extremely challenging faced with the maladaptive schemas that people with PDs have had since childhood, but certainly not impossible to achieve, even if takes a lot of time. */
Painted and printed this as a jigsaw puzzle for my family as a Christmas gift (half of my family lives in the city and half in the countryside so likewise some birds are more urban and others prefer rural areas)
I am not active on Tumblr at the moment as I am once again plugging myself back into a semi conscious state of observing my own life instead of living it out.
There is no need to experience anything if it is indifferent to the past. Long periods of isolation...God, you should not have left me alone with my own devices and thoughts for so long, really. It can drive even the most rational man mad, and I consider myself to be a rather rational man (woman?) to some reasonable extent. Well, reasonable in the sense that I won't throw a toaster into your bath if you're my house guest. Promise.
(I will cast you down the stairwell as I did to her. Joke, joke.)
Scrutinized...suppose my mental health isn't smooth as butter (never was, anyway, not when you're born into these conditions), but as usual I am attempting to "hang in there" by scratching the surface of my brain like a chicken to a sandpit.
I cut my nails but they're already so horrendously long by the next day, and sometimes I do injure myself if I am not careful. Tumblr user weeping-evil is what barren flesh is to the bamboo spikes: frail and unprotected!
...Alas, it will not matter. A lot of things do not matter to begin with. The only thing that stands between me and the far shores is that I have three (3) beloved people in my life still.
But when you're like me and perceive that people can no longer hold you down like a boat anchor...then it would be dangerous, wouldn't it?
Roll the eyes. It's incredible nit-witted, all of it, all this. There is no depression or anxiety involved when you wake up trying to drive a stake into your own heart. Stick out your tongue, I'm going to watch after my sisters. Wouldn't be much of a 'good role model' if I didn't...
REALLY PROUD OF THESE OC DOODLE PAGES I love my OCs I would love to talk about them more but I have no idea where to start so just enjoy the pages *gives you a smoochie
Alternative version of an OC called Pip... I haven't posted about her here if I remember correctly so just pretend you know what I'm talking about *cry
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