Why do narcissists never apologize?

Ah, narcissists. You either love them or hate them – except when you’re forced to deal with one on a daily basis, that is. One of the most perplexing things about these ego-driven individuals is their inability to utter the two magic words: “I’m sorry.” Whether it’s a simple misunderstanding or an outright offense, why do narcissists never apologize? Well my friend, strap in and get ready for a bumpy ride as we explore this topic.

Introduction

Just like any good Netflix series needs an intro, so does our article. Let’s set the stage here – put on your detective hats and let’s dive into this psychological mystery.

The Definition of Narcissism

Before we can understand why narcissists never apologize, let’s first make sure we know what we’re dealing with here. Narcissism is defined as excessive self-love or admiration for oneself; in more severe cases, it becomes ingrained personality traits that negatively impact interpersonal relationships.

According to Mayo Clinic,[1]the symptoms include:

  • An inflated sense of importance
  • Preoccupation with fantasies of success
  • Beliefs about being special/superior compared to others
  • Strong need for admiration from others (frequent fishing-for-compliments behavior)
  • Lack of empathy towards others’ feelings/beliefs/etc.
  • Envious behaviors relating mainly but not solely due to materialistic belongings

These traits all stem from deep-seated insecurities within the person which leads us nicely onto our next heading…

They Can’t Admit Faults

To admit fault would be akin to hitting themselves where it hurts most i.e., their sense of superiority over everyone else around them (which they believe) while chipping away at their seemingly infallible exterior will always lead toward concealing truth.\n

Imagine telling Superman that he messed up and his actions caused a villain killing innocent people. What do you think would happen? He certainly wouldn’t admit the error, right?
That’s exactly what’s going on in the mind of a narcissist – they simply cannot acknowledge their faults/shortcomings as it shatters the whole notion of perfection and superiority.

It doesn’t matter how hurtful or offensive their behavior may be; apologizing would make them feel weak…and they can’t have that now, can they?

They’re Masters At Deflecting Blame

When you’re always pointing fingers at other people for your own problems (which is classic narcissists’ traits),so why start taking responsibility now? Being able to minimize implications will allow an opportunity in utilizing their psychological entrapment tool to battle back instead.\n

If someone confronts them about something unpleasant they’ve done/said/didn’t care about, then all bets are off – prepare for some serious finger-pointing! Narcissists are experts at shifting blame onto others, making themselves out to be the victims – which brings us nicely onto our next point…

They See Themselves As The Victim

Intrigued by brain gymnastics? When cornered into such situations wherein remorse might be necessary, even guilt-free introspection could become agonizing for persons already susceptible towards emotional distress [2]. And this self-indulgence sometimes leads toward playing victim card as though everyone around them has specifically targeting causing issues putting him/her/them under negative light.

To apologize is conceding a semblance of wrongdoing-even if subconscious ,so acknowledging ones fault amounts harm on self-image perceiving . In doing so,but in no manner it implies further mental/depressive illness but indicates extremes of cognitive discordance:

“I’m not wrong here/I’m perfect-infact I deserve an apology from youfor making me look bad”

It is a manipulative tactic used to escape the responsibility of being mature and rational folks acknowledging their own faults.

They Don’t Experience Empathy Like Most People

Empathy is defined as the ability to put oneself in another’s shoes and truly understand how they feel. For most people, this comes naturally – but for narcissists, it’s almost non-existent.

Narcissistic individuals may try to simulate empathy through reading body language or facial expressions but do not have genuine humans’ vision towards understanding other sentiments [3].Not necessarily because they want to comfort someone from emotional distress solelybut more toward establishing their primacy by seeming geniality/generosity. Egotistical behavior will always trump any amount of real concern for others on their part.

Their Beliefs Are Unchallengeable

To apologize would imply that they are wrong; hence staking claim/defending beliefs becomes paramount instead.Upholding belief restoration gains precedence over healing interpersonal relationships if pre-requisites in form agreements with things said that lead down different roads than reality dictated- leads toward ridiculing situation/caller completely ignoring facts at hand /abandoning conversational themes all together

A narcissist sees himself/herself/themselvesas never being wrong: whatever they say must be right (in some twisted sense). So asking them to apologize means you’re essentially challenging everything that they know–and we all know how well THAT goes down! Thus apologizing falls under surrendering-to-lower-beings-them category; which selfish ego cannot allow .

The Final Takeaway

In conclusion, don’t ever expect a heartfelt apology from a narcissist…unless there’s something for them to gain from it.So,tread caution when dealing with people exhibiting these symptoms-if at all possible keep yourself safe before subjecting anyone further into potentially harmful situations which could turn violative too..\n

Can you think of any other reasons as to why narcissists never apologize? Drop a comment below and let’s see what you got.

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