MarriageTweets

When John Edwards invoked “the narcissism defense” in his explanation last August for why he cheated on his wife, the moment felt a bit anticlimactic—male politicians have long reinforced their stereotype as egomaniacs who think they’re God’s gift to women. But a new book asserts that more and more Americans are developing congressman-like levels of narcissism, which begs the question: Are our relationships suffering for it, just like Edwards’ did? How can a person who can’t stop looking in the mirror maintain a healthy love life? “The culture of narcissism is about your personal happiness coming first and your partner coming second,” says Esther Perel, the author of Mating in Captivity and a licensed marriage and family therapist. “It’s what’s at the core of divorce.” According to researchers, there’s a groundswell of narcissism in our society. In a new book, The Narcissism Epidemic, psychology professors W. Keith Campbell and Jean Twenge chart the dramatic rise in the number of Americans who have a clinical narcissist personality disorder.