The Fabulous Narcissist offers a new look at one of the personality traits we seem most focused on and fascinated by in modern times, and explains why the self-absorbed not only cause damage to their surroundings, but move the world along.

At the beginning of the 2000s, Espen Skorstad fell upon a project that was highly unusual for a psychologist at the time. He was fresh out of university and has just started his own business, but he had neither money nor clients. A celebrity psychologist he knew took pity on him, and asked if he wanted to help choose candidates for a couple of reality TV shows. What was Skorstad to answer? Reality TV? Was that really how he should put his six-year-long education to use?

What he didn't know then was that reality and celebrity TV was about to blow up. That in a few years, the Norwegian princess Marta Louise would be attempting to flee prison for our entertainment. That science journalists would be dancing shirtless on TV. Or that a politician would find the opportunity to run his election campaign from one of our most popular reality TV shows. Without knowing it, in 2001 Skorstad wandered into narcissism’s ground zero.

Twenty years later, narcissism is in focus in popular culture and media. We are fascinated by antagonists, egoists and people who treat other people poorly. There is reason to questions this presentation. Not only the demonising of narcisissm, but also how it is being described. We must discuss: when is narcissism damaging, and when is it not? Even ask: when is narcissism constructive? If we cannot see the positive aspects of a personality trait, or cannot recognise them in ourselves, will we ever be able to deal with darker sides?