Examples of Personality Disorders - Essay Example

Axl Rose and Narcissistic Personality Disorder Here Here Here Here Axl Rose and Narcissistic Personality Disorder Guns N Roses is one of the most influential bands in the history of rock music. This fame is not only due to the popularity of their songs, but also owes to the intense and mysterious personalities that comprised the original group. The past tense is appropriate because, even though Guns N` Roses is still an active band, virtually everything that most strongly defined them has changed drastically since their 80s heydays (members, style, attitudes, etc.). The root of these changes has always appeared to be the lead singer, Axl Rose.

Raised as William Bruce Bailey, Rose became a larger than life figure in the entertainment industry as the front man for Guns N` Roses due to his skillful vocals, a penchant for drug abuse, and wild antics (like trashing hotel rooms). After several successful albums and world tours, the band fell apart. In the media, Rose was assigned most of the blame for the breakup, and became somewhat of a villain in the history of hard rock. However, the real strangeness was just beginning. Maintaining ownership of the band name, Axl Rose reformed Guns N` Roses with no original members but himself.

For more than a decade, the band would make sporadic appearances while constantly undergoing member changes. At the same time, Rose regularly withdrew from society to supposedly work on the never-ending process of creating a new album (which was eventually released, but long after interest had waned). Axl Rose has several psychological issues, and has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder. The existence of this condition makes the assignment of an Axis II personality disorder difficult due to possible co-morbid interactions, but an initial analysis of Rose`s personality (based on a wealth of available media) surely points to narcissism as a prevailing and damaging characteristic that supports many, if not all, of his strange behaviors.

For example, taking over a decade to produce a single album is not a normal practice in the music industry. Rose took this oddity to a new level by only including himself in most of the writing/recording process, and displaying an obsession for perfectionism that focused solely on his own accomplishments. Members of the original group have often cited Roses ego as a primary cause of dysfunction in the band, especially near the end of their collaboration. An especially poignant example of behavior in which Rose took advantage of the band for his own needs comes from his obtaining of the Guns N Roses trademark.

Apparently, during one of their final tours, Rose demanded that the band sign over the rights to the name, or he would refuse to perform. A last consideration is that the reclusion displayed by Rose during the writing of his most recent album may be interpreted as a bid to avoid attention. This would not fit well with a diagnosis of narcissistic personality disorder, but it is also possible that going into hiding was a way for Rose to remain a focus of public interest simply for the strangeness of the behavior.

Axl Rose has a history exhibiting many characteristics that are thought to be associated with the development of narcissistic personality disorder. He experienced severe emotional abuse at the hands of a religiously militant step-father, and may have been sexually abused by his biological father (he recalled this via hypnosis, so false memories are possible). Given the pious nature of his upbringing, Rose likely received high praise for behaviors that were perceived as good, while he was strictly punished for offenses.

Additionally, this environment would be interpreted as unpredictable by a young Rose if he did not understand or agree with the theories that guided his parents judgements. These, and several other factors, likely contributed to the development of narcissistic tendencies (Corner, 2011) in Axl Rose, and may have influenced the development of bipolar disorder and/or other potentially present conditions.ReferenceCorner, R.J. (2011). Fundamentals of abnormal psychology (6th ed.). New York: Worth Publishers.