An attention-seeking personality seeks validation from others and may exhibit dramatic, emotional, or sexually provocative behavior. It is associated with low self-esteem and may be linked to histrionic personality disorder. Treatment is typically therapy to improve self-confidence and social interactions.
An attention-seeking personality is characterized by an individual who behaves in such a way that he always draws attention to himself. This can happen in many different ways; some people may be very dramatic, emotional, or sexually provocative, while others may play the victim role and attempt to gain attention through sympathy. Sometimes the attention-seeking personality is associated with a disorder known as histrionic personality disorder (HPD), although this disorder cannot be diagnosed until an individual is at least eighteen years of age. Also, not everyone with this personality type has a mental disorder.
In general, people who possess an attention-seeking personality need more validation from others than the average person. They may seek any kind of feedback from other people, be it positive or negative, simply to validate their existence. Often, this personality type is also associated with low self-esteem or low levels of confidence, even if the person appears to be very self-confident. It’s difficult for researchers to tell whether an individual is born with an attention-seeking personality, or whether it evolves over time following certain life experiences.
There are various ways an attention-seeking personality can manifest itself. A common way for a person is to regularly have emotional and dramatic responses to everyday events or to tell stories in an exaggerated way to put themselves in the spotlight. Sexually provocative behavior is also relatively common; a person may flirt inappropriately or dress a certain way to get attention. Others may employ a different tactic to get attention and play the victim; this can range from pretending when they are sick or hurt, to telling stories of past abuse, to frequently discussing the ways they feel they are “wrong” in life.
These are just some of the ways a person with an attention-seeking personality can display it. Often these people are quite manipulative and have a hard time maintaining relationships. If these actions become very severe, it can be diagnosed by a psychologist as histrionic personality disorder. Typically, the only treatment for this disorder is therapy, in an effort to teach the individual better ways to express themselves, interact with others, and increase their feelings of self-confidence and self-worth. It can be difficult, however, because people with this disorder often believe they don’t need therapy.
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