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Many individuals who suffer from narcissistic and borderline personality disorders respond particularly well to group psychotherapy. This cluster includes many who do not function well in individual psychotherapy, those who show intolerance for the closeness of the therapeutic dyad, who experience uncontrolled transference regressions, or who have nonspecific ego weakness or poor affective contact. On the other hand, group psychotherapy is thought to be contraindicated for patients whose lack of personal accomplishment may stand in marked contrast to that of other group members, or who suffer from overwhelming affect and anxiety, paranoid tendencies or extreme narcissism. Therapists are often confronted with a paradox, in that the character pathology that may make patients difficult to treat in a group is the very same as that for which group psychotherapy is the treatment of choice. Demandingness is often managed better in a group than in a dyadic relationship. Egocentrism is readily confronted in a group, and the patient has opportunities to interact helpfully with others. Social isolation and withdrawal