Just because narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) tracks through families does not mean that it is genetically inherited. Narcissistic abuse tracks through those same families. That is TWO variables, either or both of which could be responsible. Good science can draw no conclusions from data with more than one variable.
In fact, since narcissists have two faces and behave like angels when they want, narcissistic behaviors are obviously volitional and are treated as such under the law. Also, most children of narcissists do not become narcissists. So the genetic hypothesis needs much stronger support, including tests of the normal children of narcissists, to be worthy of serious consideration.
Because there is more than one way to foul up a system, diseases often can have more than one cause. The odds are that the conclusion of good science will be that certain genes do make some people more susceptible than others to Narcissistic Injury and therefore more likely to make the choices that make them narcissists themselves.
Also, it is conceivable that some genes responsible for hard-wired circuitry in the newborn infant could impair normal child development and thereby cause some cases of NPD. We see something like this with autism: apparently children born blind are much more likely to become autistic and need to be actively parented to help the infant connect with an outside world he cannot see. Still, blindness is not the usual cause of autism. And we will probably find that genes are not the usual cause of NPD.
Nonetheless, we shall just have to wait for good science to let us know for sure.
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