Your instincts are right; it's worth a skip. The article is both poorly written and largely obtuse.
Its subject argues that promoting self-esteem leads to narcissism, and therefore is undesirable, while never fully grasping the obvious: that narcissism, despite appearances, is an artifact of low self-esteem.
That's a spurious distinction because it depends on defining artificial.
In the end, the number of people who are truly inflated (which is the correct term I believe) are so few that this is an argument about over-eating discussed during a famine.
Its subject argues that promoting self-esteem leads to narcissism, and therefore is undesirable, while never fully grasping the obvious: that narcissism, despite appearances, is an artifact of low self-esteem.