Differential relations of grandiose narcissism and vulnerable narcissism to emotion dysregulation: Self-esteem matters

Procrastination, Perfectionism, Narcissistic Vulnerability, and Psychological Well-Being in Young Adults: An Italian Study

Procrastination is generally regarded as a dysfunctional tendency to postpone tasks, due to its consequences on performance and psychological well-being. Previous research has indicated that it is linked to perfectionism and narcissism, but with mixed results. The present study explored the interaction between procrastination, perceived parental expectations, multidimensional perfectionism, and narcissism in a sample of 548 Italian young adults aged 18-35 years (M = 23.9; SD = 4.3). Participants completed an online survey consisting of a sociodemographic questionnaire and psychometric measures assessing the constructs of interest. The results showed that: (a) procrastination was positively correlated with socially prescribed perfectionism only, which, in turn, was positively correlated with perceived parental expectations and criticism, and both narcissistic grandiosity and vulnerability; (b) perceived parental expectations and criticism and narcissistic vulnerability had a positive effect on socially prescribed perfectionism, while procrastination had a negative one; and (c) narcissistic vulnerability mediated the relationship between socially prescribed perfectionism and procrastination. Taken together, the findings contribute to a better understanding of the link between procrastination, perfectionism, and narcissism in young adults, and highlight the relevance of contemporary parenting styles and the current sociocultural background for understanding dilatory behaviors.

Association between pathological narcissism and emotion regulation: The role of self-mentalizing?

Pathological narcissism (PN) is a common psychopathological issue leading to maladaptive strategies to cope with self-esteem threats, including self-enhancement and exploitation (grandiose strategies) or internalized shame, depression, and social withdrawal (vulnerable strategies). Mentalizing is a key process for regulating self and other representations and their associated emotions. Patients with PN further struggle with emotion dysregulation (ED), which during development is intertwined with the growing capacity to mentalize. We seek to contribute to emerging empirical data documenting the associations between PN and ED and between PN and mentalizing, and to provide information on the nature of their mutual relationships. In the present study, we assessed PN, ED, and three mentalizing dimensions (mentalizing self, other, and motivation to mentalize) in 183 patients consulting in our outpatient unit specialized in ED. We found that narcissistic vulnerability was negatively associated with self-mentalizing and positively associated with overall ED, both even after adjustment for borderline and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms. However, the association with ED was not maintained after further adjustment for self-mentalizing or overall-mentalizing, which suggests that mentalizing may play a mediating role in this relationship. On the other hand, narcissistic grandiosity was positively associated with other-mentalizing and ED and negatively associated with self-mentalizing in bivariate analyses, but these last two associations were not maintained after adjustment for comorbid borderline and/or ADHD symptomatology. This study provides new information on the link between PN and ED and on key mentalizing dimensions meaningfully relating to PN, notably through a potential role of self-mentalizing processes between PN and ED.

Military Values, Military Virtues, and Vulnerable Narcissism among Cadets of the Swiss Armed Forces-Results of a Cross-Sectional Study

Background: For military leaders, military values and virtues are important psychological prerequisites for successful leadership and for ethical and moral military behavior. However, research on predictors of military values and virtues is scarce. Given this background, we investigated whether Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB), resilience, and vulnerable narcissism might be favorably or unfavorably associated with military values and virtues, and whether vulnerable narcissism could moderate the association between the OCB-by-resilience-interaction, and military virtues. Methods: A total of 214 officer cadets (mean age: 20.75 years; 96.8% males) of the Swiss Armed Forces (SAF) volunteered to take part in this cross-sectional study. They completed a booklet of self-rating scales covering dimensions of military values and military virtues, OCB, resilience, and vulnerable narcissism. Results: Higher scores for military virtues were associated with higher scores for military values, OCB, and resilience, and with lower scores for vulnerable narcissism. Multiple regression models showed that higher scores for OCB and resilience were associated with military values and virtues. Vulnerable narcissism moderated the association between military virtues, and the OCB-by-resilience-interaction: the higher the vulnerable narcissism, the more the OCB-by-resilience-interaction was associated with lower scores for military virtues. Conclusions: Among cadets of the SAF, the associations between military values, military virtues, OCB, and resilience were highly intertwined, while vulnerable narcissism appeared to attenuate the association between military virtues, OCB, and resilience.

The association between victims' vulnerable and grandiose narcissism and grudge holding

Two nonexperimental studies were conducted to test how and why transgression victims' narcissism influences their grudge holding, using undergraduate students and a community sample of adults, respectively. Study 1 tested the association between victims' vulnerable narcissism and grudge holding, including emotional persistence, perceived longevity, and disdain toward the transgressor. It also tested the extent to which victims' grandiose narcissism moderated the association. Study 2 was conducted to replicate Study 1 and test whether victims' rumination about the transgression mediated the moderated association. Overall, those with higher degrees of grandiosity showed a positive relation between vulnerable narcissism and reported emotional persistence (Studies 1 and 2) and perceived longevity (Study 2). Finally, rumination explained the moderated relation (Study 2).

The effect of childhood trauma on complex posttraumatic stress disorder: the role of self-esteem

Background: Due to the short time that complex posttraumatic stress disorder (CPTSD) has been an independent diagnosis, few studies have explored the role that self-esteem might play in the relationship between childhood trauma and CPTSD.Objective: The current study aimed to explore the impact of childhood trauma on CPTSD and the role of self-esteem in this relationship.Methods: Study 1 involved a questionnaire survey in which a total of 360 young Chinese adults with childhood trauma participated. Study 2 used experimental research by manipulating short-term self-esteem to explore the effect of self-esteem on CPTSD. A total of 80 young Chinese adults with childhood trauma participated.Results: The results of Study 1 showed that childhood trauma positively predicts adulthood CPTSD, while self-esteem partially mediates the relationship between the two. It also found that self-esteem has a greater mediating effect on the disordered self-organization (DSO) dimension of CPTSD than on the PTSD dimension. In Study 2, participants in the high manipulated-self-esteem group reported fewer CPTSD symptoms than those in the low manipulated-self-esteem group.Conclusion: Overall, this study emphasized the role of self-esteem in CPTSD among individuals with a childhood trauma history. In practice, we provided a potential optimization direction for CPTSD clinical treatment, suggesting a method of self-esteem reconstruction.

Emotion regulation difficulties are associated with loss-of-control eating dependent on degree of narcissistic traits in college students

Loss-of-control eating (LOCE) is highly prevalent in college students and may be driven by enduring personality traits. Narcissism is often conceptualized with two broad domains: grandiose and vulnerable. The association between narcissism and LOCE has not been directly assessed, nor the potential influence of emotion regulation deficits, which are differentially associated with grandiosity and vulnerability. This study hypothesized an association between vulnerable narcissism and LOCE in college students by way of emotion regulation difficulties, extending prior findings. Participants (n = 704) completed a survey on pathological eating and body image disturbance, emotion regulation difficulties, and narcissistic traits. Results supported a full mediation effect, such that vulnerable narcissism was positively associated with LOCE by way of emotion regulation difficulties. Present findings suggest the mechanism primarily predictive of LOCE is emotion regulation difficulties, and predisposition to deficits in emotion regulation associated with vulnerable narcissism may increase the odds of LOCE. Additionally, it was noted that grandiose narcissism evinced a fully mediated inverse association with LOCE. Clinical implications and directions for future research are discussed.

Global and appearance-contingent self-esteem: Associations with health and attractiveness exercise reasons

Whilst some individuals exercise for health-related reasons, others appear to exercise to bolster physical attractiveness. For the latter, this is often attributed to dissatisfaction with appearance. Few studies, however, have explored if differences in self-esteem may relate to diverse exercise reasons. The present study investigated whether global self-esteem, appearance-contingent self-worth, and appearance satisfaction may be differentially associated with health and attractiveness exercise reasons. It was further sought to explore whether these relations coincided with different motivational regulations. Adults from the east midlands of the United Kingdom (N = 209; 75% female, 25% male; mean age = 29.77 years) completed measures relating to their global and appearance-contingent self-esteem, appearance satisfaction, exercise intentions, and motivations. Structural equation modelling revealed that global self-esteem was positively associated with appearance satisfaction and health reasons for exercise, whereas appearance-contingent self-esteem related to lower appearance satisfaction and attractiveness reasons. Appearance satisfaction had no association with either exercise reason but was associated with intrinsic motivation and lower controlled exercise motivations. Health exercise reasons were positively associated with intrinsic, identified, and introjected motivation, whereas attractiveness reasons were exclusively related to external motivation. The findings highlight the conceptual importance of differentiating the level and contingency of exercisers' self-esteem. The findings may also have substantive value for exercise practitioners in understanding different reasons for exercise.

Exploring the relationship between dispositional mindfulness and hoarding behavior: A moderated multi-mediation model

Hoarding behavior may not only interfere with hoarders’ daily lives but may also endanger the community. However, few studies have investigated the role of personality characteristics in hoarding behavior. We hypothesized that dispositional mindfulness would be negatively associated with hoarding behavior, and tested mechanisms and gender differences in this association. An online survey was conducted in a sample of 533 Chinese adults (262 women, Mage = 26.82; SD = 6.30). Regression-based analyses showed that mindfulness was associated with less hoarding behavior through higher self-esteem and lower emotion dysregulation. Moreover, gender moderated the mediating effect of emotion dysregulation in the association between mindfulness and hoarding behavior. Specifically, the indirect association was only significant for women. These findings provide a deeper understanding of how, why, and for whom dispositional mindfulness is negatively associated with hoarding behavior, they provide support for self-completion theory and the cognitive-behavioral model of hoarding, and they have heuristic value for future research.

Pathological Narcissism and Emotional Responses to Rejection: The Impact of Adult Attachment

Background: Aspects of pathological narcissism, such as grandiosity, vulnerability and entitlement, tend be enacted in therapeutic settings, negatively influencing outcome and alliance between the clients and therapist. This research took an experimental approach to understanding the interplay between the emotional reactions of individuals with a pathological narcissistic presentation, and adult attachment style. We predicted that participants reporting narcissistic vulnerability would report greater insecurity in attachment (fearful and preoccupied styles), greater trait emotional reactivity, and also experience more intense and negative responses to simulated rejection

Methods: 269 participants (75.84% female, median age = 21) completed baseline and rejection trials of a virtual ball-tossing game, following the assessment of grandiose and vulnerable pathological narcissism, entitlement, adult attachment, trait emotional reactivity (measured prior to the rejection) and in-situ affective response (measured both before and after the rejection). Change in affect from baseline was calculated to capture affective responses to the manipulation.

Results: Vulnerable narcissism was positively associated with both fearful and preoccupied attachment, and negatively associated with secure and dismissive attachment, whilst grandiose narcissism was significantly related to preoccupied attachment only. Multiple hierarchical regression analyses showed vulnerable narcissism predicted both (1) more negative trait emotional reactivity and (2) a significant increase in negative affect following the rejection trial. Grandiose narcissism was associated with (1) higher positive trait emotional reactivity, and (2) significant reductions in positive affect following rejection.

Conclusion: Results indicated that those high in pathological narcissistic vulnerability reported greater insecurity in attachment, negative trait emotional reactivity and experienced a more negative and intense emotional reaction to rejection. Grandiose narcissism was related to a more deactivated pattern of emotional reactivity, and less positive (rather than more negative) emotional reactions. Findings have important implications for therapy, particularly regarding communication of emotions for individuals high in vulnerable and grandiose narcissism.

Socially Engaged Social Psychology in Asia: Sustaining Research Progress in Diverse Directions

The final thematic special issue in the series ‘The Social Psychology of Social Change: Science and Practice in Asia’ features 10 empirical studies that apply diverse social psychological theories and approaches to understand and to address a wide range of social concerns in Asian societies. The articles in the special issue align more to mainstream social psychological approaches to studying social phenomena, and as such are mainly derivative of Western social psychological paradigms, with the exception of a couple of studies that adopt emic indigenous approaches. Nevertheless, the various studies display a clear motivation to use social psychology to engage particular societal concerns, representing incremental progress towards using social psychology in the service of social change.