A Small Price to Pay: National Narcissism Predicts Readiness to Sacrifice In-Group Members to Defend the In-Group's Image

Yes, we can (but for different reasons): Collective narcissism is linked to different values but similar pro-ingroup collective action tendencies among disadvantaged and advantaged ethnic groups

Collective narcissism, a belief that one's group is exceptional and entitled to special treatment but underappreciated by others, is related to important social and political outcomes but has been predominantly studied in advantaged groups. The present research compares the motivational correlates (through values) of collective narcissism in ethnic groups of different status (advantaged and disadvantaged) and explores its associations with attitudes towards, and intention to engage in collective action. Three studies examined these processes in different national and intergroup contexts (total N = 16,275). Overall, ethnic collective narcissism was linked to self-protective values (power, and less consistently, conservation) in advantaged groups but to universalism in disadvantaged groups. Moreover, in both advantaged and disadvantaged groups, ethnic collective narcissism was related to more positive attitudes towards, and intentions of pro-ingroup actions but not to attitudes towards (other) disadvantaged groups (i.e., intergroup solidarity). These studies suggest that collective narcissism may be associated with different motivations, yet linked to similar intergroup attitudes among advantaged and disadvantaged groups.

Teach them how to fish or give them fish? The effect of collective narcissism on intergroup help

Intergroup help contributes to the solution of global issues in particular. However, whether to teach an outgroup how to address their problem permanently, or to directly help them solve the current problem? Collective narcissism might play a crucial role in this process. Based on the core characteristics of collective narcissism, this research explored whether and how collective narcissism would affect people's willingness to give different types of intergroup help. Study 1 examined the correlation between collective narcissism and intergroup help. Studies 2 and 3 investigated the impacts of outgroup threat and ingroup image on the relationship between collective narcissism and intergroup help respectively. In Study 4, the interaction between outgroup threat and ingroup image was further examined. The results showed that collective narcissism reduced participants' willingness to offer intergroup help, especially autonomy-oriented help. For low-threat outgroups, collective narcissism increased participants' willingness to give dependency-oriented help. In contrast, collective narcissism increased participants' willingness to give autonomy-oriented help when refusal to intergroup help tarnished the ingroup image. For high-threat outgroups, collective narcissism did not predict participants' willingness to give intergroup help. These findings suggest that collective narcissists' preferences for intergroup help change with outgroup threat and ingroup image.

Double trouble: How sectarian and national narcissism relate differently to collective violence beliefs in Lebanon

Collective narcissism is a belief in ingroup greatness which is contingent on external validation. A lack of research on collective narcissism amongst non-Western contexts and minority groups remains a challenge for the field. However, here we test two types of collective narcissism (sectarian and national) as differential predictors of two dimensions of collective violence beliefs (against outgroup members and leaders) in a large, diverse, community sample from Lebanon (N = 778). We found that sectarian narcissism (narcissism related to smaller political and religious ingroup identity) predicted support for collective violence against members of different sects, while national narcissism predicted opposition to such collective violence. Neither form of collective narcissism had any significant relationship with collective violence against outgroup leaders. We controlled for both sectarian and national identification and found no significant effects in predicting either one of the two dimensions of collective violence beliefs. In this non-Western context, in which a coherent national identity is undermined by sectarianism, national narcissism seems to be a progressive motivator for unity and social change, while sectarian narcissism is rather associated with extreme attitudes, such as support for collective violence.

Shake it off! Adaptive coping with stress reduces national narcissism

Examining the role of coping with stress strategies in shaping national narcissism, we proposed that this type of defensive national commitment (stemming from psychological shortcomings) should be lowered by adaptive coping strategies. In Study 1 (longitudinal, N = 603), we found that higher adaptive (i.e. self-sufficient) coping attenuated national narcissism. In Study 2 (experimental, N = 337), the priming of adaptive coping significantly decreased national narcissism. We also demonstrated the indirect effects of the induced adaptive coping strategy on conspiracy beliefs via national narcissism. These findings suggest that using adaptive coping strategies (either dispositional or situationally induced) may attenuate national narcissism. We discuss the role of coping with stress in shaping group-level phenomena.

Generosity during the COVID-19 pandemic: The role of collective narcissism

This study analyzes how a novel psychological factor-collective narcissism-affects giving behavior to national and international charities during the COVID-19 pandemic. We found that collective narcissists tended to keep more resources for themselves or national charities while giving less to international charities. In line with the group threat theory, this tendency is more pronounced in countries with a high share of foreign population. Our findings suggest that the shared experience of the global COVID-19 public health crisis did not blur the boundaries between ingroups and outgroups for collective narcissists. These results imply that mitigating outgroup hostility associated with collective narcissism is critical to strengthening cross-national solidarity during unprecedented crises. However, more contact with foreign nationals might not reduce the negative impact of collective narcissism.

“‘Cause We Are the Champions of the World”

Abstract. National narcissism is a defensive form of group identity that is contingent on external validation and involves unrealistic belief in the nation’s greatness. Those high in national narcissism are susceptible to ingroup-enhancing narratives. In two pre-registered studies, conducted in Poland ( N = 1,134) and the United Kingdom ( N = 501), we hypothesized and found that national narcissism predicts support for historical policies that emphasize the great achievements and past dominance of one’s own group. Furthermore, we found that the relationship between national narcissism and support for ingroup-enhancing historical policies can be accounted for by the perceived contribution of one’s own country to the world’s history. We discuss implications for research on collective narcissism and historical policies.

Their own worst enemy? Collective narcissists are willing to conspire against their in-group

Collective narcissism - a belief in in-group greatness that is not appreciated by others - is associated with using one's group for personal benefits. Across one pilot and four studies, we demonstrated that collective narcissism predicts readiness to conspire against in-group members (r_{meta-analysis}  = .24). In Study 1, conducted in Poland (N = 361), collective narcissism measured in the context of national identity predicted readiness to engage in secret surveillance against one's own country's citizens. In Study 2 (N = 174; pre-registered), collective narcissism in UK workplace teams predicted intentions to engage in conspiracies against co-workers. In Study 3 (N = 471; pre-registered), US national narcissism predicted intentions to conspire against fellow citizens. Furthermore, conspiracy intentions accounted for the relationship between collective narcissism and beliefs in conspiracy theories about the in-group. Finally, in Study 4 (N = 1064; pre-registered), we corroborated the link between Polish national narcissism and conspiracy intentions against fellow citizens, further showing that these intentions were only directed towards group members that were perceived as moderately or strongly typical of the national in-group (but not when perceived in-group typicality was low). In-group identification was either negatively related (Studies 1 and 2) or unrelated (Studies 3 and 4) to conspiracy intentions (r_{meta-analysis}  = .04). We discuss implications for research on conspiracy theories and populism.