Grandiose narcissists seek status selectively
Grandiose narcissists seek status selectively
Author
Giacomin, Miranda
Battaglini, Ashley M.
Rule, Nicholas O.
Faculty Advisor
Date
2018
Keywords
fame , narcissism , person perception , social media
Abstract (summary)
Grandiose narcissists (individuals with a tendency to be self-focused, egotistical, and vain) overwhelmingly desire celebrity status. Here, we examined the conditions underlying narcissists’ fame motivation. In Study 1, we
assessed participants’ desire to become a social media user who attained
high status, tried to attain status but failed, or had no status-attainment
goal. In Study 2, we assessed how participants’ self-perceived similarity
to high-status targets (e.g., Hollywood/social media celebrities) influences
their desire to become them. We found that participants reporting high
narcissism were most motivated to become successful social media celebrities, disliking people who tried to attain status but failed more than they
disliked people who had no goal for fame (Study 1). Moreover, narcissists
emulated high-status targets only when they felt similar (vs. dissimilar) to
them (Study 2). Thus, narcissists do not perceive all fame as equally desirable and only express a desire for fame when it is attainable.
Publication Information
Giacomin, M., Battaglini, A. M., & Rule, N. O. (2018). Grandiose narcissists seek status selectively. Social Cognition, 36, 20-42. doi: 10.1521/soco.2018.36.1.20
DOI
Notes
Item Type
Article
Language
English
Rights
All Rights Reserved