Narcissistic traits in young people: understanding the role of parenting and maltreatment

Schie, Charlotte C. van; Jarman, Heidi L; Huxley, Elizabeth; Grenyer, Brin F. S.

doi:10.1186/s40479-020-00125-7

Cited by 32 publications

(27 citation statements)

References 76 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…The relationship between trauma and narcissism has been documented [58,[65][66][67] and the term 'trauma-associated narcissistic symptoms' has been proposed to identify such features [68]. Interestingly, while participants in our sample did describe instances of overt abuse which were traumatic to their relative (e.g.…”

Section: Descriptive Featuresmentioning

confidence: 90%

Living with pathological narcissism: a qualitative study

Day

Townsend

Grenyer

2020

bord personal disord emot dysregul

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background: Research into the personality trait of narcissism have advanced further understanding of the pathological concomitants of grandiosity, vulnerability and interpersonal antagonism. Recent research has established some of the interpersonal impacts on others from being in a close relationship with someone having such traits of pathological narcissism, but no qualitative studies exist. Individuals with pathological narcissism express many of their difficulties of identity and emotion regulation within the context of significant interpersonal relationships thus studying these impacts on others is warranted. Method: We asked the relatives of people high in narcissistic traits (indexed by scoring above a cutoff on a narcissism screening measure) to describe their relationships (N = 436; current romantic partners [56.2%]; former romantic partners [19.7%]; family members [21.3%]). Participants were asked to describe their relative and their interactions with them. Verbatim responses were thematically analysed. Results: Participants described 'grandiosity' in their relative: requiring admiration, showing arrogance, entitlement, envy, exploitativeness, grandiose fantasy, lack empathy, self-importance and interpersonal charm. Participants also described 'vulnerability' of the relative: contingent self-esteem, hypersensitivity and insecurity, affective instability, emptiness, rage, devaluation, hiding the self and victimhood. These grandiose and vulnerable characteristics were commonly reported together (69% of respondents). Participants also described perfectionistic (anankastic), vengeful (antisocial) and suspicious (paranoid) features. Instances of relatives childhood trauma, excessive religiosity and substance abuse were also described. Conclusions: These findings lend support to the importance of assessing the whole dimension of the narcissistic personality, as well as associated personality patterns. On the findings reported here, the vulnerable aspect of pathological narcissism impacts others in an insidious way given the core deficits of feelings of emptiness and affective instability. These findings have clinical implications for diagnosis and treatment in that the initial spectrum of complaints may be misdiagnosed unless the complete picture is understood. Living with a person with pathological narcissism can be marked by experiencing a person who shows large fluctuations in affect, oscillating attitudes and contradictory needs.

show abstract

Section: Descriptive Featuresmentioning

confidence: 90%

Living with pathological narcissism: a qualitative study

Day

Townsend

Grenyer

2020

bord personal disord emot dysregul

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…A remaining question is whether ‘rosy’ glasses are always advantageous or whether they can also have disadvantageous side effects for parents and their children. This certainly warrants further investigation ( van Schie et al. , 2020 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 89%

Vicarious praise and pain: parental neural responses to social feedback about their adolescent child

Houtum

Wever

Janssen

et al. 2021

Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Social feedback, such as praise or critique, profoundly impacts our mood and social interactions. It is unknown, however, how parents experience praise and critique about their child and whether their mood and neural responses to such ‘vicarious’ social feedback are modulated by parents’ perceptions of their child. Parents (n = 60) received positive, intermediate and negative feedback words (i.e. personality characteristics) about their adolescent child during a magnetic resonance imaging scan. After each word, parents indicated their mood. After positive feedback their mood improved and activity in ventromedial prefrontal cortex and posterior cingulate cortex/precuneus increased. Negative feedback worsened parents’ mood, especially when perceived as inapplicable to their child, and increased activity in anterior cingulate cortex, anterior insula, dorsomedial prefrontal cortex and precuneus. Parents who generally viewed their child more positively showed amplified mood responses to both positive and negative feedback and increased activity in dorsal striatum, inferior frontal gyrus and insula in response to negative feedback. These findings suggest that vicarious feedback has similar effects and engages similar brain regions as observed during feedback about the self and illustrates this is dependent on parents’ beliefs of their child’s qualities and flaws. Potential implications for parent–child dynamics and children’s own self-views are discussed.

show abstract

“…These positive yet fragile selves may have their origin in childhood with overprotective and overvaluing parenting relating to more grandiose and vulnerable narcissism traits [ 19 , 20 ]. This parenting environment may lead to young people being dependent on others for feedback and guidance in order to sustain a positive self-view [ 21 – 24 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Narcissistic traits in young people and how experiencing shame relates to current attachment challenges

Schie

Jarman²,

Reis

et al. 2021

BMC Psychiatry

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background Young people with pathological narcissistic traits may have more maladaptive ways of relating to themselves and others. In this study, we investigated how the experience of shame may be a mechanism by which vulnerable and grandiose pathological narcissism relates to negative and positive internalised models of the self and others, manifested as attachment styles. Methods Participants (N = 348) were young people who reported on pathological narcissism, the experience of shame and their model of self and others (secure, dismissive, preoccupied and fearful attachment). Mediation of the experience of shame between vulnerable and grandiose narcissism on the one hand and secure, dismissive, preoccupied and fearful attachment on the other hand, was tested using a path model. Results Shame mediated the relationship between vulnerable narcissism and a more negative model of others and self (i.e. less secure, more fearful and more preoccupied in attachment). Higher grandiose narcissism traits were related to a more positive model of others and self (i.e. more secure attachment) and were unrelated to the experience of shame. Conclusions Young people with vulnerable narcissism traits tended to report more shame, and struggled to be close to others. It may be that shame experiences highlight a discrepancy between the ideal and actual self that may contribute to a more insecure attachment style. A good working alliance and fostering self-compassion may counter some negative effects of shame in those most vulnerable, but dismissal in those most grandiose presents a clinical conundrum requiring further research.

show abstract

Narcissistic traits in young people: understanding the role of parenting and maltreatment

Cited by 32 publications

References 76 publications

Living with pathological narcissism: a qualitative study

Living with pathological narcissism: a qualitative study

Vicarious praise and pain: parental neural responses to social feedback about their adolescent child

Narcissistic traits in young people and how experiencing shame relates to current attachment challenges

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About