Narcissism From Every Angle: An Interpersonal Analysis of Narcissism in Young Adults

Abstract

The construct of narcissism can be conceptualized very differently depending on the psychological literature. The social-personality conceptualization of narcissism often emphasizes high self-esteem as well as a range of associated maladaptive and adaptive outcomes. The clinical literature focuses on the pathological aspects of narcissism and highlights maladaptive aspects that correspond to the relationship between narcissistic grandiosity and narcissistic vulnerability. Reflecting these varying views of narcissism, many measures have become popular in the assessment of the construct, each with varying interpersonal characterizations. The current study (N = 1,111) evaluated the interpersonal profiles captured by popular measures of narcissism and examined whether measures capture overlapping, differentiated, and/or intended interpersonal styles. Results revealed that measures of narcissism capture a wide range of interpersonal styles, from warm/dominant to submissive. However, most measures emphasize the role of interpersonal dominance in the measure content. Viewing narcissism from a three-factor structure, including narcissistic agency, antagonism, and vulnerability, helps to integrate the wide range of interpersonal styles apparent across narcissism measures. Furthermore, the level of (mal)adaptivity and general interpersonal style somewhat maps onto the literature of origin for the scales. Implications for measurement selection in the assessment of narcissism are discussed.