Wrath of the narcissists: vulnerable narcissism predicts greater spiteful punishment of a third-party transgressor

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dc.contributor.advisorEnt, Michael
dc.contributor.authorParton, Drew M.
dc.contributor.departmentTowson University. Department of Psychologyen_US
dc.date.accessioned2019-03-20T20:55:07Z
dc.date.available2019-03-20T20:55:07Z
dc.date.issued2019-03-15
dc.date.submitted2018-05
dc.description(M.A.) -- Towson University, 2018en_US
dc.description.abstractSelf-enhancement motivations underlie a bevy of behaviors with the purpose of achieving and maintaining high, healthy self esteem. However, in individuals with especially favorable self-views (i.e., narcissists), self-enhancement is taken to a dangerous extreme. Narcissists have been shown to self-enhance through aggression, social dominance, and derogation after threats to their self-esteem. Research distinguishes between two types of narcissism: grandiose (associated with exhibitionism, vanity, and self-obsession) and vulnerable narcissism (associated with entitlement, resent, and defensiveness). The present study investigated another possible self-enhancement method of narcissists: spiteful punishment. Spiteful punishments (defined as punishments with the chief purpose being to inflict harm upon a party) may be a possible way for narcissists to assert social dominance over an individual after a threat to their self-esteem. The present study investigated how vulnerable and grandiose narcissists choose to punish after a self-threat and after a neutral condition. Participants (N = 454) completed the Narcissistic Personality Inventory and the Maladaptive Covert Narcissism Scale, and then were either given negative feedback on an intelligence test, or a neutral task. They then read a vignette about an office bully and rated their endorsement of a series of punishments. Results showed that vulnerable narcissists consistently endorsed more spiteful punishment compared to grandiose narcissists and non-narcissists, regardless of self-threat. This suggests that vulnerable narcissists have a base-line degree of antisocial self-enhancement. Spiteful punishment may allow vulnerable narcissists to covertly aggress and reassert social dominance.en_US
dc.description.urihttp://library.towson.edu/digital/collection/etd/id/68425en_US
dc.formatapplication/pdf
dc.format.extentv, 68 pagesen_US
dc.genrethesesen_US
dc.identifierdoi:10.13016/m2bfxe-slfu
dc.identifier.otherTSP2018Parton
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11603/13103
dc.language.isoen_USen_US
dc.relation.isAvailableAtTowson University
dc.titleWrath of the narcissists: vulnerable narcissism predicts greater spiteful punishment of a third-party transgressoren_US
dc.typeTexten_US

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