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Cited by 314Personality Traits and PsychologyEmotions and Moral BehaviorSocial and Intergroup Psychology

Untangling the Links between Narcissism and Self‐esteem: A Theoretical and Empirical Review

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Bosson, Jennifer K., Lakey, Chad E., Campbell, W. Keith, Zeigler‐Hill, Virgil, Jordan, Christian H., Kernis, Michael H.·2008·Social and Personality Psychology Compass
DOI 10.1111/j.1751-9004.2008.00089.x
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Abstract

The links among narcissism, explicit (deliberate, controllable) self‐esteem, and implicit (automatic, uncontrollable) self‐esteem are unclear despite numerous attempts to illuminate these links. Some investigations suggest that narcissism reflects high explicit self‐esteem that masks low implicit self‐esteem, but other investigations fail to replicate this pattern. Here, we place the ‘mask’ model of narcissism in historical context and review the existing empirical evidence for this model. We then discuss three possible issues that might shed light on the inconsistent findings that have emerged from tests of the mask model. These issues include the unreliability of implicit attitude measures, narcissism's different associations with agentic versus communal self‐views, and distinctions between grandiose and vulnerable narcissism subtypes. We also summarize several alternatives to the mask model of narcissism. Throughout, we offer suggestions for improving the study of narcissism and self‐esteem and point to directions for future research on this topic.

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  • Researchers have found no relation between IAT and NLT scores, raising serious concerns about the convergent and construct validity of these measures.

    “Researchers have also found no relation between IAT and NLT scores, raising serious concerns about the convergent and construct validity of these measures (Bosson et al. 2008).”

    From Controversies in Narcissism (2017) · cites this paper as Bosson et al. 2008

  • A meta-analysis found self-esteem IATs had null correlations with narcissism, and NLTs had a weak positive correlation with narcissism, opposite the direction predicted by the mask model.

    “A meta-analysis (Bosson et al. 2008) found that self-esteem IATs evinced null correlations with narcissism, and NLTs evinced a weak yet positive correlation with narcissism (i.e., the opposite direction predicted by the mask model).”

    From Controversies in Narcissism (2017) · cites this paper as Bosson et al. 2008

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References 115 · Cited by 314

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Authors
Bosson, J. K., Lakey, C. E., Campbell, W. K., Zeigler‐Hill, V., Jordan, C. H., & Kernis, M. H.
Affiliations
  • University of South Florida (US)
  • University of Georgia (US)
  • University of Southern Mississippi (US)
  • Wilfrid Laurier University (CA)
ORCID
Venue
Social and Personality Psychology Compass
Publisher
Wiley
Published
2008-04-03
Volume
2
Issue
3
Pages
1415-1439
ISSN
1751-9004 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1111/j.1751-9004.2008.00089.x
OpenAlex
W2109422324
Cited by
314
References
115
Citations by year
2026: 9 · 2025: 20 · 2024: 22 · 2023: 19 · 2022: 16 · 2021: 23 · 2020: 18 · 2019: 14 · 2018: 24 · 2017: 21 · 2016: 19 · 2015: 14 · 2014: 20 · 2013: 11 · 2012: 15
FWCI
18.22
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor (vor)
Locations
  • Social and Personality Psychology Compass (publishedVersion)
  • Digital Commons - University of South Florida (University of South Florida) (submittedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Personality Traits and Psychology
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Emotions and Moral Behavior
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Social and Intergroup Psychology
Keywords
narcissism, self-esteem, explicit self-esteem, implicit self-esteem, grandiose narcissism, vulnerable narcissism

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