Cited by 382Personality Traits and PsychologyPersonality Disorders and PsychopathologyEmotions and Moral Behavior

On the Meaning and Measure of Narcissism

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Brown, Ryan P., Budzek, Karolyn, Tamborski, Michael·2009·Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin

Abstract

For three decades, social-personality research on overt narcissism has relied almost exclusively on the Narcissistic Personality Inventory (NPI). However, the NPI suffers from a host of psychometric and validity concerns that make composite NPI scores (summed across its subscales) difficult to interpret. The present studies propose that narcissistic characteristics tend to fall under two general clusters: grandiosity and entitlement. The studies show that measures of grandiosity and entitlement interact to predict scores on the NPI, controlling for gender, self-esteem, and basic personality (Study 1), but also that grandiosity and entitlement function independently with respect to mental health (Study 2) and ethical misconduct (Study 3). Together, these results challenge the view of overt narcissism as a unidimensional construct and underscore the importance of distinguishing between grandiose and entitled aspects of the narcissistic self-concept.

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Crossref · 10.1177/0146167209335461

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  • Expert ratings by researchers and clinicians and meta-analytic reviews identify entitlement, manipulativeness, and callousness as key traits associated with narcissism and NPD.

    “expert ratings by researchers and clinicians (Brown et al. 2009, Lynam & Widiger 2001, Samuel & Widiger 2004, Samuel et al. 2012, Thomas et al. 2012) and meta-analytic reviews (e.g., O'Boyle et al. 2015, Samuel & Widiger 2008a) identify these as key traits associated with narcissism and NPD.”

    From Controversies in Narcissism (2017) · cites this paper as Brown et al. 2009

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Authors
Brown, R. P., Budzek, K., & Tamborski, M.
Affiliations
University of Oklahoma (US)
Corresponding author
Brown, Ryan P.
Venue
Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin
Published
2009-06-01
Volume
35
Issue
7
Pages
951-964
ISSN
  • 0146-1672 (ISSN-L)
  • 1552-7433
OpenAlex
W2127423490
Cited by
382
References
47
Citations by year
2026: 6 · 2025: 8 · 2024: 19 · 2023: 11 · 2022: 20 · 2021: 34 · 2020: 23 · 2019: 19 · 2018: 30 · 2017: 44 · 2016: 26 · 2015: 27 · 2014: 30 · 2013: 28 · 2012: 16
FWCI
19.78
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • SHAREOK (University of Oklahoma; Oklahoma State University; Central Oklahoma University) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Personality Traits and Psychology
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Personality Disorders and Psychopathology
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Emotions and Moral Behavior
Keywords
grandiose narcissism, Narcissistic Personality Inventory, grandiosity, entitlement, self-concept, mental health, ethical violations, self-esteem
MeSH terms
Adult, Extraversion, Psychological, Female, Health Status, Humans, Male, Mental Health, Models, Psychological, Narcissism, Personality, Personality Inventory, Probability, Psychometrics, Regression Analysis, Self Concept, Sex Factors, Conduct Disorder

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