Childhood Maltreatment and Narcissism: The Mediating Role of Dissociation
Abstract
Childhood maltreatment (CM) is thought to be linked to adult narcissistic traits. However, it remains unclear how CM is associated with each type of narcissism, vulnerable and grandiose, and what mechanism mediates these links. One potential candidate is dissociation. This study examines the relations among CM, dissociation, vulnerable narcissism, and grandiose narcissism. A total of 322 women completed self-reported questionnaires assessing CM, dissociation, vulnerable narcissism, and grandiose narcissism. To examine the relations among CM, dissociation, and each type of narcissism, we performed Pearson’s correlations and mediation analyses. In secondary analyses, we conducted latent class analyses to classify different types of CM and to assess their relations with the study variables. We found small to moderate correlations between CM and vulnerable narcissism, ( r = .35, p < .001) and CM and grandiose narcissism ( r = .2, p < .001), with the former association being greater than the latter ( z = –3.25, p < .001). Dissociation was found to mediate the link between CM and each type of narcissism ( p < .001). Results suggest that CM may play a role in the etiology of vulnerable and grandiose narcissism, and that dissociation links CM to each type of narcissism. Findings highlight that CM may lead to different responses in terms of narcissism—through the same mediation process.
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Third-generation studies have documented differential etiologies for vulnerable versus grandiose narcissism and a multifactorial etiology of NPD.
“Those studies have documented differential etiologies for vulnerable versus grandiose narcissism and a multifactorial etiology of NPD.”
From Narcissistic Personality Disorder: Progress in Understanding and Treatment (2022) · cites this paper as [60]
PN is strongly associated with a history of child maltreatment, particularly neglect.
“Strongly associated with a history of child maltreatment, particularly neglect (47–49)”
From Psychoanalytically informed MDMA-assisted therapy for pathological narcissism: a novel theoretical approach (2025) · cites this paper as [49]
Dissociation mediates the relationship between early maltreatment and both grandiose and vulnerable expressions of narcissism.
“studies suggest that dissociation mediates the relationship between early maltreatment and both grandiose and vulnerable expressions of narcissism (49).”
From Psychoanalytically informed MDMA-assisted therapy for pathological narcissism: a novel theoretical approach (2025) · cites this paper as [49]
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- Authors
- Bertele, N., Talmon, A., & Gross, J. J.
- Affiliations
- Stanford University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Talmon, Anat
- Venue
- Journal of Interpersonal Violence
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2020-12-23
- Volume
- 37
- Issue
- 11-12
- Pages
- NP9525-NP9547
- ISSN
- 0886-2605 (ISSN-L)
- 1552-6518
- OpenAlex
- W3115192514
- Cited by
- 27
- References
- 49
- Citations by year
- 2026: 6 · 2025: 5 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 6 · 2022: 3
- FWCI
- 0.90
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Interpersonal Violence (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child Abuse and Trauma
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Personality Traits and Psychology
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychoanalysis and Psychopathology Research
- Keywords
- child abuse, narcissism, vulnerable narcissism, grandiose narcissism, dissociation, mediation, women
- MeSH terms
- Mediation Analysis, Adult, Child, Child Abuse, Female, Humans, Narcissism, Surveys and Questionnaires, Self Report
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