Female narcissism and domestic abuse: New psychology research reveals dangerous tendencies

New research reveals that while narcissism manifests differently in women, it is equally dangerous. Women with high narcissistic traits tend

PsyPost - Psychology News

The term narcissism may conjure up images of chest-pumping, arrogant, male self-promoters. The personality trait – with its hallmark features of overt grandiosity, assertiveness and superiority – is, in fact, more commonly observed in men.

That is because these central features align closely with traditional masculine traits. In fact, up to 75% of people diagnosed with narcissistic personality disorder are men.

But in reality, narcissism is a modern epidemic that afflicts men and women alike. Our new research, published in Sex Roles, shows how narcissism manifests itself differently in women – but reveals that narcissistic women can be as dangerous and violent as their male counterparts.

Our research reveals that women with high traits of narcissism tend to be more vulnerable and insecure than their male peers. That means it can sometimes be missed by clinical professionals, for example, misdiagnosed as borderline personality disorder.

Narcissism is a complex personality trait. While full-blown narcissistic personality disorder isn’t too common, affecting about 1-2% of the population, we all have narcissism to varying degrees.

Narcissistic personality traits can be expressed in two forms: grandiose and vulnerable. People who exhibit more grandiose features are self-assured and socially dominant. People who exhibit more vulnerable features are introverted and have lower self-esteem. Both forms share an antagonistic core, demonstrated by high levels of entitlement and a willingness to exploit others.

In the context of intimate relationships, narcissism has similarly been associated with men’s perpetration of violence. Threats to their self-esteem can evoke feelings of shame, humiliation and wounded pride, leading to aggressive behaviour.

Although women are less likely to display stereotypical manifestations of narcissism, it does not mean that narcissism is not as common in women. For instance, consider the numerous reality TV stars who are notorious for their self-centredness and vanity – traits often associated with narcissism.

Yet narcissism in women extends beyond self-absorption. Vulnerable narcissism involves traits such as emotional vulnerability, low self-esteem and inhibition. These traits overlap with traditional notions of femininity. Such gender differences in narcissism may stem from gender-specific stereotypes of masculinity and femininity ingrained from childhood.

Consequently, the tendency for men to display more grandiose features and women to display more vulnerable traits may partly originate from parenting styles aimed at making boys more assertive and girls more nurturing.

However, there is a danger of interpreting women’s narcissism as less harmful due to their initial presentation as more soft-spoken, nurturing, passive and vulnerable than men. Beneath this persona, they may be devoid of empathy and harbour high levels of entitlement and a willingness to exploit others.

This suggests that men and women may be aggressive or violent in different ways. Narcissistic women may be more likely to manipulate people, spread rumours or be passive aggressive than narcissistic men, for example.

Our recent research tested this for the first time. In a study of 328 adults (176 women and 152 men), we examined the complex dynamics between childhood experiences, narcissism and the perpetration of intimate partner violence in men and women.

Participants completed an online survey and were asked questions about their personality traits. This captured both grandiose and vulnerable features of narcissism using the Pathological Narcissism Inventory. Participants were also asked to indicate any conflicts that may have arisen during their past or present intimate relationships.

Men scored higher on grandiose narcissism while women scored higher on vulnerable narcissism. Despite these marked gender differences, it is important to remember that narcissism exists along a spectrum. Men can exhibit vulnerable features and women can exhibit grandiose features, too.

Grandiose narcissism in men was associated with greater perpetration of psychological partner violence such as being controlling, bullying or manipulative.

Somewhat surprisingly, grandiose narcissism in men was not associated with the perpetration of physical violence. That clashes with some previous research that measured narcissism using different methods. But overall, men are more likely than women to perpetrate violence, so a proportion of narcissistic men are likely to be violent.

More surprisingly, vulnerable narcissism in women was linked with greater perpetration of physical, sexual and psychological partner violence. It is important to note here that not every woman with vulnerable narcissistic traits is violent.

Instead, specific features of vulnerable narcissism such as devaluing others (assigning exaggerated negative qualities about them) and having entitlement rage (lashing out when you don’t get what you think you deserve) are associated with violent behaviour.

Women who exhibit these features to a higher extent are more likely to be shamefully dependent on others to provide admiration. As a result, they are more likely to respond violently in an attempt to regulate their self-esteem and gain positions of power.

For women, recalling having a caring mother during childhood was associated with reduced levels of vulnerable narcissism and subsequent perpetration of violence toward their partner. This suggests there may be buffers that can be acknowledged and integrated into intervention programmes.

Despite longstanding evidence portraying narcissistic men as more violent than women, our research shows that narcissistic women are not only verbally aggressive, as commonly portrayed in studies, but also physically violent towards their partner.

Despite this, the manner in which narcissistic women abuse others may not be recognised as stereotypically narcissistic. Instead, they may use their feminine identity to leverage societal expectations of women as being nurturing and passive.

This might include exploiting their perceived victimhood to gain positions of power and control. Insidious tactics may include making threats of (false) allegations of abuse, withholding intimacy and affection, exploiting their motherhood to turn their children against their partner, and physically assaulting their partner and blaming it on self-defence to gain sympathy from legal authorities.

Our research challenges the stereotype that women are always the victims in abusive relationships. This balanced understanding promotes a more nuanced view of relational dynamics and gender roles in intimate relationships. By investigating features of narcissism in women, we can better recognise and unmask their true nature.

This study sought to explicitly investigate manifestations of female narcissism and their attempts at self-regulation in the context of intimate partner violence (IPV). This novel phenomenon was explored through the lens of ex-partners’ perceptions of female narcissists. A qualitative approach using individual interviews was adopted to gain an in-depth insight of the subtleties and nuances of gender differences in narcissistic personality. Semi-structured interviews were carried out with ten male participants who reported having experienced an abusive relationship with a female narcissist. These interviews were transcribed and analysed using thematic analysis. Three overarching themes emerged from the data analysis: (i) dualistic personas of narcissism; (ii) the mask of femininity; and (iii) the hidden paradox of gender roles. Findings illustrated that perceived expressions of female narcissists depicted presentations of narcissistic vulnerability. Analysis also demonstrated that gender-related norms further shaped motives and self-regulatory strategies for females to obtain positions of power and control. These were established through adopting a ‘victim status’, playing the ‘mother card’ and using legal and societal benefits to their advantage. Female narcissists were perceived to employ strategic attempts at self-construction in sinister and abusive ways, governed by what society allows them to express. It is concluded that narcissism describes a phenomenon in females that moves beyond the overt grandiose stereotype. Limitations and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Narcissists may engage in feminist activism to satisfy their grandiose tendencies, study suggests

A study finds narcissists may join feminist activism to satisfy personal grandiosity, not just for societal change. This behavior can potent

PsyPost

A recent study has found that individuals with higher levels of narcissistic traits are more likely to be involved in feminist activism. This research suggests that for some, activism may serve not just as a platform for societal change, but also as a means to fulfill personal, egocentric needs. The findings have been published in Current Psychology.

The study was inspired by the idea that while many engage in activism for altruistic reasons or due to direct personal impact by the issues at hand, others might be motivated by less noble desires, such as the fulfillment of narcissistic needs. This notion aligns with the concept that activism can be used as a vehicle for individuals to achieve personal gains, such as attention, status, or fame.

“Based on the results of a previous study, in which we investigated the relationship between dark personality traits (e.g., narcissism) and anti-sexual assault activism, we were interested to further explore the notion that some individuals may be involved in certain forms of activism (i.e., feminist activism) to (merely) satisfy their own ego-focused needs (instead of prosocial goals),” explained study authors Ann Krispenz, a postdoctoral associate, and Professor Alex Bertrams, the head of the Division of Educational Psychology of the University of Bern.

The study involved 458 participants from the United States, who were recruited through an online platform known as Prolific, ensuring a representative sample. The participants completed a range of psychological measures to assess various traits and behaviors, which was presented as an “Attitudes and Behaviors Study.”

The Pathological Narcissism Inventory was used to measure narcissistic traits, breaking them down into grandiosity and vulnerability aspects. Grandiosity reflects traits like an inflated self-image, entitlement, and a desire for admiration and respect. It’s characterized by outwardly expressed behaviors like seeking attention and recognition. Narcissistic vulnerability, on the other hand, involves sensitivity to criticism, feelings of inadequacy, and fluctuating self-esteem, often leading to defensive and compensatory behaviors.

Participants’ involvement in feminist activism was gauged using the Involvement in Feminist Activities Scale, which considers activities like participating in demonstrations and rallies. Participants’ involvement in feminist activism was measured using the Involvement in Feminist Activities Scale, encompassing actions like participating in demonstrations or advocating for women’s rights. The study also assessed feminist conversational interaction behaviors and and self-identification as a feminist.

Additionally, the study assessed altruism with the Self-Report Altruism Scale. Together, these measures provided a comprehensive view of each participant’s psychological profile and their engagement in activism.

The researchers found a significant relationship between higher levels of narcissistic grandiosity and greater involvement in feminist activism. This relationship remained significant even after accounting for factors such age, gender, narcissistic vulnerability, altruism, and feminist self-identification. Furthermore, the study revealed that the narcissistic trait of exploitativeness, characterized by a manipulative interpersonal orientation and the inclination to dominate others, was particularly influential in this regard.

“In the present study, higher pathological narcissism was associated with greater involvement in feminist activism,” Krispenz and Bertrams told PsyPost. “One explanation for this result may be that political and social activism (such as feminist activism) is an attractive vehicle for individuals with high narcissistic traits because it provides them with opportunities for the gain of social status, positive self-presentation and displays of moral superiority, the domination of others, and the engagement in social conflicts and aggression – a phenomenon we coined ‘dark-ego-vehicle principle’ (DEVP).”

“According to this principle, individuals with dark personalities – such as high narcissistic traits – are attracted to certain forms of political and social activism which they can use as a vehicle to satisfy their own ego-focused needs instead of actually aiming at social justice and equality. However, the dark-ego-vehicle principle does not mean that feminist activism is per se narcissistic – our results also show that people get involved in feminist activism due to their altruistic motives.”

The researchers also delved into how narcissism might influence specific behaviors within the context of feminist activism, such as the use of feminist language or the correction of others’ non-feminist language. It was found that those with higher narcissistic traits were more likely to engage in these behaviors.

“An important practical implication of our findings (and the dark-ego-vehicle principle) is that the success of feminist activism may be reduced by individuals high in narcissism as those individuals may be more likely than individuals low in narcissism to set the tone for feminist activism,” Krispenz and Bertrams said. “However, while pretending to be prosocial, individuals with high narcissistic traits tend to have low empathy and to be primarily interested in satisfying their self-centered needs. Therefore, it appears unlikely to us that speakers and influencers high in narcissistic grandiosity are authentically motivated to find the most reasonable solutions in terms of women’s rights.”

“From a logical viewpoint, they should rather be interested in keeping the perception of problems going to maintain their highlighted position. Moreover, individuals with high narcissistic traits may use the financial and immaterial resources of feminist movements for their own private purposes, thereby causing irreparable financial and reputational harm to the movement. For example, individuals high in narcissistic traits may use donations made to a feminist movement and spend them on personal items due to their sense of entitlement.”

“Additionally, the public perception of such narcissistic behaviors within an activist movement may lead to dwindling support for the cause by the public and could even be wielded against the respective movement,” the researchers added. “Thus, prosocial activist movements should be made aware of the narcissistic ‘enemies’ from within their activist movement as these individuals could hijack the cause, thereby reducing the success of the feminist activism in many ways.”

Contrary to what might be expected, the relationship between narcissism and activism was not influenced by gender. This indicates that narcissistic traits play a similar role in both men and women when it comes to their involvement in feminist activism.

“Based on previous research, we had expected that the relationship between pathological narcissism and involvement in feminist activism would be stronger for women than for men,” Krispenz and Bertrams said. “Our results do not support this assumption, indicating that even narcissistic men may find ways to exploit activism that is primarily oriented toward women’s rights.”

The findings are in line with previous research. For example, a 2020 study found a significant correlation between narcissism and political participation in both Denmark and the United States. Narcissistic traits have also been linked to both right-wing authoritarianism and left-wing authoritarianism.

Importantly, Krispenz and Bertrams also found that higher levels of altruism and stronger self-identification as a feminist were related to greater involvement in feminist activism. This indicates that while narcissistic traits can play a role, many individuals are genuinely motivated by altruistic reasons and a strong belief in feminist principles. “This also shows that activism is not per se narcissistic,” the researchers said.

This study paves the way for further exploration in several areas. Future research could delve into how different forms of feminism relate to narcissistic traits and whether other forms of activism attract similar personality profiles. Investigating the role of other dark personality traits, such as Machiavellianism or psychopathy, in activism could provide a broader understanding of activist motivations. Additionally, examining the mechanisms through which narcissism influences behaviors within activism, like virtue signaling or dominance, would deepen our understanding of these complex dynamics.

“At present, the dark-ego-vehicle principle is not an elaborated theory as it is yet unclear whether it refers to a robust, stable, and reproducible empirical phenomenon,” Krispenz and Bertrams told PsyPost. “Therefore, we are currently investigating the validity of the dark-ego-vehicle principle in the context of different forms of activism (e.g., LGBQ activism, gender identity activism, environmental activism, etc.)”

“Future research should also empirically address the nomological network of the dark personality–activism relationship,” the researchers said. “Furthermore, future research is necessary to help our understanding of the boundary conditions of the dark-ego-vehicle principle by examining possible moderating influences. We do not believe that every kind of activism is equally usable as a dark-ego vehicle. As a minimum requirement, the activism must provide benefits that narcissists can repurpose to satisfy their dark personalities’ needs. For example, activistic causes receiving little to no public interest may attract narcissists less than activism which is widely noticed.”

The study, “Further basic evidence for the dark‑ego‑vehicle principle: Higher pathological narcissism is associated with greater involvement in feminist activism“, was published November 29, 2023.

Further basic evidence for the dark-ego-vehicle principle: Higher pathological narcissism is associated with greater involvement in feminist

According to the dark-ego-vehicle principle (DEVP), individuals with so-called dark personalities (e.g., individuals with high narcissistic

SpringerLink

Abstract According to the dark-ego-vehicle principle (DEVP), individuals with so-called dark personalities (e.g., individuals with high narcissistic traits) are attracted to political and social activism not for the achievement of prosocial goals but to repurpose the activism to satisfy their specific ego-focused needs. In this pre-registered study, we aimed at replicating and extending previous empirical evidence for the DEVP by examining the associations of pathological narcissism with involvement in feminist activism. A diverse US sample (N = 458) completed online measures of the Pathological Narcissism Inventory and several covariates (i.e., altruism, self-identification as a feminist, and age). Paralleling previous research, higher pathological narcissistic grandiosity was found to be statistically significantly related to greater involvement in feminist activism. Unexpectedly, gender did not moderate this relationship. Also, higher pathological narcissism was related to stronger self-identification as a feminist; however, pathological narcissistic grandiosity explained some variance in the involvement in feminist activism over and above feminist self-identification. In exploratory secondary analyses, we found that higher pathological narcissism was associated with specific feminist conversational interaction behaviors (e.g., correcting other’s non-feminist language). The limitations (e.g., the relevance of other dark personality traits beyond narcissism) and the theoretical implications for the DEVP are discussed. Overall, the findings of the present study are further support for the DEVP.

Beneath the Mask of Vulnerable Narcissism

Humiliated fury, angry rumination, hostility, shame, and mistrust

robkhenderson.com

“A narcissistic injury occurs when the narcissist is confronted with the reality that he is not the main character in his movie…The worst thing that could happen to a narcissist is not that his wife cheats on him and leaves him for another man…He's still the main character in his movie; it was a romantic comedy but now it's a break-up film…The worst thing that could happen to a narcissist is that his wife cheats on him secretly and never tells him, and she doesn't act any differently towards him, so that he couldn't even tell. If she can do all that, that means she exists independently of him. He is not the main character in the movie. She has her own movie and he's not even in it. That's a narcissistic injury…But all narcissistic injuries lead to rage…The violence serves two necessary psychological functions: first, it's the natural byproduct of rage. Second, the violence perpetuates the link, the relationship, keeps him in the lead role. ‘That slut may have had a whole life outside me, but I will make her forever afraid of me.’ Or he kills himself—not because he can't live without her, but because from now on she won't be able to live without thinking about him. See? Now it's a drama, but the movie goes on. So if you cause a narcissist to have a narcissistic injury, get ready for a fight.”

• “I can usually talk my way out of anything.”
• “Modesty doesn’t become me.”
• “I will usually show off if I get the chance.”

• “My feelings are easily hurt by the slighting remarks of others.”
• “When I enter a room I become self-conscious and feel the eyes of others are upon me.”
• “I often interpret the remarks of others in a personal way.”

• Aggression (e.g., “I have threatened people I know,” and, “I have become so mad that I’ve broken things.”)
• Anger (e.g., “I sometimes feel like a powder keg ready to explode,” and, “I have trouble controlling my temper.”)
• Angry rumination (e.g., “I think about certain events from a long time ago and they still make me angry,” and, “I ponder about the injustices that have been done to me.”)
• Hostility (e.g., “I am sometimes eaten up with jealousy,” and, “I wonder why sometimes I feel so bitter about things.”)
• Shame (e.g., “A friend tells you that you boast a great deal. What is the likelihood that you would stop spending time with that friend?”)
• Mistrust (e.g., “I am wary of others,” and, “I suspect hidden motives in others.”)

• Vulnerable narcissism (r = .56) was a much stronger predictor of aggression than grandiose narcissism (r = .23)
• Vulnerable narcissism (r = .56) was a much stronger predictor of anger than grandiose narcissism (r = .15)
• Vulnerable narcissism (r = .58) was a much stronger predictor of angry rumination than grandiose narcissism (r = -.06; not significant)
• Vulnerable narcissism (r = .58) was a much stronger predictor of hostility than grandiose narcissism (r = .07; not significant)
• Vulnerable narcissists were more likely to experience shameful self-evaluation (r = .29) and grandiose narcissists were less likely (r = - .32)
• Vulnerable narcissism (r = .42) was a strong predictor of mistrust compared to grandiose narcissism (r = -.12; apparently grandiose narcissists are slightly more trusting than average)