137 research outputs found
Conspicuous Asceticism: Collapsing Consumers\u27 Hungry Ghosts
The author investigates an emerging construct called conspicuous asceticism expositioned from a narcissism-centric view. The understanding of this construct is approached by drawing an idiomatic semantic parallel in opposition to conspicuous consumption and by utilizing its current theoretical framework of narcissism. Moreover, this paper seeks to extend conspicuous consumption’s theoretical framework as synonymous with the construct of compulsive consumption. Furthermore, I illustrate that consumers must transcend narcissism through engaging in treatment modalities requisite to operationalize a pioneering effort in which consumers can engage in marketing campaign efforts to advertise conspicuous ascetic contexts. This dissertation gleans from extant literature in sociology, anthropology, psychiatry, nutrition, and consumer research to elucidate the history, implications, and difficulties of treating narcissism that are linked to narcissistic consumption, and to additionally explore a number of relief-providing treatment modalities such as entheogenic medicines, gratitude, twelve step efforts, meditation and how each program can minimize the expression of narcissism in consumers. My dissertation is divided into three studies: (1) Study 1 provides a comprehensive overview of how narcissism develops in consumers and maps the unsustainability of narcissistic states in which they then become open to treatment and the different treatment plans available to them, (2) Study 2 details the historical responses of how Native American cultures used nutrition to treat narcissism in its community members, (3) Study 3 deploys an experiment of how keeping a gratitude journal minimizes narcissism in consumers. The implications of this study provide key insights for the characteristics of a post-narcissism segment in response to growing and global trends of narcissism
The prevalence and severity of loneliness and deficits in perceived social support among who have received a 'personality disorder' diagnosis or have relevant traits: a systematic review
BACKGROUND: Loneliness and struggles with unmet social needs are a common experience among people with 'personality disorder' diagnoses/traits. Given the impact of loneliness and poor perceived social support on mental health, and the importance of a sense of belonging for recovery, a systematic review examining the prevalence/severity of loneliness and deficits in perceived social support among people with 'personality disorder' diagnoses/traits is an essential step towards developing an intervention targeting the social needs of people with diagnoses/traits 'personality disorder'. Despite an extensive literature on loneliness and deficits of perceived social support among people with 'personality disorder' diagnosis/traits, to date there has been no systematic review of this evidence. METHOD: We conducted a systematic review synthesising quantitative data on the prevalence/severity of loneliness and deficits of perceived social support among people with diagnoses/traits of 'personality disorder' in comparison with other clinical groups and the general population. We searched Medline, Embase, PsycINFO, Web of Social Science, Google scholar and Ethos British Library from inception to December 2021. We conducted quality appraisals using the Joanna Briggs Critical appraisal tools and rated the certainty of evidence using the Grading of Recommendation, Assessment, Development and Evaluation approach. A narrative synthesis was used describing the direction and strength of associations prioritising high quality studies. FINDINGS: A final set of 70 studies are included in this review, most of which are cross-sectional studies (n = 55), based in the United States (51%) and focused on community samples. Our synthesis of evidence found that, across all types of 'personality disorders' (except 'narcissistic personality' traits), people with traits associated with 'personality disorder' or meeting criteria for a diagnosis of 'personality disorder', have higher levels of loneliness, lower perceived relationship satisfaction, and poorer social support than the general population or other clinical samples. CONCLUSION: The quality of evidence is judged as low quality. However, given the distressing nature of loneliness and the known negative effects of loneliness on mental health and recovery, it is important for future research to explore mechanisms by which loneliness may exacerbate 'personality disorder' symptoms and the impact this has on recovery
Military Values, Military Virtues, and Vulnerable Narcissism among Cadets of the Swiss Armed Forces-Results of a Cross-Sectional Study.
Background: For military leaders, military values and virtues are important psychological prerequisites for successful leadership and for ethical and moral military behavior. However, research on predictors of military values and virtues is scarce. Given this background, we investigated whether Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB), resilience, and vulnerable narcissism might be favorably or unfavorably associated with military values and virtues, and whether vulnerable narcissism could moderate the association between the OCB-by-resilience-interaction, and military virtues. Methods: A total of 214 officer cadets (mean age: 20.75 years; 96.8% males) of the Swiss Armed Forces (SAF) volunteered to take part in this cross-sectional study. They completed a booklet of self-rating scales covering dimensions of military values and military virtues, OCB, resilience, and vulnerable narcissism. Results: Higher scores for military virtues were associated with higher scores for military values, OCB, and resilience, and with lower scores for vulnerable narcissism. Multiple regression models showed that higher scores for OCB and resilience were associated with military values and virtues. Vulnerable narcissism moderated the association between military virtues, and the OCB-by-resilience-interaction: the higher the vulnerable narcissism, the more the OCB-by-resilience-interaction was associated with lower scores for military virtues. Conclusions: Among cadets of the SAF, the associations between military values, military virtues, OCB, and resilience were highly intertwined, while vulnerable narcissism appeared to attenuate the association between military virtues, OCB, and resilience
Testing Barriers to Non-Suicidal Self-Injury With College Students: Narcissistic Traits as Moderators
Research on non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) has produced mixed findings, resulting in a lack of clarity regarding these behaviors (Klonsky & Meuhlenkamp, 2007). To address this, Hooley and Franklin (2018) developed the Benefits and Barriers Model (BBM) to provide a comprehensive understanding of NSSI, in which they identified the barriers that commonly prevent people from engaging in these behaviors (e.g., self-esteem, shame, and peer-bonding motivations/social norms). They also identified adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) as a distal predictor of NSSI, which aids people in overcoming the barriers to engaging in these behaviors. Recent NSSI literature has shown that college women in the emerging adult age range (i.e., 18-29) have elevated rates of NSSI (Cipriano et al., 2017), indicating a need for additional research with this population. Given that research has produced mixed findings regarding the relationship between narcissistic personality traits, both vulnerable and grandiose forms, and NSSI (Dawood et al., 2018), additional research to clarify this relationship is likely to be beneficial. The current study administered measures of ACEs, shame, peer-bonding motivation for NSSI, self-esteem, NSSI, and narcissistic traits to a sample of 402 college women between the ages of 18 and 29. ACEs predicted NSSI, and a parallel mediation analysis showed that this relationship was partially mediated by shame, self-esteem, and peer-bonding motivation. Invariance testing showed that the indirect relationship between ACEs and NSSI was moderated by narcissistic subtypes. These findings provided partial support for the BBM among college women, additional evidence of the importance of ACEs in NSSI, and supported the role of narcissism in these complex relationships
Depressive symptoms predict callous-unemotional behavior in adjudicated adolescent males with conduct disorder
Depressive symptoms were examined in a sample of adjudicated adolescent males with conduct disorder and callous-unemotional behavior as measured by the Inventory of Callous-Unemotional Traits (ICU), the Antisocial Process Screening Device (APSD) and the Youth Psychopathy Inventory (YPI). Results indicate that contrary to previous findings, depressive symptoms, as measured by the Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale — 2 (RADS-2) are, indeed, present in callous-unemotional youth and significantly predict callous-unemotional behavior in this sample of male adolescents. In addition, dysphoria was negatively associated with callous-unemotional behavior whereas somatic complaints were positively associated with it. These findings suggest that the restricted affective displays in youth with callous-unemotional behavior may, in part, be related to a depressive process. In addition, somatic complaints were significantly related to impulsivity consistent with findings that depressive symptoms independently predict impulsivity in adolescents
Detachment and Antagonism as Moderators of Effects of Psychosocial Stressors on Emotional Distress in Daily Life
Psychological distress encompasses transdiagnostic symptoms of anxiety, depression, and anger, which all feature of emotional dysregulation and are often associated with interpersonal stressors. To understand these forms of distress as they occur in daily life, examination of both personality vulnerabilities and social situational context is needed. Interpersonal circumplex research and theory suggests human needs for agency and communion, and therefore others’ cold-dominant behavior is highly aversive and likely to cause psychosocial distress, but degree and type of distress (e.g., anxiety versus anger) may depend upon personality. Detachment and antagonism are the most interpersonal of the pathological personality traits (Southard et al., 2015), and may amplify the effects of such stressors on distress, but little research has examined these traits beyond cross-sectional designs. The present study tested baseline pathological personality traits prospectively predicting distress across 15 naturalistic diary assessments of interpersonal stressors across five weeks, in a sample of 155 undergraduate college students. As hypothesized, within-person increases in perceived cold-dominant behavior predicted increases in distress (anxiety, depression, and anger). Regarding personality traits, high detachment prospectively predicted higher depression and anger in daily life, but had a unique effect on depression after accounting for shared variance among distress outcomes, as expected. Antagonism predicted higher downstream anxiety, depression, and anger, but uniquely predicted anger as expected, and depression unexpectedly. Contrary to hypotheses, personality did not amplify effects of stressors on distress in any cross-level interactions. Overall, this study extends cross-sectional research by showing pathological interpersonal traits as risk factors for downstream transdiagnostic symptoms of depression, anxiety, and anger
The impact of narcissistic personality disorder on others: A study of romantic partners and family members
Narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) is a diagnosed mental health disorder that affects up to 6.2% of the population. NPD is known to have a strong interpersonal component, as individuals express their vulnerabilities to others in ways that are challenging. For instance, a person may sometimes seem grandiose and prone to intense hostility, but at other times seem vulnerable and needy, yet difficult to please. However, while the presence of interpersonal dysfunction has been identified for individuals with NPD, little is known about how this is experienced by partners and family members. This thesis presents four original studies on the impact of NPD on romantic partners and family members to progress our understanding of the disorder and improve treatment.
Method: The thesis begins with a critical review of existing literature regarding the construct of NPD to determine new research questions to be addressed (Chapter 1). Chapter 2 presents a study of partners and family in a close relationship with someone with NPD (N = 683) to assess levels of grief, burden, coping and mental health. Thematic analysis of a subset of participants\u27 qualitative descriptions of their relative was conducted (N = 436), exploring the characteristics of the NPD relative (chapter 3) and their interpersonal interactions (chapter 4). Finally, some participants (N = 15) were asked to provide detailed narratives comparing their relationships with their relative and with others (chapter 5), to study core conflictual relationship themes (CCRTs). Chapter 6 provides an overview of research findings and outlines implications for the assessment, diagnosis and treatment of individuals with NPD, but also targeted therapeutic supports for partners and family members.
Results: Participants living with a relative with NPD were suffering significant psychological symptoms (69% depression, 82% anxiety) and high burden (chapter 2). Levels of symptoms and burden were higher than individuals living with people diagnosed with borderline personality disorder or other severe mental illness. Participant’s descriptions of their relative (chapter 3) included both “grandiose” tendencies (including entitlement, envy and exploitativeness) but also “vulnerable” ones (including hypersensitivity, insecurity and emptiness). The relationship included themes of coercive control (chapter 4), where the relative made challenging physical, verbal, emotional, financial and sexual demands. Fluctuations in idealisation, devaluation, hostility, and dependency were often present in the relationship. Relationship narratives involving relatives with pathological narcissism involved more instances of disharmony, including relatives rejecting, subjugating and attacking behaviours, and participants rejecting and withdrawing behaviours, corresponding with a deactivation of participants attachment system (chapter 5).
Conclusion: Living with a person with NPD appears to inflict a considerable psychological toll on those closest to the person. While narcissistic grandiosity, coercive control and interpersonal antagonism may serve to protect the individual who is suffering, these have an insidious effect on partners and family members. Treatments for NPD are limited, with no randomised controlled trials. The findings presented here have two major implications for therapy. First, that the disorder has severe impacts on others, meaning the mental health needs of close relatives should be assessed. Second, that therapists will need specific, targeted support to help them work with individuals with NPD, to help navigate fluctuations of grandiosity and vulnerability in this patient group, sometimes prone to being coercive, controlling and hostile, whilst also presenting as needy and insecure
Conexión entre los rasgos patológicos de la personalidad y la conducta interpersonal
An alternative model of pathological personality traits was recently developed in an effort to address the challenges associated with the categorical model of personality disorder classification (e.g., high rates of comorbidity, minimal overlap with modern conceptualizations of personality structure). More specifically, this alternative model provides a dimensional framework through which personality disorders can be understood in terms of their level of impairment in personality functioning. The development of this alternative model led to the construction of the Personality Inventory for the DSM-5 (PID-5; Krueger, Derringer, Markon, Watson, & Skodol, 2012) which assesses the presence and level of the following pathological personality traits: negative affectivity, detachment, antagonism, disinhibition, and psychoticism. These pathological personality traits are considered to be maladaptive variants of the basic personality dimensions described by the Big Five model (i.e., neuroticism, extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and openness; Thomas et al., 2013). We will focus our review on previous research concerning the interpersonal outcomes associated with the PID-5 pathological personality traits and suggest possible directions for future research.Un modelo alternativo de rasgos patológicos de la personalidad se ha desarrollado últimamente con la intención de abordar los retos relacionados con el modelo categórico de clasificación de trastornos de la personalidad (p. ej. alta tasa de comorbilidad, coincidencia mínima con conceptualizaciones modernas de la estructura de la personalidad). Más específico, este modelo alternativo ofrece un marco dimensional que posibilita que los trastornos de la personalidad se entiendan en términos de su nivel de deterioro del funcionamiento de la personalidad. El desarrollo de este modelo alternativo llevó a cabo el Inventario de la Personalidad para el DSM-5 (PID-5; Krueger, Derringer, Markon, Watson y Skodol, 2012) que valora la presencia y el nivel de los siguientes rasgos patológicos de la personalidad: afectividad negativa, desapego, antagonismo, desinhibición y psicoticismo. Estos rasgos patológicos de la personalidad se consideran variantes mal adaptadas de las dimensiones básicas de la personalidad descritas por el Modelo de los cinco grandes (neuroticismo, extraversión, amabilidad, responsabilidad y apertura a nuevas experiencias, Thomas et al., 2013). Enfocaremos nuestro análisis en las investigaciones previas que tratan el tema de resultados interpersonales relacionados con los rasgos patológicos de la personalidad PID-5 y sugeriremos posibles direcciones para las investigaciones futuras
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