Does High Self-Esteem Foster Narcissism? Testing the Bidirectional Relationships between Self-Esteem, Narcissistic Admiration and Rivalry

We examined the longitudinal associations between self-esteem and narcissism in a three-wave panel study (N=557). In a standard cross-lagged panel model, self-esteem had a positive bidirectional relationship with narcissistic admiration. Narcissistic rivalry predicted increases in narcissistic admiration, but the corresponding reciprocal cross-lagged effect was not significant, nor were the cross-lagged associations between self-esteem and narcissistic rivalry. However, a random-intercept cross-lagged panel model (which partitions between- and within-person variance) failed to identify significant cross-lagged relationships between self-esteem and admiration or rivalry. Rather, self-esteem correlated positively with narcissistic admiration (but not rivalry) only at the trait level. Furthermore, we observed positive bidirectional associations between admiration and rivalry, suggesting that the within-person fluctuations in these two sub-dimensions of narcissism mutually reinforce each other

Creative destruction in science

Drawing on the concept of a gale of creative destruction in a capitalistic economy, we argue that initiatives to assess the robustness of findings in the organizational literature should aim to simultaneously test competing ideas operating in the same theoretical space. In other words, replication efforts should seek not just to support or question the original findings, but also to replace them with revised, stronger theories with greater explanatory power. Achieving this will typically require adding new measures, conditions, and subject populations to research designs, in order to carry out conceptual tests of multiple theories in addition to directly replicating the original findings. To illustrate the value of the creative destruction approach for theory pruning in organizational scholarship, we describe recent replication initiatives re-examining culture and work morality, working parents\u2019 reasoning about day care options, and gender discrimination in hiring decisions. Significance statement It is becoming increasingly clear that many, if not most, published research findings across scientific fields are not readily replicable when the same method is repeated. Although extremely valuable, failed replications risk leaving a theoretical void\u2014 reducing confidence the original theoretical prediction is true, but not replacing it with positive evidence in favor of an alternative theory. We introduce the creative destruction approach to replication, which combines theory pruning methods from the field of management with emerging best practices from the open science movement, with the aim of making replications as generative as possible. In effect, we advocate for a Replication 2.0 movement in which the goal shifts from checking on the reliability of past findings to actively engaging in competitive theory testing and theory building. Scientific transparency statement The materials, code, and data for this article are posted publicly on the Open Science Framework, with links provided in the article

The Heterogeneity of Self-Regard: A Latent Transition Analysis of Self-Esteem and Psychological Entitlement

Multiple subtypes of self-regard have been identified, but their longitudinal development has not been investigated. The current research used Latent Transition Analysis to identify profiles with differing levels of self-esteem and psychological entitlement, and track the likelihood of transition between these profiles from 2014 to 2015 in a large, national panel study of New Zealand adults (N = 12,550). Five profiles of self-regard were identified. The five profiles were generally stable across the course of a year, however, the two profiles that were high in entitlement were relatively less stable than profiles with positive but unentitled self-regard. This research demonstrates the importance of accounting for the heterogeneity of high self-regard, as unique patterns of longitudinal change were found across profiles

Social connectedness improves public mental health: investigating bidirectional relationships in the New Zealand attitudes and values survey

The importance of social connectedness in supporting public mental health is well established. However, the reverse causal pathway (that psychological ill-health leads to reduced social connectedness) remains a dominant perspective among mental health practitioners. Our analysis aimed to provide a rigorous test of the directionality of this relationship.A cross-lagged panel analysis of a large longitudinal national probability sample ( N ≈ 21,227), the New Zealand Attitudes and Values Survey, was used to assess the bidirectional longitudinal relationship between social connectedness and mental health, controlling for baseline levels of both variables and demographics.Social connectedness was found to be a stronger and more consistent predictor of mental health year-on-year than mental health was of social connectedness.These results further demonstrate how the psychological resources conferred by social connectedness can act as a 'social cure' for psychological ill-health, and provide the strongest evidence to date for the direction of this relationship in the general community

Personality across sexual identity and gender in a national probability sample in New Zealand

Preliminary evidence in online and convenience samples has shown small but significant personality differences across sexual identity and gender over a number of personality traits. The idea that gender intersects with sexual identity to affect personality has been formalized into two hypotheses: the gender inversion hypothesis (that lesbians and heterosexual men, as well as gay men and heterosexual women, have indistinguishable mean scores on personality traits) and the gender shift hypothesis (that gay men's and lesbians' personality scores fall somewhere between those of heterosexual women and men). We investigate personality differences in self-identified sexual identity across and within gender in a large, national probability sample in New Zealand (N = 14,230). There was support for the gender inversion hypothesis on some traits; lesbians (relative to heterosexual women) had similar conscientiousness scores to those of heterosexual men, and gay men (relative to heterosexual men) scored similar to heterosexual women in agreeableness and emotional stability. Our work highlights the importance of taking an intersectional approach to simultaneously consider gender and sexual identity when it comes to understanding personality

Asexual identity in a New Zealand national sample: demographics, well-being, and health

Academic interest in asexuality has increased in recent years; however, there is yet to be a national probability study exploring the correlates of self-identifying as asexual. Here, we utilized data from the 2014/15 New Zealand Attitudes and Values Study. Past research has typically used attraction-based measures; however, we asked participants to describe their sexual orientation using a self-generated, open-ended item, and 0.4% (n = 44) self-identified as asexual. We then compared self-identified asexual participants with a heterosexual reference group (n = 11,822) across a large number of demographic, psychological, and health variables. Relative to heterosexuals, self-identified asexual participants were (1) more likely to be women, and (2) substantially less likely to be cisgender, (3) in a serious romantic relationship, or (4) a parent. No deleterious mental or physical health effects were associated with asexuality when compared to heterosexuality. This study provides the first attempt at measuring self-identification as asexual in a national sample and highlights core similarities and differences between those who identify as asexual and heterosexual

Perceived discrimination predicts increased support for political rights and life satisfaction mediated by ethnic identity: A longitudinal analysis.

Objectives: The aim of the current research is to test predictions derived from the rejection-identification model and research on collective action using cross-sectional (Study 1) and longitudinal (Study 2) methods. Specifically, an integration of these 2 literatures suggests that recognition of discrimination can have simultaneous positive relationships with well-being and engagement in collective action via the formation of a strong ingroup identity. Method: We test these predictions in 2 studies using data from a large national probability sample of Māori (the indigenous peoples of New Zealand), collected as part of the New Zealand Attitudes and Values Study (Ns for Study 1 and 2 were 1,981 and 1,373, respectively). Results: Consistent with the extant research, Study 1 showed that perceived discrimination was directly linked with decreased life satisfaction, but indirectly linked with increased life satisfaction through higher levels of ethnic identification. Perceived discrimination was also directly linked with increased support for Māori rights and indirectly linked with increased support for Māori rights through higher levels of ethnic identification. Study 2 replicated these findings using longitudinal data and identified multiple bidirectional paths between perceived discrimination, ethnic identity, well-being, and support for collective action. Conclusion: These findings replicate and extend the rejection-identification model in a novel cultural context by demonstrating via cross-sectional (Study 1) and longitudinal (Study 2) analyses that the recognition of discrimination can both motivate support for political rights and increase well-being by strengthening ingroup identity

Facebook is linked to body dissatisfaction: comparing users and non-users

Growing media consumption and emerging forms of social media such as Facebook allow for unprecedented appearance-based social comparison with peers, family, and the wider media. We hypothesise that, for adult men and women, body dissatisfaction is related to peer-based media just as it is to traditional media forms. We expect that middle-aged women in particular are a vulnerable population, due to increasing pressure to conform to youthful beauty standards. In a national sample of New Zealand adults collected in 2012 (N = 11,017), we test the cross-sectional links between being a Facebook user and body satisfaction for men and women across age cohorts. Using a Bayesian regression model testing curvilinear effects of age, we show that having and using a Facebook profile is associated with poorer body satisfaction for both men and women, and across all ages. For women who use Facebook, a U-shaped curvilinear relationship was found between age and body satisfaction; thus the gap between non-users and users in body satisfaction was exacerbated among middle-aged women. A possible cohort effect also indicated that young women tend to be lower in body satisfaction overall. These findings add to the extant literature by suggesting that new media exposure may be associated with lower body satisfaction for some populations more than others, and emphasise the importance of examining body satisfaction in older populations

Cultural efficacy predicts body satisfaction for Māori.

This paper examines the relationship between body mass index (BMI), self-esteem and self-reported confidence and capability in expressing oneself culturally as Māori (cultural efficacy) for 5,470 Māori who participated in Te Rangahau o Te Tuakiri Māori me Ngā Waiaro ā-Pūtea | The Māori Identity and Financial Attitudes Study (MIFAS) in 2017. Adjusting for demographics, self-reported health, education and socio-economic status, we found that a higher BMI was associated with lower body satisfaction and self-esteem. However, higher scores on cultural efficacy were associated with higher levels of body satisfaction and self-esteem for respondents. Furthermore, the negative association between BMI and both body satisfaction and self-esteem was weaker for those with higher cultural efficacy. This held for BMI scores of 25, 30, and 35+. While our data suggest higher cultural efficacy may directly or interactively shield Māori from developing lowered self-esteem typically associated with higher BMI in Western populations, further research, using more comprehensive measures of body satisfaction should explore the extent to which Māori may find the Western "thin ideal" personally desirable for their own bodies