خودشیفتگی بزرگسالان جوان: مطالعه طولی 20 ساله از مشارکت سبک های فرزند پروری، پیش سازهای پیش دبستانی خودشیفتگی و انکار

The role of parenting styles in the development of young adult narcissism is investigated with individuals from the Block and Block (1980) longitudinal study. At age 3, participants were assessed for the presence of narcissism precursors, and mothers and fathers provided information about their parenting styles. At age 23, the presence of both healthy and maladaptive narcissism was assessed, along with the use of denial. The results showed that parenting styles had a direct effect on the development of healthy narcissism, but the effect on the development of maladaptive narcissism depended on the child’s initial proclivity towards narcissism. Also, the use of denial was positively associated with the presence of maladaptive narcissism, but not with healthy narcissism.

Narcissists are characterized as being excessively focused on having their own needs met – especially the need for admiration. As part of their egocentric focus, they often fail to form caring, lasting relationships with others, as has been demonstrated in the research of Campbell and Foster (2002) and in the clinical writings of Kernberg (1998), although narcissists have an extreme need for admiration from others. The question arises as to the origin of the extreme need for admiration. One common assumption is that the adult narcissist was a spoiled child, having been overly indulged by parents who offered excessive gratification. Having grown up with this background of indulgence, the individual continues to expect and to demand this kind of gratification as an adult (cf. Millon, 1990). A different explanation for the origin of narcissism assumes that narcissism results not from excessive gratification, but rather from insufficient early gratification (Kernberg, 1975; Kohut, 1977; Miller, 1981). The adult who has experienced insufficient gratification as a child will be the one who demands excessive admiration from others, to compensate both for the lack of that psychological support when a child and for the continuing expectation that needs will not be met. In contrast, the person who has experienced having his/her physical and emotional needs adequately met as a child, has little anxiety about having needs met as an adult. From this point of view, it is the individual who has experienced ample gratification as a child who will go on to have a positive, healthy sense of self, expecting but not demanding approval and admiration from others. For these reasons, significant relations between early child-rearing styles and subsequent narcissism should be found. Parenting that is responsive to the child’s needs is expected to predict subsequent healthy, adaptive narcissism. Parenting that is unresponsive is expected to predict subsequent maladaptive narcissism. It is the purpose of the present study to investigate these hypotheses.