It is widely assumed that narcissists are envious. Nevertheless, evidence supporting this claim has remained elusive. In five studies (N = 1,225), we disentangle how grandiose narcissism predicts divergent envious inclinations. Specific facets of narcissism and forms of envy shared the same underlying motivational orientations (Study 1) and distinctively related to each other (Studies 1 to 5) via differences in emotional appraisal (Study 4). Moreover, envy was linked to opposing social consequences of different narcissism facets (Study 5). Specifically, hope for success related to narcissistic admiration, predicting benign envy, which entails the motivation to improve performance, translating into the ascription of social potency by the self and others. In contrast, fear of failure related to narcissistic rivalry, predicting malicious envy, which entails hostility, translating into the ascription of a proneness for social conflict by others. These results converged with envy measured as a trait (Studies 1 and 5) or state in recall tasks (Studies 2 and 4) and as response to an upward standard in the situation (Study 3). The findings provide important insights into narcissists' emotional complexities, integrate prior isolated and conflicting evidence, and open up new avenues for research on narcissism and envy. Copyright © 2016 European Association of Personality Psychology

Despite abundant evidence that personality development continues in adulthood, little is known about the patterns and sources of personality development in old age. We thus investigated mean-level trends and individual differences in change as well as the genetic and environmental sources of rank-order continuity and change in several personality traits (neuroticism, extraversion, openness, agreeableness, conscientiousness, perceived control, and affect intensity) and well-being. In addition, we analyzed the interrelation between perceived control and change in other personality traits as well as between change in personality traits and change in well-being. We analyzed data from older adult twins, aged 64-85 years at Time 1 (N = 410; 135 males and 275 females; 134 monozygotic and 63 dizygotic twin pairs), collected at 2 different time points about 5 years apart. On average, neuroticism increased, whereas extraversion, conscientiousness, and perceived control significantly decreased over time. Change in perceived control was associated with change in neuroticism and conscientiousness, pointing to particular adaptation mechanisms specific to old age. Whereas individual differences in personality traits were fairly stable due to both genetic and environmental sources, individual differences in change were primarily due to environmental sources (beyond random error) indicating plasticity in old age. Even though the average level of well-being did not significantly change over time, individual well-being tended to decrease with strongly increasing levels of neuroticism as well as decreasing extraversion, conscientiousness, and perceived control, indicating that personality traits predict well-being but not vice versa. We discuss implications for theory on personality development across the lifespan.

The Partner-Related Agency and Communion Test (PACT) was developed to measure implicit agentic and communal needs in the domain of couple relationships through content analyses of fantasy stories. Study 1 (N = 125) confirmed that the new thematic coding system captured experimentally induced differences in partner-related motivation and showed expected relations with D. G. Winter's (1994) motive scoring system. Study 2 confirmed the discriminant and incremental validity of the implicit partner-related needs compared with self-report measures of the Big Five traits and adult attachment in a sample of 499 couples. In addition, dyadic analyses revealed expected associations of the partner-related needs with relationship satisfaction as experienced by oneself and by one's partner. The studies lend initial support to the validity of the relationship-specific needs for agency and communion as assessed by the PACT and introduce dyadic data analyses to the study of implicit motives.

Previous research on the role of self-esteem in partner relationships indicates that it is both predictive of and predicted by variables such as relationship satisfaction. However, most of these studies were constrained to only relationship satisfaction, cross-sectional or individual data. In the present study, we examine the dynamic interplay between self-esteem and both broad (i.e. relationship satisfaction) and specific aspects of relationship quality (independence and connectedness) reflecting the fulfilment of agentic and communal needs in stable partner relationships from both an intrapersonal perspective and an interpersonal perspective. Study 1 assessed 186 individuals at three measurement occasions over 15 years and suggests a common developmental dynamic between self-esteem and relationship satisfaction, as indicated by initial correlations and correlated changes. In Study 2, actor and partner effects in stable couples (N = 2124 dyads) were examined over a period of three years. It was found that self-esteem and all three aspects of relationship quality are dynamically intertwined in such a way that both previous levels and changes in one domain predict later changes in the other domain. Together, the findings indicate that self-esteem is consequential for the development of a variety of relationship aspects but likewise influenced by these very aspects.