Can neuroscience help to understand narcissism? A systematic review of an emerging field

Abstract

Narcissism is a Janusian personality construct, associated with both grandiose self-assuredness and dominance, as well as vulnerable insecurity and reactivity. Central questions of intra- and interpersonal functioning in narcissism are still a matter of debate. Neuroscience could help to understand the paradoxical patterns of experience and behavior beyond the limitations of self-reports. We provide a systematic review of 34 neuroscience studies on grandiose, vulnerable, pathological narcissism, and Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD), spanning experimental investigations of intra- and interpersonal mechanisms, research on neurophysiological and neuroendocrine aspects of baseline function, and brain structural correlates. While neuroscience has scarcely directly studied vulnerable narcissism, grandiose narcissism is associated with heightened vigilance to ego threat and stress responses following ego threat, as well as heightened stress indicators in baseline measures. Such responses are not commonly observed in self-reports, highlighting the potential of neuroscience to augment our understanding of self-regulatory dynamics in narcissism. Interpersonal functioning is characterized by deficits in social–affective processes. Both involve altered activity within the salience network, pointing to a double dissociation regarding the expression of narcissism and self/other oriented situational focus. Findings are summarized in an integrative model providing testable hypotheses for future research along with methodological recommendations.

The nonlinear association between grandiose and vulnerable narcissism: An individual data meta‐analysis

“…Second, the results show that considering absolute level of grandiosity might be important when designing and interpreting studies, particularly those using select populations or extreme groups. Qualitative shifts between lower and higher grandiosity samples could at least partially explain experimentally unveiled signs of vulnerability in highly grandiose individuals, as evident for instance in neuroscience research (Jauk & Kanske, 2021). This can be effectively addressed by, on the one hand, considering the level of narcissistic grandiosity, and, on the other, by complementing designs with measures of narcissistic vulnerability (ibid).…”

Affective contingencies of narcissism.

“…Another study found that narcissistic males exhibited high basal cortisol levels—a sign of chronic stress—even though they did not report higher levels of stress (Reinhard et al, 2012—but see Bukowski et al, 2009 for contradictory findings in adolescence). Thus, emerging evidence suggests that physiological measures can be used in a complementary way to self-reports to capture narcissists’ affective contingencies, especially when these involve negative affective reactions in response to frustrations (see Coleman et al, 2019; Jauk & Kanske, 2021 for reviews).…”

Effects of Self-Esteem on Self-Viewing: An Eye-Tracking Investigation on Mirror Gazing

“…It has been suggested to distinguish between grandiose and vulnerable narcissism [ 34 , 35 ]. Vulnerable narcissistic individuals are anxious, defensive, and avoidant, while grandiose narcists are extraverted and self-satisfied [ 36 ]. Additionally, there are intrapersonal and interpersonal aspects of narcissism [ 37 ].…”