1. Narcissistic traits and self-esteem in children: Results from a community and a clinical sample of patients with oppositional defiant disorder
- Author
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Muratori, Pietro, Milone, Annarita, Brovedani, Paola, Levantini, Valentina, Melli, Gabriele, Pisano, Simone, Valente, Elena, Thomaes, Sander, Masi, Gabriele, Leerstoel Thomaes, Social and personality development: A transactional approach, Developmental Psychology, Leerstoel Thomaes, Social and personality development: A transactional approach, and Developmental Psychology
- Subjects
Male ,Psychometrics ,Adolescent ,Cross-sectional study ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Emotions ,Self-concept ,Sample (statistics) ,Sensitivity and Specificity ,050105 experimental psychology ,Oppositional defiant disorder ,Self-esteem ,Narcissism ,medicine ,Humans ,0501 psychology and cognitive sciences ,Conduct problems ,Child ,Children ,media_common ,Problem Behavior ,Psychiatric Status Rating Scales ,05 social sciences ,Reproducibility of Results ,Causality ,Self Concept ,Clinical Psychology ,Psychiatry and Mental health ,Cross-Sectional Studies ,Attention Deficit and Disruptive Behavior Disorders ,Scale (social sciences) ,Female ,Self Report ,medicine.symptom ,Psychology ,050104 developmental & child psychology ,Clinical psychology - Abstract
Background Several studies have investigated relationships between narcissism, self-esteem and behavioral problems in children. Most of these studies have been conducted in community samples, rather than in clinical referred samples. This field of research is clinically important, because data on community samples suggest that narcissism is a significant risk factor for children's behavioral problems. Methods The study aimed to test the psychometric properties of the Child Narcissism Scale (CNS) in a community sample of Italian children and to explore the clinical utility of CNS in a sample of referred children with Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD). Results In the community sample, the Italian version of the CNS was shown to be a normally distributed, single-factor measure of childhood narcissism with very good internal consistency. Furthermore, high levels of narcissism were associated with less self-esteem in family relationships, more parent-reported conduct problems, and less teacher-reported pro-social behaviors. In the ODD sample, high levels of narcissism were associated with more conduct problems and emotional symptoms. Low levels of self-esteem were associated with more conduct problems. Limitations The cross sectional design does not allow for estimates of CNS test-retest reliability and sensitivity to change, nor does it allow for interpretations that suggest temporal precedence or causality. Conclusions We found support for the cross-cultural utility of the CNS as a short and comprehensive self-report measure of narcissistic traits, which can be used in community and clinical samples of children, and suggested how narcissism may be involved in children's behavioral problems.
- Published
- 2018