Narcissism and Attractiveness
Journal of Research in Personality 44 (2010) 133–136
Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
Journal of Research in Personality journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jrp
Brief Report
Narcissism and attractiveness
Nicholas S. Holtzman *, Michael J. Strube
Washington University in Saint Louis, Psychology, 1 Brookings Drive, C.B. 1125, St. Louis, MO 63130-4899, United States
a r t i c l e
i n f o
a b s t r a c t
Is narcissism related to observer-rated attractiveness? Two views imply that narcissism is unrelated to attractiveness: positive illusions theory and Feingold’s (1992) attractiveness theory (i.e., attractiveness is unrelated to personality in general). In contrast, two other views imply that narcissism is positively related to attractiveness: an evolutionary perspective on narcissism (i.e., selection pressures in shortterm mating contexts shaped the evolution of narcissism, including greater selection for attractiveness in short-term versus long-term mating contexts) and, secondly, the self-regulatory processing model of narcissism (narcissists groom themselves to bolster grandiose self-images). A meta-analysis (N > 1000) reveals a small but reliable positive narcissism–attractiveness correlation that approaches the largest known personality–attractiveness correlations. The finding supports the evolutionary and self-regulatory views of narcissism. Ó 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Article history: Available online 21 October 2009 Keywords: Narcissism Narcissistic personality inventory Personality Attraction Attractiveness Facial attractiveness Physical attractiveness Mating strategies Evolutionary psychology
1. Introduction Narcissism is a personality construct often researched in clinical, personality, and social psychology. Core features include being manipulative, over-bearing, exhibitionistic, entitled, vain, arrogant, and self-sufficient (e.g., Raskin & Terry, 1988). Are narcissists physically attractive?
Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
Journal of Research in Personality journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jrp
Brief Report
Narcissism and attractiveness
Nicholas S. Holtzman *, Michael J. Strube
Washington University in Saint Louis, Psychology, 1 Brookings Drive, C.B. 1125, St. Louis, MO 63130-4899, United States
a r t i c l e
i n f o
a b s t r a c t
Is narcissism related to observer-rated attractiveness? Two views imply that narcissism is unrelated to attractiveness: positive illusions theory and Feingold’s (1992) attractiveness theory (i.e., attractiveness is unrelated to personality in general). In contrast, two other views imply that narcissism is positively related to attractiveness: an evolutionary perspective on narcissism (i.e., selection pressures in shortterm mating contexts shaped the evolution of narcissism, including greater selection for attractiveness in short-term versus long-term mating contexts) and, secondly, the self-regulatory processing model of narcissism (narcissists groom themselves to bolster grandiose self-images). A meta-analysis (N > 1000) reveals a small but reliable positive narcissism–attractiveness correlation that approaches the largest known personality–attractiveness correlations. The finding supports the evolutionary and self-regulatory views of narcissism. Ó 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Article history: Available online 21 October 2009 Keywords: Narcissism Narcissistic personality inventory Personality Attraction Attractiveness Facial attractiveness Physical attractiveness Mating strategies Evolutionary psychology
1. Introduction Narcissism is a personality construct often researched in clinical, personality, and social psychology. Core features include being manipulative, over-bearing, exhibitionistic, entitled, vain, arrogant, and self-sufficient (e.g., Raskin & Terry, 1988). Are narcissists physically attractive?