Psychology News
A team of researchers at the Polish Academy of Sciences explored how collective narcissism influences adult attachment styles. The study is published in the journal Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin.
Understanding Collective Narcissism
In psychology, collective narcissism refers to a shared conviction in a group’s exceptionality and superiority. This type of narcissism is highly associated with low self-worth, inflated views of power and importance, and maladaptive behavioral traits.
The Study
The researchers analyzed data collected from completed questionnaires that examined the longitudinal relationship between national narcissism, attachment anxiety, and conspiracy theories.
The Findings
The results revealed that attachment anxiety, non-normative collective action, and espousal of conspiracy theories are positively related to collective narcissism.
The authors elaborated: “We found that individual-level anxiety translates into collective defensiveness in the form of national narcissism, which is full of entitlement and concern about the external recognition of the in-group in the eyes of others. Thus, in line with previous theorizing, we showed that social identity may serve as compensation for the frustration of different psychological needs.”
To Know More You May Refer To
Marchlewska, M., Górska, P., Green, R., Szczepańska, D., Rogoza, M., Molenda, Z., & Michalski, P. (2022). From Individual Anxiety to Collective Narcissism? Adult Attachment Styles and Different Types of National Commitment. Personality & social psychology bulletin, 1461672221139072. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1177/01461672221139072