Recent research published in PLOS One has shed light on an intriguing connection between narcissism and cognitive performance in stressful situations. The study found that individuals with higher levels of grandiose narcissism performed better on intelligence tests when under stress thanks to a broader distribution of visual attention.
Grandiose narcissism is a personality trait characterized by an inflated sense of self-importance, a constant need for admiration, and a lack of empathy for others. Individuals with high levels of grandiose narcissism often exhibit behaviors such as boasting, dominating social interactions, and feeling entitled to special treatment.
Unlike its counterpart, vulnerable narcissism, which includes traits like insecurity and hypersensitivity to criticism, grandiose narcissism is marked by overt confidence and assertiveness. These individuals are often seen as charismatic and ambitious, but their relationships and social interactions can suffer due to their self-centeredness and tendency to exploit others.
The motivation behind this study stemmed from a curiosity about how grandiose narcissism might influence cognitive performance, particularly under stress. Previous research has shown mixed results regarding the relationship between narcissism and intelligence. While some studies suggested no direct link, others hinted at an indirect association, especially in challenging situations where narcissists might leverage their traits to maintain or even enhance performance.
“I am interested in individual differences in people’s personality and ability. Within this area, I study dark traits such as narcissism and how individual differences in dark traits impact negatively or positively important life outcomes such as resilience and performance,” said study author Kostas Papageorgiou, an associate professor of psychology at Queen’s University Belfast.
To investigate the relationship between grandiose narcissism, visual attention, and cognitive performance under stress, Papageorgiou and his colleagues designed a quasi-experimental study involving 54 participants, mostly female, with an average age of 21 years. These participants had previously provided self-report data on their personality traits and agreed to participate in follow-up studies.
For the experiment, the researchers used the Raven’s Progressive Matrices test, a well-established measure of cognitive ability. The test consists of a series of visual puzzles, each presented as a matrix or grid of geometric shapes. Each matrix has a missing piece, and the task of the test-taker is to identify the correct piece that completes the pattern from a set of multiple-choice options.
Participants completed the Raven’s test while their eye movements were recorded using sophisticated eye-tracking technology. The eye-tracking setup included a high-definition LCD screen and equipment that monitored eye movements at a sampling rate of 1000 Hz. This setup allowed the researchers to capture detailed data on various aspects of visual attention, such as the number and duration of fixations and saccades.
The researchers found that grandiose narcissism predicted higher cognitive performance indirectly through its effect on visual attention. Participants with higher scores in grandiose narcissism exhibited greater variability in their visual attention. This was evidenced by a broader distribution of eye fixations across different parts of the test items. Participants who demonstrated more variability in their eye movements, in turn, tended to perform better on the test.
In other words, while grandiose narcissism appears to contribute to better problem-solving abilities indirectly by promoting a more flexible and efficient distribution of visual attention.
“It was surprising to see they way that individual differences in personality, narcissism in this case, contributed to differences in the way that participants distributed their attention,” Kostas told PsyPost. “Specifically, we used eye-tracking and we were able to observe in detail participants’ eye-movements while completing the Raven’s test. Individuals scoring high on narcissism exhibited significantly more fixations and performed better overall.”
The findings provide evidence “that having the ability to ignore misleading and/or negative feedback might be beneficial in certain conditions. In this instance, individuals scoring higher than average on narcissism were able to score higher on an IQ test during a stressful situation.”
But the study, like all research, includes limitations. The sample size was relatively small and predominantly female, which may limit the generalizability of the findings. In addition, the reliance on self-report measures for personality traits may introduce biases such as social desirability. Future research could address these limitations by using larger, more diverse samples. Additionally, exploring different facets of narcissism and their specific impacts on cognitive performance could provide a deeper understanding of how personality traits interact with cognitive processes.
Kostas hopes this line of research will help to “contextualize dark traits within a complex web of costs and benefits for individuals and societies.”
The study, “Grandiose narcissism associates with higher cognitive performance under stress through more efficient attention distribution: An eye-tracking study,” was authored by Vasilena Stefanova, Christoph Scheepers, Paul Wilson, and Kostas A. Papageorgiou
