Ego, Elevation, and Exclusion: Bidirectional Prospective Associations between Narcissism and Status and Inclusion

Objective: The current longitudinal study tested whether different expressions of narcissism prospectively predict increased desires for status, perceptions of having attained status, and assertiveness—relative to desires for inclusion, perceptions of being included, and affiliativeness—and vice versa. Method: University students (N = 528) completed a three-wave longitudinal study, with waves spaced two-weeks apart. Narcissism, desires for status and inclusion, perceptions of having attained status and inclusion, and assertiveness and affiliativeness were assessed at each wave. Results: Grandiose, agentic, and antagonistic narcissism related to increasing desires for status and perceived status attainment, and vice versa, depending on how grandiose narcissism was assessed. In contrast, vulnerable narcissism related to diminishing desires for status and inclusion, and vice versa, depending on how vulnerable narcissism was assessed. Conclusion: Grandiose narcissism may encourage status aspirations and help people achieve higher status; higher status aspirations and perceived attainment, in turn, may encourage grandiose, agentic, and antagonistic narcissism. In contrast, vulnerable narcissism may shift motivations away from social validation, reducing desires for both status and inclusion in the medium term. These findings are generally consistent with and extend evidence for recent models of how grandiose narcissism relates to status.