TY - JOUR
T1 - Thin Images Reflected in the Water
T2 - Narcissism and Girls’ Vulnerability to the Thin-Ideal
AU - Thomaes, Sander
AU - Sedikides, Constantine
PY - 2016/10/1
Y1 - 2016/10/1
N2 - The purpose of this research is to test how adolescent girls’ narcissistic traits—characterized by a need to impress others and avoid ego-threat—influence acute adverse effects of thin-ideal exposure. Participants (11–15 years; total N = 366; all female) reported their narcissistic traits. Next, in two experiments, they viewed images of either very thin or average-sized models, reported their wishful identification with the models (Experiment 2), and tasted high-calorie foods in an alleged taste test (both experiments). Narcissism kept girls from wishfully identifying with thin models, which is consistent with the view that narcissistic girls are prone to disengage from thin-ideal exposure. Moreover, narcissism protected vulnerable girls (those who experience low weight-esteem) from inhibiting their food intake, and led other girls (those who consider their appearance relatively unimportant) to increase their food intake. These effects did not generalize to conceptually related traits of self-esteem and perfectionism, and were not found for a low-calorie foods outcome, attesting to the specificity of findings. These experiments demonstrate the importance of narcissism at reducing girls’ thin-ideal vulnerability. Girls high in narcissism disengage self-protectively from threats to their self-image, a strategy that renders at least subsets of them less vulnerable to the thin-ideal.
AB - The purpose of this research is to test how adolescent girls’ narcissistic traits—characterized by a need to impress others and avoid ego-threat—influence acute adverse effects of thin-ideal exposure. Participants (11–15 years; total N = 366; all female) reported their narcissistic traits. Next, in two experiments, they viewed images of either very thin or average-sized models, reported their wishful identification with the models (Experiment 2), and tasted high-calorie foods in an alleged taste test (both experiments). Narcissism kept girls from wishfully identifying with thin models, which is consistent with the view that narcissistic girls are prone to disengage from thin-ideal exposure. Moreover, narcissism protected vulnerable girls (those who experience low weight-esteem) from inhibiting their food intake, and led other girls (those who consider their appearance relatively unimportant) to increase their food intake. These effects did not generalize to conceptually related traits of self-esteem and perfectionism, and were not found for a low-calorie foods outcome, attesting to the specificity of findings. These experiments demonstrate the importance of narcissism at reducing girls’ thin-ideal vulnerability. Girls high in narcissism disengage self-protectively from threats to their self-image, a strategy that renders at least subsets of them less vulnerable to the thin-ideal.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84985910621&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/jopy.12187
DO - 10.1111/jopy.12187
M3 - Article
C2 - 26095696
SN - 0022-3506
VL - 84
SP - 633
EP - 645
JO - Journal of Personality
JF - Journal of Personality
IS - 5
ER -