Pathological narcissism and interpersonal behavior in daily life

Narcissistic Trauma: Main Characteristics and Life Impact

ABSTRACT

Narcissistic trauma can lead to disruption of the personality functioning system. Therefore, it is important to study the persons who have it, their traits, the sphere of relationships, and strategies of social adaptation. The research aims to study narcissism indicators among individuals with narcissistic trauma diagnosed during a therapeutic conversation to identify its connection with loneliness, life satisfaction, and communication style. The empirical research involved 32 people who sought psychotherapeutic help. All participants provided written consent to participate in the research. A clinical methodology was used to identify the degree of personal narcissism-the Narcissism Assessment Test. The study of the dominant style of social interaction revealed the dominance of two opposite styles: straightforward-aggressive and responsible-generous. Thus, narcissistic trauma is likely to lead to dysfunction of the self-system, and the ability to enjoy life and communication. The data obtained can be useful for both theoretical psychologists and psychotherapists.

The association between victims' vulnerable and grandiose narcissism and grudge holding

Two nonexperimental studies were conducted to test how and why transgression victims' narcissism influences their grudge holding, using undergraduate students and a community sample of adults, respectively. Study 1 tested the association between victims' vulnerable narcissism and grudge holding, including emotional persistence, perceived longevity, and disdain toward the transgressor. It also tested the extent to which victims' grandiose narcissism moderated the association. Study 2 was conducted to replicate Study 1 and test whether victims' rumination about the transgression mediated the moderated association. Overall, those with higher degrees of grandiosity showed a positive relation between vulnerable narcissism and reported emotional persistence (Studies 1 and 2) and perceived longevity (Study 2). Finally, rumination explained the moderated relation (Study 2).

Parent Grandiose Narcissism and Child Socio-Emotional Well Being: The Role of Parenting

Previous research has highlighted how parent narcissism relates to parenting broadly. However, research has not examined how facets of grandiose narcissism are associated with parenting tactics, nor how these facets may indirectly affect child development. The current study assesses parenting tactics as intervening variables in associations between facets of grandiose narcissism and child internalizing/externalizing. Participants were 457 parents of a child between six and 18. Parents completed a survey assessing grandiose narcissism, positive and negative parenting tactics, and reported on child internalizing/externalizing behaviors. Higher parent grandiosity and entitlement/exploitation were associated with more negative parenting tactics and less positive parenting tactics. Negative parenting tactics intervened in relations between these facets of grandiose narcissism and child internalizing and externalizing. Conversely, higher levels of leadership/authority were related to more positive parenting tactics. Results suggest that deficits in parenting may be a mechanism for how parent grandiose narcissism relates to child mental health.

Examining the Influence of Gender, Child Abuse, and Narcissism on Four Forms of Interpersonal Violence Among Men and Women College Students

This study examines the moderating effects of gender, child abuse, and pathological narcissism on self-reported stalking, sexual harassment, intimate partner violence, and sexual aggression in undergraduate men and women. Child abuse was positively associated with engaging in all forms of interpersonal violence for both genders. For women, pathological narcissism moderated this association such that higher levels of pathological narcissism reduced the association between child abuse and engaging in stalking, sexual harassment, sexual aggression. For men. pathological narcissism exhibited independent positive associations with engagement in sexual harassment and sexual aggression and a negative association with engagement in intimate partner violence, but no moderating effects. These gender differences have important implications for the assessment of women's violence, and university violence prevention and advocacy programs.

Daily dynamics of grandiose narcissism: distribution, stability, and trait relations of admiration and rivalry states and state contingencies

On the basis of the Narcissistic Admiration and Rivalry Concept and recent theories on narcissistic pursuit of status, we provide a differentiated analysis of individual differences in the within-person dynamics of grandiose narcissism. In two daily diary studies (Sample 1: 56 days; Sample 2: 82 days; total participants: N = 198; total observations: N = 12,404), we investigated the degree, stability, and trait correlates of individual differences in average narcissism-relevant states (perceived status success, perceived admiration and rejection, positive and negative affect, and assertive and hostile behavior) as well as individual differences in within-person contingencies between these states. The results indicated substantial and stable between-person differences in averaged states that were related to their corresponding narcissism trait self-reports. State contingencies showed substantial strength, significant interindividual differences, and stability across the 56 and 82 days, respectively. We only found weak support for associations between state contingencies and trait narcissism self-reports. These findings support a differentiated approach to the conceptualization and assessment of grandiose state narcissism and call for even more comprehensive and fine-grained investigations.

Narcissistic Personality and Its Relationship with Post-Traumatic Symptoms and Emotional Factors: Results of a Mediational Analysis Aimed at Personalizing Mental Health Treatment

Background: Narcissism is characterized by entitlement, grandiose fantasies and the need for admiration. This personality trait has been associated with both traumatic experiences and emotional problems. Most studies have only focused on narcissism in the context of childhood trauma and negative emotional factors. However, dimensions of grandiose narcissism such as authority have been linked to adaptive outcomes. Furthermore, narcissism might not be linked only to negative childhood experiences; it may also be associated with the presence of post-traumatic symptoms. Therefore, the present study aimed to assess the associations between narcissism and the frequency and severity of post-traumatic symptoms and emotional factors (resilience capacity, emotional regulation, positive and negative affect, intolerance of uncertainty and perceived stress), as well as the possible mediational role of the latter in the relationship between narcissism and post-traumatic symptoms. Method: A total of 115 healthy young psychology undergraduates and their relatives, aged from 18 to 40 years, were asked to complete a set of questionnaires to evaluate the aforementioned variables. Results: The results showed that most of the grandiose narcissism dimensions were positively related to emotional adaptive outcomes, except exploitativeness and entitlement. The negative associations observed between the frequency and severity of post-traumatic symptoms and narcissism (self-sufficiency) were mediated by affect and resilience, which were in turn positively associated with the majority of the narcissism dimensions. Both positive affect and resilience were important factors mediating the association between grandiose narcissism and post-traumatic symptoms. Conclusions: Our findings reaffirm the need to assess not only desirable personality traits, but also ones that are not initially desirable, before pathologizing them. This consideration may be essential to achieve a personalized approach to the prevention of mental health problems, and promotion of positive emotions, in the general population.

Pathological personality, situations, and their joint influences on daily emotional symptoms

OBJECTIVE

The present research aims to advance current understanding on how individuals with pathological personality traits construe their day-to-day situational experiences.

METHOD

College students (N = 231) completed a measure of personality pathology, followed by six assessments of everyday situations and anxiety/depression symptoms over two weeks.

RESULTS

Multilevel analyses indicated that personality pathology was meaningfully associated with situational experiences. Major findings suggested that situations that entailed aggravations and interpersonal confrontations were associated with negative affectivity, antagonism, and psychoticism. Detached individuals were less likely to experience pleasant and social situations. Exploratory analyses suggested an amplification effect where individuals high on personality pathology were more anxious or depressed when they perceived certain situational features, compared to their low trait counterparts. However, such cross-level interactions constituted a small minority; most personality traits and situations exerted additive effects on symptoms.

CONCLUSION

Situational experiences appear to be driven in part by personality pathology. The exacerbation of daily negative symptoms can be attributed to the joint (largely additive) influence of the trigger situations and pathological personality traits.

Investigating pathological narcissism and loneliness, and the link with life satisfaction

Loneliness is a significant health concern that may be influenced by dispositional features. Pathological narcissism may elevate loneliness through aversive interpersonal behaviors and negative social appraisals. The present study examined two dimensions of pathological narcissism, along with five-factor personality traits, in relation to loneliness among 120 young adults. Loneliness was also examined as a mediator between pathological narcissism and satisfaction with life. Narcissistic grandiosity and narcissistic vulnerability were both significantly associated with loneliness. Multiple regression analysis, including five-factor traits, revealed narcissistic vulnerability to be uniquely associated with loneliness, along with neuroticism. Mediation analysis also found an indirect effect of narcissistic vulnerability on reduced satisfaction with life, through loneliness as a mediator. These preliminary findings point to future research needs and potential clinical consideration of narcissistic vulnerability as a dispositional risk factor for loneliness.

Transference-Focused Psychotherapy for Pathological Narcissism and Narcissistic Personality Disorder (TFP-N)

In this article, we provide an overview of transference-focused psychotherapy for patients with pathological narcissism and narcissistic personality disorder (TFP-N). In TFP-N we have modified and refined the tactics and techniques of TFP, an evidence-based treatment for borderline personality disorder, to meet the specific challenges of working with patients with narcissistic personality pathology whose retreat from reality into an illusory grandiosity makes them particularly difficult to engage in treatment. We first describe a model of narcissistic pathology based on considerations of psychological structure stemming from object relations theory. This model provides a unifying understanding of the core structure of narcissistic pathology, the pathological grandiose self, that underlies the impairments in self and interpersonal functioning of those with narcissistic pathology across the levels of personality organization (from high functioning to borderline to malignant). We then delineate the clinical process of working with patients with pathological narcissism and narcissistic personality disorder. Starting with the assessment process, using a detailed clinical example, we guide the reader through the progression of TFP-N as it helps the patient move from the distorted, unintegrated sense of self underlying the narcissistic presentation to the more integrated, realistic sense of self that characterizes healthier personality functioning. In TFP-N the focus on the disturbed interpersonal patterns of relating in the here and now of the therapeutic interaction is the vehicle to diminish grandiosity and improve relatedness, thereby effecting enduring changes in mental representation and real-world functioning.

Can neuroscience help to understand narcissism? A systematic review of an emerging field

Narcissism is a Janusian personality construct, associated with both grandiose self-assuredness and dominance, as well as vulnerable insecurity and reactivity. Central questions of intra- and interpersonal functioning in narcissism are still a matter of debate. Neuroscience could help to understand the paradoxical patterns of experience and behavior beyond the limitations of self-reports. We provide a systematic review of 34 neuroscience studies on grandiose, vulnerable, pathological narcissism, and Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD), spanning experimental investigations of intra- and interpersonal mechanisms, research on neurophysiological and neuroendocrine aspects of baseline function, and brain structural correlates. While neuroscience has scarcely directly studied vulnerable narcissism, grandiose narcissism is associated with heightened vigilance to ego threat and stress responses following ego threat, as well as heightened stress indicators in baseline measures. Such responses are not commonly observed in self-reports, highlighting the potential of neuroscience to augment our understanding of self-regulatory dynamics in narcissism. Interpersonal functioning is characterized by deficits in social-affective processes. Both involve altered activity within the salience network, pointing to a double dissociation regarding the expression of narcissism and self/other oriented situational focus. Findings are summarized in an integrative model providing testable hypotheses for future research along with methodological recommendations.

Narcissism and Quality of Life: The Mediating Role of Relationship Patterns

Pathological narcissism is associated with decreased quality of life, even when accounting for psychiatric comorbidity, but the processes behind this association are unclear. Here, we evaluate whether disturbed relatedness accounts for the negative association between narcissistic pathology and quality of life. Patients in day hospital treatment for personality pathology (N = 218, 70% female; mean age, 37.3 years) completed measures of personality disorder features, quality of life, and global symptoms before beginning treatment. Quality of object relations was assessed through semistructured interviews. Regression-based mediation analyses showed that narcissistic personality traits relate to quality of life through quality of object relations, controlling for other personality disorders and psychiatric distress. These results highlight the importance of problematic relationship patterns for the low quality of life associated with pathological narcissism. Clinicians working with narcissistic individuals should consider psychotherapies that promote mature relatedness and should attend to facilitating the quality of patients' relationships.

Narcissistic and Borderline Personality Disorders: Relationship With Oxidative Stress

The authors hypothesized that personality disorders characterized by interpersonal hypersensitivity would be associated with an elevated concentration of 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OH-DG), the oxidized form of guanine, and a biomarker of oxidative stress burden. One hundred ninety-five male and female adults underwent semistructured diagnostic interviews, completed questionnaire measures of social cognition and emotional attribution, and had blood drawn for determination of plasma 8-OH-DG. A hierarchical linear regression model revealed that narcissistic and borderline personality disorders predicted 8-OH-DG level independently of the effects of age, gender, recent alcohol and cigarette use, current major depression, and posttraumatic stress disorder. In all subjects, 8-OH-DG level was also correlated with the number of borderline personality disorder symptoms present. Narcissistic and borderline personality disorders predicted oxidative stress burden independently of potentially confounding factors.

Transference-Focused Psychotherapy for Narcissistic Personality Disorder: An Object Relations Approach

Transference-focused psychotherapy (TFP) is an empirically validated psychodynamic psychotherapy for borderline personality disorder (BPD), based on object relations theory, that has clinical utility for individuals with narcissistic personality disorder (NPD). Given the effectiveness of TFP for patients with BPD, including a number of patients with comorbid NPD, we have adapted the tactics and techniques of TFP with specific modifications for patients with NPD or narcissistic traits. TFP for NPD (TFP-N) retains core elements of the treatment, including a contracting phase and an interpretive process designed to identify and modify maladaptive mental representations of self and others that underlie the affect and behavioral dysregulation in those with personality disorders including NPD. The major goal of TFP-N is the focus on disturbed interpersonal patterns of relating in the here-and-now of the therapeutic interaction as a vehicle to effect enduring changes in personality organization and real-world changes in the areas of love and work.

Facial Emotion Recognition and Social-Cognitive Correlates of Narcissistic Features

Narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) is associated with both seeming indifference and hypersensitivity to social feedback. This study evaluated whether rejection sensitivity and empathic difficulties in NPD are accounted for by altered facial emotion recognition (FER). Two-hundred non-clinical individuals self-reported NPD features, rejection sensitivity, and empathy and performed an FER task assessing the ability to determine the presence or absence of an emotion when viewing neutral and negative facial stimuli presented at varying emotional intensities (25%, 50%, 75%). Those with higher NPD features were faster at accurately recognizing neutral and low, 25%-intensity emotional stimuli. This response pattern mediated the association between NPD features and increased anger about rejection. Thus, individuals with high NPD traits are hypervigilant toward subtle negative emotions and neutral expressions; this may explain their tendency to experience intense angry feelings when facing the possibility that the others would not meet their need for acceptance.

Construction and Validation of the Interpersonal Influence Tactics Circumplex (IIT-C) Scales

Assessment of interpersonal dispositions (e.g., traits, problems) commonly employs self- and informant-report measures that conform to the two-dimensional interpersonal circumplex (IPC) model. Here, we adopted the IPC and interpersonal theory as a framework for mapping the universe of content of interpersonal influence. Although there are existing measures of influence tactics used in influence research, this literature is divided among disciplines with varying construct definitions and no unifying theory. Here, we define interpersonal influence as the conscious maneuvering of one's behavior to engender desired responses from others in interpersonal situations. The current article details the construction and validation of the Interpersonal Influence Tactics Circumplex (IIT-C) Scales in two samples (Ns = 862, 608). The 64-item IIT-C assesses a comprehensive taxonomy of interpersonal influence tactics conforming to the structure of the IPC. Circumplex structure of the IIT-C was confirmed and replicated. Using the structural summary method for circumplex data, associations with other IPC measures, existing measures of influence, normal personality traits, and pathological personality traits supported the validity of IIT-C scores. The IIT-C assesses a theoretically based and empirically derived set of interpersonal influence tactics and provides a common language for integrating distinct streams of influence research by conforming to the IPC.

Grandiose and Vulnerable Narcissistic States in Interpersonal Situations

Clinicians have noted that narcissistic individuals fluctuate over time in their levels of grandiosity and vulnerability. However, these fluctuations remain poorly understood. Interpersonal theory asserts that interpersonal situations are central to the expression of personality and psychopathology, and therefore are a key context in which to understand the dynamic processes underlying narcissistic states. The present study is the first to examine narcissistic states assessed during interpersonal situations. Specifically, perceptions of others' warmth and dominance, momentary grandiosity and vulnerability, and one's own warm and dominant behavior were assessed across situations in daily life in a large sample (person N=286; occasion N=6,837). Results revealed that more grandiose individuals perceived others as colder and behaved in a more dominant and cold fashion, on average. But in the moment, relatively higher grandiosity was associated with perceiving others as warmer and more submissive and resulted in more dominant and warm behavior. On the other hand, trait vulnerability was associated with perceptions of coldness and cold behavior, and these effects were only amplified in momentary spikes of vulnerability. This study provides much-needed insight into the contexts that contribute to fluctuations in grandiosity and vulnerability.

A comparison of signal- and event-contingent ambulatory assessment of interpersonal behavior and affect in social situations

Ambulatory assessment (e.g., ecological momentary assessment) is now widely used in psychological research, yet key design decisions remain largely informed by methodological lore as opposed to systematic inquiry. The present study experimentally tested whether signal- (e.g., random prompt) and event- (e.g., complete a survey every time a target event occurs) contingent recording procedures of interpersonal behavior and affect in social situations yield equivalent quality and quantity of data. Participants (N = 286) completed baseline questionnaires, underwent cluster randomization to either a signal- or event-contingent condition, and then completed 1 week of ambulatory assessment, during which they answered questions about their social behavior and affect tied to their social interactions. Conditions were compared on response frequency, means and variances of interpersonal behavior and affect, correlations between interpersonal behavior and affect within-subject, and associations between momentary behavior and affect and baseline variables (e.g., Big Five traits). Results indicated that signal- and event-contingent recording techniques provided equivalent data quality, suggesting that researchers can use the 2 methodologies interchangeably to draw conclusions about means, variances, and associations when examining social interactions. However, results also showed that event-contingent recording returned, on average, a higher number of reported social interactions per individual, and this was true for most time periods of the day. Thus, event-contingent recording may hold advantages for studying frequency and timing of social interactions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Current conceptualizations of narcissism

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

Definitions of narcissism have traditionally differed across psychiatry and subfields of psychology. This review aims to highlight emerging points of consensus and suggest further directions needed to obtain a more comprehensive and cohesive conceptualization of the construct.

RECENT FINDINGS

An emerging consensus is that stable individual differences in the phenotypic expression of narcissism are best captured with a taxonomy that includes the core traits of entitlement, grandiosity, and vulnerability. Recent work has also begun to conceptualize and assess narcissistic states matched with these dimensions. We combine emerging taxonomic knowledge with principles from Whole Trait Theory to propose a multilevel conceptualization of narcissism that focuses on its manifestation at the trait level, state level, and within-situation level.

SUMMARY

Efforts to understand the phenotypic structure of the core traits associated with narcissism have been successful. As the field moves forward, it will become critical for researchers studying narcissism at multiple levels to align and integrate these perspectives so that a more comprehensive and cohesive conceptualization of the construct can be developed.

Conceptual Models of Borderline Personality Disorder, Part 1: Overview of Prevailing and Emergent Models

Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a debilitating condition with significant personal and societal costs. Throughout the history of the conceptualization of borderline pathology as a form of psychopathology, there has been debate concerning the essential attributes of this disorder, which has significant implications for its assessment and treatment. The first of this 2-part review evaluates the major approaches to conceptualizing BPD, from the traditional DSM diagnosis through the more recent Alternative Model in DSM-5, Section III, and the research domain criteria initiative of the National Institute of Mental Health that was articulated largely in response to limitations of the DSM.

Narcissism and stress-reactivity: a biobehavioural health perspective

From a perspective broadly informed by Stress and Coping Theory, this review examined whether theoretically distinct and important dimensions of narcissism (grandiosity and vulnerability) associate with health-related stress-reactivity. Literature searches were conducted and articles were included if they contained a validated baseline assessment of narcissism, a stressor, and a within-person assessment of stress-reactivity (i.e., a baseline and post-stress assessment of a health-related psychological, biological, or behavioural process). Additionally, narcissism measures had to be systematically categorised as assessing grandiosity or vulnerability (see Grijalva, E., Newman, D. A., Tay, L., Donnellan, M. B., Harms, P. D., Robins, R. W., & Yan, T. (2015). Gender differences in narcissism: A meta-analytic review. Psychological Bulletin, 141(2), 261-310. doi: 10.1037/a0038231 ), and narcissism dimensions had to be assessed independently of other constructs. Findings were narratively synthesised within three broad dimensions of stress-reactivity (psychological, biological, and behavioural). Overall, there appear to be relatively consistent patterns that grandiosity and vulnerability are related to altered stress-reactivity. Additionally, grandiosity and vulnerability may differentially influence stress-reactivity depending on the type of stressor and/or indicator of stress-reactivity (e.g., under certain conditions, grandiosity may confer some level of resilience). This review highlights important theoretical and empirical gaps in the emerging narcissism and health literature. Furthermore, this review may help inform methodological considerations for future research, and may also point to physical health outcomes that could conceivably be affected by narcissism over time (e.g., overweight/obesity, cardiovascular disease, HIV/AIDS).

Interpersonal Dynamics in Personality and Personality Disorders

Clinical and basic personality psychologists interact less than they should, given their similar interests. In clinical personality psychology, available evidence supports a transition from the current categorical system to a hierarchical trait scheme for diagnosing the stable features of personality disorder. However, trait models do not capture the dynamic aspects of personality disorders as they have been described in the clinical literature, and thus miss a clinically critical feature of personality pathology. In contrast, basic personality psychologists have coalesced around a consensual structure of individual differences and become increasingly interested in the dynamic processes that underlie and contextualize traits. But trait psychology models are not sufficiently specific to characterize dynamic personality processes. In this paper, I filter clinical descriptions of personality disorders through the lens of interpersonal theory to specify a recursive within–situation interpersonal pattern of motives, affects, behaviours, and perceptions that could contribute to the stable between–situation patterns of maladaptive behaviour of historical interest to both basic and clinical personality psychologists. I suggest that this interpersonal model adds specificity to recent proposals regarding processes in the basic personality literature and has significant potential to advance research on personality dynamics. © 2018 European Association of Personality Psychology

The effect of pathological narcissism on interpersonal and affective processes in social interactions

Narcissism has significant interpersonal costs, yet little research has examined behavioral and affective patterns characteristic of narcissism in naturalistic settings. Here we studied the effect of narcissistic features on the dynamic processes of interpersonal behavior and affect in daily life. We used interpersonal theory to generate transactional models of social interaction (i.e., linkages among perceptions of others' behavior, affect, and one's own behavior) predicted to be characteristic of narcissism. Psychiatric outpatients (N = 102) completed clinical interviews and a 21-day ecological momentary assessment protocol using smartphones. After social interactions (N = 5,781), participants reported on perceptions of their interaction partner's behavior (scored along the dimensions of dominant-submissive and affiliative-quarrelsome), their own affect, and their own behavior. Multilevel structural equation modeling was used to examine dynamic links among behavior and affect across interactions, and the role of narcissism in moderating these links. Results showed that perceptions of others' dominance did not predict dominant behavior, but did predict quarrelsome behavior, and this link was potentiated by narcissism. Furthermore, the link between others' dominance and one's own quarrelsome behavior was mediated by negative affect. Moderated mediation was also found: Narcissism amplified the link between ratings of others' dominance and one's own quarrelsomeness and negative affect. Narcissism did not moderate the link between other dominance and own dominance, nor the link between other affiliation and own affiliation. These results suggest that narcissism is associated with specific interpersonal and affective processes, such that sensitivity to others' dominance triggers antagonistic behavior in daily life. (PsycINFO Database Record

Pathological Narcissism and Nonsuicidal Self-Injury

Few studies have examined associations between pathological narcissism and self-harm, but those that do indicate that narcissistic vulnerability (not narcissistic grandiosity) relates to self-harm. The current study extends this literature by investigating how facets of pathological narcissism assessed by the Pathological Narcissism Inventory relate to specific nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) behaviors assessed by the Inventory of Statements About Self-Injury using statistical models appropriate for non-normally distributed count data. In a sample of 1,023 undergraduate students, results revealed that facets of both narcissistic vulnerability and narcissistic grandiosity were differentially related to the endorsement and frequency of specific NSSI behaviors and higher-order latent NSSI factors (repetitive and impulsive), even after accounting for levels of borderline pathology. The clinical implications of these results are discussed.

Experts' Views Regarding the Conceptualization of Narcissism

There is debate over the definition of narcissism across social/personality and clinical psychology. The current article aims to quantify the level of disagreement by measuring experts' opinions concerning the attributes most central to narcissism. Accordingly, we developed a comprehensive list of attributes associated with narcissism and had 49 self-identified experts (among them 17 women, 23 psychologists from clinical psychology and 22 from social/personality psychology) rate these characteristics and provide their opinions on several issues related to the conceptualization of narcissism. Experts generally believe that the grandiose features of narcissism are more central than the vulnerable features. However, differences between clinical and social/personality psychologists were evident, especially regarding the relevance of self-esteem. Given the results, we suggest that researchers specify the kind of narcissism being assessed in a given study and consider using assessments of the full range of narcissistic features in future research to provide a more comprehensive perspective on the construct.

Negative affect, interpersonal perception, and binge eating behavior: An experience sampling study

OBJECTIVE

Etiological and maintenance models for disordered eating highlight the salience of negative affect and interpersonal dysfunction. This study employed a 14-day experience sampling procedure to assess the impact of negative affect and interpersonal perceptions on binge eating behavior.

METHOD

Young adult women (N = 40) with recurrent binge eating and significant clinical impairment recorded their mood, interpersonal behavior, and eating behaviors at six stratified semirandom intervals daily through the use of personal digital assistants.

RESULTS

Although momentary negative affect was associated with binge eating behavior, average levels of negative affect over the experience sampling period were not, and interpersonal problems moderated the relationship between negative affect and binge eating. Interpersonal problems also intensified the association between momentary interpersonal perceptions and binge eating behavior. Lagged analyses indicated that previous levels of negative affect and interpersonal style also influence binge eating.

DISCUSSION

The study findings suggest there may be important differences in how dispositional versus momentary experiences of negative affect are associated with binge eating. Results also highlight the importance of interpersonal problems for understanding relationships among negative affect, interpersonal perception, and binge eating behavior. These results offer several possibilities for attending to affective and interpersonal functioning in clinical practice.

A Lot Can Happen in a Few Minutes: Examining Dynamic Patterns Within an Interaction to Illuminate the Interpersonal Nature of Personality Disorders

Although problematic interpersonal tendencies have often been characterized as a traitlike excess of a particular interpersonal style, the interpersonal nature of personality disorders may have more to do with patterns of variability in interpersonal behavior and the relation of this variability to the varying behavior of interaction partners. Indeed, problematic interpersonal tendencies may often be evident as patterns within even one interaction. A useful methodology for examining moment-to-moment patterns within the course of an interaction is the computer joystick technique. To illustrate the potential of this new approach for studying problematic interpersonal patterns, the authors provide joystick-based analyses of the videoed session between Dr. Donald Meichenbaum and the client, Richard (Shostrom, 1986a). The authors show how to examine the association between concurrent levels of dominance and affiliation within a person, patterns of covariation between partners, and the moderation of such entrainment patterns. They also discuss how these indices could illuminate disordered interpersonal patterns.

Daily Interpersonal and Affective Dynamics in Personality Disorder

In this naturalistic study, the authors adopt the lens of interpersonal theory to examine between- and within-person differences in dynamic processes of daily affect and interpersonal behaviors among individuals (N = 101) previously diagnosed with personality disorders who completed daily diaries over the course of 100 days. Dispositional ratings of interpersonal problems and measures of daily stress were used as predictors of daily shifts in interpersonal behavior and affect in multilevel models. Results indicate that ∼40%-50% of the variance in interpersonal behavior and affect is due to daily fluctuations, which are modestly related to dispositional measures of interpersonal problems but strongly related to daily stress. The findings support conceptions of personality disorders as a dynamic form of psychopathology involving the individuals interacting with and regulating in response to the contextual features of their environment.

Personality disorder risk factors for suicide attempts over 10 years of follow-up

Identifying personality disorder (PD) risk factors for suicide attempts is an important consideration for research and clinical care alike. However, most prior research has focused on single PDs or categorical PD diagnoses without considering unique influences of different PDs or of severity (sum) of PD criteria on the risk for suicide-related outcomes. This has usually been done with cross-sectional or retrospective assessment methods. Rarely are dimensional models of PDs examined in longitudinal, naturalistic prospective designs. In addition, it is important to consider divergent risk factors in predicting the risk of ever making a suicide attempt versus the risk of making an increasing number of attempts within the same model. This study examined 431 participants who were followed for 10 years in the Collaborative Longitudinal Personality Disorders Study. Baseline assessments of personality disorder criteria were summed as dimensional counts of personality pathology and examined as predictors of suicide attempts reported at annual interviews throughout the 10-year follow-up period. We used univariate and multivariate zero-inflated Poisson regression models to simultaneously evaluate PD risk factors for ever attempting suicide and for increasing numbers of attempts among attempters. Consistent with prior research, borderline PD was uniquely associated with ever attempting. However, only narcissistic PD was uniquely associated with an increasing number of attempts. These findings highlight the relevance of both borderline and narcissistic personality pathology as unique contributors to suicide-related outcomes.

Enriching psychological assessment using a person-specific analysis of interpersonal processes in daily life

We present a series of methods and approaches for clinicians interested in tracking their individual patients over time and in the natural settings of their daily lives. The application of person-specific analyses to intensive repeated measurement data can assess some aspects of persons that are distinct from the valuable results obtained from single-occasion assessments. Guided by interpersonal theory, we assess a psychotherapy patient's interpersonal processes as they unfold in his daily life. We highlight specific contexts that change these processes, use an informant report to examine discrepancies in his reported interpersonal processes, and examine how his interpersonal processes differ as a function of varying levels of self-esteem and anger. We advocate for this approach to complement existing psychological assessments and provide a scoring program to facilitate initial implementation.

Are pathological narcissism and psychopathy different constructs or different names for the same thing? A study based on Italian nonclinical adult participants

To understand the similarities and differences in personality traits and moral disengagement associated with pathological narcissism and psychopathy, 740 Italian active community members who voluntarily participated in the study were administered the Italian versions of the Pathological Narcissism Inventory, the Levenson Self-Report Psychopathy Scale, the HEXACO Personality Inventory, and the Moral Disengagement Scale. Hierarchical regression analyses showed that low Honesty-Humility and Antagonism (i.e., low Agreeableness) were personality traits common to both pathological narcissism and psychopathy, whereas low Conscientiousness was only related to psychopathy. Different associations with the HEXACO-PI scales and facets were observed for narcissistic grandiosity and narcissistic vulnerability, as well as for primary psychopathy and secondary psychopathy. Moral disengagement represented a common feature of pathological narcissism and psychopathy that was related to narcissistic vulnerability and to primary and secondary psychopathy, but not to narcissistic grandiosity.

Within-person Covariation of Agentic and Communal Perceptions: Implications for Interpersonal Theory and Assessment

Interpersonal theory identifies agency and communion as uncorrelated (orthogonal) dimensions, largely evidenced by research examining between-person analyses of single-occasion measures. However, longitudinal studies of interpersonal behavior demonstrated the within-person association of agency and communion is not orthogonal for many individuals, and between-person differences in these associations relate to adjustment. We applied a similar approach to investigate the association of interpersonal perceptions. 184 university students completed a 7-day event-contingent study of their interpersonal experiences. Using multilevel regression models, we demonstrated that agentic and communal perceptions were positively associated, and the strength of this within-person association was moderated by between-person scores of dependency and narcissism. We discuss the benefits of incorporating within-person interpersonal associations (termed interpersonal covariation) into interpersonal theory and assessment.

The interpersonal core of personality pathology

The purpose of this article is to demonstrate that personality pathology is, at its core, fundamentally interpersonal. The authors review the proposed DSM-5 Section 3 redefinition of personality pathology involving self and interpersonal dysfunction, which they regard as a substantial improvement over the DSM-IV (and Section 2) definition. They note similarities between the proposed scheme and contemporary interpersonal theory and interpret the Section 3 definition using the underlying assumptions and evidence base of the interpersonal paradigm in clinical psychology. The authors describe how grounding the proposed Section 3 definition in interpersonal theory, and in particular a focus on the "interpersonal situation," adds to its theoretical texture, empirical support, and clinical utility. They provide a clinical example that demonstrates the ability of contemporary interpersonal theory to augment the definition of personality pathology. The authors conclude with directions for further research that could clarify the core of personality pathology, and how interpersonal theory can inform research aimed at enhancing the Section 3 proposal and ultimately justify its migration to Section 2.