Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin, Madison, 1977. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 367-377).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2000. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves [106]-130). Also available on the Internet.

Students’ evaluations of teaching (SETs) have been used as a primary means of evaluating the teaching quality at postsecondary institutions for a number of years. The research in this area has been consistently expanding in an effort to validate its use and efficacy. To date, there has been little consensus regarding the validity of these evaluations, especially with regards to the possible impact of extraneous factors. Researchers have previously found evidence of a link between the self-serving bias and grade expectations. The present study used an experimental design to examine the validity of SETs in the context of the self-serving bias. According to the self-serving bias, individuals will be more likely to attribute success internally but attribute failure externally. Specifically, the present study examined whether there were differences in the presence of the self-serving bias in relation to self-reported narcissism and shyness. Students at a large university aged 17 - 46 (N = 563) were asked to write a short essay on euthanasia and were randomly assigned to one of two conditions. In the first condition, students were assigned a low grade; in the second condition, they were assigned a high grade. When they were given their essay grade back, students had an opportunity to rate their evaluator. Results indicated that students were more likely to externalize their essay grade when in the negative condition whereby they attributed their grade to reasons outside their control versus the positive condition, irrespective of their level of self-reported narcissism or shyness. These results suggest that the self-serving bias does exist within SETs and calls into question the validity of these evaluations. The findings from this study highlight the need for further research into the role that student characteristics play with regards to SETs.

Narcissism is currently being redefined as a multidimensional construct. While some researchers hold that narcissism remains a unidimensional phenomenon, others have suggested that bi- and tridimensional conceptualizations may better represent the construct as well as align more succinctly with the experiences of individuals with varying levels of narcissistic traits. Also, since the latter conceptualizations offer a broader assessment of narcissistic tendencies, they may provide greater accuracy in identifying differing narcissistic phenotypes (e.g., malignant vs vulnerable). Given the variety in conceptualizations of narcissism, it remains an open area as to how their respective domains are associated with various risk factors and behavioral outcomes, particularly within antagonistic forms of narcissism. This thesis explored the multidimensional approaches to defining narcissism and examined the associations between narcissistic traits and attachment style, self-concept, self-esteem, emotion regulation, and aggression. Also, the current study explored how differences in college degree (business vs. psychology) and gender may influence the expression of narcissism and associations with attachment style. Overall, the study provides results relevant for a tridimensional view of narcissism and adds to the literature on narcissism's link with factors involved in personality pathology, gender, and choice of college degree.

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For over a century, the enigmatic nature of narcissism has been the source of debate across psychological, sociological, and developmental domains. Although much has been written in recent years about narcissism as a generational phenomenon, referencing data collected from university undergraduates, there is little to no applied research and discussion into the implications for teaching and learning with respect to the reciprocal interactions between narcissistic students and traditional undergraduate education. Recognizing this paucity in the literature, the manuscripts within this dissertation draw theoretical and empirical connections between narcissism and learning, highlighting significant relationships between narcissism as a dispositional construct and achievement goal orientation. Through the development of a theoretical Triarchic Model of Dispositional Narcissism and the empirical exploration of its viability, this dissertation is written in accordance with sentiments that suggest educational psychologists seek to improve learning through a more comprehensive recognition of the variables that contribute to cognitive processes. The theoretical design, research, and interpretations within this dissertation seek to provide a heuristic through which educators may develop proactive, interventive instructional models and pedagogies that will encourage all students to improve their learning by engaging in strategies that lead to deeper cognitive and metacognitive processing. / Ph. D.

Previous empirical research and anecdotal accounts suggest that “subclinical narcissism” or “average Joe’s narcissism” is one of the most prevalent social phenomena in many parts of the world. Research also suggests that there will be an unprecedented escalation “in average Joe narcissists” among future generations of consumers. The objective of this study is two-fold. The first objective of this study is to explore the moderating effect of the individual’s level of narcissistic personality on their word-of-mouth (WOM) communications. The second objective of this study is to explore the boundary conditions of the first objective. The data were collected from a large number of consumers through Amazon Mechanical Turk. The results support many of the hypotheses accordant with the characteristics of the subclinical narcissistic individual. Specifically, the moderating effect of an individual’s level of narcissistic personality trait on the decision to engage in different types of WOM communications varies across the tested contexts. This study is intended to respond to social scientists' recent call for studies that investigate the fundamental motives behind the individual’s propensity to engage in WOM communication as a function of individual characteristics. The results of this study provide some prescriptive guidance to help companies target appropriate consumers to increase the effectiveness of WOM communication. In addition, this study explores the effect of individual and contextual differences on consumers’ willingness to engage in different types of WOM communication.

Ng, Kin Shing. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 52-63). / Abstracts in English and Chinese; appendix 2 in English and Chinese. / Chapter Chapter 1 --- INTRODUCTION / Psychoanalytic Theories on Narcissism --- p.1 / Psychometric Studies of Narcissism --- p.3 / Problems of the American Scales --- p.7 / Exploring the Construct of Narcissism among the Chinese --- p.10 / Purposes of the Present Study --- p.12 / Chapter Chapter 2 --- METHOD / Participants --- p.15 / Measures --- p.16 / Chapter Chapter 3 --- RESULTS FOR SAMPLE 1 / Exploratory Factor Analysis --- p.18 / Confirmatory Factor Analysis --- p.22 / Concurrent Validity of the CNS --- p.24 / "Comparison between Gender, Location and Age-groups" --- p.26 / Chapter Chapter 4 --- RESULTS FOR SAMPLE 2 / Internal Reliability and Item-Total Correlation --- p.28 / Cross-validating the Factor Structure in the Clinical Sample --- p.29 / Concurrent Validity of the CNS in the Clinical Sample --- p.31 / Clinical utility of the CNS --- p.33 / Chapter Chapter 5 --- DISSCUSSION / Narcissistic Personality Features among Chinese --- p.37 / Gender Difference in Narcissism --- p.40 / Age Differences in Narcissism --- p.41 / Narcissism and Psychosocial Adjustment --- p.42 / Clinical Utility of the Narcissism Construct among Chinese --- p.43 / Strengths and Limitations of the Present Study --- p.44 / Appendix 1 The Nine Diagnostic Criteria of NPD and Related CPAI-2 Items --- p.50 / Appendix 2 Chinese and English versions of the CNS Items --- p.51 / References --- p.52

Thesis (Ph.D. (Psychology)) -- University of Limpopo, 2012 / The identity status paradigm (ISP) is probably the most common theoretical model used to study identity development. It originates from Erikson’s (1950/1977) psychosocial theory, which, in turn, is historically rooted in the psychoanalytic perspective. The ISP postulates predictable relationships between each of the identity status categories and various intrapersonal and contextual variables. The applicability of the ISP in the South African context is tested in this study. A student sample was drawn from a predominantly African university, and was assessed for identity development over a period of three consecutive years (Ns = 394, 96 & 60, for years one, two and three, in that order). Participants were initially classified into the four identity status categories of Achievement, Moratorium, Foreclosure and Diffusion. The impact of gender and age on identity status development was investigated. The association between defenses and the identity statuses was also determined. Thereafter, identity statuses, in conjunction with defenses, narcissism, and parental attachment, were related to the ego strengths of Fidelity and Love. The results suggest that generally there is no relationship between the sets of variables in this particular sample. The results are discussed in relation to existing literature, and the issue of the appropriateness of the theory and/or the measures in the present sample is raised. Key terms: defense, ego strength, identity status, narcissism, parental attachment / the Norwegian Programme for Development, Research and Education (NUFU),

Uppsatsens syfte har varit att undersöka om det i ett urval av storsäljande självhjälpslitteratur med fokus på självutveckling förmedlas narcissistiska budskap. Studien grundar sig i tidigare forskning som behandlat narcissism utifrån både ett psykologiskt-, och ett samhällsperspektiv. Därutöver har forskning om självhjälpslitteratur utgjort en del av referensramen för studien. Kvalitativ innehållsanalys har applicerats på materialet. Det empiriska urvalet har bestått av tre svenska självhjälpsböcker som figurerat på topplistor för större återförsäljare av litteratur på internet. Materialet har analyserats ur ett samhällsperspektiv med hjälp av Eric Fromms teorier om frihet, individuationsprocessen, själviskhet och ideal samt delar av Erving Goffmans dramaturgiska perspektiv. Resultatet visade att självhjälpslitteraturen som studerats förmedlar budskap som var och ett för sig kan uppfattas som sunda och rimliga. Läsaren uppmanades sätta sig själv främst, vara målmedveten, lära sig att hantera relationen till sig själv och andra samt hantera sina svagheter. Texterna förmedlade att självrespekt och empati var förutsättningar för lycka. Sammanfattningsvis har vissa budskap återfunnits som i samspel med varandra kan ses som narcissistiska. Studiens slutsats var att litteraturen förmedlade narcissistiska budskap, där gränsen mellan det sunda och osunda i hur läsaren uppmanades sätta sig själv i fokus, använda relationer, sätta egna mål samt sträva efter lycka och framgång, inte var självklar. / The purpose of this study was to investigate if a selection of best-selling self-help literature focusing on self-development contained narcissistic messages. The study is based on previous studies which analyzed narcissism from a psychological as well as a sociologic perspective. Research concerning self-help literature has also been used in the study. Content analysis has been applied to the material. The empiric selection consisted of three popular Swedish self-help books. The material has been analyzed from a sociologic perspective by using Eric Fromm’s theories on freedom, the individuation process, selfishness and ideals as well as Erving Goffman’s dramaturgical perspective. The result showed that the chosen self-help literature contained messages that on their own could be interpreted as rational and sound. The reader was encouraged to focus on itself, be goal-oriented and learn how to manage the own self and its weaknesses. The texts conveyed that self-respect and empathy were necessary conditions for achieving happiness. In summary, some messages that in interplay encouraged narcissism were found. In the end it was concluded that the literature conveyed narcissistic messages, where the line between healthy and unhealthy in how the readers were encouraged to put themselves first, use relations, set their own goals as well as pursuing happiness and success, wasn’t obvious.