Abstract:
The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between narcissism and romantic attraction to hypothetical targets of the opposite sex. Undergraduate students completed a measure of narcissistic personality and were divided into high and low narcissists. In Study 1, participants rated each of the four targets (admiring, caring, perfect, and needy) on the romantic attraction measure. In Study 2, participants rated each of the two targets (perfect-noncaring and caring-nonperfect). Results show that: 1. High narcissists are more attracted to admiring and perfect targets and less attracted to needy targets (p < .001); contrary to the hypothesis, they are more attracted to caring targets than admiring and perfect targets (p < .001 and p < .05). 2. Low narcissists are more attracted to caring targets and less attracted to admiring and perfect targets (p < .001); contrary to the hypothesis, they are more attracted to admiring and perfect targets than needy targets (p < .001). 3. Both high and low narcissists are more attracted to caring-nonperfect targets than perfect-noncaring targets (p < .001). 4. Narcissism positively correlates with independent self-construal (p < .001)