You might have heard the idea that being an only child means you’re more likely to be selfish, spoilt, and self-centred – but the results of a new study show no link between being an only child and being more narcissistic. It’s an important finding for parents and policy makers alike – whether you’re in charge of a single family unit or the strategy of an entire country. Previous studies on the issue have been inconclusive, but the researchers behind the new analysis say it ticks all the boxes: a large sample, a representative sample, and built-in allowances for other variables (such as gender and socioeconomic status). “Some of…
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A New Study Challenges the Stereotype That Children Who Grow Up Without Siblings Are More Narcissistic
You’ve may heard people say that only children are more self-centered than those with siblings, but is that actually true? Researchers at the University of Leipzig and University of Münster set out to find a conclusive answer. Their findings? While it’s true that being an only child can correlate to narcissism, the research team found that there are other traits that can make someone conceited, too. The study, “The End of a Stereotype: Only Children Are Not More Narcissistic Than People With Siblings,” published in Sage Journals, stated that narcissism first begins with the genes that people inherit. According to the researchers’ analysis, genes make up 50 percent of people’s…
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Only children are not as narcissistic as most people think
The findings, published in the journal Social Psychological and Personality Science, showed that both only children and those with siblings shared the same view that only children are more narcissistic in both aspects than those with siblings. To then test the accuracy of the stereotype, the researchers analysed data from 1,810 people, again a mix of only children and those with brothers and sisters, to measure their narcissism levels. They found that the scores of narcissistic traits for only children were not that different from those with siblings, and the findings also held true even after taking into account possible influencing factors. “Some of the past research has reported no difference…
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Children without siblings are not more narcissistic, study finds
The widely held belief that only children tend to be more selfish and self-centered than children with siblings is unfounded, according to German researchers. In a study published this week in the journal Social Psychological and Personality Science, the study’s authors found no evidence that only children are more narcissistic than those with brothers or sisters. Past research on this topic has turned up conflicting findings. Those earlier studies, however, often had methodological limitations — such as small sample sizes — that made their results less than reliable. The authors of the new study say their research addresses and corrects those problems. “We can now say with rather high confidence…
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Only children are not as narcissistic as we think says new study
New German research has found that the popular stereotype that only children are more narcissistic than children with siblings may not actually be true. Carried out by researchers at the University of Leipzig and University of Münster, the new study looked at 556 adults with an average age of 46.3 years. The participants, who were a mix of only children and those with siblings, completed an online survey which asked them if they believed if only children are more narcissistic than people with brothers or sisters, in order for the researchers to test the prevalence of this stereotype. The researchers focused on two key aspects of narcissism: people feeling grandiose…
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New study debunks myth that only children are more narcissistic than kids with siblings
The stereotype for only children is that they are selfish, or more self-centered than those with siblings. This stereotype is sometimes used as an argument for having more than one child, but researchers from Germany find there’s no evidence for the claim that only children are more narcissistic than children with sibling. Michael Dufner (University of Leipzig), Mitja D. Back (University of Münster), Franz F. Oehme (University of Leipzig), Stefan C. Schmukle (University of Leipzig) recently published their findings in the journal Social Psychological and Personality Science. To start, the social and personality psychologists asked if people believe people who have no siblings are more narcissistic than people with siblings.…
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A Foreshortened-Future View in Adult Children of Narcissists
Source: Andrew Martin, Pixabay. Children of narcissistic parents, particularly children who are routinely devalued or scapegoated, commonly internalize feelings of vulnerability, hopelessness, and imminent threat that create a sense of foreshortened future. Like other long-term trauma sufferers, children from narcissistic families often harbor the belief that they are fundamentally damaged and that their life is precarious, unmanageable, even doomed. Growing up, such children experience disruptions to their sense of personal agency that make it difficult to imagine themselves becoming adults and achieving normal milestones such as having a job/career, committed relationship, home, or family. Often without consciously realizing it, they feel unworthy or incapable of those things, and they carry such beliefs into adulthood, continuing to expect that their life will be…
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It's Not All About the Narcissist; Dynamics with the Co-Parent and the Impacts on Their Children
In previous videos, we’ve talked about the impact of having a narcissistic parent. But if you grew up in this type of home, you know it’s not just the narcissist who creates confusing dynamics. Very often the role the other parent has developed in order to cope with the narcissist creates its own confusion and hurt. How do you sort through all of the chaos? How do you learn to step back and not get sucked into any of these dynamics? This video discusses the roles, their impacts, and how to learn effective self-care strategies. source
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Jon Gosselin rips into ‘greedy’ Kate and TLC for defying court ban on filming his children
Jon Gosselin is fuming after TLC defied a court order barring the TV network from filming his and Kate’s children for reality show Kate Plus 8, DailyMailTV can reveal. The network aired a special episode of the show last week despite not having the legal paperwork in place. In an exclusive interview Jon told DailyMailTV: ‘I’m furious. Absolutely furious. They didn’t care. It’s really upsetting that big business and big corporations go do whatever they want, against a parent’s legal right.’ ‘The judge and the guardian ad litem both agreed that it wasn’t in my children’s best interests to be filmed, but my ex wife and TLC had other ideas.…
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Maricopa County assessor accused of smuggling and selling children
Petersen, an adoption lawyer licensed in Arizona and Utah, is facing similar charges in Utah, according to the Salt Lake Tribune. The 32-count indictment filed in the Superior Court of Arizona alleges Petersen committed conspiracy, fraud and forgery. Petersen and another person, Lynwood Jennet, are accused of committing fraudulent schemes and artifices for organizing travel for women from the Marshall Islands, a country of volcanic islands between Hawaii and the Philippines, to give up their children for adoption in Arizona. Petersen and Jennet claimed the pregnant women were Arizona residents so they could receive medical services from Arizona’s Medicaid system, according to the indictment. Jennet worked for the law office…