Narcissistic Grandiosity and Risky Behavior: Is There a Causal Effect?

The rise of individualism has led to an increase in narcissism across cultures, with significant negative impacts on social environments and organizations. Narcissistic traits, particularly grandiosity, are linked to risky behaviors in finance, ethics, health, and gambling. Existing studies have mainly focused on correlations and predictions without establishing causality, particularly in working adult samples. This study aims to examine the causal effect of narcissistic grandiosity on risky behaviors in specific domains using regression and instrumental variable regression analysis. A sample of 300 working adults was surveyed using the Narcissistic grandiosity and Domain-specific risk-taking scales. While grandiosity showed correlations and predicted significantly some risky behaviors, instrumental regression analysis revealed no causal effect of grandiosity on any domain. The findings suggest that other variables, such as antagonism and sensation seeking, might play a more significant role in driving risky behavior. This study highlights the need for more comprehensive research to understand the complex interactions between narcissistic traits and risky behaviors.