Key points are not available for this paper at this time.
The term "narcissism" originates from Ovid's adaptation of a Greek myth where Narcissus falls in love with his reflection and dies by the waterside. It describes an obsession with self-love, aligning with Freud's early view of narcissism as key to interpersonal regulation -that is, narcissists prioritize self-enhancement over intimate connections, manipulating relationships for personal gain (1,2). Such a conceptualization reflects traits like self-aggrandizement, entitlement, dominance, and manipulation, which mirror contemporary theorizing of narcissism underpinned by self-centered characteristics such as self-aggrandizement, entitlement, dominance, and a manipulative orientation (3,4). After Freud, Kohut (1968) introduced the more extreme form of narcissism, namely Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD) (5). According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), NPD involves a pervasive pattern of grandiosity and fantasy, a need for admiration/entitlement, a lack of empathy, and socially maladaptive interpersonal regulation (6). While research has purposefully distinguished narcissistic personality (i.e., a trait that exists in normal people and assessed on a continuum) from NPD (i.e., a clinical condition that requires specific diagnostic criteria to be met) (7)(8)(9)(10)(11)(12), it is noteworthy that both of them share the fundamental psychological characteristics of narcissism although normal individuals with narcissism do not pervasively "require" admiration nor "pre-occupied" with grandiose fantasies to the same extent as those with NPD (13)(14)(15).As such, research on sub-clinical narcissism is relevant and can be comparable to that on NPD.Indeed, varied interventions and treatment approaches exist for the NPD. For instance, a recent systematic review (16) has identified cognitive behavioral therapy (e.g., addressing distorted thinking and proximal behavioral patterns associated with NPD), psychodynamic therapy (e.g., addressing subconscious, underlying emotions and their origins in childhood or early-year experiences and the related unresolved conflicts that impact one's patterns of thinking and behaviors) and schema therapy (e.g., resolving unhealthy coping or interpersonal mechanisms developed in response to unmet emotional needs in childhood or early-year experiences) as three predominate approaches to NPD treatment. Despite these varied approaches, Weinberg and Ronningstam's narrative review (17) has highlighted five principles underpinning effective therapies for the NPD, including 'set realist goals', 'attend to treatment frame', 'attend to relationships and self-esteem', 'build alliance', and 'monitor countertransference'.Reservations are, however, due to the self-esteem dysregulation central to the NPD (18), individuals with NPD are naturally resistant to any treatment (e.g., high dropout) and lack the motivation to change. This is also because attending to treatment and acknowledging their problems challenge NPD's overly inflated self-view, and the lack of empathy explains why individuals with NPD rarely see their patterns of thinking and behaviors as problematic (19). These manifestations of the NPD lead to high dropout rates in psychotherapy and other relevant interventions or treatments (20).Moreover, building a therapeutic alliance is key to the effectiveness of NPD treatment (17). But the pervasive tendency towards manipulation and the lack of genuine empathy in individuals with NPD can result in a less effective therapeutic process. NPD's characteristics challenge the quality of therapeutic alliance, especially when a therapist feels undermined or devalued and becomes pessimistic about a vision toward positive changes in NPD-related symptoms (21). In support of this view, research has demonstrated that individuals with NPD tend to provoke powerful feelings in their therapists, contributing to stalemates (17). Meanwhile, psychotherapists' personality traits are associated with therapeutic orientation and interpersonal skills, which subsequently influence the therapeutic alliance and treatment outcomes (22). Thus, building a strong and lasting therapeutic alliance is not necessarily achievable or realistic. Additionally, individuals with NPD drop out of therapy or see the re-emergence of symptoms after therapy (17,21). This is likely due to the existing approaches to treatment for NPD that have focused on reducing NPD symptoms (e.g., cognitive and interpersonal style) rather than its underlying psychological needs for self-enhancement contributing to the disorder. Addressing the pervasive and desperate needs for self-enhancement, therefore, is fundamental to alleviating NPD. However, current approaches to intervention and treatment are limited to tackling NPD's underlying psychological needs for self-enhancement.Interestingly, while a pervasive tendency of seeking out opportunities for self-enhancement (e.g., admiration, entitlement, dominance) via social domains is what psychotherapy for NPD aims to alleviate and can explain why NPD (and narcissism in general) is seen problematic ( 23), these socially maladaptive features appear to be more adaptive than their first impression in performance settings (24). Performing to a high standard is crucial in competitive sport and other high-performing settings (e.g., performing arts, military), and thus these performance arenas naturally offer exclusive opportunities for glory or being exceptional (25). While the desire to win and the high-level competitiveness can evoke negative emotions for some, such challenges appear more appealing than threatening to individuals seeking opportunities for self-enhancement (24). In other words, the performance setting is particularly attractive to narcissists because it allows them to realize the strong desire to lionize the self and receive admiration.Importantly, research has supported the position that the socially considered maladaptive or dysfunctional aspects of narcissism and/or NPD, such as self-assertiveness and dominance orientation (20), tend to play adaptive roles in performance settings. In their seminal work, Wallace and Baumeister (2002) proposed that narcissists, driven by a strong desire for self-enhancement, are more likely to excel in scenarios that offer opportunities for glory or social comparison but struggle in situations where such opportunities are absent (7). Through four experimental studies, they compellingly showed that narcissists outperformed their peers in high-stakes situations that allowed for self-enhancement (e.g., providing rewards, leaderboard, challenging tasks). Conversely, their performance declined significantly in low-stakes contexts lacking opportunities for self-enhancement. This work, together with its replications in varied performance domains (10,(26)(27)(28), suggests that narcissists are more capable of performing under tough and challenging situations than their counterparts, thanks to their pervasive drive for self-enhancement and personal acclaim.Evidence also exists revealing that narcissists, especially those high in both self-assertiveness (the so-called 'adaptive' narcissism) and dominance orientation (the so-called 'maladaptive' narcissism) aspects of narcissism (29,30), do not tolerate greater psychological challenges as a cost for performance enhancement. Specifically, Zhang et al. (2020) found that narcissistic golfers (especially those high in maladaptive narcissism) reduced their pre-putt time (i.e., the time spent in preparation for executing the putt) when performing under high-pressure, high-threat conditions (i.e., rewards, leaderboard, and feedback inducing performance-related ego threats), but their counterparts increased pre-putt time under the same conditions (31). The findings suggest that narcissistic golfers suffer less and regulate task processes better under performance pressure. In another laboratory test with college students adopting manipulations similar to the putting task, Zhang et al. (2020) further assessed narcissistic individuals' beat-to-beat heart rate variability, measured by r-MSSD or the root mean square of successive normal-to-normal intervals as a psychophysiological marker of cardiac vagal control reflecting affective regulation and attentional control during task performance (32)(33)(34). The findings revealed that an increase in narcissistic characteristics was associated with a greater reduction in r-MSSD (reflecting superior affect and attentional regulation) under high-pressure, high-threat conditions, especially when the maladaptive, dominance aspect of narcissism was at high levels. Zhang et al. (2020) concluded that, despite often leading to interpersonal issues in social contexts (30,35), narcissists' willingness to dominate and the underlying desire for self-enhancement are considered 'healthier' in performance contexts, because such narcissistic characteristics bring performance advantages to narcissists and make them more appealing (in face of the performance demand).More recent research has offered further insights into the adaptive role of narcissism in leadership (coaching), given an overarching performance context. Compared to leadership research from social/interpersonal perspectives that supports the emergence but not the effectiveness of narcissistic leaders (12,36,37), performance-focused research has shown that narcissistic leaders (coaches) appear to benefit their followers (38,39). In three social experiments, Nevicka et al. (2013) demonstrated that followers tended to choose high narcissists as leaders in situations of uncertainty (i.e., instability and unpredictability of company outlook), even though they were aware of narcissistic leaders' dominance orientation and the associated arrogance and exploitativeness (38). Narcissistic leaders' undesired personal characteristics (from social/interpersonal perspectives) appeared beneficial to their followers, attenuating their sense of insecurity under uncertain times that evoke a high demand for exceptional performance (38). In another study of national-level rowers from 52 competitive rowing clubs, Nevicka et al. ( 2023) assessed rowers' perceptions of their coaches' narcissism, their perceived selfenhancement opportunities, and performance across a series of competitions at the Dutch National Championship (39). The findings revealed that increased athletes' perceptions of coach narcissism predicted better championship performance, and this relationship was underpinned (explained) by increased athletes' perceptions of self-enhancement. That is, athletes perceive greater opportunities for self-enhancement and perform better as their coaches' narcissism increases (39).While research supported that the performance settings dovetail well with narcissists' selfenhancement (e.g., providing personal glories or self-enhancing opportunities that are rare in social or interpersonal contexts), it is noteworthy that the aforementioned research evidence is from a subclinical population using NPI-based narcissism assessments (i.e., Narcissistic Personality Inventory) (40)(41)(42), rather than clinically diagnosed individuals with NPD. Unlike sub-clinical narcissists, individuals with NPD are more obsessive with 'requiring' a sense of entitlement and admiration and preoccupied with intense fantasies that construct and maintain an inflated self-image (14,15). They often demonstrate an extreme form of dispositional characteristics in subclinical narcissists, reflecting greater functional impairment and vulnerability (e.g., socially maladaptive behaviors, hypervigilance to threats) (13,43). Interestingly, the vulnerable aspects of NPD have also received considerable attention in subclinical, performance settings, utilizing the subclinical assessment of vulnerable narcissism, such as the Hypersensitive Narcissism Scale (HSNS) (44) and the Five-Factor Narcissism Inventory (FFNI) (45). What more important is that studies in sport and performance settings adopting the HSNS and/or FFNI also supported the view that performance settings are more adaptive than maladaptive to individuals high in narcissism, regardless of their vulnerability. For example, in three experimental studies of over 900 participants with varying levels of narcissism from diverse backgrounds (11), Manley et al. (2019) found that a positive association between narcissistic self-enhancement and goal-driven persistence, of which such an effect was only evident when the vulnerable aspects of narcissism were present. In other words, the vulnerable aspects of narcissism appeared to serve as a catalyst to reinforce the adaptiveness of narcissistic selfenhancement when clear performance goals can be identified (24). Compared to frequently reported and agreed pitfalls of narcissistic vulnerability in social and interpersonal domains (e.g., aggressive, counterproductive behaviors) (46)(47)(48)(49), in a cross-sectional sample of over 200 (semi-)professional football players and a three-way longitudinal sample of over 300 competitive athletes from mixed sports (25), evidence did not support the association between narcissistic vulnerability and anti-social behaviors in sport, nor the predictability of narcissistic vulnerability in athletes' trajectories of anti-social behaviors over a 8-month period that roughly captured a sporting season, after controlling for demographics and narcissistic grandiosity. The findings revealed that the vulnerable aspects of narcissism, often rooted in individuals with NPD, may not be as problematic in sport and performance as they are in social and interpersonal settings. Altogether, the existing evidence from subclinical narcissism research in sport and performance suggests that narcissists appear to bring more advantages than problems in performance compared to social and interpersonal settings.Based on the narcissism-performance research to date, this article calls for attention to the position that narcissists can glean benefits from the performance settings and transfer to mitigate their maladjustments in social contexts. Research has demonstrated that narcissists tend to behave more aggressively or in a more problematic way when facing ego threats in social contexts, due to their overwhelmed fantasy and inflated self-image being threatened and unlikely to be realized in social and interpersonal settings (50). However, the performance setting differs in that it naturally provides opportunities to be exceptional (e.g., beat an opponent, perform when others cannot, receive admiration or attention) (24). It offers narcissists 'permitted' or 'socially desired' means for self-enhancement (e.g., beating a competitor or opponent), which are structured and constrained by clear rules and controllable/adjustable performance goals, in contrast to social and interpersonal contexts. By satisfying their core psychological needs in performance settings, individuals high in narcissism (or with NPD) are likely less reinforced to seek self-enhancement via social means (e.g., dominance, selfarrogance, exploitativeness), because performance settings provide greater opportunities for a positive reinforcement that they can foresee glory that is deemed safe and certain. Such a strategy may be considered 'performance-oriented fantasy migration' as it emphasizes shifting self-enhancement and the relevant fantasies from social to performance domains. Given ego threat may be better dealt with and the sense of glory may be more fulfilling in performance compared to social settings (8), one would consider performance-oriented fantasy migration allowing narcissists to seek out self-enhancement via performance means, and thus, these narcissists may be less likely to seek self-enhancement via undesired social means, because performance settings offer them a greater opportunity for glory and maintaining the self-esteem. Although the results supported a negative relationship between athletes' narcissistic traits and task the sport both studies found that, this negative effect or undesired associated with narcissism subsequently as the narcissism increased (i.e., assessed by an on individuals' perceptions of the of are considered narcissists or high in narcissistic et al. demonstrated that, in the sporting contexts, narcissism was related to task and the underpinning increased a (i.e., of of as a not more relationship (i.e., interpersonal a nor task (i.e., about task and the related outcomes for the These findings suggest that an increase in narcissism and a greater narcissism a which are considered an increased in social settings, do not necessarily more problems to a sport evidence that narcissism in sport settings is to greater and to the and performance compared to their counterparts, especially when with high in leadership to a performance-oriented and are also high in narcissism it is that the of interpersonal functional and socially maladaptive behaviors in sport and performance is provide further for the that fulfilling self-enhancement in performance domains likely than maladaptive self-enhancement in social one can on and the principles of to the individuals are to their sense of (i.e., an sense of one's is an often to behaviors for however, the can in an the need or tendency for in the threatened can be significantly in the the of suggests that one can a sense of in a to that when the experiences a or the of NPD, the intense drive for interpersonal dominance, and other socially maladaptive behaviors is a to regulate a and self-esteem By a structured or of (e.g., opportunities for admiration, entitlement, and a sense of dominance) a performance the is likely to be the psychological need or a of to self-enhancement via aggressive, or other maladaptive social means is or at to the and the principles of clinical evidence this specific in the NPD population is evidence supports this For instance, in a seminal experimental study et al. demonstrated that when narcissists were a (i.e., reflecting on a core personal their and maladaptive to an ego threat were compared with those in the control research by and revealed that or a sense of has shown to their sense of psychological entitlement and interpersonal the findings that the of narcissism, such as the processes (e.g., is more than In four studies, and demonstrated that narcissists' and can be via or and psychological interventions can maladaptive narcissistic and interpersonal it is that a structured such as 'performance-oriented fantasy therapeutic By narcissists' intense needs and for self-enhancement into a performance the psychological to dominance, entitlement, and exploitativeness in social and interpersonal settings is likely to be significantly a crucial condition for the 'performance-oriented fantasy migration' when an experiences or in the performance the of narcissistic self-esteem (18), one may with the that a lack of ego leading to from the performance and a to socially maladaptive where can be more via narcissistic means to an inflated Such a is that the 'performance-oriented fantasy migration' not be a intervention or but as a to with the therapeutic alliance being (17). In this the of 'performance-oriented fantasy migration' is not to a desperate need for admiration and entitlement via but to narcissists with the of and naturally in a structured performance thus fulfilling self-enhancement via a and more socially or means (e.g., even in the subclinical supported that while narcissists are to ego threats such as performance their response to performance is not they tend to be more greater and appear more in task performance For example, with in a task, Manley et al. found that high narcissists tend to in the or after more compared to their counterparts et al. (2019) demonstrated in both a control task and an task that narcissists appeared to more regardless of performance when with and rarely achievable in studies of and cognitive performance Zhang et al. (2020) reduced time and (i.e., greater task and and increased root mean square of successive normal-to-normal intervals a psychophysiological of superior affect regulation) (31). study on narcissism in also revealed that an increase in narcissism was associated with greater coping with especially when the opportunity for a is These findings suggest a for and adaptation in performance-oriented narcissists when they conditions for performance this therapeutic (i.e., using 'performance-oriented fantasy migration' as a therapeutic the structured of the performance by its rules and more in the becomes a Unlike the of social performance opportunities for narcissistic of one's therapist would better both as the therapeutic The therapeutic therefore, would the to performance not as of their but as feedback for and genuine and rather than maladaptive fantasy migration' an opportunity for to a adaptive sense of that challenges and can be regardless of performance or 'performance-oriented fantasy migration' has to be in clinical population with NPD. This therefore, calls for the of the and a of and to test and this as and in their this four for the 'performance-oriented fantasy migration' into intervention and treatment for or a performance setting for fulfilling self-enhancement. The performance setting where narcissists can glean self-enhancement benefits be relevant and to a (e.g., a that or exceptional is and thus in way satisfying to a inflated an on performance rules and This is because or performance rules and increase narcissists' or of any which in may reinforce their in social domains. agreed (and performance rules and narcissists may be more likely to seek out self-enhancement via performance (e.g., beating the performance not social means (e.g., dominance or sense of control via or structured competitive or domains for performance-oriented While competitive sports (e.g., sports or other competitive offer structured where performance can be measured and providing narcissists with of admiration and an opportunity to interpersonal social and it is that sports may not be or appealing to individuals with NPD. such as lack of or negative experiences sporting contexts or the of 'performance-oriented fantasy migration' to any performance that offers similar contexts (e.g., clear opportunities for for means of self-enhancement. Such domains competitive where and are (e.g., like structured (e.g., competitive performance, with or (e.g., The crucial across these settings are the of performance feedback and clear criteria for which serve as and for self-enhancement. the performance domains therapeutic opportunities for fantasy to a of and across varied performance contexts. research would benefit from the and across these varied domains for individuals with and reinforce via fantasy migration may lead to the benefits (i.e., self-enhancement via only when adaptive performance-related behaviors (e.g., the in and (e.g., because to when others are to positive of the performance settings to narcissists a to self-enhancement, the of the inflated self from performance into social domains. While the 'performance-oriented fantasy migration' proposed in this strong from a and consider or psychophysiological as a to therapeutic as research has demonstrated considerable evidence of affect and emotional regulation underpinning NPD using varied and of the important principles of 'performance-oriented fantasy research and test the of this migration' a individuals clinically diagnosed with be to a standard treatment control (i.e., treatment as or a intervention The intervention would receive standard psychotherapy with an structured competitive sports the therapeutic In this experimental the rules of the sport would provide the while therapy would to the performance both and as to emotional rather than grandiosity. Such an is considered because it migration' providing with the standard or therapies that are considered to extent the therapeutic of this the study or the clinical a of and therapy dropout the of the therapeutic alliance (e.g., using the and changes in socially maladaptive behaviors over building the psychophysiological the study and heart rate (e.g., or during social By these behavioral such a would provide evidence of fantasy migration' symptoms and emotional dysregulation in NPD, the proposed from to clinical current approaches to NPD treatment are limited by to therapeutic alliance, and a on reduction rather than psychological NPD (and the underlying narcissism) is often as maladaptive in social contexts, evidence suggests that narcissistic traits are with performance settings. By the of 'performance-oriented fantasy interventions for NPD the core psychological need for self-enhancement into and competitive this not the it the performance as a therapeutic By both and a therapeutic alliance, can individuals with NPD genuine emotional and mitigate the aspects of their self-esteem. (e.g., behavioral outcomes in studies is to this from behavioral to an clinical This therefore, calls for and to test the proposed and the of 'performance-oriented fantasy migration' in NPD treatment.
Shuge Zhang (Tue,) studied this question.