A Comparative Study of Narcissism, Gender, and Sex-Role Orientation among Bodybuilders, Athletes, and Psychology Students

This research examined the popular view expressed by Lasch and by Lowen that narcissism is a particularly salient feature among bodybuilders. It also was designed to test hypothesized gender and sex-role differences in narcissism. The Narcissistic Personality Inventory and the Bern Sex-role Inventory were administered to 232 participants within three groups of bodybuilders, athletes, and psychology students. Analysis indicated that bodybuilders scored significantly higher on the Self-absorption subscale of the Narcissism inventory than athletes and psychology students. Men and the masculine group scored significantly higher on the total Narcissism scale and the four subscales than women and androgynous, feminine, and undifferentiated groups.