The Relationship Between Narcissism, Shame, and Guilt: A Systematic Review

Abstract

The main purpose of this review is to examine the relationship between narcissism and feelings of shame and guilt, and to investigate whether these feelings differentiate between the vulnerable and grandiose dimensions of narcissism. To achieve this goal, a comprehensive search was conducted in databases including Scopus, ProQuest, PubMed, Science Direct, Taylor and Francis, Wiley, Web of Science, and Ebsco-Host using the keywords "(narcissism OR narcissistic personality disorder) AND (shame OR guilt)" for studies published between 2000 and 2022. A total of 718 studies were identified through the search, of which 32 studies were included for evaluation. Among the evaluated studies, 56.3% (n=18) focused solely on shame, 6.3% (n=2) focused solely on guilt, and 37.5% (n=12) examined the relationship between both emotions and narcissism. The collective analysis of the studies revealed a consistent positive association between vulnerable narcissism and shame, whereas mixed findings were observed regarding the relationship between vulnerable narcissism and guilt, as well as between grandiose narcissism and feelings of shame and guilt.

Keywords

• grandiose narcissism
• vulnerable narcissism
• shame
• guilt