Narcissism between generation X and generation Y (millennials) – A cross-sectional comparative study

Abstract

Context: Narcissism has become a pejorative term in recent years. It may be developmentally appropriate, depending upon the phase of life cycle in which the person is. However, it can also be pathological in some people and is known as Narcissistic personality disorder. Individuals with narcissistic personality disorder generally have a lack of empathy and have difficulty recognizing the desires, subjective experiences, and feelings of others. Despite this range of concerns, literature shows an average of <10 studies per year on narcissistic personality disorder. Hence, there is a need to study and compare narcissism between different generations. Aims: The objective of the study was to compare the levels of Narcissism between Generation X and the Generation Y (Millennials) and to determine if there is any association between Narcissism and usage of Social Media Networking sites. Settings and Design: This was a 4-month cross-sectional comparative study conducted online from April 2021 to July 2021. A Google Form was used to record the response from all the participants. Subjects and Methods: Two hundred and sixty-two participants were included in study after obtaining institutional ethical clearance. Among them, 96 were of generation X and 166 participants were of generation Y. Participants who were having the access to any type of social media networking sites were included in the study, if they fulfilled the operational definition of Generation X and Y. Narcissistic Personality Inventory-16 (NPI-16), a self assessment tool, was used to evaluate narcissism. The social media networking site usage measure was assessed based on number of social media networking site they are active on, time spent on social media networking site, frequency of status updates, number of friends or followers, and pictures of self or selfies uploaded by them in span of 1 month. Statistical Analysis: Independent student t-test, Chi-square test, and Pearson's correlation analysis were used for analyzing variables in the study. Results: Among enrolled participants, 51.1% were females and 48.1% were males. There was statistically significant difference in the mean NPI-16 score (P = 0.016) with the score being more in Generation X (3.92) than Generation Y (3.04). There was a positive correlation between NPI-16 score and number of the social media networking sites (r = 0.175, P = 0.005), Frequency of Status Updates in a week (r = 0.165, P = 0.007), Number of Friends/Followers (r = 0.140. P = 0.025), and Selfies uploaded in a month (r = 0.282, P < 0.001). Conclusion: There is a positive correlation between the levels of narcissism and the self reported Social Media Networking site use among the participants in the study. Furthermore, the levels of narcissism were higher among Generation X than Generation Y.

Keywords

• generation x
• millennials
• narcissism
• social media networking sites