Narcissistic people aren’t just full of themselves – new research finds they’re more likely to be aggressive and violent
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Brad Bushman, The Ohio State University and Sophie Kjaervik, The Ohio State University
The Research Brief is a short take about interesting academic work.
The big idea
We recently reviewed 437 studies of narcissism and aggression involving a total of over 123,000 participants and found narcissism is related to a 21% increase in aggression and an 18% increase in violence.
Narcissism is defined as “entitled self-importance.” The term narcissism comes from the mythical Greek character Narcissus, who fell in love with his own image reflected in still water. Aggression is defined as any behavior intended to harm another person who does not want to be harmed, whereas violence is defined as aggression that involves extreme physical harm such as injury or death.
Our review found that individuals high in narcissism are especially aggressive when provoked, but are also aggressive when they aren’t provoked. Study participants with high levels of narcissism showed high levels of physical aggression, verbal aggression, spreading gossip, bullying others, and even displacing aggression against innocent bystanders. They attacked in both a hotheaded and coldblooded manner. Narcissism was related to aggression in males and females of all ages from both Western and Eastern countries.
People who think they are superior seem to have no qualms about attacking others whom they regard as inferior.
Why it matters
Research shows everyone has some level of narcissism, but some people have higher levels than others. The higher the level of narcissism, the higher the level of aggression.
CREATISTA/iStock via Getty Images Plus
People high in narcissism tend to be bad relationship partners, and they also tend to discriminate against others and to be low in empathy.
Unfortunately, narcissism is on the rise, and social media might be a contributing factor. Recent research found people who posted large numbers of selfies on social media developed a 25% rise in narcissistic traits over a four-month period. A 2019 survey by the smartphone company Honor found that 85% of people are taking more pictures of themselves than ever before. In recent years, social media has largely evolved from keeping in touch with others to flaunting for attention.
What other research is being done
One very important line of work investigates how people become narcissistic in the first place. For example, one study found that when parents overvalue, overestimate and overpraise their child’s qualities, their child tends to become more narcissistic over time. Such parents think their child is more special and entitled than other children. This study also found that if parents want their child to have healthy self-esteem instead of unhealthy narcissism, they should give unconditional warmth and love to their child.
Our review looked at the link between narcissism and aggression at the individual level. But the link also exists at the group level. Research has found that “collective narcissism” – or “my group is superior to your group” – is related to intergroup aggression, especially when one’s in-group (“us”) is threatened by an out-group (“them”).
How we do our work
Our study, called a meta-analytic review, combined data from multiple studies investigating the same topic to develop a conclusion that is statistically stronger because of the increased number of participants. A meta-analytic review can reveal patterns that aren’t obvious in any one study. It is like looking at the entire forest rather than at the individual trees.
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Brad Bushman, Professor of Communication and Psychology, The Ohio State University and Sophie Kjaervik, PhD Student in Communication, The Ohio State University
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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Why are some mushrooms poisonous?
Poisonous or edible?Ekaterina Morozova/iStock via Getty Images Plus
Karen Hughes, University of Tennessee
Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to [email protected].
You may have noticed that mushrooms pop up in your yard or in parks right after a rain but don’t last for long.
A mushroom is the above-ground part of a fungus. Most of the time, fungi live as threadlike structures called hyphae underground or in materials like wood. For fungi to reproduce, a mushroom must form above ground.
Some mushrooms are poisonous for the same reason some plants are poisonous – to protect themselves from being eaten so they can reproduce. Other mushrooms use the opposite strategy. They need animals to eat them in order to spread spores through poop. Still other mushrooms have completely different game plans.
The candlestick fungus, Xylaria hypoxylon, releases its spores.Jasius/Moment via Getty Images
Spreading spores
Mushrooms develop when the temperature is right and there is enough water. They usually consist of a cap and a stalk. On the underside of the cap, mushrooms produce spores that, like the seeds of plants, produce new fungi.
If you peek under a variety of mushroom caps, you will notice they are not all the same.
Some mushrooms have gills that look like a pleated sheet of paper. Some have pores that look like sponges. And some have toothlike structures. All of these surfaces produce spores. To create a new generation of fungi, spores need to get to new areas – and there are many fascinating ways mushrooms accomplish this.
For some mushrooms, spores simply fall from their caps and are carried to new homes by air currents.
The ghost fungus, Omphalotus nidiformis, at night in an Australian driveway.Louise Docker Sydney Australia/Moment via Getty Images
Other mushrooms attract insects by glowing at night. The glow from fungi in the woods at night can be very strong and is sometimes called foxfire. Insects, which are attracted to the light, inadvertently pick up spores as they investigate the glow and carry them elsewhere when they move on.
Some mushrooms never form an above-ground structure. Instead the mushroom stays underground and is eaten by squirrels and mice, which spread the spores by taking pieces back to their nests and by pooping. Such mushrooms are called truffles, and sometimes people will pay a lot of money for them.
A window of opportunity
Since mushrooms don’t last long, it’s important they spread their spores quickly. This is where poisons and toxins can come in.
Mushrooms are pretty tasty to snails, some insects, beetles, chipmunks, squirrels, deer and people. If an animal eats a mushroom, usually its spores are lost – unless they’re the type encased in a protective covering meant to be carried to a new neighborhood in poop.
Scientists have figured out that insects and snails avoid eating mushrooms that contain poison. Some mushroom poisons may make the eater only sick enough to avoid that species in the future, but some can be fatal.
A deadly poisonous mushroom, Amanita virosa.gailhampshire/Flickr, CC BY
There are many different mushroom poisons. One kind belongs to a group of very beautiful mushrooms, the amanitas, also called “destroying angels” because they are both pretty and deadly. Amanitas are often mistaken for mushrooms that can be eaten, and they cause several deaths worldwide each year.
People use some mushroom poisons in medicine. The poison of the ergot fungus, for example, was developed into a drug used to prevent migraine headaches.
Approximately 1%-2% of mushrooms are poisonous to humans. The common term for such a mushroom is a “toadstool,” but there is no easy way to distinguish a poisonous mushroom from one that is edible. So it’s not a good idea to eat mushrooms you find, because it’s hard to be sure whether they’re poisonous or not.
Many mushrooms are healthy and delicious. Just make sure you get them from a store or from someone who is a mushroom expert.
Hello, curious kids! Do you have a question you’d like an expert to answer? Ask an adult to send your question to [email protected]. Please tell us your name, age and the city where you live.
And since curiosity has no age limit – adults, let us know what you’re wondering, too. We won’t be able to answer every question, but we will do our best.
Karen Hughes, Professor of Mycology, University of Tennessee
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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