A diary study of the influence of Facebook use on narcissism among male college students

Abstract

The present study explored the relationship between grandiose narcissism and Facebook use among college students. Participants completed a measure of grandiose narcissism and reported about their frequency and duration of Facebook use twice each day for four days. Consistent with previous work, narcissism was positively correlated with frequency of Facebook use. However, linear mixed model analyses revealed that Facebook use did not predict subsequent narcissism after controlling for previous level of narcissism. On the other hand, narcissism was a reliable predictor of subsequent Facebook use even after controlling for earlier Facebook use. These results converge with recent work in (a) observing a link between narcissism and Facebook use and (b) casting doubt on the popular notion that Facebook use leads to narcissism. Instead, the data suggest that narcissistic self-regard increases the frequency of Facebook use. Such findings are interpreted in light of the self-expressive opportunities that Facebook provides, and future research directions involving more recently developed social networking sites are proposed.