Do vulnerable narcissists profit more from Facebook use than grandiose narcissists? An examination of narcissistic Facebook use in the light of self-regulation and social comparison theory

Abstract

This work examines the assumption that grandiose and vulnerable narcissism, although positively correlated, have different consequences for frequency and time expenditure of Facebook use and, additionally, the importance of social comparisons for both constructs. Participants completed measures of Facebook use, grandiose narcissism, vulnerable narcissism, social comparison orientation, and self-esteem. Four studies (Ns=384, 175, 289, and 520) provided evidence that vulnerable narcissism, but not grandiose narcissism, was linked to Facebook use and to social comparison orientation if partial correlations between narcissism and Facebook use were employed controlling for core narcissism. Further analyses indicated that social comparison orientation operated as a mediator between vulnerable narcissism and Facebook use. Implications for understanding the distinction between grandiose and vulnerable narcissism in the prediction of Facebook use and social comparison orientation are discussed in the light of self-regulatory theory: Vulnerable narcissists seem to use Facebook as means to attain narcissistic goals (e.g., compare themselves with important others) whereas grandiose narcissists seem to utilize different strategies in order to attain self-regulatory goals.