How narcissistic is the younger generation? Very, is the common assumption. Yet recent research indicates otherwise. Answer the following questions to find out why.
On a scale of 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree), rate the following three statements:
1. I am a natural leader
2. I am a very special person
3. I am entitled to the best of everything
Finally, were you born in the
(a) 1970s or earlier
(b) 1980s
(c) 1990s or later
The average score on Questions 1-3 is around 2, so if you scored much higher or lower, you are more or less narcissistic than average.
What we are particularly interested in here, though, is generational differences in narcissism. In fact, despite all the headlines we see today about the selfie generation, a recent study found that levels of narcissistic leadership, vanity and entitlement (as measured by questions 1 to 3) have actually been decreasing – at least among American University students – since the 1970s.
But why? One possibility is that decreases in narcissism may be linked to the recent economic slump and/or the generational divide. Presumably it is rather difficult to maintain a superiority complex when you are in a poorly paid job and considerably worse off than your parents.
Order Are You Smarter Than a Chimpanzee? by Ben Ambridge (Profile Books, £12.99) for £11.04 at bookshop.theguardian.com
