Number of Facebook friends linked to narcissism, says study

AP Photo/Adrian Wyld

(CBS News) A recent study finds a new link between one's abundance of Facebook friends and narcissism.

The study titled "Narcissism on Facebook: Self-promotional and anti-social behavior" by Christopher J. Carpenter was published in the journal Personality and Individual Differences. The purpose of the research was to identify "socially disruptive" personality types on Facebook.

Carpenter surveyed 294 people, ages 18 to 65, who were given a series of questionnaires regarding their use of Facebook.

They were also asked questions to assess Narcissistic Personality Inventory (NPI). More specifically, two NPI subscales - Grandiose Exhibitionism (GE) and Entitlement/Exploitativeness (EE), as defined by a 2010 study called "What Does the Narcissistic Personality Inventory Really Measure?" published in the journal Assessment.

The study theorizes that people with high levels of GE tend to have a high friend count on Facebook because their drive for attention motivates them to seek a wider audience.

The same group is more likely to accept friend requests from strangers, post frequent status updates, upload photos and change their profile picture as a means to gain attention. Meanwhile, those with high levels of EE were predicted to feel entitled to attention without effort or reciprocity.

A sample of questions asked in the study:

"How often do you post status updates to Facebook?"
"How often do you update your profile information on Facebook?"
"How often do you accept a friend request from a total stranger on Facebook (assuming they do not appear to be a fake profile)?"

For the most part, the research supported the hypothesis that people with more Facebook friends tended to have narcissists tendencies.

One caveat of the study is that it's not fully representative. Nearly three fourths of the participants were college students.

The March 2012 issue of Personality and Individual Differences can be ordered online.

[Dr Newel]

Narcissism has been removed from the DSM Guide -it is no longer an issue or mental disorder. If everyone is using facebook, then there is no dissorder then is there. They seem to be saying that logging in to facebook is a disorder.

[Kabsop]

Facebook is ruining world values and relationships. I am a 21 year old college student and gave it away about a year ago, and very happy for it. It is a breeding ground for narcissism. Why do these people feel the need to update their every more and seek constant validation from others? It is unnatural, fake and something I do not want to be apart of. I worry for the future of this world, I do not want to grow up with these sorts of people.

My social life has not suffered one bit since leaving. I have a large circle of friends and we all keep in touch via phone/email and regular meetups in the real world - not in the cyber space.

[inmaryland1]

I've aso found the truly lonely inhabit a huge portion of facebook. Now, the lonely are paired with the narcissists. Maybe it'll work.

[longtree-2009]

fb has approximately 750,000,000 users from all over the world. it has made zuckerberg a billionaire to the tune of 17.5 billion and he is still climbing the money tree. the man is about 28 y/o, born in '84. for whatever reason, people like fb and use it thus making zuckerberg an extremely wealthy man.

[inmaryland1]

Wow. Really? I didn't know that. I'm sure nobody else did, either.

[DD925]

Are you sure about that ? "just had to sign up to reply"

[BOB-C]

What else would you expect? Du-uh!

[FormerUSMCSergeant]

Number of Facebook friends linked to narcissism
---
More like arrested in adolescence.....

[verrz]

Um, could it be a bit narcissistic of researchers to try and put psychological handles on people and so in a sense dismiss them as human beings while at the same time attempting to elevate their own status?

[skitbit]

mmmmmm no - could it be you doth protest too much? yessssss.

[DD925]

It's a theory... A good one.

[Transatlantique]

I concluded that a while ago, and is why I left facebook. I began to see my own narcissistic trend, and my disappointment when people wouldn't respond to my posts. Facebook really is just a forum for narcissism and self aggrandisement. However, the person who founded it could be one of the most narcissistic of all. Its a real waste of time.

[rondivoo]

Good comment. Everybody has the potential to expand the narcissistic part of themselves. Most chat places on the Internet show that narcissism is prevalent.

[inmaryland1]

I agree. Recently, before I deleted nearly everyone, I posted that facebook is really only for far away people you'd like to communicate with but can't call. Hopefully this eased painful feelings of being deleted. Facebook should only be a last ditch form of communication.