Narcissism and Risky Economic Behavior

The purpose of this thesis is to determine whether different types of narcissistic behavior are associated with different kinds of economic risk behavior. The thesis examines five published articles to establish whether the sub-classifications of narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) are significantly linked to economic risk behavior, broadly defined. The primary hypothesis states that different classifications of narcissistic behavior will be associated with different kinds of economic risk behavior. The paper finds, broadly, that different kinds of narcissistic behavior classifications are indeed associated with different kinds of economic risk behavior. Specifically, grandiose narcissism (GN) is associated with higher rates of risky gambling behavior; however, manifestations of vulnerable narcissism (VN) appear to play an integral role in the relationship. The paper also finds that both GN and VN are associated with higher rates of oniomania where mediating roles of impulsivity, materialism, and emptiness are present. The thesis concludes that addressing the issue of narcissism cannot be viewed through the lens of any unilateral perspective.