THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE TYPES OF NARCISSISM AND PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING: THE ROLES OF EMOTIONS AND DIFFICULTIES IN EMOTION REGULATION A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES OF MIDDLE EAST TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY BY İREM AKINCI IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF SCIENCE IN THE DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHOLOGY AUGUST 2015 Approval of the Graduate School of Social Sciences Prof. Dr. Meliha Altunışık Director I certify that this thesis satisfies all the requirements as a thesis for the degree of Master of Science. Prof. Dr. Tülin Gençöz Head of Department This is to certify that we have read this thesis and that in our opinion it is fully adequate, in scope and quality, as a thesis for the degree of Master of Science. Prof. Dr. Tülin Gençöz Supervisor Examining Committee Members Prof. Dr.Bengi ÖNER-ÖZKAN (METU, PSY) Prof. Dr. Tülin GENÇÖZ (METU, PSY) Assoc. Prof. Dr. Banu YILMAZ (AU., PSY) I hereby declare that all information in this document has been obtained and presented in accordance with academic rules and ethical conduct. I also declare that, as required by these rules and conduct, I have fully cited and referenced all material and results that are not original to this work. Name, Last name: İrem AKINCI Signature : iii ABSTRACT THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE TYPES OF NARCISSISM AND PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING: THE ROLES OF EMOTIONS AND DIFFICULTIES IN EMOTION REGULATION Akıncı, İrem M.S., Department of Psychology Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Tülin Gençöz August 2015, 149 pages The aims of this study were (1) to examine the possible effects of age and gender on the subtypes of narcissism, emotions, emotion regulation difficulties, and psychological well-being; (2) to examine the variables associated with emotions, emotion regulation difficulties, and psychological well-being; and (3) to investigate the mediating role of emotions and emotion regulation difficulties between the subtypes of narcissism and psychological well-being. To achieve these aims, 559 participants aged 18 to 75 took part in this study. The results revealed that grandiose narcissism was positively associated with pride, impulsivity and strategies domains of difficulties in emotion regulation. Except pride and anger control, vulnerable narcissism was positively associated with emotions and emotion regulation difficulties. From emotions, shame and anger-in were found to be associated with the difficulties in controlling impulses and finding effective strategies while the feeling of pride was associated with the low levels of emotion regulation difficulties. iv Vulnerable narcissism was positively associated with psychopathological symptoms and negatively associated with satisfaction with life. Grandiose narcissism and pride were found to be positively associated with satisfaction with life. Finally, shame, anger, emotion regulation difficulties, and pride had mediator roles in the relationship between vulnerable narcissism and psychopathological symptoms. Anger, difficulties in emotion regulation, and pride also mediated the relationship between grandiose narcissism and psychopathological symptoms. Pride mediated the relationship between both narcissistic subtypes and satisfaction with life. Therefore, these emotions and emotion regulation difficulties seem to have an importance in the understanding of narcissistic subtypes and their relation to psychological health. Keywords: Narcissistic Subtypes, Emotions, Emotion Regulation Difficulties, Psychological Health v ÖZ NARSİSİZM TÜRLERİ VE PSİKOLOJİK İYİLİK HALİ ARASINDAKİ İLİŞKİ: DUYGULARIN VE DUYGU DÜZENLEME GÜÇLÜKLERİNİN ROLÜ Akıncı, İrem Yüksek Lisans, Psikoloji Bölümü Tez Yöneticisi: Prof. Dr. Tülin Gençöz Ağustos 2015, 149 pages Bu çalışma, (1) yaş ve cinsiyetin narsisizmin alt türleri, duygular, duygu düzenleme güçlükleri ve psikolojik iyilik hali üzerindeki olası etkilerini incelemeyi; (2) duygular, duygu düzenleme güçlükleri ve psikolojik iyilik hali ile ilişkili değişkenleri belirlemeyi ve (3) narsisizmin alt türleri ile psikolojik iyilik hali arasındaki ilişkide duyguların ve duygu düzeleme güçlüklerinin aracı rolünü araştırmayı amaçlamaktadır. Bu amaçla, çalışmaya yaşları 18 ve 75 arasında değişen 559 katılımcı katılmıştır. Araştırmanın bulguları, büyüklenmeci narsisizm ile gurur ve duygu düzenleme güçlüklerinden dürtüsellik ve stratejiler alanlarının alakalı olduğunu göstermiştir. Kırılgan narsisizm ise gurur ve öfke kontrolü dışındaki duygular ve duygu düzenleme güçlükleri ile pozitif yönde bir ilişki göstermiştir. Duygular içinden, utanç ve içe atılan öfkenin dürtüleri kontrol etmede ve etkili duygu düzenleme yöntemleri bulmada güçlüklerle alakalı olduğu gözlenmiştir. Gurur duygusu ise duygu düzenleme güçlükleri ile negatif yönde bir ilişki göstermiştir. vi Bunun yanı sıra, sonuçlar kırılgan narsisizmin psikopatolojik belirtiler ile pozitif, yaşam doyumu ile negatif yönde bir ilişki gösterdiğini ortaya çıkarmıştır. Büyüklenmeci narsisizmin ise yüksek yaşam doyumu ile alakalı olduğu bulunmuştur. Son olarak, utancın, öfkenin, gururun ve duygu düzenlemedeki güçlüklerin, kırılgan narsisizm ve psikopatolojik belirtiler arasındaki ilişkide aracı bir role sahip olduğu ortaya çıkarılmıştır. Öfke, gurur ve duygu düzenleme güçlükleri büyüklenmeci narsisizm ile psikopatolojik belirtiler arasındaki ilişkide de aracı bir rol oynamıştır. Gurur duygusu ayrıca hem kırılgan hem büyüklenmeci narsisizmin yaşam doyumu ile olan ilişkisinde aracı bir rol oynamıştır. Sonuç olarak, bu duyguların ve duygu düzenleme güçlüklerinin narsistik alt türleri ve onların psikolojik sağlık ile olan ilişkisini anlamakta önemli bir yere sahip olduğu görülmektedir. Anahtar Kelimeler: Narsistik Alt Türler, Duygular, Duygu Düzenleme Güçlükleri, Psikolojik Sağlık vii To My Dear Family viii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS At first, I would like to sincerely thank my thesis supervisor, Prof. Dr. Tülin Gençöz for her trust on me, her valuable support, and encouragement throughout this stressful process. Thanks to her, I have learned that nothing is unsolvable. I would also thank to the members of examining committee, Prof. Dr. Bengi Öner-Özkan and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Banu Yılmaz for attending to the committee and for their constructive feedback and valuable comments. I am also grateful to my parents, Serpil and Hasan, for their unconditional support in every moment of this process. I could not express my gratitude to my mother with words. I would like to thank her for always standing by me, for her understanding and listening, and every kind of support she gave to me. I am thankful for being her daughter. I also would like to express my special thanks to my father and all of my friends, especially Bensu, Ceren, Nergis, and Merve for their help in data collection process. Moreover, I owe thanks to the people who took part in this study. I would also like to express my gratefulness to Elif Ünal for her guidance, understanding, and support during this process. Lastly, I would like to thank my thesis group, Cansu, Onur, and Selen for their social support which helped me better cope with the difficulties of this process. This thesis was supported by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TÜBİTAK). ix TABLE OF CONTENTS PLAGIARISM...........................................................................................................iii ABSTRACT .............................................................................................................. iv ÖZ .............................................................................................................................. vi DEDICATION ........................................................................................................ viii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ...................................................................................... ix TABLE OF CONTENTS ........................................................................................... x LIST OF TABLES ................................................................................................. xiv LIST OF FIGURES ................................................................................................ xvi CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................ 1 1.1. The Conceptualization of Narcissism ...................................................... 2 1.1.2. The Subtypes of Narcissism ........................................................... 6 1.2. Narcissism and Psychological Well-Being ............................................. 9 1.2.1. Subtypes of Narcissism and Psychopathological Symptoms ......... 9 1.2.2. Subtypes of Narcissism and Subjective Well-Being .................... 12 1.3 Emotions ................................................................................................. 12 1.3.1. Self-Conscious Emotions and Psychological Well-Being ........... 13 1.3.2. Anger and Psychological Well-Being .......................................... 15 1.4. Difficulties in Emotion Regulation and Psychological Well-Being ..... 17 1.5. The Roles of Emotions and Difficulties in Emotion Regulation in the Relationship Between Narcissism and Psychological Well-Being ........ 18 1.6. The Aims of the Study .......................................................................... 21 2. METHOD ....................................................................................................... 24 2.1. Participants ...........................................................................................