Attention Young People: This Narcissism Study Is All About You

No group is “universally” anything. All stereotypes are generalizations...not universal descriptors. But just ask any millennial at Starbucks—they will tell you they DESERVE that $5 drink! ; )

So many people are self-absorbed in the current culture. People die taking moronic selfies in dangerous situations. Children believe they are stars and post endless videos of themselves doing mundane things like putting on makeup and picking out clothes to wear. Adults think that pictures of their food is interesting and important. It's a shame that these are the values being given affirmation by society. It's sad and it's nauseating. Is it happening now because young people are more narcissistic or because the technology now makes it easier to express? The tech probably enables the behavior which has resulted in more of it.

Surely both extremes exist. Unfortunately the vapid self-absorbed social media influencer types get all the attention, and the larger number of responsible young adults working bottom rung jobs to pay their expenses while going to school at a Community College or just trying to help out get the least. I place the blame on advertisers for that, they endlessly portray and promote the former and ignore the later. Unfortunately their promotion of off-kilter behaviors has an expiration date, once the kids grow up a little they realize they have been conned and adjust their actions like previous generations.

A surprising number of commenters here seem to have the impression that this article supports the assertion that young people today are more narcissistic than previous generations. If anything, it suggests the very opposite. The jury might be out on narcissism among youth, but if we can use this comment section as a sample there does seem to be an issue with reading comprehension among the elderly.

Never has there been a more narcissistic and entitled generation as the Boomers. Never has a generation squandered and sold out its gifts as the Boomers have. Look at the man in the White House- a shameless example of the Boomer ethos- he just doesn't hide it like some others do. The millenials have their own issues- fascistic tendencies, for example- however, their problem is perhaps too acute an awareness of other. God save us all! Or not. In the end, the human race's greed and narcissism have been expressed to perfection by the Baby Boomers.

No one is as self-absorbed, narcissistic, and generally unwilling to consider any perspective other than their own than my baby-boomer parents, yet they happily deploy these labels against anyone who refuses to drink THEIR kool-aid. Oh, the irony. It's infuriating.

Give me break... it’s the baby boomers that wins this title. So much given to them by the Greatest Generation... squandered. Now they watch Fox News and whine about millennials. Awful.

As a parent whose children have been abused by a narcissistic parent (the ex) and are Alienated from me and his Flying Monkeys, and as such are displaying "unusual levels" of narcissism for their ages... I don't find my children (or their peers) to be particularly narcissistic. Maybe this was a measure me, who raised them. It was not until the ex got ahold of their manipulate-able minds that they started doing horrifying things. It was relatively easy for him to lead them into evil. Even as they repudiate me and call another woman their mother, they still remain grounded in the ideals I taught them... kind to animals, doing volunteer work, raising money for a disabled child's special shoes... they are still the loving girls I raised them to be. They just direct their goodness in other directions and their hatred towards me. I didn't plan to know this much about Cluster B disorders in my late 40s. I didn't intend to be reading every book I could get my hands on and then delving into scientific studies. It's been a personal tragedy, writ small, as the political tragedy of the nation is writ large. I do know this from personal experience: Narcissists and other Cluster B personalities do a LOT of damage where they exist. But they do NOT make up a large portion of the population. It is said, "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good [people] to do nothing." --Edmund Burke So DO something. Do not be complacent. Teach your children to DO good and BE good.

I am not sure about the self-absorption and narcissism, but the screen-lives people seem to be living is getting weird fast. They seem distant and glum, double-chinned and oh so serious and smart. They say “what?” a lot like they’re having trouble understanding basic sentences. They cause accidents and injuries trying to drive while texting. The natural world is collapsing and a big die-off is coming so app people are not that big a deal. There’s been a big die-off already, but mostly not humans. What?

The debate over the role of selfies as a measure of narcissism is interesting, but here’s a question: I wonder if they’d be taking all those selfies if they were in the middle of landing on Omaha Beach?? Or, marching through machine gun fire in Belleau Wood. Or marching in formation through artillery fire at Gettysburg. Or, helplessly watching relatives and friends die in the great flu epidemic of ‘17 and ‘18. I believe that selfies and narcissism have become prominent as other, rather more serious concerns have receded. It’s a variation of an old, but true refrain: millennials have it easy.

Things have really changed in my lifetime. I walked past a store today and there was a small chalkboard in the window that read, "Help wanted - we have wi-fi". I am not making this up.

White baby boomers are the real narcissists. The white baby boomers inherited an economy and set of social supports built for their flourishing, then destroyed those benefits and supports for their children. And yes, then they turn around and blame their kids for the ills of the world. Talk about self-absorbed and incapable of empathy. No wonder young people are so anxious. No wonder they like AOC.

Whenever I observe the sight of narcissistic youth today I just think of Trump's policies (and his gang of moronic fascist criminals) and smile. Today's youth will reap the many benefits of of this including meager wages, no health care, no retirement, and no freedom. They get the government and life that they deserve.

I can't help but wonder what the thought process is of people who take incessant selfies. In their mind's eye do they somehow think that in the future they will just be sitting around looking at themselves? What kind of life is that?

The pervasive deleterious trend of narcissism and the perversion of time -validated culture of human behaviour will provide the bedrock of significant deviation from the healthy constraints of the past which have energised mankind through searing discrepancies.Indubitably, narcissism as an anchoring approach of scientific sophistication of human civilisation could verily drain into the cesspool of despicable negativism.After all, true enunciation of self esteem cannot be exuded in a pampering self evaluation of overrating. The mischief herein is contributed by an unseemly emphasis about the worth of an individual through the leaky sieve of indulgent self estimate which is at the core of narcissism.The spreading trend is nearing contagious proportions so much so the need for consultation or seeking second opinion is sacrificed. at the altar of an invincible ego.While the generation in prospect has every raison d’être to exult over their worth,growth and achievements in bettering their forefathers,their sense of gratification snowballing at that level into narcissistic resonance will only lead to an unwanted smugness and stagnation of development.Anyway,the induction of narcissism among the youth will only be anathema to human society.

"Nothing is so insufferable to man as to be completely at rest, without passions, without business, without diversion. . . . He then feels his nothingness, his forlornness, his insufficiency, his dependence, his weakness, his emptiness. There will immediately arise from the depth of his heart weariness, gloom, sadness, fretfulness, vexation, despair. " --Blaise Pascal, Pensées (published 1670).

Well, In 1967 at 19 I was quite self-absorbed. If anyone aimed a camera at me I would turn away because I thought I was ugly. Thrown out upon a world I had no way of understanding, I was suspicious of all adults. I felt they were judging me and that I was not good enough in their estimation. So I had to figure out how to hide myself in plain sight so I could earn a minimum wage living. I saw people with cars and nice clothes, comfortable dwellings and nice furniture and air conditioning. I was hungry and on the outside looking in like a hobo staring into the window of a restaurant with nose pressed against the glass watching happy diners. I had dreams that required more money than I could earn. I was lost. I feel for today's young people as they lose themselves in selfies, F'book and online fanzines. The other day I read in these pages the story of a 19 year old man with a business and a community of likers online who has been crushed by a former friend in a silly online debacle. He's 19, ie, still a child. Give him a break.

I think that much of this labeling and judgment is due to social media. Yes, people that post about themselves multiple times a day do seem to have narcissistic tendencies, but social media is not an accurate portrayal of a generation at large. I think this is a bit like politics, if you get your idea of the world from social media you may deduct that we are a bunch of tribal savages on the brink of a civil war, but that's not really true once you get off the internet. Also, every generation has an uncontrollable urge to prove they are better than those before and after them, so judging and labeling it is!

We no longer say ‘millennia’? To this genXer ‘millenniums’ sounds like nails on a chalkboard.

Generational groups have been assembled based mainly on age. That roughly worked well up to the turn of the century. Each generational group is influenced by environmental factors occurring during the time they reach adulthood. For most of us that came of age between the 1960 and 2000 the media world was dominated by radio, television and land line phones. The current media landscape was a land of science fiction prior to the start up of the internet. If we of the oldsters had had the current media and environmental landscapes to deal with as youths we would have probably experienced similar trajectories in our efforts of discovery.

I actually think that phone addiction and obsession with likes is a new "culture" . They grew up with it and had parents that couldn't put the phone down. Why go out with friends when you can just chat. No need to contact someone because you just posted it on insta. I actually cut a millenial friend off because we would go out and she would chat with people or check and see if someone sent her a message. I figure why waste time if we are just going to sit in silence. I could be doing something else. She was a hard worker (programming) that wanted a promotion after a year. She fit the millenial stereotype to a T. Then I remembered when I had my first job I also wanted a promo after I year (I'm an Xer). I worked full time then did part time sales for the same department so I think for the most part it is normal to want to get promoted or get more money. Then life hits you and you realize how things work. I am sure it will be the same for them although they will still be glued to the phone.

It would be interesting to study if there is a correlation between narcissism, particularly the malignant kind, and social media usage. I can think of one study subject in particular although he doesn't really fit the millennial demographic.

What’s forgotten here is that the tasks of young adulthood typically revolve around the self. It’s appropriate to be preoccupied with yourself as you learn who you are, try to find your place in the world, study and/or begin a career, and look for a mate or sexual partners. You’re looking inward, not outward. The needs of others typically feel distant at this time. It seems reasonable that most young people would score higher in tests for borderline personality disorders. A decade later or so later, many of these concerns are often less pressing or somewhat resolved. Young people may even be parents by then, a role that demands empathy to be done well. Even if not, it’s easier to care for others when your own life is more settled and as the sexual needs begin to subside. Someone could actually test this hypothesis if they had the inclination.

As an educator I deal with 14-18 year olds daily. What makes them different is the belief that their desires supersede all other requirements. They want to text, talk, view media (social or otherwise) etc. whenever they choose without regard to what is going on around them. Emergencies, the presence of others, obligations are all secondary to the need to check your phone, send a text, respond to a post, look something up....and so on. "Phone addiction" and the need to collect likes is what most of my colleagues see in their students that is concerning. The lack of consideration for others, poor manners, me first attitude, and a lack of respect for people and institutions that older generations revere make them appear more narcissistic than past generations. The complaining, work avoidance, and lack of responsibility that is supported by their parents is more worrying than their apparent self-involved behavior. The connection between effort and reward is also lacking in many young people. The future will belong to those who can see this connection, avoid phone addiction, and have sufficient drive to see things through even when the going gets tough.

People misread the constant taking and posting of pictures to social media by this generation as narcissism. It really reveals a deep seated insecurity about their relevance and place in the world and a need for connection and validation. Maybe we should work on providing those things to the next generation rather than applying pejorative labels.

Hmm... This is news? Opps, gotta go. My smart phone is glowing red hot with all my online friends, pod casts and music needing my immediate attention, and thereby validating my self important aloofness. Good thing I have ear buds because they enable the attitude to pose arrogant indifference whenever I need to. No annoying interactions with real people I’m forced to temporarily share space with in public places for me! Fortunately, I have mastered to not only ignore conventions of common courtesy aroun others, but to actually forget them most of the time! Remember all of you: I know it’s all about ME!!

That's something if they are aware of their self-centeredness and self-importance. Being aware of it is the first step to outgrowing it. I actually have faith that this generation may be the redemptive force for our country. But as far as the age group that is most narcissistic, I think the trophy has to go to the post-WW II (early Baby Boomers - my anecdotal experience is that those born in 1964 don't share experiences/values to those born in '46) group. Yes, they get great credit for addressing many of the social and civil injustices, but they were also in a position to do so with greater economic freedom (the previous Greatest Generation took the brunt with the Depression and WW II) The "sex, drugs, rock and roll" was the awakening of the "me first" attitude that gained momentum transforming from happy-go-lucky hippy-ism to the narcissism of the drive for the almighty dollar and financial self-glory. Now we see the narcissism in the expression of anger and rage of this generation, which Martha Nussbaum states,"...drives out all thoughts of others." Is it any surprise that so many of our most vile politicians are from that era? (Disclosure: I am a BBer)

I think that being able to take a barrage of self-photos at any given time is the main problem. Perhaps my generation would be just as narcissistic if we had had that ability. But I hope not. It’s scary. They’re falling off cliffs, getting hit by cars, etc. all because they can’t stop taking photos of themselves. Take them to a museum and rather than looking at the the item on display or, at the least, taking a picture of IT...they’re taking photos of themselves. I don’t know how things will ever improve.

Quite possibly the most ironic statement I've read in this paper in ages: “There’s this huge debate in psychology and there has been for years,” he said. “But no one had taken the time just to basically say, ‘Well, how do these kids feel about that?’”

The baby boomer generation should win the prize for narcissism and selfishness. Trump is the ultimate archetype of it and it’s little surprise that the boomer demographic gave him more votes than any other.

Right--youngins are narcissistic. Hmmm-Innocent from birth-born into a Country that says from Day1 they are consumers only to be deluged with every product imaginable for sell. Who set that up. Not the youngins.

As aspect of narcissism is its absolute incomprehension of privacy. Sitting (fortunately) reading on a crowded, reasonably quiet subway train, everyone poring over their phones, the young man beside me started watching, listening to, a screaming video. I turned toward him, saw his meticulously braided hair, the cross tattooed on the side of his face. He stiffened righteously, didn't change a thing. Of course I could have said something -- at times, have -- but that generally it just gets ugly with somebody telling me to **** myself. Instead, I got out my phone, turned toward him and started filming him and his video (thinking he may budge, he may relate, he may be offended...he could react, etc.) but quickly realized I was doing exactly what he most yearned for. I was filming HIM.

This study was conducted exclusively on colllege students. How could that possibly comprise a representative sample when the question is so clearly affected by cultural backgrounds? There is no particular reason that these findings ought to apply to low income populations within America who are generally denied access to higher education and therefore not represented in the sample.

The digital age fuels narcissism in more ways than one. Raised with digital media skills that far exceed those of their elders leads many young people to equate that ability with intelligence. Those of us who have supervised young workers routinely witness this. A lot of pain and disappointment awaits them.

Sorry, but the boomers are the most narcissistic generation there is. Talk to a Gen Xer raised by one. It’s fine - your generation of focusing on your own self-fulfillment and never getting old left us with a lot of independence and determination to make sure we delayed marriage, worked hard but not too hard, and didn’t get divorced for our kids not to have to go through what we did. I talk to young Millenials today, and I am impressed by their stability and commitment to making their families, friends and the earth a better place (less impressed by their lack of independence - but hey, you can’t have it all, and interdependence is not so bad). Kids today are enough to make this cynical Xer highly optimistic. Even if they like to take a few selfies.