Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 5, 2026

Assessing the Coherence of Parents' Short Narratives Regarding their Child Using the Five-Minute Speech Sample Procedure
Published on: September 19, 2019
Self-functioning and perceived parenting: relations of parental empathy and love inconsistency with narcissism,
Nevelyn N Trumpeter1, P J Watson, Brian J O'Leary
1The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, 37403, USA.
Abstract:
In Heinz Kohut's (1977, 1984) theory of the psychology of the self, good parenting provides a child with optimal frustration and just the right amount of loving empathic concern. In the present study, the authors examined the relations of perceived parental empathy and love inconsistency with measures of narcissism, self-esteem, and depression. In a sample of university undergraduates (N=232; 78 men, 153 women, and 1 nonresponder), perceived parental empathy predicted more adaptive self-functioning, whereas parental love inconsistency was related to psychological maladjustment. These results support the theoretical assumption that perceived parental empathy is associated with healthy self-development.
Related Concept Videos
Sources of Self-Esteem I: Family Experience
Self-Evaluation: Self-Enhancement and Self-Verification
Personality Disorders: Narcissistic and Avoidant
Characteristics of Narcissistic Personality Disorder
Narcissistic individuals exhibit an inflated sense of self-importance and an excessive need for admiration. They are often...
Self-Discrepancy and Its Effects
Relationship with Parents: Attachment
Self-Discrepancy Theory

