"Tragic man" and "tragic woman": gender differences in narcissistic styles

The narcissistic personality style is assumed to be highly prevalent in contemporary society, but little epidemiologic attention has been directed to its relative occurrence among different segments of the population. This study addresses gender differences in the manifestation of narcissistic personality traits and their differential association with low self-esteem and dysphoric mood. A Narcissistic Traits Scale was developed and administered along with measures of self-esteem and depressive symptomatology to a population of medical students. The data show no sex differences in overall narcissistic styles but demonstrate sex differences in the prevalence of given traits and in their differential association with low self-esteem and dysphoric mood. The clinical and research implications of these findings are discussed, along with suggestions for future research utilizing more representative community samples.