Relation between narcissism and meaning in life: the role of conspicuous consumption

Both overt and covert narcissism are positively correlated with conspicuous consumption, which is considered to have the function of satisfying narcissists' dignity needs through showing their status. However, the two types of narcissism are related to different mental health outcomes, and the possible role of conspicuous consumption in these relations has not been explored in depth. Meanwhile, researchers have not reached a consensus on the relation between conspicuous consumption and mental health. The present study recruited a sample of 480 college students to explore the above problems. The correlation analysis showed that both types of narcissism were positively correlated with conspicuous consumption and external value. Overt narcissism was positively correlated with meaning in life, whereas covert narcissism showed the contrary. Conspicuous consumption was negatively correlated with meaning in life but positively correlated with external value. The mediating analysis revealed that neither type of narcissism could help individuals obtain meaning in life through conspicuous consumption directly; however, covert narcissism could help obtain external value through conspicuous consumption for securing meaning in life, whereas overt narcissism could not. The differences between the two types of narcissism and their relation with conspicuous consumption and meaning in life are discussed.