The people who put their names on the ballot may be more narcissistic than the voters choosing between them. A nationally representative US study found that self-described narcissists are more likely not just to dream of political office, but to actually run.
The short communication, by Tuba Sendinc and Peter K. Hatemi, appeared in Electoral Studies in the December 2023 issue (volume 86).
One blunt question about narcissism
The researchers measured narcissism with the Single Item Narcissism Scale, known as SINS, which simply asks respondents whether they are a narcissist. They paired that with questions about political ambition in a large, nationally representative sample of Americans.
Earlier research had shown that people who would like to run for office, but never do, score higher in grandiose narcissism. That left open whether narcissism also shapes the smaller group who take the step of becoming candidates.
From ambition to the ballot
Narcissistic individuals showed greater expressive political ambition, the authors report. They were more likely than others to be interested in political office and, crucially, more likely to have actually run for it.
The authors describe this as novel evidence that the broader pool of people who run for office is higher in narcissism. The measure relies on people labelling themselves, so it counts those willing to say openly that they are narcissists.
The title asks whether voters only have narcissists to choose from. The data say not only, but the pool of people who step forward is tilted toward the trait.
Study Details:
- Title: Do we only have narcissists to choose from?
- Authors: Tuba Sendinc, Peter K. Hatemi
- Journal: Electoral Studies
- Publication Date: December 2023
- DOI: 10.1016/j.electstud.2023.102672