Patterns of Parental Warmth, Attachment, and Narcissism in Young Women in United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom

Abstract

Few studies have looked at the relationship between parenting styles and narcissistic traits across cultures. We investigated parental influences and attachment in the development of narcissistic traits in two female student samples from the United Kingdom (n = 78) and the United Arab Emirates (n = 70). The UAE students scored significantly higher than the UK students on all of the three Narcissistic Personality Inventory subscales. Higher scores on the Entitlement/Exploitativeness facet was best explained by culture and low paternal care. Culture was a significant moderator between Grandiose Exhibitionism and preoccupied attachment, and Leadership Authority and secure attachment. Our results highlight the importance of investigating cross-cultural parenting influences in narcissism, as narcissism is likely to be affected by cultural differences in parenting practices.