A new study out of the US has revealed which TV shows narcissistic people (those with an inflated opinion of themselves) prefer to watch, and it’s all bad news if you like reality telly shows!
The study, published on the psychology website PSYBLOG, looked at the TV viewing habits of 565 men and women to try and determine if narcissists preferred a particular show over another.
It found that reality TV show watches tended to have more narcissistic traits, although it didn’t identity any particular kinds of reality programs. It deduced that people who watch reality TV are more vain than other TV watchers.
However, it was better news for news and a current affair viewers who were least likely to be up themselves.
According to the study narcissists also enjoy watching sports, thrillers and political talk shows.
The study’s authors deduced: “Some people with narcissistic tendencies are seeking out media characters similar to themselves, whereas others who watch reality TV see narcissism as normalised behaviour and begin acting more narcissistic.
“Interestingly, preference for news was negatively related to narcissism. One possible explanation for this finding is that individuals who pay attention to the news are also more civically engaged and less individualistic,” the report noted.
It also found that younger people – namely college students – were becoming more and more narcissistic. Although it didn’t exactly explain why.
The authors concluded: “Many of the messages to which we are exposed on the TV today feature rampant self-interest, disregard of others’ well-being, and a focus on the individual above all else, which are all components of narcissism. Our research suggests that those messages may in turn be cultivating narcissism in society.”
