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The Relationship Between Narcissism and Friendship Qualities in Adolescents: Gender as a Moderator

Sex Roles volume 67, pages 452–462 (2012)Cite this article

Abstract

The present study explored the gender characteristics of narcissism as well as its relationship with friendship quality dimensions (i.e., trust & support, validation, and disclosure & communication) among 485 (197 boys and 288 girls) junior high and high school adolescents in a Southwest province in China. Significant gender differences were found, such that boys were more narcissistic than girls,while girls reported higher levels of friendship qualities, including validation and disclosure & communication. To examine gender moderations in the relationships between narcissism and friendship quality dimensions, multiple-group (by boys and girls) structural equation modeling were conducted. The results revealed the significant gender moderations in the associations between narcissism and friendship quality dimensions, while controlling for adolescent grade level. Specifically, narcissism significantly and positively related to the three aspects of friendship qualities (i.e., trust & support, validation, and disclosure & communication) among boys, but was not related to friendship quality among girls. Discussions are provided for an understanding of the current findings in the Chinese cultural context.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities from China.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Sun Yat-sen University, No. 135 Xin Gang Xi Rd., Guangzhou, 510275, Peoples Republic of China

    Hui Zhou

  2. Department of Psychology, DePaul University, Chicago, IL, 60614, USA

    Yan Li

  3. Faculty of Education, Beijing Normal University Zhuhai Campus, Zhuhai, 519087, Peoples Republic of China

    Bao Zhang

  4. Institute of Elementary Education, Chuxiong Normal University, Chuxiong City, 675000, China

    Mou Zeng

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  1. Hui Zhou
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  2. Yan Li
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  3. Bao Zhang
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  4. Mou Zeng
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Correspondence to Hui Zhou.

Appendices

Appendix I

Table 4 Narcissism personality inventory for Chinese and English translation
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Appendix II

Table 5 Friendship quality questionnaire in Chinese and English
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Zhou, H., Li, Y., Zhang, B. et al. The Relationship Between Narcissism and Friendship Qualities in Adolescents: Gender as a Moderator. Sex Roles 67, 452–462 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-012-0169-8

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Keywords

  • Narcissism
  • Friendship quality
  • Gender difference
  • Adolescents