Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

The Best-Seller as an Indicator of Societal Narcissism

Society volume 53, pages 414–421 (2016)Cite this article

Abstract

Narcissism has become inculcated in many aspects of modern society. It can be found in the growing popularity of social media which enable users to post “selfies;” in the competitive race for fame, beauty and extravagant lifestyles; and in the public’s fascination with power-hungry and greedy politicians and businesspeople featured on television and in the movies. Narcissism thrives when members of society admire, flatter and promote individuals with grandiose ideas and fantastical dreams. This paper extends the research of Mullins and Kopelman (The Public Opinion Quarterly, 48: 720–730,1984), which studied whether or not excessive concern with the self is on the rise, using bestsellers as an unobtrusive indicator of societal narcissism for the period, 1950–1979. Carrying this research forward for another thirty years, it was found over a 60-year period that the proportion of narcissistic-related bestsellers increased approximately 100 % for hardcovers (from 19 % to 35 %); and also over a 19-year period for Amazon sales (from 15 % to 35 %).

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution.

Access options

Buy single article

Instant access to the full article PDF.

USD 39.95

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Further Reading

  • Aslanbay, Y., & Varnali, K. 2014. A future of “happiness”; can markets be co-evolved? Society, 51, 665–669.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Balch, S. H. 2014. On the fragility of the western achievement. Society, 51, 8–21.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Balog, K. 2004. Bigger books measure up on best-sellers lists. USA Today: D1, September 30.

  • Berns, G. S., Blaine, K., Prietula, M. J., & Pye, B. E. 2013. Short- and long-term effects of a novel on connectivity in the brain. Brain Connectivity, 3(6), 590–600.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Best-seller lists tell the tale of a home-loving nation. 1998. The Herald: 2, December 28.

  • Biggart, N. W. 1983. Rationality, meaning, and self-management: success manuals, 1950-1980. Social Problems, 30(3), 298–311.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brooks, W., & McNair, J. C. 2009. But this story of mine is not unique:’ A review of research on African American children’s literature. Review of Educational Research, 79(1), 125–162.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carr, D. 2015. Competing for attention in a sea of selfies. New York Times: B1, January 5.

  • Carter, JE. 1979. Crisis of confidence,” July 15. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/primary-resources/carter-crisis/

  • Clark, C. 2013. A novel look at how stories may change the brain. eScienceCommons, December 22. http://news.emory.edu/stories/2013/12/esc_novels_change_brain/campus.html

  • Corse, S. M. 1995. Nations and novels: cultural politics and literary use. Social Forces, 73(4), 1279–1308.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DeWall, C. N., Pond, R. S., Campbell, W. K., & Twenge, J. M. 2011. Tuning in to psychological change: linguistic markers of psychological traits and emotions over time in popular US song lyrics. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 5(3), 200–207.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Easterlin, R. A., & Crimmins, E. M. 1991. Private materialism, personal self-fulfillment, family life, and public interest: the nature, effects, and causes of recent changes in the values of American youth. The Public Opinion Quarterly, 55, 499–533.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gamsa, M. 2011. Cultural translation and the transnational circulation of books. Journal of World History, 22 (3): 553–575. https://uhpjournals.wordpress.com/2011/09/09/journal-of-world-history-vol-22-no-3-2011/

  • Gentleman, A. 1999. Feng shui makes publishers feel good; books on the pursuit of health and happiness through interior design are proving best sellers. The Guardian: 8, April 24.

  • Greblo, Z., & Bratko, D. 2014. Parents’ perfectionism and its relation to child rearing behaviors. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 55(2), 180–185.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Grijalva, E., & Harms, P. D. 2014. Narcissism: an integrative synthesis and dominance complementary model. The Academy of Management Perspectives, 28(2), 108–127.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hackett, A. P., & Burke, J. H. 1977. 80 Years of Best Sellers: 1895–1975. NY:RR Bowker.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hollander, P. 2010. Why the celebrity cult? Society, 47, 388–391.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kaufman, G. F., & Libby, L. K. 2012. Changing beliefs and behavior through experience-taking. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 103(1), 1–19.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kilminster, R. 2008. Narcissism or informalization? Christopher Lasch, Norbert Elias and social diagnosis. Theory, Culture & Society, 25(3), 131–151.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • King-Cohen, SE. 2014. Does narcissism undermine faith? Newsday: B12, October 18.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kloer, P. 2004. Words to live by; with people hungry for answers, religious books dominate best-seller lists as never before. The Atlanta Journal – Constitution: C1, May 24.

  • Korda, M. 2001. Making the List: A Cultural History of the American Bestseller, 1900–1999. Barnes and Noble Books.

  • Lasch, C. 1979. The Culture of Narcissism: American Life in an Age of Diminishing Expectations. NY:WW Norton & Company.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lawler, P. A. 2010. Celebrity studies today. Society, 47, 419–423.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marsden, M. T. 1978. The popular western novel as a cultural artifact. Arizona and the West, 20(3), 203–214.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mullins, LS, Kopelman, RE. 1986. Using the best seller as an instrument for social analysis in unobtrusive research. Library Journal, 111(5), 35–38.

  • Mullins, L. S., & Kopelman, R. E. 1984. The best seller as an indicator of societal narcissism: is there a trend? The Public Opinion Quarterly, 48, 720–730.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pew Research Center. 2007. A portrait of ‘Generation Next.’ January 9. http://www.people-press.org/2007/01/09/a-portrait-of-generation-next/.

  • Regnerus, M. 2012. Mating market dynamics, sex-ratio imbalances, and their consequences. Society, 49, 500–505.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Satija, MP. 2013. Briefs on the 19th (1979) to the 23rd edition (2011) of Dewey Decimal Classification,” DESIDOC Journal of Library & Information Technology, 33 (4): 277–288, July.

  • Stein, J. 2013. Millennials: the me me me generation. Time, 181(19), 1.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stockholder, F. 1987. Mirrors and narcissism. Theory, Culture & Society, 4(1), 107–123.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tanenhaus, S. 2014. Hey, big thinker. The New York Times, Style Desk: ST 1, April 27.

  • Thomson, I. T. 1989. The transformation of the social bond: images of individualism in the 1920s versus the 1970s. Social Forces, 67(4), 851–870.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tumber, C. 2014. The minimal selfie. In These Times, 38 (2): 38, February.

  • Twenge, J. M., & Campbell, W. K. 2009. The narcissism epidemic. NY:Atria Paperback.

    Google Scholar 

  • Twenge, J. M., Campbell, W. K., & Freeman, E. C. 2012. Generational differences in young adults’ life goals, concern for others, and civic orientation, 1966-2009. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 102(5), 1045–1062.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Twenge, J. M., Konrath, S., Foster, J. D., Campbell, W. K., & Bushman, B. J. 2008. Further evidence of an increase in narcissism among college students. Journal of Personality, 76(4), 919–928.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vaknin, S. 2014. A to Z of Narcissistic Abuse, Narcissism, and Narcissistic Personality Disorder Encyclopedia. Narcissus Publications. Kindle eBook.

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Management and Marketing Department, School of Business, Manhattan College, 4513 Manhattan College Parkway, Riverdale, NY, 10471, USA

    Janet Rovenpor

  2. Zicklin School of Business, Baruch College, One Bernard Baruch Way, New York, NY, 10010, USA

    Richard E. Kopelman, Ann Cohen Brandwein & Phillip Quach

  3. Accounting, Law, and CIS, School of Business, 4513 Manhattan College Parkway, Riverdale, NY, 10471, USA

    Marc Waldman

Authors
  1. Janet Rovenpor
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Richard E. Kopelman
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Ann Cohen Brandwein
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Phillip Quach
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Marc Waldman
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Janet Rovenpor.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and Permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Rovenpor, J., Kopelman, R.E., Brandwein, A.C. et al. The Best-Seller as an Indicator of Societal Narcissism. Soc 53, 414–421 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12115-016-0036-2

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12115-016-0036-2

Keywords

search

Navigation