Relationship Between Narcissism, Self-Esteem and Stress Coping in College Students

The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between narcissism, self-esteem, and ability to cope with stress in college students. Emerging research about the millennium generation (college students born after 1989) reveals that they are among other things, sheltered, self-centered, creative, and even narcissistic. It was hypothesized that college students' level of narcissism will affect their self-esteem and their ability to cope with stressors in a positive manner.

The Narcissistic Personality Inventory Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, and Brief COPE inventory were administered to 22 sections of freshmen academic planning seminar classes in the fall 2009 semester. The sample comprised 66.5% female participants, and the average age of the participants was 18 years. Ninety five percent of the participants reported freshman status. Bivariate correlations and multiple-regression analyses along with basic descriptive tests were conducted on the data using SPSSİ Version 17.

Statistically significant correlations between narcissism and stress coping, and narcissism and self-esteem were discovered, however, the correlation between self-esteem and stress coping was weak and not statistically significant. Stepwise multiple regression analysis results indicate the overall model of two predictors (narcissism and self-esteem) did statistically significantly account for change in the criterion (stress coping). However, only narcissism was a significant contributor to the model (β=.522, p=.000).