It's official: men are more narcissistic than women

A recent study has revealed what many will have already guessed: men are more narcissistic than women.

Scientists examined 31 years of narcissism research from hundreds of journals featuring more than 475,000 participants, and studied gender differences across three aspects of narcissism: leadership, exhibitionism and entitlement.

They discovered that on average men were more likely to be narcissistic, regardless of age or generation.

And men are much more likely to show traits of entitlement, which indicates they feel more deserving of certain privileges and are more likely to exploit others. In the leadership category, men displayed more assertiveness and desire for power. But in the exhibitionism aspect there was no difference, meaning both genders are equally likely to display vanity or self-absorption.

Despite the growth in social media and the selfie, after looking at data from students between 1990 and 2013, the investigation found no evidence to suggest either gender has become more narcissistic over time.

The researchers have said differences in male and female narcissistic traits could be a product of gender stereotypes.

"Narcissism is shown to boost self-esteem, emotional stability and the tendency to emerge as a leader," lead author Emily Grijalva says. "By examining gender differences in narcissism, we may be able to explain gender disparities in these important outcomes."

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