Using the bogus pipeline to investigate grandiose narcissism Amy B. Brunell ⁎, Terri D. Fisher Ohio State University at Mansfield, 1760 University Drive, Mansfield, OH 44906, USA HIGHLIGHTS • A bogus pipeline paradigm examined self-assessments of narcissism and self-esteem. • Grandiosity was higher if surveys might be seen than when monitored by a polygraph. • Self-esteem was higher if surveys might be seen than when connected to a polygraph. • Narcissism was positively correlated with self-esteem in all study conditions. • Findings contradict the psychodynamic mask model and the DSM-V perspectives. abstract article info Article history: Received 6 December 2013 Revised 22 May 2014 Available online 4 June 2014 Keywords: Grandiose narcissism Self-esteem Bogus pipeline The present study used a bogus pipeline methodology to investigate the extent to which grandiose narcissism and other narcissism-related constructs were sensitive to bias in reporting. In addition, we sought to test the psychodynamic mask model by examining the association between narcissism variables and deep-seated feelings of self-esteem for men and women when both narcissism and self-esteem were assessed simultaneously under three different conditions: a bogus pipeline condition, an anonymous condition, and an exposure threat condition wherein participants believed that somebody else might be reviewing their responses. Results revealed that the assessment of narcissistic grandiosity and global self-esteem was sensitive to study conditions whereas assessment of narcissistic personality and psychological entitlement was not. Grandiose narcissism and self-esteem were positively correlated within each study condition, a finding which contradicts the psychodynamic mask model and has implications for understanding narcissistic functioning. © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Introduction Narcissists are frequently described as grandiose, entitled, and self- centered, which aids their belief that they are superior to others and leads them to seek attention and admiration from others (e.g., Raskin & Terry, 1988). In personality psychology, narcissism is viewed as an individual differences variable that can be measured in the general population and is frequently referred to as “grandiose narcissism” (Campbell, Brunell, & Finkel, 2006; Campbell & Foster, 2007; Foster & Twenge, 2011). Grandiose narcissists tend to be self-focused and self- serving (Emmons, 1987; Raskin & Shaw, 1988; Rhodewalt & Morf, 1998). They believe they are more intelligent and more attractive than others (Gabriel, Critelli, & Ee, 1994), and they exaggerate their abilities and achievements (John & Robins, 1994). For grandiose narcissists, relationships serve as a means of self-esteem regulation or personal gain, rather than for intimacy (Campbell & Foster, 2007; Campbell et al., 2006). Early theorizing by Kernberg (1974) and Kohut (1977) suggested that narcissists' grandiosity functions as a mask for below-the-surface vulnerabilities, which some scholars have termed “the psychodynamic mask model” (see Bosson et al., 2008; Zeigler-Hill & Jordan, 2011, for reviews). Because narcissism scholars consistently report a modest pos- itive correlation between grandiose narcissism and explicit self-esteem (Bosson et al., 2008), recent research has focused on the vulnerability aspects to examine the extent to which grandiose narcissists “dislike themselves deep down inside” (Campbell, Bosson, Goheen, Lakey, & Kernis, 2007, p. 228; see also Jordan, Spencer, Zanna, Hoshino-Browne, & Correll, 2003; Zeigler-Hill, 2006) by examining grandiose narcissists' performance on implicit self-esteem measures. Such measures enable the investigation of deep-seated feelings based on performance on tasks that are believed to assess automatic and unconscious self-beliefs. Implicit attitudes are most commonly assessed with the Implicit Association Test (Greenwald & Farnham, 2000), which is a computer- ized categorization task that assesses self-relevant (e.g., “me”) and non-self-relevant (e.g., “them”) words with pleasant and unpleasant words. Results from these studies have been mixed. Some scholars argue that narcissism is associated with high explicit but low implicit self-esteem (e.g., Jordan et al., 2003; Zeigler-Hill, 2006). However, Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 55 (2014) 37–42 ⁎ Corresponding author. E-mail addresses: brunell.2@osu.edu (A.B. Brunell), fisher.16@osu.edu (T.D. Fisher). http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2014.05.015 0022-1031/© 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Journal of Experimental Social Psychology journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jesp