several children (Photo : Reuters)
Children whose parents praise them as being extra-special are more likely to be encouraged to become extremely selfish narcissists and jerks, according to a recent study. The study was based on 565 kids from the Netherlands who along with their parents were surveyed over the course of 1.5 years.
The results of the study were recently published in the National Academy of Sciences, a US journal. It found that children who were praised as being "more special" than other kids, and deserved "something extra" in life, were more probable to score higher on narcissism tests.
The study also measured to what extent parents over-valued their sons and daughters. Researchers asked the participating parents how much they agreed with statements such as their child being a "great example" for other children.
Co-author of the study, Brad Bushman, is a professor (communication and psychology) at Ohio State University. He revealed that when parents tell their children that they are more special than other people, they "believe it," according to New York Daily News.
The study discovered that a better method for increasing the child's ego is for parents to provide warmth and encouragement for their children. Children whose parents used this method were more probable to have high self-esteem, without having narcissism.
The study revealed that such children were happy with themselves and happy about who they were. Bushman explained that this perception differs from narcissists, who believe they are superior to other people.
The study's researchers considered other effects that could encourage narcissism, such as genetics, according to ABC News. However, they revealed that research showed that overconfidence is at narcissism's core.
Bushman, a father of three children, explained that his research caused him to be more cautious about the words he uses when speaking to his children. When he started focusing on his current research subject during the late 1900s, he attempted to treat his children as "extra-special." Now he does not.
