The Narcissism Epidemic

A groundbreaking look at how narcissism has taken root in modern culture—and what it means for relationships, mental health, and society at large. Narcissism—an inflated view of the self—is everywhere. Public figures say it’s what makes them stray from their wives. Teenagers and young adults hone it on social media, and celebrity newsmakers have elevated it to an art form. And it’s what’s making people depressed, lonely, and buried under piles of debt. Dr. Jean Twenge joins forces with W. Keith Campbell, PhD, a nationally recognized expert on narcissism, to explore this new plague in The Narcissism Epidemic. Even the world economy has been damaged by risky, unrealistic overconfidence. Drawing on their own extensive research as well as decades of other experts’ studies, Twenge and Campbell show us how to identify narcissism, minimize the forces that sustain and transmit it, and treat it or manage it where we find it. Filled with arresting, alarming, and even amusing stories of vanity gone off the tracks, The Narcissism Epidemic is at once a riveting window into the consequences of narcissism, a prescription to combat the widespread problems it causes, and a probing analysis of the culture at large.

Jean M. Twenge, PhD, a professor of psychology at San Diego State University, is the author of more than 190 scientific publications and several books based on her research, including Ten Rules for Raising Kids in a High-Tech World, Generations, iGen, and Generation Me. Her research has been covered in Time, The Atlantic, Newsweek, The New York Times, USA TODAY, and The Washington Post. She has also been featured on Today, Good Morning America, Fox and Friends, CBS This Morning, Real Time with Bill Maher, and NPR. She lives in San Diego with her husband and three daughters. W. Keith Campbell, PhD, associate professor of psychology at the University of Georgia, is the author of more than sixty-five scientific journal articles and book chapters and the book, When You Love a Man Who Loves Himself: How to Deal with a One-way Relationship. He has published more than thirty journal articles and chapters on narcissism, more than any other academic researcher. He is also a contributing author of the study on the rise in narcissism covered by the Associated Press. His research has appeared in USA TODAY, Newsweek, and The Washington Post, and he has been featured on Fox News’s The Big Story and made numerous radio appearances. He holds a BA from the University of California at Berkeley, an MA from San Diego State University, and a PhD from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He lives in Athens, Georgia, with his wife and daughter.