A new study may be able to help indicate if a person is "narcissistic" or has tendencies. According to a team of researchers, people who are a narcissist, have thicker, fuller eyebrows. The study showed that people whose eyebrows are more groomed have an unrealistic sense of superiority to other people.
Narcassist Have Better Eyebrows
The study was conducted by the University of Toronto and was called Eyebrows Cue Grandiose Narcissism.
Participants of the study had to look at the face of people who took a test called the Narcissistic Personality Inventory. The test measured a person's personality on a scale of subclinical to grandiose narcissism. In the second part of the experiment, the volunteers were shown pictures that only showed the person's eyebrows and no other identifying features.
Finally, the volunteers were just shown pictures of eyebrows that were photoshopped onto people who weren't considered to be a clinical narcissist.
Throughout each phase of the experiment, volunteers were able to pinpoint which person was a grandiose narcissist by the femininity, grooming, and distinctiveness of the eyebrows. The darker and thicker the eyebrows were more likely to be seen on a person who they considered to be a narcissist.
Narcissistic Behavior
Lead researcher of the study, Miranda Giacomin, claimed that these results are surprising but it may have something to do with people who are narcissists always wanting to be seen.
"Eyebrows facilitate facial recognition. Narcissists may maintain distinct, thick, and dense brows to enhance recognition, which they are motivated to attain," she stated.
She continued that the reason why she and her team conducted the experiment was that people who tend to have narcissistic traits can engage in harmful interpersonal behaviors, even though some narcissists can be charming. By conducting this experiment the team hopes to inform people of what to look for in a narcissistic behavior. However, the researchers of the study stressed that all narcissists don't have thick eyebrows.
When it comes to identifying what truly makes a person a narcissist, counselor David Bennett stated that narcissists are not only people that cause distress for others but also cause distress for themselves. Bennett elaborated that at least 1 percent of the general public has the rare narcissistic personality disorder (NPD).
Bennett continued that if a person demands a lot of attention, can't handle criticism, and is negatively affected their lives they could be diagnosed as a clinical narcissist.
The study was published in the Journal of Personality.
