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Too Proud to Let Go: Narcissistic Entitlement as a Barrier to Forgiveness

Narcissistic entitlement impedes forgiveness in ways not captured by other robust predictors (e.g., offense severity, apology, relationship closeness, religiosity, Big Five personality factors), as demonstrated in 6 studies. Narcissistic entitlement involves expectations of special treatment and pre...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of personality and social psychology 2004-12, Vol.87 (6), p.894-912
Main Authors: Exline, Julie Juola, Baumeister, Roy F, Bushman, Brad J, Campbell, W. Keith, Finkel, Eli J
Format: Article
Language:English
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Summary:Narcissistic entitlement impedes forgiveness in ways not captured by other robust predictors (e.g., offense severity, apology, relationship closeness, religiosity, Big Five personality factors), as demonstrated in 6 studies. Narcissistic entitlement involves expectations of special treatment and preoccupation with defending one's rights. In Study 1, entitlement predicted less forgiveness and greater insistence on repayment for a past offense. Complementary results emerged from Study 2, which used hypothetical transgressions, and Study 3, which assessed broad forgiveness dispositions. Study 4 examined associations with the Big Five, and Study 5 extended the findings to a laboratory context. Study 6 demonstrated that entitlement predicted diminished increases in forgiveness over time. Taken together, these results suggest that narcissistic entitlement is a robust, distinct predictor of unforgiveness.
ISSN:0022-3514
1939-1315
DOI:10.1037/0022-3514.87.6.894