The Science of Narcissism: Unraveling the Paradox of Self-Love

Few psychological concepts are more (over)used than narcissism. What is it? How do we identify it? When does someone have too much self-regard? This talk will focus on what narcissism is, how narcissistic features may develop within people, the pros and cons of narcissistic features, how to deal with narcissism, and whether change, if desirable, is possible and how change may work. There will also be some discussion on the construct's history from Greek mythology to its migration to psychology. And, sorry, your ex probably was not a narcissist!

Will Hart got his bachelor's degree from Loyola University Chicago in 2004. He went on to earn his Ph.D in social psychology from the University of Florida in 2009. After completing his Ph.D., he had a 1-year stint as a methodologist and statistician at the National Opinion Research Center. In 2011, he joined the faculty at the University of Alabama, and he is currently an Associate Professor in the social psychology area. 

His research generally focuses on understanding the mechanics of malevolent personality constructs, like narcissism, Machiavellianism, and psychopathy, but he also studies positive traits like authenticity and happiness in addition to person perception, attitudes, persuasion processes, and how people select goals. Will has over 100 publications on these topics, and his research has been featured in some of the top journals in psychology. In addition to his role as researcher, Will has taught various courses at UA, such as social psychology, social cognition, personality psychology, and statistics/methods.