Original title: When the self is on display: How narcissism shapes facial and emotional responses to social feedback during personal storytelling
Matias Piispanen, Jarno Tuominen, Ville Johannes Harjunen, Emmi Koskinen +6 · September 2026
Telling personal stories puts your self-image on the line, leaving you open to other people's judgment. People with narcissistic traits care deeply about how others view them and crave validation. Researchers tested how people with these traits react to positive and negative feedback on their stories. They measured real facial movements from videos and asked participants how they felt inside. They found that people with grandiose narcissismA personality style marked by self-importance, entitlement, and a need for admiration. smiled more during both good and bad feedback. This showed up as increased pull on the corners of their lips. They also felt more pride. People with vulnerable narcissismA personality style marked by insecurity, hypersensitivity to criticism, and a fragile self-image. felt worse inside, reporting less pride, pleasure, and control. Yet, their faces did not show these negative feelings to the room.
At a dinner party, a host tells a long story about their own life. When guests compliment it, the host beams. When a guest points out a flaw, the host beams just as wide. That seems odd. Another host, under the same criticism, forces a smile but later admits feeling terrible. In this paper, researchers put people in that same situation in a lab—telling personal stories, receiving scripted praise or criticism, and having their faces filmed and feelings reported. They found that some hosts smile at both kinds of feedback, while others feel bad but show nothing.
This study shows that facial expressions are not just mirrors of emotion—they can be strategic tools. People with narcissistic traits manage how they appear to others, which affects real conversations and relationships. Understanding this helps us see beyond surface smiles and interpret social signals more accurately.
The abstract doesn't say. It focuses on the observed patterns but does not discuss whether the expressions are deliberate, how observers respond to them, or whether results extend to clinical narcissism.
Ask anything about this paper. Answers come from its abstract, and say so when the abstract doesn't cover your question.
When the self is on display: How narcissism shapes facial and emotional responses to social feedback during personal storytelling — Matias Piispanen, Jarno Tuominen, Ville Johannes Harjunen et al. — PsyArXiv — doi:10.31234/osf.io/nvwty_v2
Abstract licence: CC BY
Explanation generated by Synthesis from the abstract — it is not the original paper. This is a preprint, so it hasn't necessarily been peer reviewed.