About this Research Topic
Perhaps there has been no time in history with as many forces undermining the foundations of democratic values. One critical factor that demands more attention and has a profound influence on the success or failings of democracies is leadership. Narcissism in both the electorate and in leadership is a vastly underappreciated force in modern politics. Narcissism has always been common to some degree in politics, but now we are witnessing excessive levels of these traits displayed by prominent politicians, whose effects are amplified through social media. The effects of narcissism on the ability to address even simple problems, much less complex global challenges such as climate change, remains unknown.
This Research Topic seeks to develop a new research agenda into the intersection of narcissism, leadership and politics. By examining the ways in which narcissism can affect political leadership, whether driven by the wider public, or instigated by leaders themselves, we hope to shine a light on the public policy consequences of heightened self-focus. There is a great deal of work on narcissism, a great deal of work on leadership and a great deal of work on politics, but remarkably little of that research examines the intersection of these forces on meaningful political outcomes. We hope to begin to address that gap.
We hope to include both empirical and theoretical work focused on the role of narcissism in politics and in leadership, broadly defined. We are open to a wide variety of methodological approaches. We hope to solicit applications of narcissism to wider political topics, including the reciprocal influence of narcissism and populism, the influence of narcissism on public policy outcomes, election and legal decisions, and the effect of social media on growing rates of narcissism, among other topics. We encourage explorations of narcissism in the mass body politic, as well as among leaders, expecting some work to examine the interaction of these forces.
This Research Topic seeks to develop a new research agenda into the intersection of narcissism, leadership and politics. By examining the ways in which narcissism can affect political leadership, whether driven by the wider public, or instigated by leaders themselves, we hope to shine a light on the public policy consequences of heightened self-focus. There is a great deal of work on narcissism, a great deal of work on leadership and a great deal of work on politics, but remarkably little of that research examines the intersection of these forces on meaningful political outcomes. We hope to begin to address that gap.
We hope to include both empirical and theoretical work focused on the role of narcissism in politics and in leadership, broadly defined. We are open to a wide variety of methodological approaches. We hope to solicit applications of narcissism to wider political topics, including the reciprocal influence of narcissism and populism, the influence of narcissism on public policy outcomes, election and legal decisions, and the effect of social media on growing rates of narcissism, among other topics. We encourage explorations of narcissism in the mass body politic, as well as among leaders, expecting some work to examine the interaction of these forces.
Keywords: Narcissism, Leadership Politics, Political Psychology, Intergroup Relations
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
