The Relationship between Covert Narcissism and Depression in College Students: The Sequential Mediating Effects of Maladaptive Self-focused Attention and Interpersonal Competence
AUTHOR : 임천규, 장은비
INFORMATION : page. 85~102 / 2023 Vol.30 No.1
ABSTRACT
The purpose of this study is to confirm the sequential mediating effect of maladaptive self-focused attention and interpersonal competence in the association between covert narcissism and depression in college students. For this purpose, 255 college students (male: 79, female: 176) participated in a self-reported online survey consisting of a covert narcissism scale, a maladaptive self-focused attention scale, an interpersonal competence scale, and a depression scale. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS 26.0 and AMOS 26.0. As a result, maladaptive self-focused attention and interpersonal competence mediated the positive association between covert narcissism and depression, sequentially. This means that if a college student with covert narcissism only focuses on himself maladaptively, then the interpersonal competence was reduced, which was linked to a high level of depression. The results suggest the need to provide intervention strategies that focus on reducing maladaptive self-focused attention on depression in college students with covert narcissism. Limitations and directions for future research were presented.