Rosenbusch, L. | bioRxiv Science

bioRxiv2026

Self-enhancement and devaluation of others during belief formation are linked to narcissistic traits

Background: Narcissistic personality traits are associated with the tendency to maintain a grandiose self-image through self-enhancement and devaluation of others. Using computational modeling, we investigated how narcissistic traits and the experience of pride are linked to how individuals form beliefs about themselves and others. Methods: Healthy individuals and individuals with psychiatric diagnoses varying in narcissistic traits (N = 97) completed a learning task in which self-serving biases emerged implicitly through trial-by-trial belief updating in response to manipulated feedback. Computational modeling quantified how participants updated beliefs about their own and another person's abilities in response to better- and worse-than-expected performance feedback. Results: Higher narcissistic traits were associated with reduced learning from worse-than-expected self-related feedback, consistent with self-enhancement as a mechanism for maintaining a grandiose self-image. Individuals with higher narcissistic traits also reported greater pride following better-than-expected self-related feedback, which mediated the association between narcissistic traits and positive self-related learning. Furthermore, higher narcissistic traits were, mediated via pride, linked to increased learning from worse-than-expected feedback about the other person, suggesting that devaluing others relative to oneself may serve as a secondary pathway for maintaining a grandiose self-image. Discussion: These findings identify computational and affective mechanisms through which narcissistic traits are linked to self- and other-related belief formation. Reduced integration of negative self-related feedback together with enhanced pride following positive feedback may support grandiose self-beliefs, while enhanced learning from negative information about others suggests that individuals with higher narcissistic traits implicitly construct themselves as superior through both self-enhancement and devaluation of others during interpersonal belief formation.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2024

Time-of-day related fluctuations of self-belief formation

Time of day influences a variety of human cognitive processes, including attention, executive functions and memory formation, as well as affective experiences and mood. However, circadian modulations of self-related learning and belief formation, which are highly affected by emotional states, remain poorly understood. Here, we present results from exploratory post-hoc analyses on data aggregated from five studies assessing the formation of self-related ability beliefs. A total of N=242 healthy participants completed a validated learning task at different times of the day, during which they continuously received feedback on their performance. Computational modeling was applied to quantify participants learning behavior during the task. Results suggest an association between time-of-day and self-belief formation, showing that participants who were tested in the evening (7:00-9:59 p.m.) updated their self-beliefs more strongly in response to the received feedback compared to those tested in the afternoon (1:00-3:59 p.m.). Evidence from additional models indicated that these differences were driven by non-linear, rhythmic changes in self-belief formation across different times of the day. Future studies should systematically examine within-subject fluctuations in self-belief formation across the day and address the influence of individual factors such as chronotype, age, mood and sleep quality. Understanding circadian modulations of self-related belief formation could contribute to optimized interventions for conditions characterized by maladaptive self-beliefs, such as depression, as well as in academic contexts.

neuroscience↗