Narcissistic traits
Narcissistic traits sit on a range that everyone falls somewhere along: some confidence and wish for recognition is healthy, and only at the far end, together with other signs over a long time, do they become part of what professionals call narcissistic personality disorder. Only a doctor or another qualified professional can diagnose it.
The MindScale quiz looks at how often you notice these traits in yourself, in four areas, as a starting point for reflection. It is about your own experience, and it can't tell you anything about someone else.
See your own result
Your score and full report: $2.95 for 7 days of full access, then $29.95 every 4 weeks until you cancel.
Wanting admiration
How much you seek praise, attention and recognition from others.
- Toward the high end
- Praise and attention matter a lot to people here. Everyone likes to be valued; for them, it can be a strong pull.
- Around the middle
- People here enjoy recognition, without needing it to feel good about themselves.
- Toward the low end
- People here don't seek much praise or attention, and feel fine without it.
Feeling special
How much you see yourself as unusually talented, important or above others.
- Toward the high end
- People here often see themselves as standing out from others.
- Around the middle
- People here have a healthy sense of their strengths and see themselves as fairly ordinary in other ways.
- Toward the low end
- People here rarely see themselves as above others, and may even play down their strengths.
Expecting special treatment
How much you feel the usual rules or waits shouldn't apply to you.
- Toward the high end
- People here often feel they deserve more than the usual treatment, and can feel frustrated when they don't get it.
- Around the middle
- People here sometimes feel they deserve a little extra, mostly when they have worked hard for it.
- Toward the low end
- People here are happy to follow the same rules and waits as everyone else.
Tuning out others' feelings
How often other people's feelings go unnoticed or feel unimportant to you.
- Toward the high end
- For people here, other people's feelings often slip past, especially when they are busy with their own goals.
- Around the middle
- People here tune in to others most of the time, with moments when their own concerns come first.
- Toward the low end
- People here usually notice and care about how other people feel.
How scoring works
Each statement has five response choices. A response contributes from 1 to 5 points to the scale it belongs to, and the points become a position from 0 to 100. Around 0–33 is the low third, 34–66 is around the middle and 67–100 is the high third.
Looking at the separate positions is more useful than treating them as one overall score: the profile shows where the answers sit on each scale.
What looking at these traits can help with
Seeing the four areas separately can show where your answers sit: whether it's mostly wanting admiration, mostly feeling special, mostly expecting special treatment or mostly missing how other people feel.
Some of these traits, in moderation, sit alongside confidence and ambition. Looking at them honestly can help you notice when they start to cost you something in your relationships.
These traits in everyday life
These traits tend to show up in how people react to praise and criticism, how they handle waiting their turn, and how much room they leave for other people's feelings. Asking a trusted friend how you come across can be a useful check.
If these traits worry you or get in the way of your life, talk to a doctor or another qualified professional.
How to take the test
MindScale's narcissistic traits test has 28 statements and no time limit. Choose the response that best matches how you usually are, not how you would like to be.
You can go back and change an answer. When you finish, you can unlock your score and full report: $2.95 for 7 days of full access, then $29.95 every 4 weeks until you cancel.
Your score and full report: $2.95 for 7 days of full access, then $29.95 every 4 weeks until you cancel.
Conclusion
Common narcissistic traits fall into four areas: wanting admiration, feeling special, expecting special treatment and tuning out others' feelings. Everyone has some of them; only a qualified professional can say whether they add up to a disorder.
If you'd like to look at how often these traits show up for you, the MindScale narcissistic traits quiz has 28 statements. It is not a diagnosis or a medical test, and the price is shown before you start.
See your own result
Your score and full report: $2.95 for 7 days of full access, then $29.95 every 4 weeks until you cancel.