Assertiveness and Narcissism

Scores on the Rathus Assertiveness Schedule (RAS) were positively related to measures of healthy narcissism and inversely related to empathic distress, anxiety, and depression. Partial correlational procedures controlled for the tendency of healthy and unhealthy forms of narcissism to be linked together and revealed the RAS to be inversely associated with maladaptive narcissism. This same basic pattern was observed following a more specific examination of RAS items previously identified as predictive of individuals who create an impression of not being "nice." These results do not support arguments that a psychotherapeutic emphasis on assertiveness promotes an antisocial egocentrism and instead are consistent with a suggested connection between individualism and interdependence.