Western culture has a deeply embedded equation: warmth equals love. We expect caring people to be expressive, open, demonstrative. We expect them to hug, to gush, to ask follow-up questions in an animated voice. When someone doesn't perform these rituals, we often code them as cold, detached, or emotionally unavailable.
Personality traits are simply labels that summarize typical patterns of thinking, feeling, and behaving. For example, some people tend to interpret situations pessimistically, while others naturally expect things to work out. Some react quickly with irritation when they're inconvenienced, whereas others are more inclined to assume good intentions. Some people plan ahead meticulously, while others rely on last-minute bursts of effort.
Respondents were randomly assigned to one of four conditions and instructed to name a non-famous person who is either cool, not cool, good, or not good. The participants were then asked to assess this person's values and personality, using the Portrait Values Questionnaire and a measure of the Big Five Personality Traits. There were 15 different traits to evaluate in total. From there, the research team crunched the numbers.
Grandiose narcissists live in a fantasy world of their own creation, with themselves as the (fantasy) heroes who are the only ones who can save others from the endless (fantasy) crises they see all around, and who will vanquish the many (fantasy) villains who are causing these crises. Their mission in the world is to be superior to everyone else, so they usually tell others how to think and what to do.
