Exploring the relation between religiosity and narcissism in an Iranian sample

This study investigated the relationship between the four domains of religiosity (believing, belonging, behaving, and bonding) in relation to grandiose and vulnerable narcissism. The sample consisted of 388 students attending an Iranian university who completed the Persian versions of the Four Basic Dimensions of Religion Scale (Saroglou, 2011, 2014) and the Pathological Narcissism Inventory (Pincus et al., 2009; Soleimani, et al., 2015). Results showed that grandiose, but not vulnerable narcissism, concurrently predicted each domain of religiosity. Additionally, the PNI Self Sacrificing Self-Esteem subscale was the only subscale to concurrently predict all four domains of religiosity. Overall, the study provides an initial investigation into how these domains of religiosity may be associated with individual differences in narcissistic personality trait levels.