HealthDay Reporter
THURSDAY, Sept. 29, 2016 (HealthDay News) — “Entitled” individuals who feel superior to others often end up unhappy when reality fails to match their expectations, new research shows.
“Entitlement is a broad construct, but basically it refers to a desire to get something for nothing,” explained study lead author Joshua Grubbs, assistant professor of psychology at Bowling Green State University in Ohio.
According to Grubbs, entitlement is a personality trait where a person has an exaggerated belief that he or she is an exception to the rule — much more deserving of life’s blessings that others.
But the new review of more than 170 studies on the subject suggests that entitled folk are also especially vulnerable to disappointment.
And when disappointment strikes, it can mean anger, blaming others, social strife, collapsed relationships and depression, Grubbs’ team said.
That’s because entitlement is “really an attitude of ‘deservingness’, without any consideration for earning those things you want,” said Grubbs, who conducted the review while a graduate student in psychology at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. “I often describe it as someone saying, ‘I exist, therefore I deserve whatever I want.’ “
He said this outlook doesn’t necessarily hinge on wealth. “We observe it across cultures and economic status,” he added.
But no matter its source, “entitlement has long been known to be associated with negative emotion and distress,” Grubbs said.
Along with co-author Julie Exline, a professor of psychological sciences at Case Western Reserve, Grubbs set out to examine why entitlement can be such a problem.
The review of the data uncovered a common three-step pattern of pressures and behavior that often plague entitled individuals.
First, there’s the burden of living with the constant threat of failed expectations, Grubbs said.
Next comes emotional instability when an expected path or goal fails to materialize.
Entitled people often muddle through these emotional minefields, but not by admitting that perhaps they aren’t so special. Instead, Grubbs said, adversity tends to cause them to lean even more heavily on an inherent sense of superiority.
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