An article came out in 2007 named "College Students think they're so Special." Apparently, college students are more self-centered than the decades before. Five psychologists actually studied this issue to see if this new finding could be harmful to the future relationships and our society. From the time we were born we always hear "you're special" and "you're great." The author, Professor Jean Twenge said that "kids are self-centered enough already." These psychologist made an evaluation called Narcissistic Personality Inventory and had about 16,000 students complete it between 1982 and 2006. This evaluation asks responses to "If I ruled the world, it would be a better place," "I think I am a special person" and "I can live my life any way I want to." The results showed that by 2006 two-thirds of students increased and had scores above average. So it's proven that we are somewhat self-centered.
Is that a bad thing though? Campbell doesn't think that it's a bad thing when it comes to meeting new people or auditioning for a show. But like stated earlier it can be a potential negative aspect when it comes to relationships. According to the article being a narcissist can lead to more romantic relationships which are shorter. It goes on to explain why we are more narcissistic. Apparently, we are more "confident, entitled and the article said more miserable than we ever were before." The article does bring up how we do volunteer. It also mentions though that we did that to stand out on our college applications. Also, it mentions how we did grow up being taught to not let anyone get in our way. So potentially we want to achieve our goals and if a relationship is in the way that's one of the first things that's going.
This was written in 2007, do you think our group of college freshman are more self-centered or less? Why do you think that? Can you think of any examples that would make someone seem more self-centered?
Do you agree or disagree with it helping us audition/ talk to people?
Can you think of a reason why we may be more self-centered that wasn't stated in the article?
I agree that college students in general are fairly self-centered; but this is the time in our lives when students should be concentrating on themselves. I don't believe it has gotten worse over time, I think it has always been there. In high school our generation is told to do community service or get involved to put it on a college application; I know I did. I was in key club, chess club, operation smile, diversity club, did leadership workshop and played volleyball; but I rarely went to meetings or got really involved. I just paid the dues each year went to the first meeting and put in on my college application. That's not right is it? No, but it didn't matter it got me to where I am today. People in college need to be self-centered and confident to succeed in "the real world." If you walk into an interview and say "I'm just as good as the next guy, but I will do just as well as them," you’re not going to get the job. Being self-centered isn’t always a bad thing especially when we are in a time of our lives where everything we do is for our future.
ReplyDeleteI agree that our generation is self-centered however I don’t think society has always been like this. I think this narcissism has gotten worse with successive generations. This argument can go way back in history to decades where society was based on reciprocity. People in a community relied on each other for survival. Now we live in a me, me, me society where everyone is trying to climb to the top. While some may consider my next comment an overgeneralization, I think most parents are less involved and more lenient. Teenagers are disrespectful and get a way with a lot of things. They care only about their actions and how they effect themselves.
DeleteAs for the students involved in everything, for must they are free loaders building their resume. Very few are actually actively involved in all of their clubs because they join so many that how could they. As for school, we are all competing for the best college education so we can get the best job and make the most money, have the nicest car, travel, or whatever it that people our after.
Sure maybe this so called confidence can help us sell ourselves but I can also make us throw others under the bus so to speak. This me, me, me attitude reflects changes in social values, changes I don’t think are for the best.
Today it seems like most people are fairly self-centered especially on a college campus. We are competing for spots in society and therefore need to make ourselves stand out amongst the masses. There are pro’s and con’s about this though. A self-centered narcissist by definition will have a high level of confidence about themselves which in an interview or similar scenario is a good thing. Even with beginning a relationship having confidence helps you express yourself as you are and not some fictional version of yourself. However, there are also con’s with this sort of behavior that might be more damaging than the pro’s. A narcissist will choose themselves over other people, thus making a long term relationship a lot more difficult. They also assume they are better in some way or another than everyone they meet. So, if they ever have to work on a team they will have the tendency to disregard others and put their ideas first, which could be harmful to future generations and the development of society. In many ways how we learn to try to put ourselves above others in college divide us and could divide our ability to create new ideas because of our inability to work with others as equals.
ReplyDeleteHonestly I can’t say if college students have gotten more narcissistic, because I did not know college students before I got to college. All I can say is that I think we do to put too much emphasis on making each child feel special and not hurt their feelings. When these kids get into the real world they do not care that you’re special they only care if you can benefit the company or business you are applying to. In my experience I do think people are narcissistic, because a lot of times I ask people for help in my classes especially engineering ones they seem to think I am dumb and that they do not have the time to help a kid who does not get it as fast as them. Over all I can’t say if college students are more narcissistic, but anything is possible.
ReplyDeleteI don’t think our class is more self-centered than the classes previous to us. The article blames our increase in self-centeredness on the fact that from birth we are encouraged to think that we are individuals and unique. However, this point is slightly ridiculous because for a long time parents have always nurtured their children to think they are special and this is not a recent phenomenon. In addition to that younger kids have not fully physiologically developed their super ego, so it is only natural that “kids are self-centered.” It isn’t something that should be rebuked. Belittling ambitious people’s attempts to accomplish their goals is also ludicrous because if people didn’t go out and do new things their way we wouldn’t have half the innovation that makes our world great. I think one factor that majorly affects a person’s self-centeredness is the amount of siblings a person has. Only children might be used to getting all the attention from their parents and might aspect the same treatment from the world.
ReplyDeleteI think that how self-centered you are depends on how you were brought up. I was brought up being told anything you want you can achieve and that don’t let people stop you from achieving your goal but I wouldn’t define myself as self-centered. I care about myself but don’t put myself in front of everyone else. I don’t know if it helps yourself talk to people because again I think it’s how you were raised. You develop people skills through interaction not by how self-centered you are.
ReplyDeleteI do not see how being a college student and being self-centered go hand in hand. If anything, college sometimes can make us less egotistical because we are surrounded by people constantly and have to have respect for their space and their lives. Being self-centered comes from how a person was raised, it isn't a trait you magically acquire at 18 years-old.
ReplyDeleteI do not believe as college students that we become self-centered. I think that we become concentrated on our future because our decisions now can affect the outcome of the rest of our life. Just because we are concentrated on our future, doesn't mean that we through out any consideration for our surroundings. If anything we are taught more about respecting our community through college courses.
I do not think that college kids are more self-centered. It does not make sense that the second someone becomes a college student they begin to only care about themselves. I think that some students are more focused on school than ever before. College is very important in shaping the rest of our adult lives. I do not feel like being self centered would help me to be able to talk to people better.
ReplyDeleteI don't necessarily feel that we are more self-centered. People do volunteer because it looks good on their resumes and applications, but that's not the case for everyone every time. I agree that it does help when you are auditioning for something. The idea is to stand out. I did this for my recent audition because the producers were specifically looking for people who stood out, whether that was talent-wise or you have a good story. It does come in handy to talk up of yourself in situations like that. That is typically the only time I use that tactic other than resumes and applications and I feel like other people are the same way. Not everyone is not self-centered, but many just use it when they need to.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I think being more self-centered is a normal consequence of this day and age. We're in a time where jobs are extremely hard to come by, and being self-sacrificing isn't going to buy food and pay off your student debts. Personal success is paramount nowadays, where a small advantage you have over another applicant is the difference between having a job when you graduate and being out on the street.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I think being more self-centered is a normal consequence of this day and age. We're in a time where jobs are extremely hard to come by, and being self-sacrificing isn't going to buy food and pay off your student debts. Personal success is paramount nowadays, where a small advantage you have over another applicant is the difference between having a job when you graduate and being out on the street.
ReplyDeleteI think that everyone is general is somewhat self-centered. You have to be. You have to take care of yourself before you can take care of others. Now I am not saying that everyone is always self-centered, but you have to be a little bit to make sure you get done what needs to get done. You have to make sure you keep your well-being in the priority top spot. There are always extremes of any situation. And being too self-centered can rub off the wrong way with people. For instance, if you talk about yourself a lot to other people, you may sound arrogant to them. But the important thing is to be balanced, and take care of yourself before you take care of others.
ReplyDeleteI think this generation is more self centered than the ones before simply because of the environment that we've grown up in. Our generation has been raised listening to music about how great it is to be rich and how spending money on yourself makes you happy. If you listen to popular rap music these days its all about using money in selfish ways. We've been taught to care about ourselves more than others. I'm not saying this didn't happen in other generations before but it is most prevalent in today's society. Additionally, these days, less people grow up in healthy families. Divorce rates are the highest ever and a rough childhood could have adverse effects on the child's life, including trust issues. Overall, the most likely cause is the media setting a worse and worse example for children and teenagers and practically encouraging narcissism.
ReplyDeleteI think that current college freshman are not self-centered. Of course, I'm sure there are a few in the crowd who are, but that's nothing to be surprised about. As people get older, I think that many realize that it's good to give back, because not only does it instantly help others but it also indirectly helps us too. It not only improves our society, but also provides psychological and emotional benefits as well. Many people do probably volunteer for the sake of college and looking good, but I'm sure as they get older they'll start volunteering for its true benefits.
ReplyDeleteI defiantly feel that not just college students but all people are more self-centered today than they ever have been in the past. I have seen it first hand with people I work with every day. They only seem to stop by and talk to you when they want help with something and never just to say hello. It has become accepted in our society and doesn’t stick out like it would have fifty years ago. Overall I think that people are becoming more self-centered and narcissistic.
ReplyDeleteConsidering the times in which we live in, it serves no purpose to think and behave as the rest. We have come to overpopulate the planet, resources are scarce and great opportunities even scarcer. The notion that one must stick out from the herd is engraved into most children at a young age yet not all succeed in grasping it. One must strive to become his own man/woman. Of course this self centered attitude may be often mistaken for narcissism, but honestly who cares. Let others gossip while you remain loyal to your vision and character.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if I'd go as far as saying that college students are self-centered, because I certainly wouldn't like to classify myself as being self-centered, but being part of a generation who has been told since childhood that "You can make a difference" and "you're special" certainly does make a person so I suppose. However, I dont think this is such a bad thing because the ones that stand out ARE the ones that make a difference in this day and age. Some examples of being self-centered that a college freshman would do is maybe only think about themselves and how they should study more to be better at something, which isn't necessarily a bad thing.
ReplyDeleteAnd whether or not it helps talking to people really depends on the person because you can still be self-centered and not social at al.