The psychological structure of pride: a tale of two facets. (2007)

“How can the one emotion (pride) serve such varied and, in many ways, antagonistic roles?

Jessica L. Tracy, University of British Columbia; Richard W. Robins, University of California, Davis.
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 2007, Vol. 92, No. 3, 506–525

“…pride has been linked to highly divergent outcomes. On the one hand, pride in one’s successes (‘authentic pride’) might promote positive behaviors .. and contribute to the development of a genuine and deep-rooted sense of self-esteem.

“On the other hand, the ‘hubristic pride’ that is theoretically associated with narcissism … might contribute to aggression and hostility, interpersonal problems, relationship conflict, and a host of maladaptive behaviors.

“How can the one emotion serve such varied and, in many ways, antagonistic roles?

“This paradox can be resolved if we tease apart the prosocial, achievement-oriented form of the emotion from the selfaggrandizing, hubristic form and postulate two distinct facets of pride.

The researchers test various hypotheses in seven separate studies.

In Study 1, they examine laypeoples’ perceptions of various pride-related words to see whether they fall into distinct semantic clusters that map onto the theoretical distinction between authentic and hubristic pride.

Studies 1-4 demonstrate that the two facets emerge in analyses of the semantic meaning of pride-related words; have divergent personality correlates; and do not simply reflect … positively and negatively valenced …. forms of pride.

In Studies 5–7, the authors develop and demonstrate the reliability and validity of brief, 7-item scales that can be used to assess the facets of pride in future research.

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