Gender differences in competitiveness and narcissism as exhibited through pictures on Facebook

The purpose of the current study was to explore the influence of competitiveness on the photos that men and women choose to present of themselves on Facebook. Participants consisted of 236 undergraduate students. Participants completed competitiveness and narcissism scales. Participants allowed researchers to screen shot their most recent 10 Facebook photos, including their profile. Results indicated that competitive men were more likely to post athletic photos. Men lower in vanity were more likely to post attractive photos. Men and women higher in authority/entitlement were more likely to post sexual photos. Overall, the study supports the argument that both competitiveness and narcissism influence the photos that men and women choose to post on social media. In addition, competitiveness and narcissism predicted different types of photo selection.