Research & Publications
Research on Conversational Narcissism, Mutuality and Whole-Person Change
Doctoral research, scholarly publications and the measurement work behind Human Systems Architecture™: how attention flows between people, what happens when it flows one way, and how relationships, families and teams come back to balance.
What does Dr. Lisa Leit research?
Dr. Lisa Leit studies conversational narcissism and mutuality: how attention is given and received in close relationships, and what happens to people, marriages and teams when it flows only one way. Her doctoral research at The University of Texas at Austin found conversational narcissism in one or both partners in 78% of the marriages studied, invisibility in 41%, and showed that conversational narcissism observed before a couple's first child was born predicted divorce seven years later.
She earned her PhD in Human Ecology and Developmental Psychology at The University of Texas at Austin, with training in quantitative research methods. That foundation shapes the assessments and frameworks she designs today, including the Holistogram™ and Human Systems Architecture™.
Key findings
The conversational narcissism study at a glance
78%
of marriages had one or both partners showing conversational narcissism
41%
of marriages had one or both partners showing invisibility in conversation
7 yrs
later, conversational narcissism observed before the first child was born predicted divorce
Couples in the study were followed from pregnancy until their first child was seven, as part of the Partners and Parents Project. Trained raters, blind to all other data, scored videotaped conversations at home.
Publications
Scholarly publications
Doctoral dissertation · 2008
Conversational Narcissism in Marriage: Effects on Partner Mental Health and Marital Quality Over the Transition to Parenthood
A longitudinal study of how narcissistic attention-seeking in face-to-face conversation affects marital quality and each partner's mental health as couples become parents.
Book · 2008
Conversational Narcissism in Marriage
Narcissistic attention seeking behaviors in face-to-face interactions: implications for marital stability and partner mental health. The book edition of the doctoral research.
Encyclopedia entry · 2015
Narcissism and Communication in Marriage
While fewer than 1% of people are diagnosed with narcissistic personality disorder, conversational narcissism characterizes 78% of marriages, frequently renders spouses invisible, and predicts divorce at seven years.
Encyclopedia entry · 2015
Communication and Narcissism
How self-centered communication styles, often subtle and well short of a clinical diagnosis, run through everyday social interaction, render others invisible, and predict health and relationship outcomes over time.
Book chapter · 2021
Applications of Neuroscience to Improve Wellbeing in Organizational Life
How brain-based wellbeing approaches can be applied inside organizations, with tools for healthy behavior change at work.
From research to practice
How the research shapes the work
Self-Other balance
Conversational narcissism is Self-Other imbalance out loud. Dr. Leit asks clients to look past work-life balance to a more useful question: how much of your attention goes to nourishing yourself, and how much to others? The Purpose Institute featured this approach in "Forget Work-Life Balance. Think Self-Other."
The Holistogram™
A 28-dimension whole-person wellness assessment, beta-tested for years with Whole Foods Market leaders (N over 700) and Validated for Outcomes by the Validation Institute (2022). It won the Validation Institute's Health Value Award for Well-Being in 2023.
Human Systems Architecture™
A framework for seeing the whole person, relationship or team as a living system, understanding its patterns, and designing what comes next. It is the backbone of the Human Systems Architecture™ Series of books.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
What is conversational narcissism?
Conversational narcissism is a pattern in everyday talk where one person keeps turning the conversation back to themselves, so attention flows one way and the other person goes unheard. Sociologist Charles Derber coined the term in 1979. Dr. Lisa Leit's research measured it in marriages over time.
What did Dr. Lisa Leit's research find?
In her doctoral research at The University of Texas at Austin, one or both partners showed conversational narcissism in 78% of the marriages studied and invisibility in 41%. Conversational narcissism observed before a couple's first child was born predicted divorce seven years later.
Where can I read Dr. Leit's research?
The dissertation is available through The University of Texas at Austin repository, the book edition (ISBN 3639095189) is on Amazon, and her two 2015 entries are published in Wiley's International Encyclopedia of Interpersonal Communication. A plain-language summary is on the Happy Whole Human research page.
Is Dr. Lisa Leit available for speaking or media interviews on this research?
Yes. Dr. Leit speaks on conversational narcissism, mutuality, leadership teams and whole-person change. See keynotes and speaking or get in touch.
Bring the research into your relationship, family or team
Work with Dr. Lisa Leit to see the patterns that keep repeating, name them without blame, and agree what changes.
Research profiles: Academia.edu · LinkedIn · Amazon author page