Assessment of Cyber Intimate Partner Violence and Pathological Narcissism in Emerging Adults

Background: Cyber intimate partner violence (C-IPV) refers to abusive and controlling behaviors enacted through digital technologies toward a current or former intimate partner. Previous research suggests that pathological narcissism may be associated with the perpetration of C-IPV. Methods: This study examined the psychometric prop-erties of the Brief Pathological Narcissism Inventory (B-PNI), estimated the prevalence of C-IPV perpetration, and explored its association with pathological narcissism among emerging adults. The sample comprised 371 Portuguese participants aged 18–25 years (M = 21.52, SD = 1.97), of whom 78.7% were female. Results: Confirmatory factor analysis supported the proposed two-factor structure of the B-PNI (CFI = .982, TLI = .965, RMSEA = .076). The instrument demonstrated satisfactory reliability and construct validity. Overall, 58.7% of participants reported perpetrating at least one act of C-IPV. Prevalence rates were 36.9% for online control, 37.2% for online jealousy, and 18.9% for online intrusive behaviors. Positive and significant associations were found between C-IPV perpetration and both vulnerable and grandiose narcissistic dimen-sions. Conclusions: The findings support the adequacy of the B-PNI for use among Portuguese emerging adults and highlight pathological narcissism as a relevant per-sonality-related factor associated with cyber intimate partner violence perpetration, reinforcing the importance of personality-focused prevention and intervention strategies.