Occasionally, when we're done admiring our own reflections in our computer screens and placing the pictures of ourselves on our desks back at the proper angle, we take a break from reading our own paper to see what other people are saying about college students.
Normally, we just graze over anything negative about our age group - who has the time? - but today we decided to actually read one choice tidbit about a study accusing college students of becoming more narcissistic over the years.
The story was naturally met with a collective, sarcastic "No, really?"
None of us here at The State Press were all too surprised by the results of the survey. All it takes is a few minutes listening to conversations around campus to get a feel for how self-absorbed our peers (and ourselves) can be at times - "Live Strong" bracelets notwithstanding.
Still, there are quite a few details about the study that leave us questioning its fairness.
For starters, The Associated Press article on the study lists three of the items from the survey as follows: "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."
All right, so current U.S. administration aside, maybe thinking you'd be the best enlightened dictator ever is a little bit arrogant.
But what about the other two questions? What's wrong with feelings special or unique, or thinking you have a right to lead a life of your choosing?
There's a fine line between self-confidence and narcissism, and surveys with questions such as these could easily be misinterpreted as social perceptions of words change over time.
Then, there's the fact that our generation, more than any other, has been exposed to mass media campaigns designed to make us want to buy things for ourselves. You know, the whole advertising thing.
If our generation is overly narcissistic, it might have just as much to do with the theories of cognitive dissonance developed by our proud parents as the lackadaisical parenting Jean Twenge, the study's author, cites.
There's no doubt that our generation can be far too self-obsessed for our own good. But are we really the only ones?
We're not too narcissistic to know that this is a problem that everyone succumbs to - not just us kids.
