In the vast sea of social media content, memes, and viral posts,
few topics intrigue people as much as quick, eye-catching “personality tests.
” You might have scrolled through your feed, stumbled upon an image
with concentric circles, and read a bold claim: “The Number of Circles
You See Determines If You’re a Narcissist.” Perhaps you paused and
tried to count the circles, or maybe you shared it with friends, curious
about their reactions. Whatever the case, this particular meme taps
into a powerful and enduring human desire: the wish to understand ourselves,
and perhaps to understand others as well. Why do we give so much credence
to a simple image that purports to measure something as complex as narcissism?
In a world where personality quizzes, from the “What Kind of Pizza Are You?”
variety to the more established Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, are endlessly shared, this question is worth asking
