The impact of narcissistic rivalry on work burnout among working adults: the mediating effects of perceived stress and sleep health

Objective: To evaluate the association between narcissistic rivalry and work burnout among employed adults aged 24-60 years in mainland China and to examine whether perceived stress and sleep health show indirect effects in this relationship. Methods: Employed individuals aged 24-60 years from the 2024 Chinese Residents' Psychological and Behavioral Survey were included in this study. Data were collected using the General Information Questionnaire, Narcissistic Admiration and Rivalry Questionnaire Short Scale (NARQS), Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-4), Sleep Health Self-Assessment (SHS), and Chinese Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CCBI). Spearman's correlation analysis was used to examine the relationships among narcissistic rivalry, perceived stress, sleep health, and work burnout. Mediation analysis was conducted to explore the mediating roles of perceived stress and sleep health in the relationship between narcissistic rivalry and work burnout. In addition, age-stratified analyses were performed to explore whether the mediation pattern varied across age groups. Results: = -0.212, p < 0.01). Mediation analysis showed that narcissistic rivalry had a significant direct effect on work burnout (95% CI: 0.327-0.496), accounting for 57.81% of the total effect, and a significant indirect effect through perceived stress and sleep health (95% CI: 0.239-0.365), accounting for 42.19% of the total effect. In age-stratified analyses, all three indirect pathways were significant in the young group, whereas in the middle-aged group the indirect pathway through sleep health alone was not significant, suggesting that the pattern of indirect effects may differ across age groups. Conclusion: Narcissistic rivalry was directly associated with work burnout, and perceived stress and sleep health showed significant indirect effects in this association. The mediation pattern was broadly similar across age groups, although the pathway through sleep health alone appeared weaker in middle-aged employed adults.