Self-esteem stability: the importance of basic self-esteem and competence strivings for the stability of global self-esteem

✍ Scribed by Maarit Johnson

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1998
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 189 KB
• Volume: 12
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0890-2070
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1099-0984(199803/04)12:2<103::aid-per310>3.0.co;2-8

✦ Synopsis

The stability of self-esteem has been increasingly emphasized as crucial for understanding the role and the functioning of self-esteem. The present study compares two conceptualizations of self-esteem, Global self-esteem and Basic self-esteem, as to stability over time. Moreover, the importance of competence strivings in order to gain self-esteem is considered. Eighty psychology students completed the scales, which also comprised a measure of current relevant events, six times during a 9 month period. It was shown that Global self-esteem was more unstable than Basic self-esteem and that a high need of competence and approval by others in acquiring self-esteem increased the instability, particularly when these strivings were combined with a low sense of Basic self-esteem and negative events. Moreover, the events had a greater impact on Global self-esteem than on Basic self-esteem. The more temporary nature of Global self-esteem and its greater sensitivity to self-presentational in¯uences and response biases are discussed.