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Revisiting Our Reappraisal of the (Surprisingly Few) Benefits of High Self-Esteem
Abstract
Our 2003 article clashed with conventional wisdom by concluding that high self-esteem has only a couple of benefits, notably high initiative (based on trusting one’s own judgment) and feeling good. Its high citation rate reflects not only the novel conclusions but also widespread interest in self-esteem both among researchers and in the broader society. Psychology may have lost some credibility by advocating efforts to raise self-esteem that were based on correlational evidence, which may be a salutary lesson for the field. There is still much to learn about self-esteem, but future work can improve by noting weaknesses in self-report data and correcting for confounds.
... Evidence from a meta-analysis indicates that self-esteem can be enhanced by means of behavioral interventions [57]. Despite the intuitive appeal it enjoys with the general public, scholars have debated the extent of the presumed ties between self-esteem and various positive life outcomes [58,59]. Nevertheless, even critics of the view that self-esteem is an overarching driver of positive life outcomes acknowledge its association with subjective happiness [59,60]. ...
... Despite the intuitive appeal it enjoys with the general public, scholars have debated the extent of the presumed ties between self-esteem and various positive life outcomes [58,59]. Nevertheless, even critics of the view that self-esteem is an overarching driver of positive life outcomes acknowledge its association with subjective happiness [59,60]. Largely consistent with that, self-esteem (operationalized as satisfaction with self ) was found to be correlated with satisfaction with life in a large sample of respondents from 31 countries [26]. ...
Background
Mounting evidence suggests that the effectiveness of positive psychology interventions is influenced by a variety of factors, including cultural context. Identifying intervention targets that can effectively contribute to improving individual well-being under these boundary conditions is a crucial step when developing viable interventions. To this end, we examined how gratitude disposition, self-esteem, and optimism relate to the subjective well-being (SWB) and psychological well-being (PWB) of Japanese individuals.
Methods
Multivariate regression analysis was employed to quantify the unique relationships between the three potential intervention targets and both SWB and PWB, while accounting for the influence of other variables. Participants (N = 71) also engaged in a 4-week experience sampling study to explore how gratitude, self-esteem and optimism shape the link between momentary affective states in everyday life and evaluations of day satisfaction.
Results
Multivariate regression analysis revealed that self-esteem was predominantly more strongly associated with SWB compared to gratitude disposition, whereas gratitude disposition was more strongly associated with the PWB dimensions, particularly personal growth, positive relations with others and purpose in life. Experience sampling data indicated that while both gratitude disposition and self-esteem moderated the association between momentary positive affect and day satisfaction evaluations, they did so in opposite ways; greater gratitude disposition strengthened the association, while greater self-esteem weakened it.
Conclusions
Overall, the current results suggest that while gratitude, self-esteem, and optimism influence individual well-being as a whole, they likely play distinct roles in facilitating SWB and PWB in the studied cohort.
... Guided by psychosocial models of successful aging (Bowling & Dieppe, 2005), personal resources (e.g., selfesteem) have been observed to be a crucial factor in the aging process (Abud et al., 2022). Self-esteem, which is the correspondence between the ideal and actual self-concept of an individual (Gómez-Ortiz et al., 2019), is characterized by confidence, high levels of belief, and satisfaction with oneself (Baumeister & Vohs, 2018). Among older adults in Australia (Chochovski et al., 2016), Iran (Franak et al., 2015), Croatia (Pluzarić et al., 2016), and China (Sun et al., 2017), selfesteem was associated with increased odds of aging successfully. ...
Background and Objectives
Previous research demonstrates that social support facilitates successful aging across all cultures. However, the factors that potentially mediate the link between social support and successful aging remain unclear. This study examined whether a healthy lifestyle and self-esteem mediate the association between social support and successful aging. It was hypothesized that the relationship between social support (family, friends, and significant other) and successful aging would be serially mediated by both healthy lifestyle and self-esteem.
Research Design and Methods
Participants were 479 Nigerian retirees (53.4% female) aged 60 to 90 years (Mage = 64.81, SD = 6.86). They provided information on relevant demographic variables and completed the following measures: Fantastic Lifestyle Checklist (Fitness Appraisal), Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale, Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support Scale, and Successful Aging Inventory. Three separate regression models (family, friends, and significant other dimensions of social support) were conducted using the Hayes PROCESS macro for SPSS with 5,000 bootstrap estimates.
Results
Controlling for age and sex, family support, significant other support, friends support, healthy lifestyle, and self-esteem were directly associated with successful aging. The association between family support and successful aging was mediated by healthy lifestyle; and this was also seen for friends’ support and significant other support. The sequential path from social support to successful aging through healthy lifestyle, and then via improved self-esteem, was significant for family support and significant other support, but not friends support.
Discussion and Implications
Findings suggest that middle-aged to older adults who have strong support from their families and significant others may be more likely to engage in healthy behaviors and, in turn, experience higher levels of self-esteem, thereby aging well.
... Person-oriented factors such as gender, age and SE influence the AC levels among entrepreneurs (Shahriar and Shepherd, 2019;Stroe et al., 2020;Wiklund et al., 2019;Pathak and Muralidharan, 2021). SE is related to self-appreciation and is connected to many important positive outcomes and benefits, such as better relationships and leadership capabilities (Baumeister and Vohs, 2018). Higher SE levels are related to higher leadership intentions (Lechner et al., 2018). ...
Purpose
This study aims to address the effects of self-esteem and affective commitment on firm performance and whether these effects vary according to the gender and age of active entrepreneurial students.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses a subsample from the Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students’ Survey (GUESSS) of entrepreneur students running their own businesses to perform a structural equation model (SEM) analysis to test the relationship between self-esteem (SE), affective commitment (AC) and firm performance (FP) moderated by the gender and age of entrepreneur students.
Findings
The results confirm that higher levels of entrepreneur SE are related to a higher assessment of AC and FP. A major effect of SE on AC was also observed among male respondents. Age was not related to an increase in AC. The effect of SE on AC and FP was lower among older students.
Originality/value
This study makes valuable contributions to the fields of entrepreneurship, psychology, gender and organizational behavior. This study presents empirical support for the theoretical framework using SEM, presenting initial insights into the mechanisms that shape AC in entrepreneurial students and its implications for FP.
... They are adept at coping with adversity and stress, demonstrating ease in dealing with a wide array of challenges. 46 High selfesteem is recognized as an indicator of older adults' superior mental health, often associated with reduced feelings of loneliness, diminished death anxiety, 47 and a more optimistic outlook on life. 48 Research has demonstrated that selfesteem is a strong and cross-culturally consistent predictor of SWB. ...
Purpose
In the intersection of the aging and information era, the development of digital aging significantly influences the well-being of older individuals. Given the divergent findings in various studies exploring the effects of social media use on mental health, this study specifically examined the impact of forwarding, a prevalent social media behavior among older individuals, focusing on the effects of use intensity on their subjective well-being (SWB) and the specific mechanisms involved.
Materials and Methods
A total of 323 Chinese older adults completed the questionnaire. SPSS along with Hayes Process Models 4 and 7 was employed to test the hypotheses.
Results
The results indicated that social media forwarding intensity significantly and positively predicted SWB of older adults. This association was partially mediated by perceived social support (PSS) and self-esteem. Gender served as a moderator, highlighting that the positive predictive effects of forwarding intensity on PSS and self-esteem were more pronounced for older men than for older women. Further, the findings confirmed the existence of the moderated mediating effect such that the impact of forwarding on SWB was mediated through both PSS and self-esteem for older men, while, for older women, it was solely mediated by PSS.
Conclusion
This study revealed the positive impact of forwarding, a user-friendly social media function, on the well-being of older adults and elucidated the specific mechanisms through a moderated mediation model. In light of these findings, we propose customizing the development of age-friendly social media functions to address the diverse psychological needs of older adults, taking into account gender differences. These findings may offer valuable insights for constructing digital age-friendly platforms and fostering active aging development.
... Whether self-esteem benefits academic achievement has been a topic of controversy. An early review concluded that "self-esteem is not a major predictor or cause of almost anything" (Baumeister et al., 2003, p. 37; also see Baumeister & Vohs, 2018). Since UNEQUAL SELVES 5 This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers. ...
Children from low socioeconomic status (SES) backgrounds often have more negative self-views than their peers. How are these self-views shaped by teacher–student interactions in the classroom, and what are the consequences of these self-views for achievement inequality? We present a developmental framework addressing these questions by bridging insights from the psychological, educational, and sociological literatures. We show that children from low-SES backgrounds perceive themselves as less intelligent, less able to grow their intelligence, less deserving, and less worthy, independent of their actual abilities and achievements. We demonstrate how negative intellectual stereotypes—expressed through daily interactions with teachers in classrooms, such as teachers’ expectations, feedback, and attention—undercut the self-views of children from low-SES backgrounds. We also show how this process can be exacerbated by institutional and cultural values reflecting a belief in meritocracy (e.g., schools that encourage competition, emphasize raw ability, and attribute achievement inequality to intrinsic factors), which are common in countries with high income inequality and rigid between-school tracking. The ensuing more negative self-views introduce psychological barriers that undermine the academic achievement of children from low-SES backgrounds, thereby reinforcing achievement inequality. This represents an enormous loss of potential and perpetuates harm into adulthood. Socioeconomic disparities in self-views can emerge early in life and widen with age, underlining the need for developmental research and timely intervention. We discuss implications for studying the nature, origins, and consequences of socioeconomic disparities in self-views, and for designing interventions to reduce achievement inequality.
... As Dominus (2023)[1] explains, the effect can be traced to Dodo being asked to judge a race in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, "[decreeing,] everybody has won, and all must have prizes." This is further seen in the self-esteem literature of the last three decades, where the idea that everyone must be given a medal for participation, was unsurprisingly, nuanced in methodological issues showing that few benefits derived from such premise (Baumeister & Vohs, 2018)[46]. It remains to be seen what the scientific verdict on Dodo Bird effect will be (Wampold, 2015)[22]. ...
We examined evidence for the view that trauma transcendence should be operationally defined as a process rather than an end goal and considered caveats in individual differences of construal and contextual-cultural influences. The focus was on the role of therapy treatments used in trauma transcendence and the extent to which evidence-based information, theory, and generalizability are—can/ should be—involved. Our methodological analysis and theoretical discussion of extant research evidence focused on (a) models of trauma transcendence, (b) the multivariate, scientific nature of evidence-based therapy treatments/outcomes, (c) the need to have tailor-made trauma treatments that allow for individualized patient variability, (d) therapists’ skill-limitations/strengths, and (e) the need for methodical, systematic approaches to trauma transcendence. Our conclusions show that evidence-based approaches are needed, but limits remain in generalizability of findings. We also recognize a need for multipronged approaches to trauma transcendence, from trauma-informed approaches, to reducing the shortage of therapists, increasing methodological-clinical sophistication in the public sphere, and addressing the multivariate nature of trauma. Finally, we suggest that navigating trauma transcendence should be a process that goes beyond the homeostatic state.
... It would merely reflect social status and personal failure or success, and as such it is hardly surprising that people who are marginalized, face a lot of adversity in life (eg, abuse and neglect), and suffer from psychopathological conditions, also display low levels of self-esteem. 15,30 Moreover, questions were raised regarding the malleability of (low) self-esteem: for example, positive feedback, flattering, and praise are difficult to reconcile with the negative picture that people (sometimes) have about themselves and hence do not automatically result in a more positive self-view. 20 Self-compassion is assumed to not have these drawbacks: This trait would be less dependent on the proceedings of life and is also thought to be more mouldable, making it a suitable target for intervention. ...
The present review addressed the relationship between two self-related concepts that are assumed to play a role in human resilience and well-being: self-esteem and self-compassion. Besides a theoretical exploration of both concepts, a meta-analysis (k = 76, N = 35,537 participants) was conducted to examine the magnitude of the relation between self-esteem and self-compassion and their links to indices of well-being and psychological problems. The average correlation between self-esteem and self-compassion was strong (r = 0.65, effect size = 0.71), suggesting that – despite some distinct features – the overlap between both self-related constructs is considerable. Self-esteem and self-compassion displayed relations of a similar magnitude to measures of well-being and psychological problems, and both concepts accounted for unique variance in these measures once controlling for their shared variance. Self-esteem and self-compassion can best be seen as complementary concepts and we invite researchers to look more at their joint protective role within a context of well-being and mental health as well as to their additive value in the treatment of people with psychological problems.
Starting from Roy Baumeister’s theory, the present author has developed a theory of a meaningful life involving seven needs for meaning: needs for purpose, moral worth, self-worth, control, coherence, connectedness, and excitement. More than Baumeister’s theory this one strikes a balance between agency and communion. After outlining the theory, the seven meaning dimensions are elaborated on in relation to aging. Concepts are clarified, results of (mostly recent) empirical research are reviewed, and many questions will be raised. The relation between the seven components and the relation between meaning and well-being is discussed. Finally, a plea is made for interdisciplinary collaboration between social sciences, history, and philosophy (especially ethics and social philosophy).
In the last 15 years, there has been a surge of superhero stories within popular culture. This learning experience is not focused on the external heroism of the individual and their achievements, but on the internal growth that the hero experiences as they discover their powers and learn how to use them for success. This popular journey narrative is consistent with the following: (1) The superhero first gains the self-knowledge of their powers. (2) They develop this power over time to achieve mastery. (3) The superhero must develop a belief in their capacity to use their power (i.e., self-efficacy), and finally (4) use this superpower to succeed. Consistent with this narrative approach of the superhero’s discovery journey, this experiential learning activity helps learners first recognize that they also possess an important skill or personal resource. Then, the participant is challenged to trace the growth of this skill as it evolved to become their “superpower.” In doing so, the learner begins to realize that they already have a growth mindset, although they may have not been explicitly aware of it, which can be leveraged and applied to their entrepreneurial aspirations. This, in turn, leads to increased entrepreneurial self-efficacy.
Conventional wisdom has regarded low self-esteem as an important cause of violence, but the opposite view is theoretically viable. An interdisciplinary review of evidence about aggression, crime, and violence contradicted the view that low self-esteem is an important cause. Instead, violence appears to be most commonly a result of threatened egotism--that is, highly favorable views of self that are disputed by some person or circumstance. Inflated, unstable, or tentative beliefs in the self's superiority may be most prone to encountering threats and hence to causing violence. The mediating process may involve directing anger outward as a way of avoiding a downward revision of the self-concept.
Self-enhancement denotes a class of psychological phenomena that involve taking a tendentiously positive view of oneself. We distinguish between four levels of self-enhancement-an observed effect, an ongoing process, a personality trait, and an underlying motive-and then use these distinctions to organize the wealth of relevant research. Furthermore, to render these distinctions intuitive, we draw an extended analogy between self-enhancement and the phenomenon of eating. Among the topics we address are (a) manifestations of self-enhancement, both obvious and subtle, and rival interpretations; (b) experimentally documented dynamics of affirming and threatening the ego; and (c) primacy of self-enhancement, considered alongside other intrapsychic phenomena, and across different cultures. Self-enhancement, like eating, is a fundamental part of human nature.
© 2008 Association for Psychological Science.
We examined the life-span development of self-esteem and tested whether self-esteem influences the development of important life outcomes, including relationship satisfaction, job satisfaction, occupational status, salary, positive and negative affect, depression, and physical health. Data came from the Longitudinal Study of Generations. Analyses were based on 5 assessments across a 12-year period of a sample of 1,824 individuals ages 16 to 97 years. First, growth curve analyses indicated that self-esteem increases from adolescence to middle adulthood, reaches a peak at about age 50 years, and then decreases in old age. Second, cross-lagged regression analyses indicated that self-esteem is best modeled as a cause rather than a consequence of life outcomes. Third, growth curve analyses, with self-esteem as a time-varying covariate, suggested that self-esteem has medium-sized effects on life-span trajectories of affect and depression, small to medium-sized effects on trajectories of relationship and job satisfaction, a very small effect on the trajectory of health, and no effect on the trajectory of occupational status. These findings replicated across 4 generations of participants—children, parents, grandparents, and their great-grandparents. Together, the results suggest that self-esteem has a significant prospective impact on real-world life experiences and that high and low self-esteem are not mere epiphenomena of success and failure in important life domains.
Causal models, guided by a "frame of reference" hypothesis, were used to examine whether school academic climates have any impacts on self-concepts of academic ability, global self-esteem, and long-range educational attainments. Analyses were based on a subsample of 1,487 White males from the Youth in Transition nationwide study of high school students. After the effects of individual ability and family socioeconomic status (SES) were controlled, there were only small negative effects of school mean ability on self-concepts and self-esteem. Educational attainment 5 yrs beyond high school was strongly influenced by background, ability, and grades, but there was little additional impact from self-concepts and self-esteem, and no overall effect attributable to school climate. Findings differ sharply from those reported by H. W. Marsh and J. W. Parker (see record
1984-32730-001), which were based on their study in 5 Australian schools. (29 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Three studies were conducted to determine whether physical attractiveness (PAT) is related to subjective well-being (SWB). In the first study (
N = 221), unselected students were photographed and videotaped. In the second study (
N = 131), participants were selected on the basis of extremes in PAT, and in the third study (
N = 155), participants were preselected for extreme scores on SWB. Correlations between SWB and PAT varied from .03 to .33. In Study 1 the mean correlation between PAT and SWB was .13. When appearance enhancers (hair, clothing, and jewelry) were covered or removed in Studies 2 and 3, the correlation between PAT and SWB dropped, suggesting that part of the SWB–PAT relation might be due to happier people doing more to enhance their beauty. The impact of PAT on SWB may be mitigated by the fact that others agree on a target's PAT at only modest levels. It was found that self-perceptions of PAT were correlated with both one's objective PAT and one's SWB. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Suppressor situations occur when the addition of a new predictor improves the validity of a predictor variable already in the equation. A common allegation is that suppressor effects rarely replicate and have little substantive import. We present substantive examples from two established research domains to counter this skepticism. In the first domain, we show how measures of guilt and shame act consistently as mutual suppressors: Adding shame into a regression equation increases the negative association between guilt and aggression, whereas adding guilt increases the positive association between shame and aggression. In the second domain, we show how the effects of self-esteem and narcissism operate consistently as mutual suppressors: That is, adding narcissism into a regression equation increases the negative association between self-esteem and antisocial behavior, whereas adding self-esteem increases the positive association between narcissism and antisocial behavior. Discussion addresses the different implications for suppressors in theoretical and variable selection applications.
In three studies we investigated the utility of distinguishing among different domains of interpersonal competence in college students' peer relationships. In Study 1 we developed a questionnaire to assess five dimensions of competence: initiating relationships, self-disclosure, asserting displeasure with others' actions, providing emotional support, and managing interpersonal conflicts. Initial validation evidence was gathered. We found that self-perceptions of competence varied as a function of sex of subject, sex of interaction partner, and competence domain. In Study 2 we found moderate levels of agreement between ratings of competence by subjects and their roommates. Interpersonal competence scores were also related in predictable ways to subject and roommate reports of masculinity and femininity, social self-esteem, loneliness, and social desirability. In Study 3 we obtained ratings of subjects' competence from their close friends and new acquaintances. Relationship satisfaction among new acquaintances was predicted best by initiation competence, whereas satisfaction in friendships was most strongly related to emotional support competence. The findings provide strong evidence of the usefulness of distinguishing among domains of interpersonal competence.
Psychology calls itself the science of behavior, and the American Psychological Association's current "Decade of Behavior" was intended to increase awareness and appreciation of this aspect of the science. Yet some psychological subdisciplines have never directly studied behavior, and studies on behavior are dwindling rapidly in other subdisciplines. We discuss the eclipse of behavior in personality and social psychology, in which direct observation of behavior has been increasingly supplanted by introspective self-reports, hypothetical scenarios, and questionnaire ratings. We advocate a renewed commitment to including direct observation of behavior whenever possible and in at least a healthy minority of research projects.
© 2007 Association for Psychological Science.
ABSTRACT In this study we compared the ability of narcissism and self-esteem to predict positive illusions in self-evaluations of intelligence and physical attractiveness in a sample of 146 college students. Narcissism predicted both types of illusion for males and females; self-esteem predicted intelligence self-illusion for males. Both males and females overestimated their own intelligence, with males, but not females, also overestimating their attractiveness. Positive illusions for intelligence and attractiveness were correlated. Males showed greater positive illusions than females, with this effect at least partly attributable to observed gender differences in narcissism.
Self-esteem has become a household word. Teachers, parents, therapists, and others have focused efforts on boosting self-esteem, on the assumption that high self-esteem will cause many positive outcomes and benefits—an assumption that is critically evaluated in this review.
Appraisal of the effects of self-esteem is complicated by several factors. Because many people with high self-esteem exaggerate their successes and good traits, we emphasize objective measures of outcomes. High self-esteem is also a heterogeneous category, encompassing people who frankly accept their good qualities along with narcissistic, defensive, and conceited individuals.
The modest correlations between self-esteem and school performance do not indicate that high self-esteem leads to good performance. Instead, high self-esteem is partly the result of good school performance. Efforts to boost the self-esteem of pupils have not been shown to improve academic performance and may sometimes be counterproductive. Job performance in adults is sometimes related to self-esteem, although the correlations vary widely, and the direction of causality has not been established. Occupational success may boost self-esteem rather than the reverse. Alternatively, self-esteem may be helpful only in some job contexts. Laboratory studies have generally failed to find that self-esteem causes good task performance, with the important exception that high self-esteem facilitates persistence after failure.
People high in self-esteem claim to be more likable and attractive, to have better relationships, and to make better impressions on others than people with low self-esteem, but objective measures disconfirm most of these beliefs. Narcissists are charming at first but tend to alienate others eventually. Self-esteem has not been shown to predict the quality or duration of relationships.
High self-esteem makes people more willing to speak up in groups and to criticize the group's approach. Leadership does not stem directly from self-esteem, but self-esteem may have indirect effects. Relative to people with low self-esteem, those with high self-esteem show stronger in-group favoritism, which may increase prejudice and discrimination.
Neither high nor low self-esteem is a direct cause of violence. Narcissism leads to increased aggression in retaliation for wounded pride. Low self-esteem may contribute to externalizing behavior and delinquency, although some studies have found that there are no effects or that the effect of self-esteem vanishes when other variables are controlled. The highest and lowest rates of cheating and bullying are found in different subcategories of high self-esteem.
Self-esteem has a strong relation to happiness. Although the research has not clearly established causation, we are persuaded that high self-esteem does lead to greater happiness. Low self-esteem is more likely than high to lead to depression under some circumstances. Some studies support the buffer hypothesis, which is that high self-esteem mitigates the effects of stress, but other studies come to the opposite conclusion, indicating that the negative effects of low self-esteem are mainly felt in good times. Still others find that high self-esteem leads to happier outcomes regardless of stress or other circumstances.
High self-esteem does not prevent children from smoking, drinking, taking drugs, or engaging in early sex. If anything, high self-esteem fosters experimentation, which may increase early sexual activity or drinking, but in general effects of self-esteem are negligible. One important exception is that high self-esteem reduces the chances of bulimia in females.
Overall, the benefits of high self-esteem fall into two categories: enhanced initiative and pleasant feelings. We have not found evidence that boosting self-esteem (by therapeutic interventions or school programs) causes benefits. Our findings do not support continued widespread efforts to boost self-esteem in the hope that it will by itself foster improved outcomes. In view of the heterogeneity of high self-esteem, indiscriminate praise might just as easily promote narcissism, with its less desirable consequences. Instead, we recommend using praise to boost self-esteem as a reward for socially desirable behavior and self-improvement.