Origins of Self-Esteem Flashcards
Where does James think self-esteem comes from?
The average of domain-specific self evaluations, weighted by importance
- so global self-esteem is predicted by specific self esteem on dimensions you care about
What did Harter find?
Self evaluations in important domains correlate with global self-esteem at r=.70
Self evaluations in unimportant domains correlate with global self-esteem at r=.30
What domain is most strongly and most weakly correlated with self-worth?
Most - Physical appearance .52 to .80
Least - Athletic competence .24 to .42
What mediates the relationship between self evaluations and global self-worth?
Social support - self-worth depends on your relationships with others
Peer support mediates relationship between physical appearance, athletic competence and social acceptance and global self worth
Parental support mediates the relationship between scholastic competence, behavioural conduct and set worth
Who decides what is important?
Individual differences in importance of different domains do NOT moderate the importance of each domain for global self-esteem - personal importance does not impact domain specific evaluations and global self worth
What does moderate the relationship between domain specific evaluations and global self-worth?
Cultural values - the cultural importance of certain things, impacts the self-worth - what other people value rather than what you value
What are the problems with the relationships?
Mostly correlational
two possibilities:
domain specific evaluations = global self esteem ( I am good so I have high SE) or
global self esteem = domain specifics (I have high SE so I am a good lecturer)
Could be both
Could be different for different people: some may have SE due to doing well on things but some may have constant SE speading to lost of domains
What are the ways to look at the origins of self esteem?
Look at how well you are doing in things that other people around you value
Look at the strategies people have for enhancing it
What are the 5 strategies for enhancing self esteem?
Self serving biases in attributions - attribute successes internally and failures to others
Upward and downward comparison - who we compare ourselves too
Better than average effect - most people think they are better than average at most things
Basking in reflected glory - associate ourselves with other peoples successes, we won but they lost
Prejudice - making our own group look better compared to other people
What are the functions of these strategies?
Self-promotion function - greater among high SE people
Self-protection function - happen when SE is threatened, we want to protect ourselves
Subject to plausibility constraints - strategic self-enhancement: do it to the extent we can get away with it, don’t want to be arrogant
Is there a universal need for positive self-regard? Evidence against
There is evidence for self-criticism among Asian populations, and they show lower levels of self esteem than North Americans
in European Canadian small - most see themselves positive, if view negative, have a pathological problem, but in Japan, half see themselves negatively, but doesn’t mean half our depressed - maybe need for positive SE is a cultural thing
Is there a universal need for positive self-regard? Evidence for
All cultures do need it but get it in different ways - studied self enhancement (better than average effect) for positively valued traits among American and Japanese students
2 groups of traits: individualist traits and collectivist traits
Results:
individualist traits: Americans used the better than average effect on these traits
collectivist traits: Japans see themselves as better than average on these traits
What could failure to replicate SE being universal be due too?
Using the wrong measures - if you measure dimensions that aren’t valued in a culture, there is no need to self-enhance - people self-enhance on things which are valued to them
What is indirect self-enhancement?
Other people make internal attributions towards you - e.g. mum thinks I am very clever and that is why I do well
Study on indirect self-enhancement
118 Japanse undergraduates, studied attributions for successes and failures
ppts made self-effacing attributions - blamed themselves for failing
gave external credits for success
expected close relatives to make supportive attributions - mum would say I did well because I am clever
believed close others understood them well - correlated with expecting supportive, internal attributions
self serving bias could be a collaborative process in Japan, not supposed to say how brilliant you are so others say it
Modesty in Chinese culture
Study 1 - self rated modesty correlated negatively with explicit self-esteem in chine and US
Study 2 - self rated modesty correlated positively with implicit self-esteem, but not in the US
After describing themselves modestly, Chinese showed increased implicit self esteem
After describing themselves immodestly, Chinese showed reduced implicit self esteem - self-enhancement is subtle, to see yourself positively, need to see yourself modesty
Self-esteem across cultures - what does culture do?
Existing data doesn’t support the view that people in collectivist cultures have no need for positive self regard, but culture moderates it - affects what is positively valued and describes appropriate ways of maintaining and enhancing SE
How is self-esteem constructed?
Socially - depends on social value on domains and compares on social comparison standards
Individually - self promotion and self protection strategies are diverse, subtle and strategic
not the whole story - heritable as well
What do behavioural genetic studies of SE show?
Genetic influences substantial 30-50%
Shared environment minimal mostly less than 10%
Non shared environment largest - often greater than 50%
How can we explain genetic influences?
Doesn’t tell us the mechanism, could be that:
genetic differences in positive emotionality - ppl who feel better about things in general, may feel better about themselves, leading to seeing themselves high in certain things, implies global SE = domain specific evaluations OR
genetic dispositions in particular domains - which are valued in different cultures
e.g. if you live in a culture where you value physical characteristics then you will have appearance SE, can also have athletic or scholastic SE - not a genetic direct effect, but inherit these traits and then they are culturally valued
not inevitable, some is genetic but depends on the social context and how it is valued
