The measurement of self-esteem: Refining our methods.

Abstract

A review of the literature indicates that (a) very little attention has been devoted to measurement problems plaguing the study of self-esteem and (b) few studies employ more than one type of self-esteem instrument. This study addresses these issues by using eight measures of self-esteem involving self-reports, ratings by others, and a projective instrument. Their intercorrelations are examined to provide preliminary validational evidence; then, confirmatory factor analysis is used to construct measurement models and further assess the validity of the measures. The results suggest that two traditional questionnaires and a personal interview are valid in measuring experienced self-esteem, and three measures involving ratings by others are valid in measuring presented self-esteem These findings are consistent with previous multidimensional conceptualizations of self-esteem, indicating that a variety of methods is necessary to adequately measure self-concept.

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1. Self-discrepancy: A theory relating self and affect.
   Higgins, E. Tory · 1987 · Psychological Review
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   Robins, Richard W., Hendin, Holly M., Trzesniewski, Kali H. · 2001 · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin
3. Measures of Self-Esteem
   Blascovich, Jim, Tomaka, Joseph · 1991 · Measures of Personality and Social Psychological Attitudes
4. Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale
   Rosenberg, M. · 2011 · PsycTESTS Dataset
5. Attempted Suicide Among Transgender Persons: The Influence of Gender-Based Discrimination and Victimization
   Clements-Nolle, Kristen, Marx, Rani, Katz, Mitchell · 2006 · Journal of Homosexuality

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