Work experiences and self-esteem development: A meta-analysis of longitudinal studies

Theory suggests that people’s work experiences influence their self-esteem and, vice versa, that self-esteem influences work experiences. This meta-analysis of longitudinal studies synthesizes the available evidence on prospective effects between work experiences and self-esteem, controlling for prior levels of the outcomes. The following work variables were examined: job satisfaction, job success, income, job resources, job stressors, and employment status. The analyses were based on 30 independent samples, including data from 53,112 participants. Mean age ranged from 17 to 64 years, spanning most of the work life. For each work variable, we computed random effects models with standardized regression coefficients as effect size measure. Results suggested reciprocal effects between work experiences and self-esteem. The effects of self-esteem on later work experiences (point estimates ranged from .05 to .10) were slightly larger than the effects of work experiences on later self-esteem (point estimates ranged from .02 to .05). Moderator analyses on the relation between job satisfaction and self-esteem indicated that the effects did not differ across age, gender, sample type, and time lag. Overall, the findings support the corresponsive principle of personality development and suggest that the work domain and people’s self-esteem are interdependent

Testing the Bottom-Up and Top-Down Models of Self-Esteem: A Meta-Analysis of Longitudinal Studies

The present meta-analysis tests the bottom-up and top-down models of self-esteem, by synthesizing the available longitudinal evidence on prospective effects between global and domain-specific self-esteem. The bottom-up model assumes that people’s domain-specific self-esteem influences their global self-esteem, whereas the top-down model assumes the reverse direction of effects. Eight domains of self-esteem were assessed: academic abilities, physical appearance, athletic abilities, morality, romantic relationships, social acceptance, mathematics, and verbal abilities. We conducted a comprehensive search of the literature, which led to the inclusion of data from 43 independent samples (total N = 24,668). One-stage meta-analytic structural equation modeling was used to estimate the coefficients of interest. There was no evidence of publication bias. Overall, the results indicated a pattern of reciprocal prospective effects between global and domain-specific self-esteem. Bottom-up effects were significant in all domains except verbal abilities (mean effect sizes ranged from .05 to .19). Top-down effects were significant in all domains except mathematics (mean effect sizes ranged from .05 to .12, except .01 in the mathematics domain). None of the moderators tested (i.e., age, gender, measure, time lag, and publication year) was significant in any of the domains, which strengthens the generalizability of the results. In sum, the findings provide support for both bottom-up and top-down effects, suggesting a reciprocal relation model between global and domain-specific self-esteem. The discussion addresses the implications of the findings for research in the field of self-esteem

The link between low self-esteem and eating disorders: A meta-analysis of longitudinal studies

In this meta-analysis, we synthesized the available longitudinal evidence on prospective effects between self-esteem and eating pathology (i.e., restrained eating, bulimic behavior, binge eating, eating concern, negative body image, and drive for thinness). The analyses were based on 48 independent samples, including 19,187 participants. Mean age was 19.3 years (range = 7–48). As effect-size measure, we used standardized regression coefficients, controlled for prior levels of the predicted variables. Results suggested reciprocal prospective effects between low self-esteem and eating pathology. Self-esteem negatively predicted total eating pathology over time (β = −.08), and total eating pathology negatively predicted self-esteem over time (β = −.09). Overall, results for specific categories of eating pathology were similar. Moderator analyses indicated that the effects did not differ across age, gender, sample type (clinical vs. nonclinical), and time lag between assessments. In sum, the results support a reciprocal relations model of low self-esteem and eating disorders

Effect size guidelines for cross-lagged effects

Cross-lagged models are by far the most commonly used method to test the prospective effect of one construct on another, yet there are no guidelines for interpreting the size of cross-lagged effects. This research aims to establish empirical benchmarks for cross-lagged effects, focusing on the cross-lagged panel model (CLPM) and the random intercept cross-lagged panel model (RI-CLPM). We drew a quasirepresentative sample of studies published in four subfields of psychology (i.e., developmental, social–personality, clinical, and industrial–organizational). The dataset included 1,028 effect sizes for the CLPM and 302 effect sizes for the RI-CLPM, based on data from 174 samples. For the CLPM, the 25th, 50th, and 75th percentiles of the distribution corresponded to cross-lagged effect sizes of .03, .07, and .12, respectively. For the RI-CLPM, the corresponding values were .02, .05, and .11. Effect sizes did not differ significantly between the CLPM and RI-CLPM. Moreover, effect sizes did not differ significantly across subfields and were not moderated by design characteristics. However, effect sizes were moderated by the concurrent correlation between the constructs and the stability of the predictor. Based on the findings, we propose to use .03 (small effect), .07 (medium effect), and .12 (large effect) as benchmark values when interpreting the size of cross-lagged effects, for both the CLPM and RI-CLPM. In addition to aiding in the interpretation of results, the present findings will help researchers plan studies by providing information needed to conduct power analyses and estimate minimally required sample sizes

Robust estimation of bacterial cell count from optical density

Optical density (OD) is widely used to estimate the density of cells in liquid culture, but cannot be compared between instruments without a standardized calibration protocol and is challenging to relate to actual cell count. We address this with an interlaboratory study comparing three simple, low-cost, and highly accessible OD calibration protocols across 244 laboratories, applied to eight strains of constitutive GFP-expressing E. coli. Based on our results, we recommend calibrating OD to estimated cell count using serial dilution of silica microspheres, which produces highly precise calibration (95.5% of residuals <1.2-fold), is easily assessed for quality control, also assesses instrument effective linear range, and can be combined with fluorescence calibration to obtain units of Molecules of Equivalent Fluorescein (MEFL) per cell, allowing direct comparison and data fusion with flow cytometry measurements: in our study, fluorescence per cell measurements showed only a 1.07-fold mean difference between plate reader and flow cytometry data

Family environment and self-esteem development: A longitudinal study from age 10 to 16

In this study, we examined the effect of family environment on self-esteem development from late childhood (age 10) through adolescence (age 16), using 4-wave longitudinal data from 674 Mexican-origin families living in the United States. To assess family environment, a multi-informant approach was used (i.e., mother, father, and child) to construct latent variables that minimize the influence of response biases. Using cross-lagged panel models (CLPMs) and random intercepts cross-lagged panel models (RI-CLPMs), we tested the prospective effects of parenting behaviors (warmth, hostility, monitoring, and involvement in child’s education) and other characteristics of the family environment (quality of parental relationship, positive family values, maternal and paternal depression, economic conditions of the family, and presence of father). In the CLPMs, significant positive effects on children’s self-esteem emerged for warmth, monitoring, low maternal depression, economic security (vs. hardship), and presence (vs. absence) of father. With regard to the reciprocal effects, children’s self-esteem predicted positive family values (i.e., importance and centrality of the family) of mother and father. In the RI-CLPMs, the pattern of results was similar (in terms of point estimates of the effects); however, only the effects of maternal depression on child self-esteem, and the effect of child self-esteem on family values of father, were statistically significant. In all models, the effects did not differ significantly for boys and girls, or across ages 10 to 16. The findings suggest that multiple features of the family environment shape the development of self-esteem during late childhood and adolescence

Development of domain-specific self-evaluations: A meta-analysis of longitudinal studies

This meta-analysis investigated the normative development of domain-specific self-evaluations (also referred to as self-concept or domain-specific self-esteem) by synthesizing the available longitudinal data on mean-level change. Eight domains of self-evaluations were assessed: academic abilities, athletic abilities, physical appearance, morality, romantic relationships, social acceptance, mathematics, and verbal abilities. Analyses were based on data from 143 independent samples which included 112,204 participants. As the effect size measure, we used the standardized mean change d per year. The mean age associated with effect sizes ranged from 5 to 28 years. Overall, developmental trajectories of self-evaluations were positive in the domains of academic abilities, social acceptance, and romantic relationships. In contrast, self-evaluations showed negative developmental trajectories in the domains of morality, mathematics, and verbal abilities. Little mean-level change was observed for self-evaluations of physical appearance and athletic abilities. Moderator analyses were conducted for the full set of samples and for the subset of samples between ages 10 and 16 years. The moderator analyses indicated that the pattern of findings held across demographic characteristics of the samples, including gender and birth cohort. The meta-analytic dataset consisted largely of Western and White/European samples, pointing to the need of conducting more research with non-Western and ethnically diverse samples. The meta-analytic findings suggest that the notion that self-evaluations generally show a substantial decline in the transition from early to middle childhood should be revised. Also, the findings did not support the notion that self-evaluations reach a critical low point in many domains in early adolescence

Development of relationship satisfaction across the life span: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Previous research has not led to any agreement as to the normative trajectory of relationship satisfaction. In this systematic review and meta-analysis, we summarize the available evidence on development of relationship satisfaction, as a function of age and relationship duration. Data came from 165 independent samples including 165,039 participants. In the analyses, we examined cross-sectional information on mean level, that is, the percent-of-maximum-possible (POMP) score at the first assessment, and longitudinal information on mean change (i.e., change in POMP scores per year). The mean age associated with effect sizes ranged from 20 to 76 years and the mean relationship duration from 3 months to 46 years. Results on mean levels indicated that relationship satisfaction decreased from age 20 to 40, reached a low point at age 40, then increased until age 65, and plateaued in late adulthood. As regards the metric of relationship duration, relationship satisfaction decreased during the first 10 years of the relationship, reached a low point at 10 years, increased until 20 years, and then decreased again. Results on mean change indicated that relationship satisfaction decreased within a given relationship, with the largest declines in young adulthood and in the first years of a relationship. Moderator analyses suggested that presence of children and measure of relationship satisfaction explained variance in the mean level. Except for these two moderators, the pattern of findings held across characteristics such as birth cohort, sample type, country, ethnicity, gender, household shared with partner, marital status, relationship transitions, and dyadic data

The Longitudinal Relation Between Language Abilities and Metacognitive Monitoring in Native and Non-native Speaking Children

The ability to accurately evaluate one’s task performance (metacognitive monitoring) is crucial for children’s learning and academic achievement. We investigated the role of language abilities for metacognitive monitoring in five to seven years old native and non-native speakers. Data stem from an ongoing German large-scale assessment (National Educational Panel Study) initiated in 2010 (N = 9,167; 49.6 % male). Cross-lagged panel models revealed that earlier language abilities predict later metacognitive monitoring for native (β = -.21) but not for non-native speakers (β = -.07). Conversely, metacognitive monitoring predicted language abilities for non-native (β = .53) but not for native speakers (β = .03). Our results suggest different mechanisms driving native and non-native speakers metacognitive monitoring development

Working alliance and adherence mediate the effect of guidance in a web-based program for participants with mild to moderate depressive symptoms: A secondary mediation analysis.

Guided web-based self-help programs for individuals with depressive symptoms have shown to be more efficacious than unguided programs. However, research has paid little attention to why guided interventions are superior. The present study investigated whether working alliance and adherence to the program mediated the effect of guidance on depressive symptom outcome. The study is a secondary analysis of a randomized factorial trial. In the trial, 302 adults with mild to moderate depressive symptoms (Patient Health Questionnaire-9 score: 5-14) were randomized to either a guided or an unguided group. All participants received access to a web-based self-help program based on problem-solving therapy. Working alliance with the treatment providers was assessed using an adapted version of the Working Alliance Inventory for Guided Internet Interventions two weeks (early-treatment) and eight weeks (post-treatment) after pre-treatment. The primary outcome was depressive symptoms at post-treatment. The total working alliance score was significantly higher for guided participants compared to unguided participants (at early-treatment: t 248.6 = -3.36, p < .001, d = 0.42, at post-treatment: t 194.9 = -4.77, p < .001, d = 0.66). The total working alliance score correlated significantly with the change in depressive symptoms for guided (rs = 0.16, 0.34) and unguided participants (rs = 0.26, 0.23). The WAI-I total score statistically mediated the relationship between guidance and outcome (at early-treatment: B = -0.028, at post-treatment: B = -0.053). Furthermore, the subscale tasks (at post-treatment: B = -0.051), the subscale goals (at early-treatment: B = -0.031 and at post-treatment: B = -0.052), and adherence to the program (B = -0.034) mediated the relationship between guidance and outcome. Finally, in a multiple mediation model both early-treatment working alliance and adherence to the program (B = -0.050) mediated the relationship between guidance and outcome. These findings indicate that guidance increases working alliance to treatment providers as early as two weeks after treatment beginning. The alliance predicts outcome and mediates the relationship between guidance and outcome. Participants' agreement with tasks and goals of a program seems to be more important than the bond with treatment providers. Treatment providers might therefore attune web-based programs to the preferences and expectations of participants. In addition to the working alliance, adherence to the program co-mediates the relationship between guidance and outcome