Assessment of implicit self-esteem in older adults : the role of actual and ideal self-esteem in negative mood

The interplay between actual and ideal self-esteem may be a key component in emotional disorders. Since automatic self-evaluations are not always consciously accessible, assessment through implicit measures is necessary. Given the lack of implicit self-esteem measures in late life, we aimed to identify a reliable measure and to clarify the role of actual and ideal self-esteem in mood and depressive symptoms in older adults. Forty-nine older adults completed two adapted Go/No go Association tasks measuring implicit actual and ideal self-esteem and measures of mood and depressive symptoms. The two Go/No go Association tasks showed satisfactory internal consistency. Moderation analyses revealed that lower actual self-esteem in older adults is related to higher levels of sad mood when ideal self-esteem is high. Moreover, lower actual self-esteem is related to more anxious mood. Given the role of self-esteem in emotional well-being, a reliable measure for older adults is crucial to improve age-appropriate diagnostics and treatment. </jats:p

Charting self-esteem during marital dissolution.

ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to chart changes in self-esteem before and after marital dissolution to identify the factors that shape individuals' self-esteem during this life transition.MethodWe analyzed 10 annual waves of self-esteem data from 291 divorcees from a nationally representative panel study of the Netherlands (N&nbsp;~&nbsp;13,000). We charted the course of self-esteem before and after marital dissolution and tested a broad set of moderator variables that may shape individuals' self-esteem trajectories.ResultsThe average divorcee experienced significant decrease in self-esteem preceding marital dissolution and remained stable afterward. There were substantial individual differences in self-esteem trajectories, both before and after marital separation. Divorcees who experienced financial hardship, were affiliated with a church or religion, or scored low in Conscientiousness showed the most pronounced decrease in self-esteem during the years approaching marital dissolution.ConclusionThis study highlights the importance of assessing people multiple times before and after marital dissolution to dissect how people approach and respond to this life event. Results are consistent with perspectives that view divorce as an opportunity to abate the strains of an unhappy marriage

Peer Victimization in Overweight Adolescents and Its Effect on Their Self-Esteem and Peer Difficulties

This study has three objectives: to examine whether adolescents who perceive themselves as overweight differ from others in terms of offline victimization at school, cybervictimization, self-esteem, and difficulties relating to peers; to examine the possible effects of offline and cybervictimization on self-esteem and difficulties relating to peers; and to examine the possible moderating role of perceiving oneself as overweight on those effects. Previously validated questionnaires were applied to a sample of 3145 adolescents in Asturias (Spain). Descriptive, inferential, correlational, and structural equation analyses were performed. Adolescents who perceived themselves as overweight reported being victims of both offline victimization and most forms of cybervictimization to a greater extent than those who did not perceive themselves as overweight. They also reported lower self-esteem and more peer difficulties (shyness or social anxiety). In both groups of adolescents, victimization and cybervictimization were correlated with each other, both types of victimization had direct, negative effects on self-esteem, and self-esteem in turn had a direct, negative effect on peer difficulties. Furthermore, offline victimization had a direct, positive effect on peer difficulties. Perceiving oneself as overweight moderated the effect of self-esteem on peer difficulties. In adolescents perceiving themselves as overweight, low self-esteem was a stronger risk factor of peer difficulties than in the rest of the adolescents. With high overall self-esteem there were no significant differences in peer difficulties between the adolescents perceiving themselves as overweight and the rest of the adolescents

Counterfactual reasoning for regretted situations involving controllable versus uncontrollable events: The modulating role of contingent self-esteem

We report a study that examined the modulating impact of contingent self-esteem on regret intensity for regretted outcomes associated with controllable versus uncontrollable events. The Contingent Self-Esteem Scale (e.g., Kernis & Goldman, 2006) was used to assess the extent to which a person’s sense of self-worth is based on self and others’ expectations. We found that there was an influence of self-esteem contingency for controllable but not for uncontrollable regret types. For controllable regret types individuals with a high contingent (i.e., unstable) self-esteem reported greater regret intensity than those with a low contingent (i.e., stable) self-esteem. We interpret this finding as reflecting a functional and adaptive role of high contingent self-esteem in terms of mobilizing the application of counterfactual reasoning and planning mechanisms that can enable personal expectations to be achieved in the future

Parenting Practices, Life Satisfaction, and the Role of Self-Esteem in Adolescents

Introduction: Studies have shown significant associations between parenting practices, life satisfaction, and self-esteem, and the role of parenting practices in adolescent adjustment, emphasizing its influence on wellbeing. Objectives: To analyze the relationships between parenting practices, self-esteem, and life satisfaction, and test the mediating effect of self-esteem on the relationship between the different parenting practices and life satisfaction of adolescents. Method: The sample came to a total of 742 adolescents, with an average age of 15.63 (SD = 1.24; range 13–19). The Parenting Style Scale, the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, and the Satisfaction with Life Scale were used. Results: Perception by adolescents of high levels of affect and communication, self-disclosure, and a sense of humor related to their parents, as well as low levels of psychological control, explained the life satisfaction of the adolescents. Self-esteem exerted a partial mediating effect on the relationship between parenting practices and satisfaction with the life of the adolescent. Finally, self-esteem also appeared to be a moderator variable, specifically in the effect of self-disclosure on the life satisfaction of the adolescent. Conclusions: The results reinforce the role of personal variables, especially self-esteem, in parent-child interaction and in the improved subjective wellbeing of the adolescent

Self-esteem, general and sexual self-concepts in blind people

Background: People with visual disability have lower self-esteem and social skills than sighted people. This study was designed to describe self-esteem and general and sexual self-concepts in blind people. Materials and Methods: This was a cross-sectional study, conducted in the Isfahan University of Medical Sciences in 2013-2014. In this study, 138 visually impaired people participated from Isfahan Province Welfare Organization and were interviewed for measuring of self-esteem and self-concept using Eysenck self-esteem and Rogers’ self-concept questionnaires. The correlation between above two variables was measured using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software by Pearson correlation test. Results: Mean [± standard deviation (SD)] age of patients was 30.9 ± 8 years. The mean (±SD) of general self-concept score was 11 ± 5.83. The mean (±SD) of self-esteem score was 16.62 ± 2.85. Pearson correlation results showed a significant positive correlation between self-esteem and general self-concept (r = 0.19, P = 0.025). The mean of sexual self-concept scores in five subscales (sexual anxiety, sexual self-efficacy, sexual self-esteem, sexual fear, and sexual depression) were correspondingly 11 ± 4.41, 19.53 ± 4.53, 12.96 ± 4.19, 13.48 ± 1.76, and 5.38 ± 2.36. Self-esteem and self-concept had significant positive correlation with sexual anxiety (r = 0.49; P < 0.001) (r =-.23; P < 0.001) and sexual fear (r = 0.25; P = 0.003) (r = 0.18; P = 0.02) and negative correlation with sexual self-efficacy (r =-0.26; P = 0.002) (r =-0.28; P = 0.001) and sexual-esteem (r =-0.34; P < 0.001) (r =-0.34; P < 0.001). Conclusion: Self-esteem and self-concept had significant correlation with sexual anxiety and sexual fear; and negative correlation with sexual self-efficacy and sexual-esteem. © 2015 Journal of Research in Medical Sciences

Parental Co‐Construction of 5‐ to 13‐Year‐Olds\u27 Global Self‐Esteem Through Reminiscing About Past Events

The current study explored parental processes associated with children\u27s global self‐esteem development. Eighty 5‐ to 13‐year‐olds and one of their parents provided qualitative and quantitative data through questionnaires, open‐ended questions, and a laboratory‐based reminiscing task. Parents who included more explanations of emotions when writing about the lowest points in their lives were more likely to discuss explanations of emotions experienced in negative past events with their child, which was associated with child attachment security. Attachment was associated with concurrent self‐esteem, which predicted relative increases in self‐esteem 16 months later, on average. Finally, parent support also predicted residual increases in self‐esteem. Findings extend prior research by including younger ages and uncovering a process by which two theoretically relevant parenting behaviors impact self‐esteem development

The role of social support and self-esteem in the presence and course of depressive symptoms: a comparison of cancer patients and individuals from the general population

The key focus of this longitudinal study in the Netherlands was to determine the role of social support (i.e. perceived availability of emotional support, lack of received problem-focused emotional support, and negative interactions) and positive and negative self-esteem in depressive symptoms in 475 recently diagnosed cancer patients and 255 individuals without cancer from the general population. Patients and the comparison group were interviewed and filled in a questionnaire at two points in time: 3 months (T1) and 15 months (T2) after diagnosis. The results indicated that social support and self-esteem were weakly to moderately related to each other. Negative self-esteem was more strongly related to all three types of social support, compared to positive self-esteem. Regression analyses showed that social support and self-esteem were independently related to depressive symptoms (concurrently), such that lower levels of social support and self-esteem were strongly associated with higher levels of depressive symptoms. This finding suggests that these two resources supplement each other additively. A longitudinal analysis showed that social support and self-esteem also predicted future levels of depressive symptoms, although the explained variance was much lower than in a cross-sectional analysis. Comparisons between cancer patients and the comparison group generally revealed no significant differences between the two groups in the associations of social support and self-esteem with depressive symptoms. The only exception was a lack of problem-focused emotional support. At three months after diagnosis, a lack of this type of support, characterised by reassuring, comforting, problem-solving, and advice, was more strongly related to depressive symptoms in patients than in the comparison group. Record 4 of 25 - SilverPlatter MEDLINE(R)

The relationship between Self-Esteem and sexual Self-Concept in people with Physical-Motor disabilities

Background: Self-esteem is the value that the individuals give themselves, and sexual self-concept is also a part of individuality or sexualself. Impairment or disability exists not only in the physical body of disabled people but also in their attitudes. Negative attitudes affect the mental health of disabled people, causing them to have lower self-esteem. Objectives: This study aimed to examine the relationship between self-esteem and sexual self-concept in people with physical-motor disabilities. Patients and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 200 random samples with physical-motor disabilities covered by Isfahan Welfare Organization in 2013. Data collection instruments were the Persian Eysenck self-esteem questionnaire, and five domains (sexual anxiety, sexual self-efficacy, sexual self-esteem, sexual fear and sexual depression) of the Persian multidimensional sexual selfconcept questionnaire. Because of incomplete filling of the questionnaires, the data of 183 people were analyzed by the SPSS 16.0 software. Data were analyzed using the t-test, Man-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis tests and Spearman correlation coefficient. Results: The mean age was 36.88 ± 8.94 years for women and 37.80 ± 10.13 for men. The mean scores of self-esteem among women and men were 15.80 ± 3.08 and 16.2 ± 2.90, respectively and there was no statistically significance difference. Comparison of the mean scores of sexual anxiety, sexual self-efficacy, sexual self-esteem, sexual fear and sexual depression among men and women showed that women scored higher than men in all domains. This difference was statistically significant in other domains except the sexual self-esteem (14.92 ± 3.61 vs. 13.56 ± 4.52) (P < 0.05). The Kruskal-Wallis test showed that except for sexual anxiety and sexual self-esteem, there was a statistical difference between other domains of people’s sexual self-concept and degree of disability (P < 0.05). Moreover, Spearman coefficient showed that there was only a correlation between men’s sexual anxiety, sexual self-esteem and sexual self-efficacy with their self-esteem. This correlation was positive in sexual anxiety and negative in two other domains. Conclusions: Lack of difference in self-esteem of disabled people in different degrees of disability and in both men and women suggests that disabled people should not be presumed to have low self-esteem, and their different aspects of life should be attended to, just like others. Furthermore, studies should be designed and implemented based on psychological, social and environmental factors that can help disabled people to promote their positive sexual self-concept through marriage, and reduce their negative self-concept. © 2015 Iranian Red Crescent Medical Journal