Verifying Hypotheses Of The Affective Model Of Self-Esteem

Object:To test hypotheses of the affective model of self-esteem about the nature and the development of self-esteem,the effect on personal life of self-esteem,and the relation between the self-esteem and self-evaluations,we conducted 4 studies.Methods:In study 1,343 college students(161males,176females and 6defaults) completed the assessment of the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale(SES),Maslow Security-Insecurity Inventory(S-II) and the General Domain Sense of Control Scale(GDSCS) in the Shapiro Control Inventory(SCI).Scores in SES,S-II and GDSCS were compared between low self-esteem(LSE) samples and high self-esteem(HSE) samples,Correlation and Multiple Regression Analysis were used to analyze the relation between self-esteem and the sense of belonging,the sense of mastery.In study 2,551 college students(231males and 320females) completed the assessment of SES,Parents Parenting Styles scale(Egma Minnen AV Bardndosna Uppforstran,EMPU),Adolescent Temperament Scale(ATS) and Childhood Trauma Questionnaire -28Item Short Form(CTQ-SF).Correlation and Multiple Regression Analysis were used to analyze relations among temperaments,parenting styles, negative life experiences,and self-esteem.In study 3,611 college students(247males and 364females) completed the assessment of SES, the Self-Rating Depression Scale(SDS),the Student-Life Stress Inventory(SLSI) and the Interpersonal Relationship Integrative Diagnostic Scale(IRIDS).Scores in SDS,IRIDS and SLSI were compared between LSEs and HSEs,Correlation and Path Analysis were used to explain relations among self-esteem,interpersonal problems, stressful life events and depression.In study 4,firstly,92 college students (34males and 58females) completed the assessment of SES and the Self-Experiencing and Self-Evaluating Inventory:a scale found by ourselves,Correlation Analysis was used to explore the consistency in self-experiences and self-evaluations.Secondly,34 college students including 16HSEs and 18LSEs(half male and half female in each group) completed a choice task including 12 scenes below which each matched two answers about the self-reaction to the scene:one was self-experiencing and the other self-evaluating,they also completed a task including 20-pair words related to self-experiences and self-evaluations by which participants judged the words being commendatory(positive) or derogatory(negative),the task compiled by E-Prime procedure were presented via personal computer.To understand whether self-experiencing or self-evaluating was the initial reaction to the environment,percentages of different choices in 12 scenes were compared and reaction-times to different types of words were also compared.Results:In study 1,it was found that scores of HSEs in S-II, GDSCS were higher than LSEs(t=-12.45,-11.51;p＜0.001),and there was a significant positive correlation between SES and S-II, GDSCS(r=0.61,0.62;p＜0.01),Multiple Regression Analysis revealed that S-II,GDSCS could explain over half of the total variance of SES(R=0.74,R Square=0.54).In study 2,it was found that there were small or moderate correlations(from 0.10 to 0.43) among temperament styles,parenting styles,negative life experiences and self-esteem,in which Sanguine temperament associated with good parenting style,less negative life experiences and high self-esteem,while Melancholy correlated with bad parenting styles,more negative life experiences and low self-esteem.Multiple Regression Analysis indicated that warm and understanding parenting style,Phlegmatic temperament,punishing and strict parenting style,Melancholy temperament could explain 30%total variance of negative experiences(R=0.55,R Square=0.30),and Melancholy,Sanguine,warm and understanding parenting style by mother,Phlegmatic,body neglect,overprotection by father could explain 26%total variance of SES(R=0.51,R Square= 0.26).In study 3,results indicated that HSEs had less interpersonal problems,less stressful life events,and were less depressive than LSEs(t=-12.77,-16.08,-8.45; p＜0.01).Correlation Analysis revealed that SES correlated moderately or strongly with interpersonal problems(r=-0.55),stressful life events (r=-0.38) and depression(r=-0.53),and interpersonal problems,stressful life events correlated moderately or strongly with depression(r= 0.58, 0.43;p＜0.01).Path Analysis indicated that the direct effect caused by self-esteem on interpersonal problems,stressful life events were respectively -0.66,-0.91,and the direct effect on depression by self-esteem,interpersonal problems,stressful life events were -0.55,0.55, 0.10.Path Analysis also found that the indirect effect on depression by self-esteem was -0.46.In study 4,there was a significantly strong correlation(r=0.78) between positive self-evaluations and positive self-experiences,and a significantly highly correlation(r=0.82) between negative self-evaluations and negative self-experiences,the global self-esteem correlated strongly with positive or negative self-evaluations and self-experiences(respectively,r= 0.66,0.66;-0.65,-0.73). Percentages obtained from 12 scenes by 34 participants indicated that people(either HSEs or LSEs) appeared to select self-experiencing as initial self-reaction(p＜0.05 or 0.01).it was found that the reaction-times in judging negative words was longer than in judging positive words (t=3.59,p＜0.05),and the reaction-times in judging positive self-experiencing words was less than in judging positive self-evaluating words(t=-1.97,p＞0.05),it was also found that the reaction-times in judging negative self-experiencing words was longer than in judging negative self-evaluating words(t=2.04,p＜0.05).Conclusion:1 ) the sense of belonging and the sense of mastery are two characteristics of self-esteem.2) the quality of infant-parents relation established in childhood play an important role in the development of self-esteem,of which the temperament a person inherited and the parenting style a person perceived are two main factors contributing to the relation.3 ) self-esteem is a fairly valid predictor of persons' stressful life events,interpersonal problems and depression,still,self-esteem not only has a direct effect on depression,but mediates the effect on depression caused by stressful life events and interpersonal problems.4) there is a highly coherence between the global self-esteem and self-experiences,self-evaluations in one's life,moreover,it was found that reactions of self-experiencing appears to having precedence over self-evaluating when one copes with environments.