Relational self-worth: differences in perceived worth as a person across interpersonal contexts among adolescents.
The present study investigated the hypothesis that in addition to perceptions of one's global self-worth as a person, individuals evaluate their self-worth differently across relational contexts. Perceptions of self-worth among adolescents were examined in 4 such contexts: with parents, teachers, male classmates, and female classmates. The factor pattern revealed a clear, 4-factor solution with negligible cross-loadings. Approximately three-fourths of the participants reported differences in self-worth, ranging from small to large, across contexts. To examine the basis for differences and similarities across relationships, self-worth in each context was predicted by the validation support reported by adolescents in that context. Support in a given context was significantly more highly correlated with relational self-worth in the corresponding context than in any of the other contexts. Adolescents could be divided into subgroups based upon the high correlation between self-worth in one particular context and global self-worth. These findings suggest that how an individual evaluates the self in certain relationships is critical to his or her overall sense of worth as a person.
Harter
S
S
University of Denver, Department of Psychology, CO 80208, USA. sharter@pstar.psy.du.edu
Waters
P
P
Whitesell
N R
NR
D000293:Adolescent; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D010379:Peer Group; D010555:Personality Inventory; D000297:Psychology, Adolescent; D012649:Self Concept; D012931:Social Environment; D012938:Social Perception; D014163:Transfer, Psychology