Citation

Donnellan MB, Trzesniewski KH, Robins RW, Moffitt TE, Caspi A. Psychol. Sci. 2005; 16(4): 328-335.

Affiliation

Department of Psycholgy, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48823, USA. donnel159@msu.edu

Copyright

(Copyright © 2005, Association for Psychological Science, Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/j.0956-7976.2005.01535.x

PMID

15828981

Abstract

The present research explored the controversial link between global self-esteem and externalizing problems such as aggression, antisocial behavior, and delinquency. In three studies, we found a robust relation between low self-esteem and externalizing problems. This relation held for measures of self-esteem and externalizing problems based on self-report, teachers' ratings, and parents' ratings, and for participants from different nationalities (United States and New Zealand) and age groups (adolescents and college students). Moreover, this relation held both cross-sectionally and longitudinally and after controlling for potential confounding variables such as supportive parenting, parent-child and peer relationships, achievement-test scores, socioeconomic status, and IQ. In addition, the effect of self-esteem on aggression was independent of narcissism, an important finding given recent claims that individuals who are narcissistic, not low in self-esteem, are aggressive. Discussion focuses on clarifying the relations among self-esteem, narcissism, and externalizing problems.

Language: en