Effects of Heteronomous Self-Esteem on Psychological Stress in Elementary School Children:A Prospective Study among 4th- to 6th-Grades Children

Abstract

This study employed a prospective research design, aiming to examine the effects of Heteronomous Self-Esteem (HSE), which is represented as nonadaptive self-esteem, on psychological stress among elementary school children. Participants were 592 children (291 boys and 301 girls) in Grades 4 to 6. A battery of self-report questionnaires was administrated to the children twice, five to six weeks apart. To assess HSE, the general HSE and domain-specific competence (studies, sports, and art) HSE scales were utilized. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that the general and domain-specific HSE on studies and sports at Time 1 predicted stress related to “human relationship” at Time 2. These results suggest that increased HSE could signify risk to health and lead to nonadaptive behaviors. The necessity of pursuing a scientific approach to examine the educational effects are discussed, along with a few limitations of this study.