Sheltering the self from the storm: self-construal abstractness and the stability of self-esteem

Personality & Social Psychology Bulletin
John A UpdegraffKristel M Gallagher

Abstract

Self-construal abstractness (SCA) refers to the degree to which people construe important bases of self-esteem in a broad, flexible, and abstract rather than a concrete and specific manner. This article hypothesized that SCA would be a unique predictor of self-esteem stability, capturing the degree to which people's most important bases of self-worth are resistant to disconfirmation. Two studies using a daily diary methodology examined relationships between SCA, daily self-esteem, and daily emotions and/or events. In Study 1, individual differences in SCA emerged as the most consistent and unique predictor of self-esteem stability. Furthermore, SCA contributed to self-esteem stability by buffering the influence of daily negative emotions on self-esteem. Study 2 manipulated SCA via a daily self-construal task and found an abstract versus concrete self-focus to buffer the influence of daily negative events on self-esteem. Implications of these findings for the study of the self and well-being are discussed.

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Citations

Oct 5, 2015·Consciousness and Cognition·C Neil MacraeBrittany M Christian
Dec 30, 2011·Personality & Social Psychology Bulletin·Arezou Ghane Cavanaugh, Kate M Sweeny
Sep 1, 2013·Perspectives on Psychological Science : a Journal of the Association for Psychological Science·Erin M BurgoonArthur B Markman

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