Low self-esteem during adolescence predicts poor health, criminal behavior, and limited economic prospects during adulthood.
Journal Article (Journal Article)
Using prospective data from the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study birth cohort, the authors found that adolescents with low self-esteem had poorer mental and physical health, worse economic prospects, and higher levels of criminal behavior during adulthood, compared with adolescents with high self-esteem. The long-term consequences of self-esteem could not be explained by adolescent depression, gender, or socioeconomic status. Moreover, the findings held when the outcome variables were assessed using objective measures and informant reports; therefore, the findings cannot be explained by shared method variance in self-report data. The findings suggest that low self-esteem during adolescence predicts negative real-world consequences during adulthood.
Full Text
Duke Authors
Cited Authors
- Trzesniewski, KH; Donnellan, MB; Moffitt, TE; Robins, RW; Poulton, R; Caspi, A
Published Date
- March 2006
Published In
Volume / Issue
- 42 / 2
Start / End Page
- 381 - 390
PubMed ID
- 16569175
Electronic International Standard Serial Number (EISSN)
- 1939-0599
International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)
- 0012-1649
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
- 10.1037/0012-1649.42.2.381
Language
- eng