Table Of ContentSelf-Esteem and Beyond
DOI: 10.1057/9781137542304.0001
Also by Neil J. MacKinnon:
SYMBOLIC INTERACTIONISM AS AFFECT CONTROL
SELF, IDENTITY, AND SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS (with David R. Heise)
DOI: 10.1057/9781137542304.0001
Self-Esteem and Beyond
Neil J. MacKinnon
University of Guelph, Canada
DOI: 10.1057/9781137542304.0001
© Neil J. MacKinnon 2015
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2015 978-1-137-54229-8
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First published 2015 by
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DOI: 10.1057/9781137542304
To David R. Heise: scholar and social psychologist of
singular enthusiasm and creativity, colleague and valued
friend for many years.
DOI: 10.1057/9781137542304.0001
Contents
List of Illustrations vii
Preface and Acknowledgments ix
1 Introduction 1
2 Self-Concept, Self-Sentiment,
and Motivation 20
3 The Dimensionality and Levels of
Self-Sentiment 44
4 Measuring Self-Sentiments 71
5 Psychological Centrality and Rosenberg’s
Interactive Hypothesis 96
6 The Failure to Confirm Rosenberg’s
Interactive Hypothesis 112
7 Rosenberg’s Selectivity Hypothesis 126
8 Summary and Conclusion 143
References 149
Author Index 162
Subject Index 165
vi DOI: 10.1057/9781137542304.0001
List of Illustrations
Figures
4.1 Relation of self-esteem, self-efficacy, and
self-activation to the EPA dimensions of the
semantic differential 76
4.2 Confirmatory factor analysis of the multitrait-
multimethod matrix 79
5.1 Summary of the predictions from Rosenberg’s
interactive model 98
Tables
4.1 Loadings of items from the Rosenberg self-
esteem index on orthogonally rotated
(Varimax) principal components 73
4.2 Loadings of 20 items employed in the
construction of self-esteem and self-efficacy
measures on orthogonally rotated (Varimax)
principal components 74
4.3 Correlations among EPA and Likert measures
of self-constructs as evidence of convergent and
discriminant validity 77
4.4 Varimax rotation of the principal components
matrix 78
4.5 Standardized and unstandardized regression
weights from confirmatory factor analysis 80
DOI: 10.1057/9781137542304.0002 vii
viii List of Illustrations
5.1 Relationship between self-estimate as “likeable” and
global self-esteem controlling for self-value (personal
importance) of being “likeable” 99
5.2 Percentage of cases with low self-esteem and low level of
self-estimates on selected qualities controlling for self-value
(personal importance) of each quality 100
5.3 Relationship between self-description as “popular-person”
and global self-esteem controlling for self-value
(personal importance) of being a “popular person” 103
5.4 Percentage difference between high and low levels of
self-descriptions among those with high self-esteem by level
of self-value (personal importance) of each identity as a
self-description 104
5.5 Percentage of cases with low self-esteem and low level of
self-descriptions on selected identities controlling for
self-value (personal importance) of each identity 105
5.6 Somer’s d for predicting global self-esteem from self-
descriptions on selected identities controlling for self-value
(personal importance) of each identity 107
5.7 Zero-order, partial, and semi-partial correlations between
global self-esteem and self-conceptions controlling for the
personal importance of identities 108
6.1 Correlations between self-esteem and combinations of
self-descriptions weighted and unweighted by their personal
importance to individuals 120
6.2 Testing Rosenberg’s interactive model with hierarchical
regression and centered variables 122
7.1 Hierarchical regression analysis for predicting self-esteem
from main and interaction effects of composite self-view and
differential importance 136
7.2 Regression of self-esteem on composite self-view and
differential importance by level of composite self-view and
valence of identities 137
7.3 Predicting fundamental self-sentiments from identity
sentiments, self-descriptions, and the cross-product of identity
sentiments and self-descriptions 139
DOI: 10.1057/9781137542304.0002
Preface and Acknowledgments
A book published several years ago with David Heise
(MacKinnon and Heise 2010) proposed a theory of self
(ACT-Self) based on affect control theory (ACT). The
dynamic side of this theory depicts the self-process as
a cybernetic system of affective feedback and control,
enabling people to experience authenticity of self by main-
taining consistency between their fundamental and situ-
ational self-sentiments. The structural side of this theory
advances a three-factor model of self-sentiment consisting
of self-esteem, self-efficacy, and self-activation. Although
the structural side of ACT-Self was explicit in MacKinnon
and Heise (2010), that book focused on the dynamic side
of the theory, the self as process. This book takes off where
the previous book left off by explicating the structural side
of ACT-Self and connecting it with the literature on self-
esteem and other self-sentiments.
To begin with, this book makes a sharp analytical
distinction between self-concept and self-sentiment, the
cognitive versus affective aspects of self. In fact, I argue that
the major source of confusion in conceptualizing the self
stems from confounding self-conceptions and self-feelings
and incorporating self-conceptions in scales designed to
measure self-esteem and other self-sentiments. Among
other consequences, this logically precludes entertaining
hypotheses about the relation between self-conceptions
and self-sentiments because these two modes of self-
meanings are contained in the same measure.
Past research on self-sentiment has focused almost
exclusively on self-esteem, precipitating a huge corpus
DOI: 10.1057/9781137542304.0003 ix
