3 Correspondence should be directed to Manfred Diehl, Department of Psychology, University of Florida, 508 McCarty Hall C, P.O. Box 115911, Gainesville, FL 32611-5911, USA; e-mail: ude.lfu@lheidm
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Abstract
The temporal stability of role-specific self-representations was examined in a sample of 188 young, middle-aged, and older adults. Considerable stability was observed for all self-representations. Central self-descriptors showed significantly greater temporal stability than peripheral self-descriptors. Temporal stability of self-representations was positively associated with self-concept clarity, self-esteem, and positive affect [PA]. Age differences were obtained for three of the five self-representations, with older adults showing significantly lower stabilities for self with family, self with friend, and self with significant other compared to young and middle-aged adults. Assessment of the authenticity of adults’ role-specific self-representations showed that greater authenticity tended to be associated with greater temporal stability. Authenticity and the number of positive daily events were significant positive predictors of the stability of self-representations.
Keywords: self-concept, temporal stability, authenticity, age differences, daily events
INTRODUCTION
This article reports findings from a study examining the temporal stability and authenticity of adults’ role-specific self-representations. Self-representations refer to those “attributes or characteristics of the self that are consciously acknowledged by the individual through language” [, p. 3] and collectively constitute a person’s self-concept. Current theory and research conceptualize the self-concept as a dynamic cognitive structure with important adaptive and self-regulatory functions [; ; ; ; ]. This conceptualization describes the self-concept as a knowledge structure that controls the processing of self-relevant information and responds to situational and time-varying experiences []. One of the fundamental questions resulting from this characterization of the self-concept as a multidimensional cognitive structure concerns the temporal stability of individuals’ self representations and the tension that may exist between stability and change.
Studying the temporal stability of role-specific self-representations is noteworthy because there is substantial evidence suggesting that individuals’ self-concept is an important source of continuity and consistency over time [; ; ]. and , for example, argued that the self-concept gives the person a sense of inward unity and continuity over time. Similarly, asserted that the search for inner sameness and a sense of continuity that bridges the different periods of the life span is an essential concern for the individual, and a lifelong developmental task.
Empirical support for the stability and continuity of adults’ global self-concept has been provided by several studies [; ; ]. followed 368 college men over a 14-year period and found that the structure and content of their global self-concept remained quite stable in the 10 years following graduation. Although some variability was observed in terms of the self-descriptors that these men used, their general self-concept remained mostly the same. Similar findings have been reported by for a sample of 150 men and women age 85 or older [age range 85–103 years] who were followed over a 3-year period. Specifically, this study showed that the vast majority of older adults showed high continuity in their self-descriptions. Reported changes were mostly due to age-related impairments that resulted in restrictions in lifestyle. Overall, these findings suggest that adults tend to have a consistent sense of self and that, over the life course, stability seems to prevail.
Despite this evidence in favor of the stability hypothesis, there is also substantial evidence supporting the notion that individuals’ self-concept is responsive to situational influences []. As a demonstration of the malleable nature of the self-concept, randomly paged adolescents over a 1-week period, asking them to complete a short self-report inventory of their self-feelings at that moment. Results showed that the majority of participants were characterized by fluctuations in self-descriptions from situation to situation.
Evidence for the malleability of adults’ self-representations has been provided by several studies [; ; ]. measured older adults’ self-representations on two occasions, 8 weeks apart, and found low stability on an intraindividual level but moderate to high stability at the group level. These authors suggested that individuals have a broad self-knowledge base that remains stable over time. Relevant events or stimuli in the social environment, however, may challenge certain definitions in this self-knowledge base and may result in the activation of situation-specific self-representations. This situation-specific activation of self-descriptors reflects the adaptive nature of individuals’ self-representations.
Findings that are consistent with this explanation were reported by and by . In both studies, the investigators manipulated the social context [e.g., success versus failure situation] that college students used as frame of reference for their self-definitions. Findings showed that individuals responded to the changes in the social environment by flexibly adjusting their self-defining attributes to the demands of the situation. Similarly, using a prospective study design, followed a sample of college students over a 2-year period and examined how the content and structure of the self-concept changed with mood. Results showed that the content of students’ self-representations changed in a way that was consistent with their experience of positive or negative events. Moreover, changes in the structural organization of the self-concept helped to counteract the experience of stress and negative mood. Overall, this study showed that the flexible use of structural features of the self-concept permits individuals to minimize the impact of negative self-knowledge made salient by life stress and, hence, to avoid the experience of negative mood.
In summary, the described empirical findings underscore the need for a theory that can account for the stability and malleability of individuals’ self-concept []. Such a theory has been offered in the distinction between working self-concept and general self-concept [].
The Working Self-Concept and the General Self-Concept
introduced the term working self-concept to account for the situational malleability of individuals’ self-representations. This construct is based on the observation that not all self-representations or identities that are part of the complete self-concept are equally accessible at any given time []. Rather, the working self-concept is best described “as a continually active, shifting array of accessible self-knowledge” [, p. 306]. Which aspects of the working self-concept are activated depends on the demands of a given situation, interaction, role, or relationship.
This conceptualization raises the question whether all self-descriptors are equally affected by situational challenges, or whether some self-descriptors might be more stable across situations? Several authors have pointed out that one of the most apparent differences among self-representations is their centrality or importance []. It has been suggested that the self-concept contains certain “core elements” [] or “salient identities” [], whereas other self-representations are more peripheral. To underscore this notion, stated that the “core” or “central” elements of the self-concept “are generally the most well elaborated and are presumed to affect information processing and behavior most powerfully” [p. 302]. Implicit in this description is the assumption that the more important, central parts of the self-concept should display greater temporal and cross-situational stability. In contrast, the more peripheral parts should be more susceptible to situational influences and should, therefore, show less temporal and cross-situational stability [].
Although these arguments have great face validity, little research exists that has tested whether these hypotheses are supported by data. Thus, one objective of the current study was to examine the stability of central versus peripheral elements of adults’ role-specific self-representations. Role-specific self-representations appear to be particularly well suited for examining this question because it is reasonable to assume that the importance of self-attributes varies across self-representations. Focusing on role-specific self-representations rather than on the general self-concept also takes into account two other important issues. First, theorizing and research on the dynamic nature of the self-concept has brought about an awareness that self-representations cannot be fully understood without reference to the interpersonal context in which they are experienced [; ]. Second, a large body of developmental research has shown that across childhood, adolescence, and into young adulthood, self-representations develop in a predictable order, resulting in role-specific multiple selves [see ; , ; ]. The emergence of role-specific selves raises the question whether the temporal stability of self-representations differs by interpersonal context. Moreover, with regard to adult development and aging it is also important to examine whether the temporal stability of adults’ self-representations differs across age groups and for men and women.
Age and Gender Differences in the Stability of Self-Representations
Although the overwhelming majority of studies on self-concept development have been conducted with children, adolescents, and young adults [i.e., college students], the last decade has seen important extensions into the adult life span [; ; ; ; ]. For example, research has shown that adults’ possible selves reflect their concerns with different developmental tasks and life domains [e.g., family, work, and health] and provide a context for the motivation, interpretation, and evaluation of the current self [; ; ; ]. Other studies have examined the role of the self-concept as a coping resource in the aging process or in important life transitions [; ; ; ]. Taken together, these studies have shown that the content and organization of adults’ self-representations are differentially related to psychological outcomes [e.g., ; ].
Despite the increase in studies examining the role of the adult self-concept as it relates to life transitions and psychological well-being [; ; ], information on age differences in self-representations or age trajectories of self-concept related characteristics are fairly limited [; ]. Combined with a number of popular stereotypes about the self-concept in later adulthood [e.g., the assumption that self-representations become more stable with age], this has resulted in a situation where common-sense assumptions are accepted as the empirical reality. Since this study used a sample of young, middle-aged, and older adults, we were able to examine age differences in adults’ role-specific self-representations. In accordance with several theorists’ reasoning [; ; ] and consistent with some empirical findings [e.g., ], we hypothesized that middle-aged and older adults’ self-representations would show-greater temporal stability than young adults’ self-representations.
Although the developmental literature has shown important gender differences in self-concept in childhood and adolescence [for a summary, see ], findings in the adult literature have been more mixed. Some studies have shown gender differences in the content of adults’ self-representations [], whereas other studies have failed to report such differences []. Advocates of gender differences in adults’ self-concept have argued that men’s and women’s self-representations can be expected to diverge because of different socialization experiences []. These different socialization experiences tend to result in more interdependent and connected self-conceptions for women and more independent and individualistic self-conceptions for men []. The present study was particularly suited for considering gender differences in the stability of adults’ self-representations, because the role-specific assessment of self-representations lends itself to a rigorous test of the socialization hypothesis. Because the overall literature on gender differences in temporal stability of the self-concept is rather ambiguous at this stage, no specific hypotheses were made.
Correlates and Predictors of Temporal Stability
Examining the temporal stability of individuals’ self-representations also raises the question about correlates and predictors of stability. We addressed this issue in the following way. First, a review of the self-concept literature led to the conclusion that the temporal stability of a person’s self-representation should be associated with other characteristics of the self-concept. In particular, three self-concept characteristics were identified as potential correlates of stability: self-concept clarity, self-esteem, and authenticity. Second, given the literature on the dynamic nature of the self-concept [e.g., ], we also postulated that positive and negative daily events would have an effect on the temporal stability of adults’ self-representations.
Self-concept clarity is a structural aspect of the self-concept and is defined “as the extent to which the contents of an individuals’ self-concept are clearly and confidently defined, internally consistent and temporally stable” [, p. 141]. A number of studies have shown that individuals with a more clearly defined self-concept tend to fluctuate less in their self-descriptions and self-evaluations over time compared to individuals whose self-concept is less clearly defined [; ; ]. Similarly, a large literature on self-esteem has shown that a low sense of self-worth tends to be associated with more conflicted attitudes about the self, a more fragmented self-concept, and greater uncertainty about the self over time [; ; ]. Taken together, this suggests that both self-concept clarity and self-esteem should show significant associations with the temporal stability of adults’ self-representations.
As a third correlate, we examined the influence of role authenticity on the stability of adults’ self-representations. Authenticity of a role-specific self-representation can be defined as the extent to which the role or relationship permits a person to feel and act genuinely in that role and to freely express his or her true self [; ]. Theoretical discussions [; ; ; ] have emphasized that individuals’ self-concept includes knowledge about actual, ideal, and undesired features of the self, and knowledge about the “real me” or “true self.” Developmental research has shown that in middle childhood children start to understand that they possess certain characteristics and behaviors that are essential to their personal identity and that transcend specific contexts or roles [; , ]. Consistent with this notion, documented a natural progression in adolescents’ self-representations into role-specific multiple selves that were often contrasted against their “real me” representation. This “real me” representation is viewed as the essence of a person’s identity and is a major indicator of a healthy personality [; , ; ]. Because this study assessed individuals’ “real me” representation, we were able to generate a measure of authenticity and to examine its relevance as a correlate of temporal stability.
Finally, as an external influence on adults’ self-representations, we examined the role of positive and negative daily events. Previous research has shown that the experience of negative daily events challenges individuals’ self-conceptions and results in strategic reorganizations of the content of self representations []. Although this work has provided valuable insights into the dynamic nature of self-representations, it has also been limited in several ways. One limitation is that earlier studies focused on very age-homogeneous samples, namely college students. Therefore, it is not known whether the findings from this work generalize to other age groups, in particular to middle-aged and older adults. A second limitation is that previous studies mostly focused on the effects of negative events and that little is known about the potentially counteracting effects of positive daily events [for an exception, see ]. In everyday life, however, it seems plausible to assume that positive events tend to reinforce a person’s self-representations, whereas negative events tend to challenge them. To test this assumption, the current study assessed the frequency and stressfulness of positive and negative daily events and examined their effects on the temporal stability of adults’ self-representations.
In summary, the review of the literature led to the hypothesis that self-concept clarity, self-esteem, authenticity, and the frequency of positive daily events should be positively associated with the stability of adults’ self-representations. In contrast, we hypothesized that the frequency of negative daily events should have a negative effect on the stability of self-representations.
METHOD
Participants
The study sample consisted of 188 adults [94 men and 94 women] from three age groups. Young adults [n = 63] ranged in age from 20 to 39 years [M = 25.03 years, SD = 5.1 years], middle-aged adults [n = 62] ranged from 40 to 59 years [M = 47.83 years, SD = 5.44 years], and older adults [n = 63] ranged from 60 to 88 years [M = 71.92 years, SD = 7.22]. Men and women were about equally represented in each age group. The educational level was comparable across age groups with 14.6 years [SD = 1.67 years], 15.9 years [SD = 2.36 years], and 15.8 years [SD = 3.38 years] of schooling for young, middle-aged, and older adults, respectively. The majority of young adults [66.7%] were single, 19.0% were married, and 14.3% were divorced; the majority of middle-aged adults [72.6%] were married, 4.8% were single, and 22.5% were separated, divorced, or widowed. Most of the older adults [60.3%] were married, 28.6% widowed, and 9.5% separated or divorced. Middle-aged and older adults reported that they were satisfied with their lives [middle-aged adults: M = 4.61, SD = .80; older adults: M = 4.89, SD = .77; 1 = Extremely unhappy, 6=Extremely happy] and in good health [middle-aged adults: M = 5.19, SD = .76; older adults: M = 5.24, SD = .75; 1 = Very poor, 6 = Very good]. The majority of participants [87.2%] were Caucasian. The majority of retired older adults were actively involved in some kind of volunteer activity and some were part-time employed.
Participants were recruited from three sources. The majority of young adults were students at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs and volunteered in return for course credit. All middle-aged and older adults were community residing and were recruited through newspaper announcements and announcements at local civic organizations [e.g., senior center]. None of the participants were financially compensated.
Measures
Role-Specific Self-Representations
An identity × feature matrix [IFM] was used to assess participants’ role-specific self-representations. This measure was administered in two steps. In Step 1, participants generated a list of 20 words that described them as a person in general. This list of self-descriptors was transcribed onto a matrix consisting of 20 rows and 5 columns. Each self-descriptor was filled in as a row header. The columns were already labeled with the names of five role-specific self-representations. These self-representations included “Me with my family,” “Me with a good friend,” “Me with fellow students/colleagues/co-volunteers,” “Me with my significant other,” and “My real me – regardless of who I’m with.” Thus, the rows consisted of self-descriptors or features, whereas the columns consisted of self-representations or identities.
In Step 2, participants were asked separately for each self-representation to imagine themselves in that role or relationship, and determine how characteristic each of the self-descriptors was of them in that role. If the descriptor was very characteristic, they placed a 2 in the corresponding cell. If it was somewhat characteristic, they gave it a 1. If the descriptor was not characteristic at all, they rated it as 0. To control for order of administration effects, the order of the self-representations was counter-balanced across participants. At Time 2, participants rated the same set of self-descriptors that they had generated at Time 1 using the same rating scale.
Central Self-Descriptors
Central self-descriptors were operationally defined as those attributes that participants rated as being very characteristic of them [2]; peripheral self-descriptors were defined as those rated with a 1 or a 0 [i.e., “somewhat characteristic of me” or “not characteristic of me”]. At Time 1, coefficients of internal consistency [Cronbach’s α] ranged from .69 to .79 for the self with friends and the real-me representation, respectively. At Time 2, the coefficients of internal consistency ranged from .75 to .81 for the self with friends and the real-me representation, respectively. An index of temporal stability was calculated as the proportion of descriptors that received the same rating at Time 1 and Time 2. This index was calculated separately for each self-representation and across self-representations. In addition, the stability index was calculated for central and peripheral descriptors within and across self-representations.
Role Authenticity
Based on participants’ Time 1 self-representations, indices of role-specific authenticity were calculated. Specifically, authenticity was operationalized as the proportion of descriptors for which the rating for the role-specific self-representation was identical to the rating for the real me. That is, for each role-specific self-representation the authenticity score reflected the extent to which the role or relationship permitted a person to express his or her “real me” or “true self.” In addition to the role-specific authenticity scores, an overall authenticity score was calculated by summing the role-specific authenticity scores and dividing them by the number of roles.
Self-Concept Clarity
The Self-Concept Clarity Scale [SCCS; ] was used to assess “the extent to which the contents of an individual’s self-concept are clearly and confidently defined, internally consistent, and temporally stable” [, p. 141]. The SCCS consists of 12 items that are rated on a 5-point Likert-type scale [1 = Strongly disagree, 5 = Strongly agree], with a higher total score indicating a more clearly defined self-concept. Reliability of the SCCS has been reported in terms of internal consistency [α = .85], and evidence for its convergent and construct validity have been reported []. The coefficient of internal consistency in the present study was .90.
Global Self-Esteem
Participants’ global self-esteem was assessed using the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale [SES; ]. The SES is a 10-item self-report questionnaire which measures the extent to which a person considers him- or herself worthy and holds a positive attitude toward his or her own person. Items are presented as a 4-point Likert-type scale [1 = Strongly agree, 4 = Strongly disagree] with a higher total score indicating higher self-esteem.
The SES is widely used in research with adults [] and its reliability has been examined in terms of internal consistency [Cronbach’s α ranging from .72 to .88] and in terms of test–retest reliability [1-week interval: r = .82; 7-month interval: r = .63]. In addition, the SES has been evaluated with regard to its convergent and construct validity [for a summary, see ]. Cronbach’s α in the current study was .85
Positive Affect and Negative Affect
The Positive Affect and Negative Affect Scale [PANAS; ] was included to assess two primary dimensions of mood. Positive affect [PA] reflects the extent to which a person feels enthusiastic, active, and alert. High PA is indicative of a high energy level, full concentration, and pleasurable engagement, whereas low PA is indicative of sadness and lethargy. In contrast, negative affect [NA] is a general dimension of aversive mood states such as anger, contempt, disgust, guilt, fear, and nervousness, with low NA being a state of calmness and serenity.
The PANAS has a total of 20 items, 10 for PA and 10 for NA. Respondents rate each item on a 5-point Likert-type scale [1 = Very slightly or not at all, 5=Extremely], indicating to what extent they felt this way in the past week. The psychometric properties of the PANAS have been examined with regard to internal consistency and test–retest reliability and in terms of construct validity [see ]. The coefficients of internal consistency for PA and NA in the current study were .89 and .87, respectively.
Assessment of Daily Events
To assess the association between daily events and the temporal stability of adults’ self-representations, participants reported the frequency with which specific daily events had occurred during the week before each of the two testing sessions. The events included in the checklist were the events most frequently endorsed by adults on the daily hassles [i.e., negative events] and daily uplifts [i.e., positive events] scales by . The final checklist contained 26 negative events [e.g., “Misplaced or lost something,” “Had a health problem,” or “Disagreement with children”] and 26 positive events [e.g., “Completed an important task,” “Recovered from an illness,” “Received some good news”]. In addition, several blank spaces were provided for participants to fill in any daily events that were not included in the checklist.
Separately for the list of positive and negative events, participants were instructed to think about the day-to-day events of the past week. For each day of the past week, the checklist provided a box for the participant to check if the event occurred. If an event had occurred, participants also rated on a 5-point Likert-type scale how stressful the event was [1 = Not at all stressful, 5= Very stressful].
A total of four variables, aggregated across the 2 weeks preceeding the two testing sessions, were derived from this measure: the total number of positive and negative events and the total stressfulness of positive and negative events. Since event frequency and stressfulness were highly correlated [r = .89 for positive events, r = .96 for negative events], an event impact score was calculated separately for positive and negative events by creating a unit-weighted composite of frequency and stressfulness. This event impact score was used to examine the associations between positive and negative events and temporal stability of self-representations.
Procedure
Participants attended two testing sessions that were scheduled about 4 weeks apart [M = 28.4 days, SD = 3.7 days]. Each session lasted 1 to 1½ hours and was conducted by a trained graduate research assistant in the Adult Development and Aging laboratory at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs. Group size varied from 1 to 5 participants and a typical session included 3 participants. For both sessions, measures were administered in the following order: Personal data form, identity × feature matrix, self-esteem scale [SES], daily events checklists, positive and negative affect scale, and self-concept clarity scale [SCCS].
RESULTS
Order of Administration Effects
A multivariate analysis of variance [MANOVA] was performed with order of administration as the independent variable and the temporal stability coefficients of the five self-representations as the dependent variables. Findings from this analysis indicated that there were no significant mean level differences between stability coefficients based on order of administration, F[24, 622] = 0.97, p>.05. This suggests that the stability of participants’ IFM scores was not affected by the order in which the self-representations were presented.
Temporal Stability of Self-Representations
Table I displays the means and standard deviations of the stability coefficients for each role-specific self-representation across all self-attributes and separately for central and peripheral self-attributes. As can be seen in Table I, the mean stability coefficients across all self-attributes ranged from .75 to .80, indicating considerable stability of participants’ role-specific self-representations over a 4-week period. A repeated measures analysis of variance [ANOVA] showed a significant main effect of role, Wilks’ λ = .92, F[4, 184] = 4.13, p