SELF-ESTEEM DEVELOPMENT 1 Self-Esteem Development Across the Lifespan: A Longitudinal Study with a Large Sample from Germany

We examined the development of self-esteem across the lifespan. Data came from a German longitudinal study with three assessments across 4 years of a sample of 2,509 individuals aged 14 to 89 years. The self-esteem measure used showed strong measurement invariance across assessments and birth cohorts. Latent growth curve analyses indicated that self-esteem follows a quadratic trajectory across the lifespan, increasing during adolescence, young adulthood, and middle adulthood, reaching a peak at age 60 years, and then declining in old age. No cohort effects on average levels of self-esteem or on the shape of the trajectory were found. Moreover, the trajectory did not differ across gender, level of education, or for individuals who had lived continuously in West vs. East Germany (i.e., the two separate countries from 1949 to 1990). However, the results suggested that employment status, household income, and satisfaction in the domains of work, relationships, and health contribute to a more positive lifespan trajectory of self-esteem. The findings have significant implications because they call attention to developmental stages in which individuals may be vulnerable due to low self-esteem (such as adolescence and old age) and to factors that predict successful versus problematic developmental trajectories.