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Self-esteem and depression

II. Social correlates of self-esteem

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Summary

The Self-Evaluation and Social Support Schedule (SESS), an interview-based instrument, is described, which aims to give a comprehensive description of a person's social milieu in terms of ‘objective’ and ‘subjective’ measures. On the basis of a population survey of 400 largely working-class women, a tentative causal model is developed which relates both the quality of current interpersonal ties and childhood experiences to current negative and positive measures of self-esteem. A major purpose of the execrise is to develop positive and negative indices of the social environment that can be used to elucidate the aetiological role of self-esteem in the development of depression. This is the task of a third paper.

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Brown, G.W., Bifulco, A., Veiel, H.O.F. et al. Self-esteem and depression. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol 25, 225–234 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00788643

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