Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Congruency of academic and interpersonal subjective social status in relation to adolescent psychological health: the moderating role of Core self-evaluations

  • Published:
Current Psychology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Disalignments among dimensions of adolescent subjective social status (SSS) may be influential to psychological health. How an individual responds to this incongruence may be explained by personality traits. Drawing upon the conceptualization of SSS and self-concept dimensions, the current study examined how SSS-academic, SSS-interpersonal, and their congruency relate to adolescent psychological health, and the moderating effect of core self-evaluations (CSE). Data (N = 387) were collected in two waves with a three-week interval in a senior high school. Results from the moderated polynomial regression analysis suggested that when CSE was at high levels, there was a significant incongruence effect----the greater the academic-interpersonal discrepancy was, the worse psychological health was reported----and SSS-interpersonal was a stronger predictor of psychological health than SSS-academic. For adolescents with low CSE levels, as long as one dimension of SSS was high, psychological health was better than when both dimensions were low. Examining how congruency of SSS dimensions influences psychological health may shed light on how internal inconsonance within self-concept relates to adolescent adjustment, especially when personality traits are taken into account.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

Data Availability

Data can be available upon request.

References

  • Alicke, M. D., & Sedikides, C. (2009). Self-enhancement and self-protection: What they are and what they do. European Review of Social Psychology, 20, 1–48.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Aryee, S., Walumbwa, F. O., Mondejar, R., & Chu, C. W. (2017). Core self-evaluations and employee voice behavior: Test of a dual-motivational pathway. Journal of Management, 43, 946–966.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Åslund, C., Leppert, J., Starrin, B., & Nilsson, K. W. (2009). Subjective social status and shaming experiences in relation to adolescent depression. Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, 163, 55–60.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bovier, P., Chamot, E., & Perneger, T. (2004). Perceived stress, internal resources, and social support as determinants of mental health among young adults. Quality of Life Research, 13, 161–170.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bronson, G. W. (1959). Identity diffusion in late adolescents. The Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 59(3), 414–417.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bucciol, A., Cavasso, B., & Zarri, L. (2015). Social status and personality traits. Journal of Economic Psychology, 51, 245–260.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Byrd, D., & McKinney, K. (2012). Individual, interpersonal, and institutional level factors associated with the mental health of college students. Journal of American College Health, 60, 185–193.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Campbell, W. K., & Sedikides, C. (1999). Self-threat magnifies the self-serving bias: A meta- analytic integration. Review of General Psychology, 3, 23–43.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chan, R. C., & Mak, W. W. (2020). Empowerment for civic engagement and well-being in emerging adulthood: Evidence from cross-regional and cross-lagged analyses. Social Science & Medicine, 244, 112703.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chang, C. H. D., Ferris, D. L., Johnson, R. E., Rosen, C. C., & Tan, J. A. (2012). Core self-evaluations: A review and evaluation of the literature. Journal of Management, 38, 81–128.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Christens, B. D., & Peterson, N. A. (2012). The role of empowerment in youth development: A study of sociopolitical control as mediator of ecological systems’ influence on developmental outcomes. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 41(5), 623–635.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Church, A. T., Katigbak, M. S., Mazuera Arias, R., Rincon, B. C., Vargas-Flores, J. D. J., Ibáñez-Reyes, J., & Ortiz, F. A. (2014). A four-culture study of self-enhancement and adjustment using the social relations model: Do alternative conceptualizations and indices make a difference? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 106, 997–1014.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Cicognani, E., Mazzoni, D., Albanesi, C., & Zani, B. (2015). Sense of community and empowerment among young people: Understanding pathways from civic participation to social well-being. Voluntas: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations, 26(1), 24–44.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cohen, S., & Wills, T. A. (1985). Stress, social support, and the buffering hypothesis. Psychological Bulletin, 98, 310–357.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Cole, D. A., Maxwell, S. E., Martin, J. M., Peeke, L. G., Seroczynski, A. D., Tram, J. M., Hoffman, K. B., Ruiz, M. D., Jacquez, F., & Maschman, T. (2001). The development of multiple domains of child and adolescent self-concept: A cohort sequential longitudinal design. Child Development, 72, 1723–1746.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Cornelius, L. L., & Herrenkohl, L. R. (2004). Power in the classroom: How the classroom environment shapes students' relationships with each other and with concepts. Cognition and Instruction, 22(4), 467–498.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dufner, M., Gebauer, J. E., Sedikides, C., & Denissen, J. J. (2019). Self-enhancement and psychological adjustment: A meta-analytic review. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 23, 48–72.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Edwards, J. R. (2011a). Excel file for plotting response surfaces. Resource document. http://public.kenan-flagler.unc.edu/faculty/edwardsj/downloads.htm.

  • Edwards, J. R. (2011b). Moderated polynomial regression. Resource document. http://public.kenan-flagler.unc.edu/faculty/edwardsj/ModeratedPolynomialRegression.htm.

  • Edwards, J. R. (1994). The study of congruence in organizational behavior research: Critique and proposed alternative. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 58, 51–100.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Erez, A., & Judge, T. A. (2001). Relationship of core self-evaluations to goal setting, motivation, and performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 86, 1270–1279.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Erikson, E. H. (1968). Identity: Youth and crisis. WW Norton & Company.

  • Faunce, W. A. (1984). School achievement, social status, and self-esteem. Social Psychology Quarterly, 47, 3–14.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ferris, D. L., Rosen, C. C., Johnson, R. E., Brown, D. J., Risavy, S., & Heller, D. (2011). Approach or avoidance (or both?): Integrating core self-evaluations within an approach/avoidance framework. Personnel Psychology, 64, 137–161.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gaertner, L., Sedikides, C., & Cai, H. (2012). Wanting to be great and better but not average: On the pancultural desire for self-enhancing and self-improving feedback. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 43, 521–526.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • García-Izquierdo, M., Ríos-Risquez, M. I., Carrillo-García, C., & Sabuco-Tebar, E. D. L. Á. (2018). The moderating role of resilience in the relationship between academic burnout and the perception of psychological health in nursing students. Educational Psychology, 38, 1068–1079.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Goodman, E., Adler, N. E., Kawachi, I., Frazier, A. L., Huang, B., & Colditz, G. A. (2001). Adolescents' perceptions of social status: Development and evaluation of a new indicator. Pediatrics, 108, e31–e31.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Goodman, E., Huang, B., Schafer-Kalkhoff, T., & Adler, N. E. (2007). Perceived socioeconomic status: A new type of identity that influences adolescents’ self-rated health. Journal of Adolescent Health, 41, 479–487.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Greco, V., & Roger, D. (2003). Uncertainty, stress, and health. Personality and Individual Differences, 34, 1057–1068.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Griggs, S., & Crawford, S. L. (2017). Hope, core self-evaluations, emotional well-being, health-risk behaviors, and academic performance in university freshmen. Journal of Psychosocial Nursing and Mental Health Services, 55, 33–42.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Harter, S., Waters, P. L., & Whitesell, N. R. (1997). Lack of voice as a manifestation of false self-behavior among adolescents: The school setting as a stage upon which the drama of authenticity is enacted. Educational Psychologist, 32, 153–173.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heine, S. J., Proulx, T., & Vohs, K. D. (2006). The meaning maintenance model: On the coherence of social motivations. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 10, 88–110.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hogg, M. A. (2014). From uncertainty to extremism: Social categorization and identity processes. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 23, 338–342.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hogg, M. A., Siegel, J. T., & Hohman, Z. P. (2011). Groups can jeopardize your health: Identifying with unhealthy groups to reduce self-uncertainty. Self and Identity, 10, 326–335.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hohman, Z. P., & Hogg, M. A. (2015). Fearing the uncertain: Self-uncertainty plays a role in mortality salience. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 57, 31–42.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Johnson, E. I., & Swendsen, J. D. (2015). Perceived social status and early adolescents’ responses to negative daily events. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 24, 1593–1604.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Judge, T. A., Bono, J. E., Erez, A., & Locke, E. A. (2005). Core self-evaluations and job and life satisfaction: The role of self-concordance and goal attainment. Journal of Applied Psychology, 90, 257–268.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Judge, T. A., Erez, A., Bono, J. E., & Thoresen, C. J. (2003). The core self-evaluations scale: Development of a measure. Personnel Psychology, 56, 303–331.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Judge, T. A., Locke, E. A., & Durham, C. C. (1997). The dispositional causes of job satisfaction: A core evaluations approach. Research in Organizational Behavior, 19, 151–188.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kammeyer-Mueller, J. D., Judge, T. A., & Scott, B. A. (2009). The role of core self-evaluations in the coping process. Journal of Applied Psychology, 94, 177–195.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Karvonen, S., & Rahkonen, O. (2011). Subjective social status and health in young people. Sociology of Health & Illness, 33, 372–383.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kawachi, I., & Berkman, L. (2001). Social ties and mental health. Journal of Urban Health Bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine, 78, 458–467.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Kelly-Moore, J., Cagney, K., Skarupski, K., Everson-Rose, S., & Mendes de Leon, C. (2016). Do local social hierarchies matter for mental health? A study of neighborhood social status and depressive symptoms in older adults. Journals of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 71, 369–377.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kusec, A., Tallon, K., & Koerner, N. (2016). Intolerance of uncertainty, causal uncertainty, causal importance, self-concept clarity and their relations to generalized anxiety disorder. Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, 45, 307–323.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • LaFontana, K. M., & Cillessen, A. H. (2010). Developmental changes in the priority of perceived status in childhood and adolescence. Social Development, 19, 130–147.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lindemann, K., & Saar, E. (2014). Contextual effects on subjective social position: Evidence from European countries. International Journal of Comparative Sociology, 55, 3–23.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Liu, W., Li, Z., Ling, Y., & Cai, T. (2016). Core self-evaluations and coping styles as mediators between social support and well-being. Personality and Individual Differences, 88, 35–39.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lopes, L. L. (1987). Between hope and fear: The psychology of risk. Advances in Experimental Psychology, 20, 255–295.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Loseman, A., Miedema, J., Van den Bos, K., & Vermunt, R. (2009). Exploring how people respond to conflicts between self-interest and fairness: The influence of threats to the self on affective reactions to advantageous inequity. Australian Journal of Psychology, 61, 13–21.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marcia, J. E. (1966). Development and validation of ego-identity status. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 3, 551–558.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • McInman, A. D., & Grove, J. R. (1991). Multidimensional self-concept, cigarette smoking, and intentions to smoke in adolescents. Australian Psychologist, 26, 192–196.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Oosterwegel, A., & Oppenheimer, L. (2002). Jumping to awareness of conflict between self-representations and its relation to psychological wellbeing. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 26, 548–555.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • O’Mara, E. M., Gaertner, L., Sedikides, C., Zhou, X., & Liu, Y. (2012). A longitudinal-experimental test of the panculturality of self-enhancement: Self-enhancement promotes psychological well-being both in the West and the east. Journal of Research in Personality, 46, 157–163.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Oshman, H., & Manosevitz, M. (1974). The impact of the identity crisis on the adjustment of late adolescent males. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 3, 207–216.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Preckel, F., Niepel, C., Schneider, M., & Brunner, M. (2013). Self-concept in adolescence: A longitudinal study on reciprocal effects of self-perceptions in academic and social domains. Journal of Adolescence, 36, 1165–1175.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pyryt, M. C., & Mendaglio, S. (1994). The multidimensional self-concept: A comparison of gifted and average-ability adolescents. Journal for the Education of the Gifted, 17, 299–305.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Russell, M. A., & Odgers, C. L. (2019). Adolescents' subjective social status predicts day-to-day mental health and future substance use. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 30, 532–544.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sedikides, C., & Gregg, A. P. (2008). Self-enhancement: Food for thought. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 3, 102–116.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sedikides, C., Green, J. D., Saunders, J., Skowronski, J. J., & Zengel, B. (2016). Mnemic neglect: Selective amnesia of one’s faults. European Review of Social Psychology, 27, 1–62.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shanock, L. R., Baran, B., Gentry, W., Pattison, S., & Heggestad, E. (2010). Polynomial regression with response surface analysis: A powerful approach for examining moderation and overcoming limitations of difference scores. Journal of Business & Psychology, 25, 543–554.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shavelson, R. J., Hubner, J. J., & Stanton, G. C. (1976). Self-concept: Validation of construct interpretations. Review of Educational Research, 46, 407–441.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shepperd, J. A. (1993). Student derogation of the scholastic aptitude test: Biases in perceptions and presentations of college board scores. Basic and Applied Social Psychology, 14, 455–473.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sherman, D. K., & Cohen, G. L. (2006). The psychology of self-defense: Self-affirmation theory. In M. P. Zanna (Ed.), Advances in experimental social psychology (Vol. 38, pp. 183–242). Academic Press.

  • Sorrentino, R. M., & Roney, C. J. R. (1986). Uncertainty orientation, achievement-related motivation and task diagnosticity as determinants of task performance. Social Cognition, 4, 420–436.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Srivastava, A., Locke, E. A., Judge, T. A., & Adams, J. W. (2010). Core self-evaluations as causes of satisfaction: The mediating role of seeking task complexity. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 77, 255–265.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sweeting, H., & Hunt, K. (2014). Adolescent socio-economic and school-based social status, health and well-being. Social Science & Medicine, 121, 39–47.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sweeting, H., & Hunt, K. (2015). Adolescent socioeconomic and school-based social status, smoking, and drinking. Journal of Adolescent Health, 57, 37–45.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sweeting, H., West, P., Young, R., & Kelly, S. (2011). Dimensions of adolescent subjective social status within the school community: Description and correlates. Journal of Adolescence, 34, 493–504.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Taylor, S., & Stanton, A. (2007). Coping resources, coping processes, and mental health. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, 3, 377–401.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Tesser, A. (1985). Toward a self-evaluation maintenance model of social behavior. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 21, 181–227.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tims, M., & Akkermans, J. (2017). Core self-evaluations and work engagement: Testing a perception, action, and development path. PLoS One, 12, e0182745.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Van den Bos, K. (2009). Making sense of life: The existential self trying to deal with personal uncertainty. Psychological Inquiry, 20, 197–217.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Van den Bos, K., & Lind, E. A. (2009). The social psychology of fairness and the regulation of personal uncertainty. In R. M. Arkin, K. C. Oleson, & P. J. Carroll (Eds.), Handbook of the uncertain self (pp. 122–141). Psychology Press.

  • Van Dijk, M. P., Branje, S., Keijsers, L., Hawk, S. T., Hale, W. W., & Meeus, W. (2014). Self-concept clarity across adolescence: Longitudinal associations with open communication with parents and internalizing symptoms. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 43, 1861–1876.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wagstaff, M. F., Triana, M., Kim, S., & Al-Riyami, S. (2015). Responses to discrimination: Relationships between social support seeking, core self-evaluations, and withdrawal behaviors. Human Resource Management, 54, 673–687.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang, D., Li, S., Hu, M., Dong, D., & Tao, S. (2017). Negative academic emotion and psychological well-being in Chinese rural-to-urban migrant adolescents: Examining the moderating role of cognitive reappraisal. Frontiers in Psychology, 8, 1312.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Wang, L., & Lin, W. (2011). Wording effects and the dimensionality of the general health questionnaire (GHQ-12). Personality and Individual Differences, 50, 1056–1061.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • West, P., & Sweeting, H. (2004). Evidence on equalisation in health in youth from the West of Scotland. Social Science and Medicine, 59, 13–27.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wrosch, C., Scheier, M. F., Carver, C. S., & Schulz, R. (2003). The importance of goal disengagement in adaptive self-regulation: When giving up is beneficial. Self and Identity, 2, 1–20.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Xiang, Y., Zhao, J., Li, Q., Zhang, W., Dong, X., & Zhao, J. (2019). Effect of Core self-evaluation on mental health symptoms among Chinese college students: The mediating roles of benign and malicious envy. Psychiatric Annuals, 49, 277–284.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Xu, X., & Yu, K. (2019). When core self-evaluation leads to career adaptability: Effects of ethical leadership and implications for citizenship behavior. The Journal of Psychology, 153, 463–477.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Yang, Q., Ybarra, O., Van den Bos, K., Zhao, Y., Guan, L., Cao, Y., et al. (2019). Neurophysiological and behavioral evidence that self-uncertainty salience increases self-esteem striving. Biological Psychology, 143, 62–73.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Yang, Q., Bi, C. Z., Li, L., & Huang, X. T. (2017). Self-uncertainty: Concepts, structures, and theories. Advances in Psychological Science, 25, 1012–1024.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zeigler-Hill, V., Vrabel, J. K., Sauls, D., & Lehtman, M. J. (2019). Integrating motivation into current conceptualizations of personality. Personality and Individual Differences, 147, 1–7.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhang, Z., Li, H., Slapsinskaite, A., Zhang, T., Zhang, L., & Gui, C. (2020). Accelerometer-measured physical activity and sedentary behavior in Chinese children and adolescents: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Public Health, 186, 71–77.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The authors also thank Xiaomin Xu and Qi Zhang for their helpful advice on data analysis.

Funding

This work is supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) grant #31971013 and Beijing Well-being Foundation grant #0020344 to Prof. Lei Wang.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sociology, Peking University, No. 5 Yiheyuan Road, Haidian District, Beijing, 100871, China

    Fang-Hsuan Hsueh

  2. School of Labor and Human Resources, Renmin University of China, No. 59 Zhongguancun Street, Haidian District, Beijing, 100872, China

    Kun Yu

  3. School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Lab for Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, No. 5 Yiheyuan Road, Haidian District, Beijing, 100871, China

    Lei Wang

Authors
  1. Fang-Hsuan Hsueh
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Kun Yu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Lei Wang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Lei Wang.

Ethics declarations

Ethical Statement

This study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences at Peking University.

Conflict Statement

On behalf of all authors, the corresponding author states that there is no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Hsueh, FH., Yu, K. & Wang, L. Congruency of academic and interpersonal subjective social status in relation to adolescent psychological health: the moderating role of Core self-evaluations. Curr Psychol 42, 6818–6833 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-021-01857-7

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-021-01857-7

Keywords

Search

Navigation