SEX DIFFERENCES RELATED TO SELF-ESTEEM FACTOR STRUCTURE

A FACTOR ANALYSIS OF SELF-ESTEEM ITEMS FOR 298 UNDERGRADUATES YIELDED 5 IDENTIFIABLE FACTORS: COMMUNICATIVE PROPENSITY, OTHER-ANXIETY, NEGATIVE SELF-EVALUATION, POSITIVE SELF-EVALUATION, AND OTHER-CERTAINTY. A FACTOR ANALYSIS OF 272 UNDERGRADUATES' RESPONSES TO SELECTED SELF-ESTEEM ITEMS, AS WELL AS ADDITIONAL ITEMS, YIELDED SIMILAR FACTOR STRUCTURE. HOWEVER, SEPARATE ANALYSIS OF THE FEMALE DATA REVEALED THAT THE NEGATIVE SELF-EVALUATION AND OTHER-CERTAINTY FACTORS FORMED A SINGLE DIMENSION, SUGGESTING THAT PART OF FEMALES' SELF-EVALUATION DEPENDS ON CERTAINTY OF PEER APPROVAL. THIS RELATIONSHIP DOES NOT APPEAR FOR MALES. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved). © 1968 American Psychological Association.