Four experiments examined the functional relationship between interpersonal appraisal and subjective feelings about oneself. Participants imagined receiving one of several positive or negative reactions from another person (Experiments 1, 2, and 3) or actually received interpersonal evaluations (Experiment 4), then completed measures relevant to state self-esteem. All 4 studies showed that subjective feelings were a curvilinear, ogival function of others' appraisals. Although trait self-esteem correlated with state reactions as a main effect, it did not moderate participants' reactions to interpersonal feedback.

Low self-esteem has been linked to a number of emotional and behavioral problems. This article examines the relationship between low self-esteem and a variety of psychological difficulties from the standpoint of the sociometer model of self-esteem. According to this model, the behavioral concomitants of low self-esteem are best viewed as reactions to real, anticipated, or imagined rejection rather than as consequences of low self-esteem per se. Evidence relevant to this hypothesis is reviewed as it relates to dysphoric emotions, substance abuse, irresponsible sexual behavior, aggression, membership in deviant groups, and eating disorders. Implications of this approach for treating certain psychological problems are also discussed.Low self-esteem ranks among the strongest predictors of emotional and behavioral problems. Compared to people with high self-esteem, people with low self-esteem tend to be more anxious, depressed, lonely, jealous, shy, and generally unhappy. They are also less assertive, less likely to enjoy close friendships, and more likely to drop out of school. Further more, they are more inclined to behave in ways that pose a danger to themselves or others: low self-esteem is associated with unsafe sex, teenage pregnancy, aggression, criminal behavior, the abuse of alcohol and other drugs, and membership in deviant groups (for reviews, see

The authors tested the hypothesis that people with low trait self-esteem prefer to join seemingly worthless groups because one's membership is less tenuous in worthless than in worthwhile groups. One hundred fourteen undergraduate students who completed a measure of trait self-esteem expressed their preference for working in a group versus alone on a task described as worthless or worthwhile. Furthermore, they were told that if they worked with the group, they might be removed from the group either randomly or by a group vote. Participants with low trait self-esteem preferred working with the worthless group more than the worthwhile group, whereas participants with high self-esteem showed the opposite effect. In addition, the mere possibility of exclusion by a group vote lowered the state self-esteem of participants with low trait self-esteem but raised the self-esteem of those with high self-esteem.

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24 male albino rats were randomly assigned to one of three groups, immediate reinforcement, moderate delay, or long delay. Group Immediate ( n = 8) received food reinforcement immediately upon entering the goal box and were then placed in a waiting cage. For Group Moderate Delay ( n = 8), goal-box confinement was eliminated by placement in a waiting cage rather than confinement in the goal box. Group Long Delay ( n = 8) also had goal-box confinement eliminated with placement in a waiting cage for the 30-sec. delay of reinforcement. After acquisition trials, Group Immediate ran significantly faster than both Groups Moderate and Long Delay, but there was no significant difference in speeds between Group Moderate and Group Long Delay. Apparently, previous findings of a delay of reinforcement effect were at least partly associated with timing of presentation rather than goal-box confinement.