Antecedents, Consequences, and Mechanisms: On the Longitudinal Interplay Between Academic Self‐Enhancement and Psychological Adjustment

Abstract

We investigated the reciprocal associations between academic self-enhancement and key indicators of intra- and interpersonal adjustment as well as the role of self-esteem as a mediator. This longitudinal study involved three assessments in a sample of 709 German children and adolescents (Mage = 11.83; 54% female) over the course of one academic year. We assessed self-reported subjective well-being as an indicator of intrapersonal adjustment and peer-reported popularity as an indicator of interpersonal adjustment. We computed cross-lagged and longitudinal mediational analyses. Academic self-enhancement prospectively predicted high subsequent well-being and popularity. Vice versa, well-being and popularity prospectively predicted high subsequent levels of self-enhancement. High self-esteem mediated the longitudinal associations between self-enhancement and well-being in both directions, but not the links between self-enhancement and popularity. Self-enhancement and adjustment are bidirectionally linked: Self-enhancement entails intrapersonal and interpersonal benefits; at the same time, adjustment in both domains fosters self-enhancement. In terms of intrapersonal, but not interpersonal adjustment, self-esteem seems to serve as a linchpin, accounting for all longitudinal associations. Furthermore, we present evidence indicating that self-enhancement indicators that are based on difference scores (instead of residuals) are problematic and might have led to negatively biased results in the literature.

Christian self-enhancement.

“…We tested first whether participants in the The residuation method is most appropriate for de-biasing the score of one construct from the influence of contaminating constructs (Dufner, Reitz, & Zander, 2015;John & Robins, 1994;Paulhus, 1998;Plomin, Lichtenstein, Pedersen, McClearn, & Nesselroade, 1990). We de-biased the BTAT-Other Scale's Commandments of Faith subscale by simultaneously regressing scores of that subscale on the Self-Protection Index-Commandments of Faith subscale and on the Indirect Self-Enhancement Index.…”

An investigation of the adaptive functions of overconfidence

“…In terms of mental well-being, Dufner and colleagues (2012) found that individuals overconfident in their intelligence increased in self-esteem and decreased in depression over the course of eight months, while further work showed that individuals overconfident in their intelligence increased in subjective well-being over the course of nine months (Dufner et al, 2015). However in the study by Robins and Beer (2001), overconfidence predicted decreases in self-esteem over the course of a college career.…”

“…In a somewhat different domain, (Dufner, Reitz, & Zander, 2015) found that students who were overconfident in their academic abilities were nominated more frequently for several social roles by classmates. The strongest effects were found when nominating someone they would ask for help or would like to work with, though there were also some positive effects when nominating individuals as friends.…”

“…A second study further found that overconfidence in intelligence predicted increases in a composite measure of social nominations (i.e. helping, working with, friendship) over time (Dufner et al, 2015).…”

“…Nevertheless, social outcomes were not tested in the main study described in Chapter 1 that reported negative findings (Robins & Beer, 2001), making it unclear whether this difference represents differential effects of overconfidence across domains, or a difference in study design. Robins and Beer (2001) followed students across their entire undergraduate careers, while no other study has followed participants outside the bounds of a single (academic) year (Blanton et al, 1999;Dufner et al, 2012Dufner et al, , 2015Wright, 2000). Do the negative outcomes reported by Robins and Beer (2001) reflect worsening outcomes over a longer time frame, sample or measurement differences, or are they simply an anomaly?…”