ABSTRACT
The vast majority of research on self-esteem has considered it as a trait, an individual difference that is more or less enduring across time and situations. As attested by the richness of the research and ideas described in the chapters in this book, research conceptualizing self-esteem as a trait has been quite valuable. Nevertheless, there is a growing body of research suggesting that it is also useful to consider self-esteem as a state, a construct that is presumed to change across time and situations, and this chapter will focus on the validity of state self-esteem. Evaluating the validity of a construct requires a clear definition of that construct, and for present purposes, self-esteem is defined primarily in terms of a global self-evaluation of one’s worth. Certainly, other definitions are possible, and the considerations discussed here can be applied to most any definition (or definitions) of self-esteem.
