ABSTRACT
One opinion, apparent in many popular books and websites dealing with self-esteem, is that some people who report having high self-esteem are actually deluding themselves. Some people-typically characterized as bullies, narcissists, or egotists-may claim to have high self-esteem, but their arrogant behavior is taken instead as a sign of low self-esteem or a “lack of authentic self-esteem” (Reasoner, 2005). A similar logic has occasionally fi ured into scholarly research as well (e.g., Jankowski, 1991; Olweus, 1994; see Baumeister, Smart, & Boden, 1996), but it is difficult to justify empirically. It is difficult to conclude, for example, that violent gang members and murderers have low self-esteem when they report feeling good about themselves (Baumeister et al.). What people say about themselves, however, may be only one part of the story. People may also possess less conscious self-feelings that can contradict their deliberate self-views, with implications for their self-relevant thoughts, motives, and behavior. This possibility is the focus of the present chap-
ter. We review evidence that people hold distinct self-evaluations at conscious and nonconscious levels, and that the interplay between these evaluations defines unique psychological states within individuals.
