Change, Reliability, and Stability in Self-perceptions in Early Adolescence: A Four-year Follow-up Study

Changes in self-perceptions of fitness, appearance, and self-esteem among adolescents were assessed in a 4-year follow-up study. Both the changes in the mean levels across time (profile analysis), and the changes in the reliability and stability of individual differences (i.e. covariance stability as test-retest correlations) were examined. The subjects (64 boys, 49 girls) were 11 years old at the first annual measurement. Self-esteem was assessed using the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, as well as self-assessment questionnaires specifically designed for this study to assess Perceived Fitness and Perceived Appearance. MANOVA-and Simplex-models were used in the analysis. Our results among the girls were in accordance with the gradual consolidation hypothesis, so that self-perceptions become more fixed with increasing age. The boys showed highly stable self-perceptions throughout the follow-up, which may indicate the early emergence of a fixed self-concept. Self-esteem increased with age but changes in perceived fitness were small over time. The decrease in perceived appearance found among the girls but not among the boys was in accordance with the gender intensification hypothesis.