Associations of self-esteem and temperament traits to self- and teacher-reported social status among classmates

Abstract

The present study examined the validity of self- and teacher-reported social status and its relations to self-esteem and temperament in a geographically representative cohort of Finnish adolescents (N = 3941, mean age 15.1 years). High agreement was found between self- and teacher-rated social status (r = 0.42). Different aspects of self-esteem were differently related to social status. When other temperament and self-esteem variables were included in the analyses, strongest predictor for self-rated social status in both genders was social self-esteem (p < 0.01) and for teacher-rated social status general self-esteem (p < 0.01). The strongest temperamental predictors of social status were lower inhibition in girls (p < 0.01, self- and teacher-rated) and higher impulsivity (p < 0.01, self-rated) and activity (p < 0.01, teacher-rated) in boys. The present findings are consistent with the view that social functioning and peer relations are associated with individual differences in self-concept and temperament dimensions.