Self-Esteem, Gender, and the Relationship between Extraversion and Subjective Well-Being

Abstract

We examined the moderating effects of self-esteem and gender on the relationship between extraversion and subjective well-being in Chinese university students. Participants were 542 students (217 men, 325 women; age range = 17–24 years), who completed the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, the extraversion subscale of the NEO-Five Factor Inventory, and the General Well-Being Schedule to evaluate self-esteem, extraversion, and subjective well-being, respectively. Hierarchical regression analysis showed that self-esteem moderated the association between extraversion and subjective well-being. Among students high in self-esteem, those with high extraversion had higher subjective well-being than did those with low extraversion. Across all participants (high- and low-extraversion groups), subjective well-being was low when self-esteem was low. Gender moderated the link between extraversion and subjective well-being, tending to be a more significant determinant of subjective well-being in men than in women.