The Construction of the Self Developmental and

Sociocultural Foundations, 2nd Edition

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© 2012 The Guilford Press
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Last digit is print number: 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Harter, Susan, 1939–

The construction of the self : developmental and sociocultural foundations /
Susan Harter. — 2nd ed.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-4625-0297-4 (hardcover : alk. paper)
1. Self in children. 2. Self in adolescence. I. Title.
BF723.S24H37 2012
155.2—dc23
2011045275
 To my daughter, Karen
She has, with enthusiasm and courage, embraced
and carried on the generational childhood educational mission
that my mother began. In only her fourth year in the classroom,
Karen received a coveted accolade as the most talented
elementary school teacher in our large Colorado county.
How proud I am of my mother (to whom I dedicated the first
edition) and now my daughter. Each has had a profound impact
on my understanding of children.
 About the Author

Susan Harter, PhD, is Professor Emerita of Psychology at the University

of Denver. Her research focusing on self-esteem, the construction of mul-
tiple selves, false-self behavior, classroom motivation, and emotional devel-
opment has been funded by the National Institute of Child Health and
Human Development and the W. T. Grant Foundation. Her interests and
research also include the study of gender issues across the lifespan. Most
recently, she has turned her attention to school violence and the role of the
self system in provoking both depressive and violent ideation. A new theme,
emanating from the experience of the high-profile school shooters, is the
role of humiliation—its causal roots, correlates, and behavioral reactions
such as revenge.
Dr. Harter’s research has resulted in the development of a battery of
assessment instruments that are in widespread use in the United States and
elsewhere. She has published numerous scholarly articles and chapters; has
served on National Institute of Mental Health study sections, including
chairing the committee on Cognition, Emotion, and Personality; and is a
member of the editorial boards of journals including Developmental Psy-
chology, Child Development, Psychological Review, Psychological Bulle-
tin, Development and Psychopathology, and the American Educational
Research Journal. In addition, she has given numerous invited colloquium
talks worldwide.
Dr. Harter is the recipient of two major faculty awards from the Uni-
versity of Denver for national and international recognition in one’s cho-
sen field of research: the University Lecturer of the Year in 1990 and the
John Evans Professorship Award in 1993. The latter is the highest scholarly
honor the University can bestow upon a faculty member. In two separate
publications, Dr. Harter was named one of the world’s top 50 developmen-
tal psychologists.
vii
 Foreword

T he “self” is not an easy concept. It is hard to define, it has no easily

observable properties, and it can be difficult to measure. Even when one
has measures of “it,” it is often difficult to know exactly what the measure
means. To make matters more challenging, the self is believed to have a vast
array of features and characteristics and to be implicated in a wide vari-
ety of processes and experiences. Although there is little agreement about
exactly what and where the self is, there is nearly universal agreement that
the self is real and that it exists within each of us.
In this second edition of The Construction of the Self, Susan Har-
ter makes the reality of the self very clear. She does this by situating it
within a rich set of ideas, perspectives, and findings drawn from different
scholarly domains, including philosophy, psychology, cultural studies, and
history. Each of these areas brings a different perspective to the topic of
what the self is, how it is formed, and how it functions. The book covers
the vast territory of the empirical literature regarding the components that
make up the self and how variations in these components affect adaptation
and well-being. Perhaps the most important territory of this volume is the
extensive presence of basic questions about how the self fits into human
life. Beyond her careful and comprehensive description of the vast breadth
of the empirical literature related to aspects of the self, Harter provides a
deep and reflective consideration of the self’s fundamental pertinence to
our understanding of the experience of being a person at a particular time
ix
x Foreword

in a particular place. Insofar as the self is essentially a meaning-laden con-

struct, then a book about the self needs to consider what it means and how
it achieves a place of functional meaning in a person’s life. These consider-
ations are the centerpiece of this book.
Harter begins by discussing historical changes in the self. She shows
how the prevailing social and cultural structures at specific moments of
history colluded to define the basic features of the self. During the periods
of 18th- and 19th-century romanticism, the self was comprised of consid-
erations of love, interpersonal loyalty and passion, the power of nature,
and morality. In contrast, during the rationalist period of 21st-century
modernism, the self became dependent on the concepts of self-direction,
individuality, self-reliance, autonomy, and individual strength. The focus
also shifted to rationality and the need to scientifically verify claims about
the self. These changes revealed how views of the self reflect the prevailing
cultural and political zeitgeist. Contemporary formulations focus on the
implications of postmodern thought, where a more contextualized perspec-
tive, revealed in the construction of multiple selves, leads to a potential
cause for concern.
Harter also situates the self within a developmental perspective. Just
as the self has changed across history, it also changes over the course of a
person’s life, at least in part for some of the same reasons. Harter argues
persuasively that the self is not the direct result of experience but is instead
the result of several constructive processes that are dependent on a person’s
cognitive abilities and their intersection with experience and developmental
history. The self-concept of young children is often very narrow due to limi-
tations in their cognitive skills. They typically think of themselves accord-
ing to simple and easily observable features such as physical appearance or
basic physical skills (“I can run fast!”). They also have trouble creating a
comprehensive impression of their overall worth as a person (i.e., their global
self-esteem or self-worth). Creating this type of general self-representation
requires a higher-order integration of impressions from specific domains of
functioning. For young children, specific domains of functioning are not
clearly distinguished from each other and therefore defy integration. Older
children, however, whose cognitive skills include a facility with articula-
tion, are able to make careful distinctions between domains of experience
and integrate them in nuanced ways. They are also better able to compare
themselves to/with others and understand the features and dynamics of the
broader social and cultural context. As a result, they can construct a richer
and more complex self that is comprised of their own likes and dislikes and
 Foreword xi

their similarities to and differences from others. Just as important, their

increased ability to create personal narratives allows them to construct a
view of themselves that has a past, a present, and a future.
Older children are also better able to compare themselves to others
and to understand the implications of the similarities and differences they
observe. Social comparison skills can, paradoxically, lead to more negative
perceptions of the self, if one concludes that one is lower on the evalua-
tive hierarchy. This example highlights a major contribution of Harter’s
developmental analysis. At each level of childhood and adolescence, she
points to the normative liabilities of self-development. She distinguishes
these often transitory liabilities from more stable pathological manifesta-
tions of the self at each level.
If there are periods of the lifespan to which the self has been most
strongly connected, they are adolescence and “emerging” adulthood. Sev-
eral changes occur during these periods, including the ability to engage in
abstract thinking and self reflection, an increased level of intimacy in inter-
personal relations, and a wider range of contexts in which persons spend
their days. These pressures, in turn, lead to changes in several fundamental
aspects of the self, including one’s chosen goals, sense of vulnerability to
risk, ability to project oneself into the future, and sense of connection to
others. These periods of the lifespan take on both the passionate features
of the historical period of romanticism and the rational features of modern-
ism. Harter’s present description of the self-related dynamics of emerging
adulthood (Chapter 4) is the best explication I have ever read of this devel-
opmental period.
Many questions about the self ultimately lead back to questions about
what it is. One persistent self-related question has to do with authenticity;
another has to do with accuracy. Harter grapples with these challenging
aspects of the self in her concluding chapter. It would be easy to write off
these questions as irrelevant. Why should one be concerned with the self’s
authenticity and accuracy? Presumably the self is the self, and that’s all that
matters. It turns out, however, that authenticity and accuracy do matter.
The importance of authenticity appears to be strongest in the present post-
modernist era, when guidance about what the self should be is, for most
persons, no longer available from traditional sources such as religion and
powerful cultural forces. Moreover, as persons tend to function in a more
diverse set of circumstances and take on a broader set of roles, the self nec-
essarily becomes more differentiated. This level of differentiation makes
integration and authenticity more difficult. Considering that having a sense
xii Foreword

of authenticity is positively associated with well-being, this postmodernist

lack of an integrated and authentic self may be a malaise of the postmodern
world. Having an inaccurate self (i.e., one that differs from objective indi-
cators) may be a form of malaise also. Persons whose distortion is positive
(i.e., they think they are better than they really are) appear to be at risk for
anger, hostility, and aggression; those whose distortion is negative are at
risk for depressed affect. Harter’s rich discussion of these issues touches
upon not only the basic features of the self but also the question of what
kind of self is the “best.”
Two chapters that are new to this revised volume offer other perspec-
tives on how the self intersects with contextual factors. Chapter 8 provides
a thorough discussion of cultural variations in the self, especially as they
are related to contextual differences in the importance of individualism
and collectivism. This chapter shows clearly that the self is deeply rooted
in daily cultural practices that regulate many of our thoughts, emotions,
and expectations of others, and give meaning to our experiences. Although
there have been some claims that the concepts of individualism and col-
lectivism have been overused to the point of becoming clichés, this chapter
shows their fundamental relevance to our sense of who we are and what
we do. This emphasis on “what we do” is seen also in Chapter 7’s discus-
sion of how several fundamental self-related processes affect achievement
motivations and outcomes. Harter does not shy away from describing the
complex nature of the multilevel processes in which the self is implicated in
academic achievement.
Given that the “self” is of interest to many audiences, this book will
appeal to a broad set of readers, including developmental psychologists
who wish to understand the origins and ontogenetic changes in the self,
philosophers who wish to enhance their understanding of how conceptual
formulations stand up to empirical scrutiny, social psychologists who are
interested in a developmental perspective on the structure and functional
dynamics of the self, clinical psychologists and other mental health pro-
fessionals who are concerned with how self-processes relate to forms of
psychopathology such as depression and aggression, educators interested
in how the self is related to classroom motivation, and cross-cultural psy-
chologists interested in refining previous conceptualizations. This multilay-
ered and scholarly volume offers much to each of these groups; it speaks to
all audiences.
Perhaps the most impressive aspect of the book has to do with how it
speaks. This book has a voice, and for me this voice comes directly from
 Foreword xiii

its author. As I read this book I could hear Susan Harter speaking to me.
I truly felt as if she were in the room with me, kindly providing a gentle
and scholarly lecture about the self and all the fascinating components and
processes related to it. In this way, this book is a manifestation of a part
of Susan’s learned and reflective self that has developed over a rich and
productive career of research on what the self is and how it fits into devel-
opment.

                    William M. Bukowski, P h D
                    Department of Psychology
                    Concordia University
                    Montreal, Quebec, Canada
 Preface

D uring its long history, the self has continued to evolve in its definition as
well as its determinants, correlates, and consequences. Since the publi-
cation of this book’s first edition in 1999, the years have witnessed shifting
and expanding conceptualizations of the self, on several fronts: (1) theoreti-
cal approaches to the self, (2) the identification of new developmental stages
such as “emerging adulthood” (Arnett, 2000), (3) methodological innova-
tions to capture the nature of self-processes, (4) a sociocultural appreciation
for how one’s inner self (self-esteem) is intimately related to one’s outer self
(perceptions of physical appearance or attractiveness), (5) clinical attention
to implications of self-dynamics that bear upon our understanding of psy-
chopathology, (6) the educational relevance of self-constructs as they play
out in the classroom, and (7) an appreciation for cross-cultural differences
in the conceptualization of the self.
This second edition addresses these themes. Five new chapters cover
self-processes during emerging adulthood, the inextricable link between
self-esteem and perceived appearance, self-processes and motivation in the
classroom, cross-cultural and multicultural considerations, and a recon-
sideration of the self that focuses on authenticity. Three other chapters,
on self-processes during childhood, self-processes during adolescence, and
self-conscious emotions, have undergone significant revision.
Throughout the second edition, a recurring theme is concern with
Americans’ preoccupation with the self. This excessive focus on the self can
be observed in adult displays of self-enhancement strategies, self-serving
biases, narcissistic tendencies, and false-self behavior. The revised chapters
on childhood and adolescence examine the developmental precursors of the
motives and skills necessary to engage in these behaviors, which are argued
to compromise the display of the authentic self.
xv
xvi Preface

Following the introductory chapter, the next three chapters delineate

critical developmental issues for childhood (Chapter 2), adolescence (Chap-
ter 3), and emerging adulthood (Chapter 4). Three substages (early, middle,
and late) of both childhood and adolescence are discussed in Chapters 2
and 3, respectively. Such an approach deviates from many common treat-
ments of the self that merely compare childhood to adolescence as two
monolithic developmental stages. Moreover, since Arnett (2000) first iden-
tified a distinct period of “emerging adulthood,” it becomes critical to dis-
tinguish the self-representations of older adolescents from those of young,
emerging adults (ages 18 to 25).
The chapters on the development of the self during childhood, ado-
lescence, and emerging adulthood address three separate themes: (1)
normative descriptive features of the self, (2) normative liabilities of self-
development, and (3) pathological manifestations of self-development
that reflect individual differences within a given substage. It is important
to make the distinction between normative liabilities, more transient in
nature, and pathological processes, which are likely to be more enduring
and severe.
The content of Chapters 2 and 3 has been expanded and organized to
address developmental changes in seven different self-processes that will
be explored across the three substages of childhood and three substages
of adolescence: (1) self-awareness (including self-agency, self-continuity,
and self-coherence), (2) egocentrism, (3) the accuracy of self-appraisals, (4)
global self-esteem, (5) narcissism, (6) true-self versus false-self behavior,
and (7) self-enhancement strategies.
Chapter 4, new to this edition, fleshes out those dimensions of emerg-
ing adulthood that are particularly relevant to the self. This stage is most
likely to be normative for those middle-class youth who have the luxury
of exploring various dimensions of their identity prior to making strong
commitments. Thus, they experiment with occupational possibilities, with
social and intimate relationships, and with belief systems (e.g., religious,
moral, and political identification). Differences associated with social class
as well as culture cast doubt on the universality of this new stage of devel-
opment, suggesting the need for refinements in the conceptualization of
emerging adulthood.
Chapter 5, also new to this edition, tackles the inextricable link
between perceived appearance and global self-esteem. Our own research
reveals that across the entire lifespan (young children to senior adults),
there is a strong, positive relationship between perceived appearance and
self-esteem, with correlations ranging from .55 to .80, consistent with
the findings of others. The major contributor to this robust relationship
between perceptions of one’s outer and inner selves can be found in the cul-
tural icons who represent the gold standard of attractiveness, as broadcast
in the media. Movies, television, the Internet, and magazine advertising
 Preface xvii

all tout the importance of adherence to unattainable societal standards of

attractiveness. Failure to measure up to these standards can be psychologi-
cally crippling. Historically, women have been the targets of these cultural
messages, but more recently the bar of attractiveness has been raised for
men. Those who acknowledge that they base their self-esteem on percep-
tions of their appearance are more likely to experience negative outcomes
such as low self-esteem, depression, and eating-disordered behavior.
Chapter 6, on self-conscious emotions, has been considerably broad-
ened since the first edition. In addition to shame and guilt, the second
edition adds embarrassment and humiliation to the list. Humiliation, in
particular, has received virtually no attention in the empirical emotion
literature, despite the fact that every day in schools and neighborhoods,
children are being bullied and harassed, leading to humiliation. My own
interest in this topic was spurred by an examination of the media reports
of 12 high-profile school shooting cases. The histories of the all-male,
white, middle-class school shooters reveal that they not only suffered from
chronic bullying and harassment, but also experienced the self-conscious
emotion of humiliation at the hands of the perpetrators. Humiliation, in
turn, provoked acts of revenge and retaliation. I contrast the four negative
self-conscious emotions—shame, guilt, embarrassment, and humiliation—
across six defining and differentiating dimensions: (1) the causes of each
emotion, (2) implications for the self, (3) the role of others, (4) emotional
correlates, (5) behaviors and reactions, and (6) adaptive functions. The
literature points to the sociocultural conclusion that we require negative
self-conscious emotions to curb our tendencies to violate self- and societal
norms.
Chapter 7, also new to this edition, delves into the role of self-processes
in the classroom and their links to student motivation. Findings consistently
reveal that those with negative perceptions of their scholastic ability invari-
ably report lower levels of academic motivation and/or types of motivation
that can be debilitating—for example, an extrinsic orientation to exter-
nal rewards and sanctions within the classroom. Those more intrinsically
motivated by curiosity, exploration, and the joy of mastery are much more
likely to report more positive perceptions of their ability. The educational
system itself has been indicted for encouraging the more debilitating extrin-
sic orientation, beginning with the transition to middle and junior high
schools. Educational practices such as an emphasis on ability rather than
effort, bolstered by the focus on grades and test scores and exacerbated by
public social comparison (posting of grades, honor roll lists, and so forth),
are commonplace. They conspire with the normative self-consciousness of
adolescence, diminishing the motivation of all but those students at the top
of the academic totem pole.
Chapter 8, another addition to this second edition, addresses cross-
cultural and multicultural approaches to the self. It begins with distinctions