Values and adolescents' self-esteem: The role of value content and congruence with classmates

The study examined the relations between adolescents’ self-esteem and two aspects of values: content and congruence with classmates. Using a large sample of Israeli adolescents (N = 1,683; M_age = 14.36, SD = 2.24, range = 11–18, 54.31% females), we found that self-esteem related negatively to self-enhancement values and positively to conservation values using zero order correlations. Multilevel polynomial regressions, controlling for demographic differences, found significant quadratic associations of self-esteem with self-enhancement, self-transcendence, openness-to-change, and conservation values. Furthermore, using Response Surface Analyses, it was found that adolescents who were congruent with their classmates’ self-enhancement and self-transcendence values showed the highest levels of self-esteem. The findings point to the importance of social context for the relations between values and self-esteem among adolescents.