about who they are. You may be terrible at sports or math, but if you don’ t
base your self-worth on how you perform in these areas, they probably will
not affect your overall self-esteem. One team of researchers identified seven
areas college students typically use as contingencies of self-worth (Crocker,
Luhtanen, Cooper, & Bouvrette, 2003). As shown in Table 12.2, these con-
tingencies range from some obvious areas (competence, appearance) to some
you might not have considered (God ’s love).
Where do contingencies of self-worth come from? That is, why does one
person base her self-esteem on competence, whereas another bases his self-esteem on God ’s love? For starters, people tend to select contingency areas in
which they typically excel. Athletes often base their self-esteem on their ability
to perform well in sports, whereas good students tend to rely on their grades.
But this is only part of the story. We all know people who select contingen-
cies of self-worth that are difficult to attain. Sometimes parents or peers influ-ence these choices, such as a father who says he loves his little girl because of
how pretty she is and admires his son for his athletic skills. Culture also plays
a role, placing different values on different personal attributes. For example,our society communicates in many ways that certain standards are more rele-
vant for one gender than for the other (Fredrickson & Roberts, 1997;
Strahan et al., 2008). Girls are often reminded by peers and media messages
that their value depends on how they look. Boys are told that beating others
in various competitions is a sign of their self-worth.
Using contingencies of self-worth to determine self-esteem has advan-
tages and disadvantages. On the plus side, we don’ t have to be competent at
everything —or even very many things —to feel good about who we are. The
TABLE 12.2
Contingencies of Self-Worth for College Students
Contingency Description
Competencies Abilities and performance in various areas,
particularly academic performance for college
students
Competition Outperforming other people in various compet-
itive situations
Approval from GeneralizedOthersApproval and acceptance from other people,based on what we believe they think of us
Family Support Receiving approval and affection from the people
closest to us, particularly from family members
Appearance How physically attractive we believe others find us
God’s Love The belief that we are loved, valued, and unique
in the eyes of God
Virtue Adhering to personal ethical standards and
judging ourselves as good and moral individuals
Source: Adapted from Crocker, Luhtanen, et al. (2003).Self-Esteem 329