A Cognitive-Developmental Perspective on the Adolescent Self-Concept

Abstract

The study of self-concept development within a cognitive-developmental framework has received increased attention in the recent self-concept literature. However, the effects of the transition from concrete to formal operations in adolescent self-concepts, the distinction between self-concept and self-esteen during adolescence, and the differentiation of age from cognitive-developmental level as independent variables have not been systematically explored. The present study considered these issues in an investigation of the cognitive-developmental basis of the self-concept during childhood, early and middle adolescence. Eight-, 12-, and 16-year-old-males and females were given the Twenty Statements Test (TST), the Coopersmith Self-Esteem Inventory, and Piagetian measures of concrete and formal reasoning. Across all age groups, no significant effects due to cognitive-developmental level were found on the TST protocols. However, the variables of age and sex were significant for physical, concrete, introspective and abstract dimensions of the self-concept for adolescent subjects. Self-esteem was significantly related to several dimensions of the self-concept. The results suggest that there are significant age-related differences in self-conception between the early and middle adolescent years.

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