The Dynamics of Self-Esteem and Depression Across Days, Months, and Years

Self-esteem and depression are important predictors of a range of societally relevant outcomes and are theorized to influence each other reciprocally over time. However, existing research offers only a limited understanding of how these reciprocal dynamics of self-esteem and depression unfold across different time scales. Using three datasets with different time scales, we aimed to advance our understanding of the reciprocal dynamics between self-esteem and depression over time. Across these datasets, participants (Ntotal = 6,210) rated their self-esteem and depressive symptoms between 6 and 14 times across days, months, and years, respectively. Using continuous time dynamic models, we found limited evidence for significant within-person cross-lagged effects between self-esteem and depression across the three datasets. These findings suggest that reciprocal dynamics between self-esteem and depression may be less robust than commonly thought, challenging theoretical frameworks that highlight the transactions between these constructs. Moreover, self-esteem and depression were strongly correlated within measurements, similarly stable over time, and changed similarly in response to negative life events, provoking questions as to their conceptual distinctiveness and measurement approaches.