Validating a Brief Measure of Self-Esteem in Germany

Self-esteem – the subjective evaluation of one’s worth – is a central psychological resource. We present the Brief German Self-Esteem Scale (B-GSES), a five-item short measure based on the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES). Across two independent German samples ( N total = 5,778), one of which was assessed with a longitudinal design, we examined reliability, factorial validity, construct validity, and measurement invariance across gender, age, and education. The B-GSES demonstrated excellent internal consistency (α ≥ .80), strong item-total correlations ( r it ≥ .60), and a robust test–retest reliability ( r tt = .78). Convergent validity with the RSES and the Single-Item Self-Esteem Scale (SISE) was strong, and associations with mental health, competence, personality, and social relationships replicated known patterns. Measurement invariance analyses supported scalar invariance across gender and education and metric invariance across age. Overall, the B-GSES is a reliable, valid, and demographically robust short measure suitable for large-scale and time-sensitive research contexts.