Psychosocial development and self-esteem among traditional-aged university students in Hong Kong

Abstract

This study examined the relationship between psychosocial development and self-esteem among 449 Chinese freshmen enrolled at a Hong Kong university. Regression analyses revealed that the three developmental tasks of the Student Developmental Task and Lifestyle Inventory (SDTLI), Establishing and Clarifying Purpose (PUR), Developing Mature Interpersonal Relationships (MIR), and Academic Autonomy (AA), were unique and reliable predictors of self-- esteem. Compared to prior data from a U.S. normative sample, the Hong Kong students scored lower on both PUR and MIR but higher on AA. Implications of these findings are discussed.