Child Development, November/December 2001, Volume 72, Number 6, Pages 1723–1746

The Development of Multiple Domains of Child and Adolescent

Self-Concept: A Cohort Sequential Longitudinal Design
David A. Cole, Scott E. Maxwell, Joan M. Martin, Lachlan G. Peeke, A. D. Seroczynski, Jane M. Tram,
Kit B. Hoffman, Mark D. Ruiz, Farrah Jacquez, and Tracy Maschman

The development of child and adolescent self-concept was examined as a function of the self-concept domain,
social/developmental/educational transitions, and gender. In two overlapping age cohorts of public school
students (Ns  936 and 984), five dimensions of self-concept were evaluated every 6 months in a manner that
spanned grades 3 through 11 (representing the elementary, middle, and high school years). Domains of self-
concept included academic competence, physical appearance, behavioral conduct, social acceptance, and
sports competence. Structural equation modeling addressed questions about the stability of individual differ-
ences over time. Multilevel modeling addressed questions about mean-level changes in self-concept over time.
Significant effects emerged with regard to gender, age, dimension of self-concept, and educational transition.

INTRODUCTION time, while examining specific transitional periods

that punctuate this continuity. The second theme per-
The focus of the current study was on the develop-
tains to the generalization across domains of self-
ment of competency beliefs during middle childhood
concept. Self-concept is a multidimensional and
and early adolescence. Most self-theorists describe
dynamic system of beliefs, and yet these multiple di-
self-perceived competencies as complex, relatively
mensions may follow similar patterns and trajectories.
stable personal characteristics (for reviews, see Demo
Our goal was to describe the patterns that pertain to
& Savin-Williams, 1992; Rosenberg, 1986). Self-
multiple dimensions of self-concept, while remaining
competence beliefs constitute fundamental compo-
sensitive to the features that distinguish them. In this
nents of the child’s self-concept that underlie the con-
enterprise, we selected Harter’s (1986) taxonomic
struction of self-esteem (Harter, 1990, 1998). These
model as our conceptual starting place. The third
beliefs, which are reflections of the child’s actual abil-
theme involves the degree to which aspects of self-
ities and internalizations of the feedback obtained
concept development can be generalized across
from significant others (Cooley, 1902; Mead, 1934),
gender. Gender is a pervasive social and cognitive
become self-defining characteristics that organize
construct that permeates self-concept development
self-information (Rogers, Kuiper, & Kirker, 1977),
across the life span. Nevertheless, many aspects of
moderate effort and motivation (Bandura, 1986), and
self-concept development pertain equally to males and
mediate various emotional outcomes (Cole, 1990;
females. Our goal was to describe those aspects that are
Hammen & Zupan, 1984; Kuiper & Derry, 1982; Segal,
characteristic of children in general, while highlight-
1988). Since Wylie’s (1979) devastating critique of uni-
ing gender-specific trends in the development of self-
dimensional conceptualizations of self-concept, sub-
concept.
stantial work has emerged on the multiple dimen-
sions that underlie this construct (Eccles et al., 1989;
Harter, 1982; Marsh, 1990a). Relatively few longitudi- Stability and Transitions
nal studies have examined the development of these
Theorists generally agree that self-concept be-
dimensions over time.
comes increasingly stable over the course of develop-
Three themes or polarities run through this article.
ment (Shavelson, Hubner, & Stanton, 1976; Wylie,
These themes represent dimensions of generalizabil-
1979). Over time, children’s competence beliefs be-
ity that form a conceptual grid underlying our im-
come more realistic and more tightly linked to the ap-
plicit model of self-concept development. The first of
praisals of significant others (Eccles, Wigfield, Harold,
these dimensions is time. Some trends in self-concept
& Blumenfeld, 1993; Marsh, Craven, & Debus, 1998;
development may extend from childhood into ado-
Wigfield, 1994; Wigfield et al., 1997), and their self-
lescence without interruption. Other trends may be
beliefs become more tightly related to each other, as
altered by various contextual and developmental
events. Our goal was to describe trends in the devel- © 2001 by the Society for Research in Child Development, Inc.
opment of self-concept that do, in fact, extend across All rights reserved. 0009-3920/2001/7206-0008
1724 Child Development
perceived competencies and incompetencies counter-
balance one another (Harter, 1990). Self-related concepts
also become increasingly integrated, and a genuine sys-
tem of self-beliefs begins to emerge (Harter, 1988).
Consequently, one aspect of self-concept is not easily
changed without concomitant changes in other closely
related aspects. Barring contextual or developmental
discontinuities, individual differences in children’s self-
concepts are expected, in general, to become more sta-
ble over time. Of course, such discontinuities do exist.
During several anticipatable periods, contextual
and developmental transitions occur that often affect
both the valence and the stability of self-concept. The
first of these periods occurs during the early elemen-
tary school years. Despite the fact that this period pre-
cedes the time frame for the current study, this transi-
tion, is described because it sets the developmental
stage for the time period that was our primary con-
cern. The second period occurs a few years later,
when various educational, physical, and social transi-
tions often occur. Given the social and educational
context of the present study, we anticipated that the
second transition would occur between sixth and sev-
enth grade. A third transition might also be antici-
pated, when later adolescent changes and the transi-
tion into high school often co-occur.
Middle childhood. Between kindergarten and third
grade (ages 5 to 8 years), most children undergo note-
worthy social and cognitive changes. On entry into el-
ementary school, most children’s self-perceptions are
highly positive, and self-expectations are unrealisti-
cally optimistic (Eccles, Midgley, & Adler, 1984; Wig-
field, 1994). At this age, children typically aver that
they are the “best in their class.” Over the next several
years, however, competence-related feedback be-
comes more frequent, evaluations of children become
increasingly performance based, criteria for success
become more objective, and children’s performances
are judged more by comparison to others or to exter-
nal criteria than to their own previous level of perfor-
mance (Eccles et al., 1984; Frey & Ruble, 1990; Ruble &
Frey, 1991). Cognitive changes complement this pro-
cess (Markus & Wurf, 1987; Moretti & Higgins, 1990).
Children’s capacity and motivation for using more
objective criteria and making interindividual com-
parisons for self-evaluation also increases (for re-
views, see Harter, 1998; Stipek & MacIver, 1989).
The almost inevitable result of these transitions is
that children discover that they have relative strengths
in some domains, but weaknesses in others (Marsh,
1990a; Marsh, Barnes, Cairns, & Tidman, 1984; Marsh &
Hocevar, 1985; Shavelson et al., 1976). A few children
will retain highly positive self-perceptions in several
domains, but most children will develop more mod-
erate (and realistic) self-beliefs. Consequently, Shavel-
son et al. (1976) suggested that mean levels of do-
main-specific competence (aggregated across groups
of children) diminish with age. With a few exceptions,
studies confirm that domain-specific self-concepts
tend to decline during the early elementary school
years (Eccles, Wigfield, Harold, & Blumenfeld, 1993;
Frey & Ruble, 1985; Harter, 1982; Harter & Pike, 1984;
Marsh, 1989; Marsh et al., 1984, 1998; Stipek, 1981;
Wigfield et al., 1997). At this point in development,
strategies for maintaining positive self-conceptual-
izations apparantly are not sufficient to compete with
these transitions.
Over the ensuing elementary school years, how-
ever, children are expected to become increasingly
adept at implementing various self-enhancing strate-
gies (see Harter, 1998; Marsh, 1986). Assuming such
strategies are effective, it is further expected that chil-
dren’s self-concepts will recover. After the decline in
self-concept during the early elementary school years,
increases in the mean level and stability of self-concept
are expected. The relatively few longitudinal studies
of multidimensional self-concept during the later ele-
mentary school years have produced mixed (and
sometimes misleading) results. In Wigfield et al.’s
(1997) study, math and reading self-concept dropped,
as expected, between first and third grade, but re-
mained relatively stable between fourth and sixth
grade. In sports competence, self-perceptions dropped
between fourth and sixth grade, but, surprisingly,
these scores were not significantly lower than those
for the earlier elementary school years. In Marsh’s
(1989) study, a steady descending linear trend ap-
peared to characterize self-perceptions in sports,
physical attractiveness, math, and reading. Unfortu-
nately, this trend was computed from second grade
all the way through ninth grade, a time frame that
spans both the well-documented decline during the
early elementary school years and the transition from
elementary school (between sixth and seventh grade
in Marsh’s sample). Close examination of the means
for grades 4 through 6 in Marsh’s (1989) data reveals
mixed results. Self-perceptions of physical appear-
ance and verbal abilities rose between grades 4 and 5,
but dropped between grades 5 and 6. Perceptions of
physical and math abilities remained relatively con-
stant over this time period. In all four domains, the
drop in self-concept was steeper during the early ele-
mentary school years.
In the current study, self-perceptions were as-
sessed twice per year in order to examine these trends
more closely and (hopefully) resolve some of these
ambiguities. We expected the later elementary school
years to be a period of rebuilding. In most domains,

we anticipated that children’s self-perceptions would
show signs of improvement or at least stabilization,
but not continued deterioration. We also hypothe-
sized that individual differences in self-concept
would become more stable over time.
Early adolescence. A second set of educational, de-
velopmental, and cognitive transitions occurs a few
years later. These include the transition from elemen-
tary to middle school, the onset of puberty, and the
emergence of formal operational reasoning. In Western
societies, the physiological and emotional changes as-
sociated with puberty often overlap with the social
and educational changes associated with the transi-
tion from elementary to middle school. The cumula-
tive effect of these (and other) transitions on self-
concept can be considerable (Simmons, Burgeson,
Carlton-Ford, & Blyth, 1987), even though the isolated
effect of one transition or another may not be particu-
larly problematic (compare Eccles et al., 1989; Harter,
Whitesell, & Kowalski, 1992; Hirsch & Rapkin, 1987;
Wigfield, Eccles, MacIver, Reuman, & Midgley, 1991).
Nevertheless, most studies of multidimensional self-
concept suggest that many domains of self-concept
drop during early adolescence and rebuild during
later adolescence (see Harter’s 1998 review). These ef-
fects are complex, however, and vary from domain to
domain and from study to study.
Based on cross-sectional data, Marsh’s (1989) study
of Australian adolescents reported reductions in sev-
eral domains of self-concept starting after seventh
grade. Self-perceived physical ability, appearance,
same-sex social self-concept, and academic self-
concept reached their lowest points in eighth or ninth
grade. Most domains manifested linear increases
after that, at least up through the eleventh grade. In
similar studies of American youths, reductions in
self-concept occurred earlier. Eccles et al. (1989) re-
ported significant drops in social self-concept during
sixth grade and similar drops in math self-concept
during seventh grade. Sports and English self-concept
showed gradual linear declines over sixth and sev-
enth grade. Wigfield et al. (1991) suggested that
several of these decrements are partially due to the
transition from elementary to middle school. As in
the studies by Eccles, Wigfield, Midgley, et al. (1993),
Marsh (1989), and Wigfield et al. (1991), our sample
made the elementary to middle school transition be-
tween sixth and seventh grade. Consequently, we ex-
pected mean-level declines in self-concept during this
period, followed by another period of recovery.
Not all individuals respond similarly to transitions
into adolescence and middle school. Indeed, the ex-
clusive focus on means may mask individual differ-
ences in the response to such transitions (Block &
Cole et al. 1725
Robbins, 1993; Harter, 1998). Predictors of individual
differences in the stability of self-concept include the
number and type of transitions to which adolescents
are exposed (Simmons et al., 1987), the importance
that individuals place on different domains of compe-
tence (Eccles et al., 1989), educational and environ-
mental differences (Eccles & Midgley, 1989; Hoge,
Smit, & Hanson, 1990; Nottelmann, 1987; Simmons &
Blyth, 1987), the effects of gender stereotypes (Marsh,
1989), and the effects of personality variables (Block &
Robins, 1993). In other words, self-concept drops
more for some people than others; in fact, some chil-
dren experience increases in self-concept during these
transitions (Harter, 1986, 1998).
Consequently, we anticipated reductions in the sta-
bility of individual differences in self-concept during
the early adolescent years. Preliminary support for
this hypothesis derives from 1- and 2-year longitudi-
nal studies. In a study of sixth and seventh graders,
Eccles et al. (1989) reported that the 6-month stability
of academic self-concept (Math and English) dropped
from about .60 to .50 during the transition into middle
school. The stability of social self-concept also dropped
slightly (from .63 to .58). All stability coefficients rose
again during the year immediately after the transi-
tion. Hoge et al. (1990) reported a drop in the stability
of academic self-concept immediately after the transi-
tion into middle school. These 6-month stability cor-
relations ranged from .43 to .62. In less than a year,
these correlations rose substantially, and the new sta-
bility estimates ranged from .70 to .84. In none of
these studies, however, were such stability coeffi-
cients statistically compared.
In the current study, our participants made the
transition into middle school between sixth and sev-
enth grade, a time that is often accompanied by other
social, physical, and cognitive transitions. We ex-
pected these transitions to be associated with drops in
both mean level and stability of self-concept in most
domains. We did not claim, however, that these changes
were purely the result of the transition into middle
school, because children experience other transitions
at about the same.
Later adolescence. Most young people experience
more than one educational transition, including shift-
ing from middle school to high school, graduating
from high school, and entering college. In the current
study, we followed students over the transition from
middle to high school (between eighth and ninth
grades). This transition has not received as much em-
pirical or theoretical attention, perhaps because it co-
incides with fewer physical, cognitive, and social
changes. Physically, most adolescents are 13 or 14
years old, and have already undergone the more dra-
1726 Child Development
matic pubertal changes. Cognitively, most adoles-
cents have made the transition from concrete to for-
mal operations. Socially, middle school students in
our study rotated from class to class (just as in high
school) and graduated into a high school that pre-
dominantly contained students from the same middle
school. On the other hand, the middle adolescent
years are a time when more complex cognitive linkages
develop and the teenager becomes capable of relating
one abstraction to another, even abstractions of oppo-
site valence (Case, 1985; Fischer, 1980). The awareness
of opposites within one’s self-concept can generate
personal distress and confusion (Harter & Monsour,
1992). Adolescents often face contradictory expecta-
tions in different roles or social contexts that lead to
the generation of different “selves” in different situa-
tions (Harter, 1998). Such discrepancies can lead ado-
lescents to strive, sometimes mightily, to identify a set
of consistent core self-characteristics or “self-guides”
(Higgins, 1991).
A few studies have examined the development of
self-concept during middle adolescence. Marsh’s
(1989) study revealed fewer and somewhat weaker
linear trends during this time interval (compared
with the preceding years); however, this Australian
sample did not transition from middle to high school.
Self-perceptions of physical appearance and athletic
ability improved slightly from ninth through elev-
enth grade. In math and reading, no consistent mean-
level changes emerged. In Harter’s (1988) normative
research on her Self-Perception Profile for Adoles-
cents, no noteworthy mean differences emerged over
the 3 years between grades 8 and 7. These data were
cross-sectional, however, so examining transitional
effects was not possible.
Of additional relevance is the growing literature
attesting to the detrimental effects of middle school
on teenagers’ interest, motivation, and self-perceived
competence in academics (Eccles, Lord, & Midgley,
1991). Particularly problematic is the mismatch be-
tween various contextual characteristics of the mid-
dle school environment and the developmental level
of the child (Eccles & Midgley, 1989). Contributing to
the mismatch are high levels of teacher control at a
time when most students seek greater autonomy
(Brophy & Evertson, 1978), reductions in teacher effi-
cacy at a time when students’ self-efficacy is less sta-
ble (Midgley, Feldlaufer, & Eccles, 1989), and in-
creases in ability groupings at a time when students
are highly sensitive to social comparison information
(Eccles, Wigfield, Midgley, et al., 1993). Most empiri-
cal attention has focused on the adverse effects on ac-
ademic self-concept during the transition into middle
school; however, if the middle school environment is
truly to blame, then we should also witness a rebound
in academic self-concept upon the transition out of
middle school.
Given the relatively small number of changes asso-
ciated with this transition (especially in instances in
which the structures of the middle and high school
environments were quite similar), we did not expect
the departure from middle school to be associated
with negative consequences. Indeed, if aspects of the
middle school environment were in fact deleterious,
we would expect this transition to be characterized by
an increase in academic self-concept upon the depar-
ture from middle school (between grades 8 and 9). We
also expected some consolidation of individual differ-
ences during these years that would be reflected in in-
creasing stability coefficients.
Gender Differences and Domain-Specific Effects
Having described this general trajectory, we can
begin to anticipate variations in it as a function of the
interaction between gender and self-concept domain.
Gender differences in self-concept vary from domain
to domain, generally along gender-stereotypic lines.
Males tend to report higher levels of self-perceived
math ability, physical/sports ability, and physical ap-
pearance than do females. Females tend to report
higher levels of verbal/reading ability, instrumental
music ability, and (in some studies) social competence
than do males (Eccles et al., 1989; Eccles, Wigfield,
Harold, & Blumenfeld, 1993; Marsh, 1985, 1989; Marsh
et al., 1998; Marsh & Hocevar, 1985; Wigfield et al., 1991,
1997). Given the rapid socialization of gender roles
that occurs in middle childhood (Maccoby & Jacklin,
1974), researchers have hypothesized that gender dif-
ferences increase during the elementary school years.
Nevertheless, gender differences have been surpris-
ingly consistent across age and grade level, emerging
as early as kindergarten or first grade (Eccles, Wig-
field, Harold, & Blumenfeld, 1993; Marsh et al., 1998;
Wigfield et al., 1997). A careful review of these studies,
however, reveals that gender differences appear to be
smaller in studies involving younger children. Fur-
thermore, a few studies have reported Gender  Age
interactions, suggesting that gender differences may
increase with age in some domains; including self-
perceived physical appearance (Marsh, 1985, 1989),
physical/sports ability (Marsh, 1989; Marsh et al.,
1998), math ability (Wigfield et al., 1997), and social
competence (Wigfield et al., 1991).
In the current study, we hypothesized that gender
differences would reflect gender stereotypes. In par-
ticular, we expected males to regard themselves as
more competent than females regarded themselves

with respect to athletic competence and physical ap-
pearance. Conversely, we expected females to regard
themselves as more competent in terms of behavioral
conduct. Although we expected gender differences to
be evident at the beginning of third grade, we also ex-
pected the gender gap to widen over the remaining
elementary school years as gender roles and expecta-
tions continued to develop. Because our measures did
not include academic subdisciplines such as math,
science, reading, and music, we did not anticipate
gender differences in academic competence
We had no theoretical basis for anticipating that
stability (or in changes in stability) would vary by
gender. Over the course of middle childhood, males’
and females’ gender-role socialization unfolds at
about the same pace (Dweck, 1986; Maccoby & Jacklin,
1974). Furthermore, awareness of same- and opposite-
gender values emerge in tandem. Consequently, no
strong case unfolds for expecting that any domain of
self-concept would stabilize sooner for one gender or
the other. Relatively few studies have examined the
relation between gender and the stability of individ-
ual differences in self-concept (e.g., Block & Robbins,
1993; Eccles et al., 1989), and these have produced few
significant results. Only Eccles et al.’s (1989) report
suggested that sports self-concept was more stable for
males than for females during the transition to middle
school. In the current study, we did not expect stability
to vary as a function of gender.
We did, however, expect some domains to stabilize
before others. In sports and academics, the standards
for success are explicit from an early age, and feed-
back about performance is frequent and routine. In
other domains (such as behavioral conduct), feedback
is not routine. Good behavior is often ignored. Most
feedback is negative and accrues to a relatively small
number of children. Consequently, we anticipated
that sports and academic self-concept would be more
stable than behavioral conduct, especially during the
earlier grade levels.
To summarize, we expected grades 3 through 6 to
be a period of recovery (after the well-documented
decline in self-concept that accompanies the early el-
ementary school years). Between third and sixth
grade, we expected the average level of self-concept
to increase and individual differences to stabilize.
Gender differences were also expected to increase
along gender-stereotypic lines (i.e., females would
see themselves as better behaved; males would see
themselves as better looking and more adept at
sports). During the transition into middle school
(with accompanying social, physical, and cognitive
transitions), we expected a drop in both mean level
and stability of self-concept. Following these transi-
Cole et al. 1727
tions, another period of recovery was expected, dur-
ing which self-concept would improve and stabilize.
We expected the changes during the transition from
middle school to high school to be less remarkable in
most domains, the exception being academic self-
concept, which we expected to improve with the tran-
sition out of middle school. During the high school
years, self-concept was expected to reach a relatively
stable plateau.
METHODS
Participants
Two cohorts of children and adolescents partici-
pated in the study. At the beginning of the study (fall
of 1993), the younger cohort was in third grade and
the older was in sixth grade. Participants attended
one of nine public elementary schools at the onset of
the study. Both cohorts transitioned into one of two
middle schools in seventh grade. The older cohort
made a second transition into high school in ninth
grade. By the end of the study, the younger cohort
was in eighth grade and the older cohort was in elev-
enth grade. Thus grades 3 through 5 were represented
only by the younger cohort; grades 6 through 8, by
both cohorts; and grades 9 through 11, only by the
older cohort.
Data were gathered from each cohort 12 times
(twice per year for 6 years). The initial sample con-
sisted of 855 children. Each year, students were lost,
primarily due to families’ moving out of the school
district. Each year new students were also added as
they moved into the district. A breakdown of Sample
Size  Wave and Cohort appears in Table 1. At least
one time point of data was obtained on a total of 1,920
participants (936 in Cohort 1 and 984 in Cohort 2). On
average, data were collected on 780 individuals per
wave of data collection, with Ns ranging from 617 to
882. An average of 7.1 waves of data per participant
were obtained (SD  3.6). Participants with abso-
lutely no missing data were relatively few. Only
20.2% of the sample participated at every wave, al-
though 33.8% participated at least once at every grade
level. Missing data fell into four general patterns:
present at the beginning but missing at the end
(27.2%), missing at the beginning but present at the
end (23.3%), missing at various grades with no appar-
ent pattern (15.6%), and present at every grade level
(38.7%).
The impact of “missingness” on the study was as-
sessed by examining the relation between the number
of missing time points per participant and other vari-
ables in the study. Gender was unrelated to missing-
1728 Child Development

Table 1 Sample Size Broken Down by Grade, Wave, and Cohort nual family income ranged from less than $10,000 to
more than $100,000 (Mdn  $37,000).
Cohort 1 Cohort 2
Participating schools represented half of all the
Grade (Semester) Wave N Wave N public schools in a midsize, Midwest city. Elementary
schools ranged in size from 350 to 500, with approxi-
3 (fall) 1 435 — — mately 24 students per class. Middle and high schools
3 (spring) 2 425 — — had approximately 540 students enrolled per grade
4 (fall) 3 449 — —
4 (spring) 4 356 — —
level with an average of 27 students per class. Middle
5 (fall) 5 426 — — schools included only seventh and eighth grades;
5 (spring) 6 425 — — high schools spanned grades 9 through 12. Five of the
6 (fall) 7 354 1 420 elementary schools matriculated into one of the mid-
6 (spring) 8 363 2 498 dle schools, and of the elementary schools matricu-
7 (fall) 9 433 3 558
7 (spring) 10 425 4 375
lated six into the other middle school. Less than 20%
8 (fall) 11 425 5 456 of any middle school student’s classmates came from
8 (spring) 12 401 6 431 that student’s elementary school. Each middle school
9 (fall) — — 7 423 matriculated into its own high school; consequently,
9 (spring) — — 8 382 almost all high school students came from the same
10 (fall) — — 9 347
10 (spring) — — 10 340
middle school. Learning environments changed sub-
11 (fall) — — 11 331 stantially between elementary school (students had
11 (spring) — — 12 216 one teacher in a self-contained classroom) and middle
Total independent N 936 984 school (students rotated from class to class), changing
classmates every period. The learning environment in
high school closely resembled that for middle school.

ness. Cohort differences on missingness were statisti-

cally significant. The older cohort missed an average
of .4 time points more than did the younger cohort.
This represented a relatively small effect size, d  .11.
Correlations of missingness with other study vari-
ables revealed small but statistically significant ef-
fects. Missingness correlated negatively with all five
domains of self-concept as measured by Harter’s Self-
Perception Profiles (1985, 1988). In the younger co-
hort, correlations ranged from .08 to .18 for the
different domains of self-concept. In the older cohort,
correlations ranged from .06 to .22, ps  .05. In
other words, the data observed at any given time
point slightly underrepresented children and adoles-
cents with lower self-concept. Fortunately, the data
analytic methods provided unbiased parameter esti-
mates under conditions such as these.
The sample was demographically diverse. Over
the course of the study, Cohort 1 consisted of 456 boys
and 480 girls, and Cohort 2 consisted of 520 boys and
464 girls. The sample was 56.7% European American,
37.5% African American, 3.1% Hispanic American,
.4% multiethnic, and 2.3% other. At the beginning of
the study, the mean age was 8.96 years for third grad-
ers (SD  .61) and 12.01 for sixth graders (SD  .66).
Family size ranged from 2 to 11 (Mdn  4). Approxi-
mately 36.5% of the children had at least one parent
who was currently or previously divorced. Mothers’
education ranged from 8 to 20 years (Mdn  12);
fathers’ ranged from 10 to 20 years (Mdn  12). An-
Measures
Five domains of self-concept were evaluated using
the Self-Perception Profile for Children (SPPC; Har-
ter, 1985) and the Self-Perception Profile for Adoles-
cents (SPPA; Harter, 1988). The SPPC is a 36-item self-
report of five domains of self-concept (academic
competence, social acceptance, athletic competence,
physical appearance, and behavioral conduct) and
global self-worth. In the current study, only the five
domain subscales were used. To complete the ques-
tionnaire, participants first selected statements from
sentence pairs indicating whether they were like or
not like others who were good at a particular activity
(e.g., “Some kids feel like they are just as smart as
other kids their age, but other kids aren’t so sure and
wonder if they are as smart”). Then, the participants
marked whether the chosen statement was “Really
true for me” or “Sort of true for me.” Items were scored
on 4-point scales and summed with high scores re-
flecting better self-perceptions. The scales have good
internal consistency, Cronbach’s s range from .71 to
.86 in grades 3 through 8 (Harter, 1985). Three-month
test–retest reliability estimates are also high, .70 to .87
(Harter, 1982). Furthermore, the instrument shows a
highly interpretable factor structure (Harter, 1985).
Independent support for the validity and reliability of
the SPPC appears in studies by Granleese and Joseph
(1993), Marsh and Gouvernet (1989), and Stigler,
Smith, and Mao (1985). In the current study, Cron-

bach’s s revealed acceptable levels of internal con-
sistency in grades 4 through 8, but somewhat lower
levels in grade 3, median s were .68, .78, .79, .81, .80,
and .83, for grades 3 through 8, respectively.
The SPPA is a 45-item self-report of self-concept
that assesses the same domains as the SPPC plus
three additional domains (job competence, romantic
appeal, and close friendship). In the current study,
only the subscales for the five domains described
above for the SPPC were used. In most cases, the
items comprising these scales are slightly reworded
versions of the SPPC items (e.g., “Some kids feel . . .”
became “Some teenagers feel . . .”). The SPPA is
scored in the same manner as the SPPC. Harter (1988)
reported good internal consistency of the scales in
grades 8 through 11, s ranged from .77 to .92. In-
dependent psychometric support for the measure de-
rives from Wichstrom’s (1995) analyses. The SPPA has
a highly interpretable factor structure (Harter, 1988).
In the current study, median subscale s were .82, .82,
.83, and .83, for grades 8 through 11, respectively. (It is
important to note that the SPPA contains five items
per subscale, whereas the SPPC contains six. To en-
hance the comparability of the scales across the
course of this longitudinal study, the five items for
each SPPC subscale that corresponded most closely to
items on the SPPA were retained and analyzed.)
Procedures
Parents signed informed consent statements and
completed brief demographic questionnaires. Partici-
pating students completed self-perception question-
naires (as part of a larger survey) every 6 months
(once in the fall and once in the spring) for 6 years,
yielding a total of 12 waves of data.1 Fall assessments
occurred approximately 6 to 8 weeks after the start of
the school year. Spring assessments occurred 6 to 8
weeks before the end of the school year. Graduate and
undergraduate psychology students administered
questionnaires to participating students in their class-
rooms during the regular school day. In the elemen-
1 Other studies have been published from this database.
Some have been instrument validation studies (Cole, Gondoli, &
Peeke, 1998; Cole, Martin, Peeke, Henderson, & Harwell, 1998),
some have focused on predictors and correlates of depression
(Cole, Martin, Peeke, Seroczynski, & Hoffman, 1998; Cole, Mar-
tin, & Powers, 1997; Cole, Martin, Powers, & Truglio, 1996;
Seroczynski, Cole, & Maxwell, 1997), and some have been brief
longitudinal studies, based on only a few waves of data (Cole,
Maxwell, & Martin, 1997; Cole, Peeke, Martin, Truglio, & Seroc-
zynski, 1997; Cole, Truglio, & Peeke, 1997). None has spanned as
long a period of time as that represented by the current study,
and none has had the stability of child and adolescent self-
concept as its primary focus.
Cole et al. 1729
tary schools, research assistants read each item aloud
to the students. In the middle and high schools, stu-
dents completed the questionnaires at their own pace.
Research assistants circulated among the students
and answered questions. Within 10 days of each data
collection, the research assistants returned to the
schools to administer the questionnaire to students
who had been absent previously.
The SPPC was administered to younger participants,
and the SPPA was given to older participants. In this
process, the transition from SPPC to SPPA was stag-
gered to judge the comparability of the two measures
for selected grade levels. Approximately half of the
participants received the SPPC up through sixth grade,
and then received the SPPA thereafter. The other half
received the SPPC up through eighth grade, and then
received the SPPA thereafter. Thus in seventh and eighth
grade, approximately half of the participants completed
the SPPC, and the other half completed the SPPA.
RESULTS
Comparability of the SPPC and SPPA
A great deal hinges on the comparability of the
SPPC and the SPPA. A series of analyses designed to
assess the degree of this comparability was con-
ducted. These analyses were conducted twice, once
for the seventh grade data and again for the eighth
grade data. Because the results were essentially iden-
tical, the focus was only on the seventh grade analy-
ses. The students taking the SPPC were independent
of those students taking the SPPA; therefore, the fol-
lowing tests represent between-group analyses.
Using two-group maximum likelihood confirma-
tory factor analysis, the a priori five-factor structure
in both groups was tested simultaneously. Without
cross-loadings, correlated disturbances, or any cross-
group constraints, the model fit the data well by all
criteria except the 2, which was large because of the
sample size: 2(565, N  5904)  1117.2, p  .05,
normed fit index (NFI)  .98, relative fit index (RFI) 
.97, incremental fit index (IFI)  .99, Tucker-Lewis in-
dex (TLI)  .99, comparative fit index (CFI)  .99, and
root mean squared error of approximation (RMSEA) 
.034. Constraining the factor loadings and covari-
ances to be equivalent across groups did not signifi-
cantly affect the goodness-of-fit, 2(35, N  904) 
40.0, p .10. Factor loadings and covariances were
equal across groups (and therefore across measures).
Standardized estimates appear in Table 2. Factor
loadings ranged from .48 to .84, ps  .001. Factor cor-
relations were moderate (mdn  .42). Results were
quite similar to those of Harter (1985, 1988).
1730 Child Development

Table 2 Standardized Factor Loadings and Correlations from Confirmatory Factor Analysis of
Selected Self-Perception Profile for Children (SPPC) and Self-Perception Profile for Adolescents
(SPPA) Items

SPPC/SPPA Item Academic Social Sports Appearance Behavior

Factor loadings
Very good at schoolworka .61
Just as smart as others .59
Slow at schoolwork .61
Trouble figuring answers .73
Do well at classwork .72
Hard to make friends .63
Have a lot of friends .65
Popular with others .68
Do things with a lot of kidsa .77
Wish people liked thema .53
Do well at all sports .79
Wish they were better at sportsa .67
Do well at new sport .82
Better than others at sports .66
Not good at outdoor games .57
Happy with way they look .84
Wish body were different .75
Wish physical appearance were different .73
Wish face or hair were differenta .77
Think they’re good looking .75
Try to do the right thing .48
Act as supposed to .70
Usually get in trouble .73
Do things they shouldn’t .75
Behave themselves wella .68
Correlations
Academic
Social .46
Sports .28 .51
Appearance .35 .49 .52
Behavior .65 .25 .08b .28

Note: Unstandardized loadings and covariances were constrained to be equal across groups.
a SPPC items with clear counterparts on the SPPA were arbitrarily paired with the remaining SPPA

item(s) from the same subscale.

b Not significantly greater than zero, p .05. All other estimates were significant, p  .001.

Subscale means and variances across instruments
were also compared. MANOVA revealed a nonsignif-
icant multivariate effect, F(5, 878)  1.34, p .20. All
five univariate tests (one for each subscale) were non-
significant. Box’s test of homogeneity of variance was
nonsignificant for every subscale. Cronbach’s s
ranged from .79 to .89 for the SPPC and from.75 to .88
for the SPPA. Clearly, there were no differences be-
tween the SPPC and SPPA with regard to means, vari-
ances, or reliabilities.
The Stability of Self-Concept
We hypothesized that the stability of individual
differences in self-concept domains would generally
increase with age, except for a period of destabiliza-
tion during the transition from sixth to seventh grade.
We did not anticipate that other transitional periods
(e.g., eighth to ninth grade) would result in such de-
stabilization. Although mean differences were ex-
pected to emerge between the genders (see below),
gender differences in the stability of these constructs
were not expected.
A multigroup, structural equation modeling (SEM)
approach was used to address these hypotheses. Re-
stricted maximum likelihood estimation (REML) was
used to handle missing data. Traditional methods of
handling missing data, such as listwise and pairwise
deletion, require the strong assumption that data be
“missing completely at random.” For these methods
to be valid, the presence or absence of data on every
variable must be unrelated to all other variables. This

assumption is especially unlikely to hold in longitu-
dinal data. REML can produce valid estimates even
when data fail to be missing completely at random.
REML only requires the weaker assumption that data
are “missing at random.” This means that the pres-
ence or absence of an observed score on any particu-
lar variable can be related to other variables in the
model. In the present study, REML produced valid es-
timates to the extent that missingness depended on
the level of any measured variable, gender, cohort,
their interactions, and random influences unrelated
to effects included in the model. Nevertheless, miss-
ingness can also depend on unmeasured variables. To
the extent that unmeasured variables correlate with
effects included in the model, REML will not neces-
sarily yield unbiased estimates. Even in this case,
however, REML estimates are often more accurate
than estimates from more traditional methods, such
as pairwise and listwise deletion (Little & Rubin,
1989; Muthen, Kaplan, & Hollis, 1987; Schafer, 1997).
Five sets of SEM analyses were conducted, one for
each domain of self-concept. In each analysis, SPPC
or SPPA items were used as manifest variable indica-
tors of a single domain of self-concept. As depicted in
Figure 1, latent variables represented successive waves
of this self-concept domain. Because essentially the
same items were repeated at every wave, we antici-
Figure 1 Path diagram for a confirmatory factor analytic model of stability allowing for correlated measurement error.
Cole et al. 1731
pated that the disturbance terms for a given item
would correlate across every pair of waves. No other
correlations between disturbance terms were al-
lowed. The latent self-concept variables were also
allowed to correlate across every pair of waves. The
correlations between adjacent waves represented
the 6-month stability of the latent variable. Using a la-
tent variable approach, we controlled for the unreli-
ability of the measures. Allowing for correlated dis-
turbances, we also controlled for the effects of at least
one type of shared method variance (Marsh, 1993).
Extending this model to incorporate all 12 waves
simultaneously was profoundly unwieldy. Conse-
quently, the model was broken into a series of four-
wave analyses (see Figure 1). The first analysis
spanned Waves 1 to 4; the second, Waves 2 to 5, and
so forth. The use of overlapping data yielded multiple
estimates of most model parameters. This series of
analyses was conducted separately for the two co-
horts. (In several instances, the two cohorts provided
data for the same grade levels. In such cases, Box’s
tests were conducted to judge the homogeneity of the
variance–covariance matrices across cohorts. In every
case, Box’s test was nonsignificant, suggesting that
the results generalized across cohorts.) This series of
analyses was repeated for each of the five domains.
Each analysis involved two independent groups (i.e.,
1732 Child Development

Table 3 Median Goodness-of-Fit Indexes for Sets of Structural Equation Models Broken Down by
Domain and Cohort

Domain/Cohort 2 NFI RFI IFI TLI CFI RMSEA

Academic competence
Cohort 1 508.62 .971 .963 .989 .986 .989 .025
Cohort 2 502.41 .972 .964 .989 .986 .989 .024
Behavioral conduct
Cohort 1 464.00 .973 .965 .992 .989 .992 .022
Cohort 2 484.92 .972 .964 .991 .988 .991 .022
Social acceptance
Cohort 1 531.95 .972 .964 .99 .987 .99 .026
Cohort 2 566.46 .972 .963 .988 .984 .988 .028
Physical appearance
Cohort 1 608.58 .965 .955 .984 .979 .984 .031
Cohort 2 727.45 .961 .95 .978 .971 .978 .036
Sports competence
Cohort 1 494.45 .971 .963 .99 .987 .99 .024
Cohort 2 519.42 .971 .963 .988 .985 .988 .025

Note: All 2 estimates were statistically significant, ps  .05. NFI  normed fit index; RFI  relative fit
index; IFI  incremental fit index; TLI  Tucker-Lewis index; CFI  comparative fit index; RMSEA 
root mean squared error of approximation.

males and females). Using multigroup analytic meth-
ods, the equivalence of all factor loadings and covari-
ances across gender was tested.
In every case, the constrained model (with param-
eters equal across groups) provided a good fit to the
data by almost every criterion (see Table 3). Although
the 2 test was always significant, alternative goodness-
of-fit indices (less sensitive to sample size) all indi-
cated that the models fit the data well. The NFI, RFI,
IFI, TLI, and CFI were greater than .95 in every case,
indicating that the models accounted for a substantial
amount of the available information. The RMSEA was
always less than .05, indicating that the model failed to
explain a very small amount of the available informa-
tion. Releasing cross-group constraints rarely had a
significant impact on the model. Of particular interest
was the equivalence of the stability coefficients across
gender. When the cross-gender constraints on all six
stability coefficients were released, the improvement
in fit was negligible. In only 3% of these analyses was
the 2 significant—fewer than would be expected by
chance. Consequently, summaries of the results are
presented only for the fully constrained models.
The analyses involved overlapping windows of lon-
gitudinal data, yielding multiple estimates of most pa-
rameters. Standardized estimates of the same stability
coefficient were within .02 of one another in every case.
Consequently, summary values are reported to con-
serve space. In Table 4, median parameter estimates are
broken down by grade interval. As anticipated, median
factor loadings increased over time. In third grade, esti-
mates hovered around .57; by eleventh grade they had
risen to approximately .73. Our model controlled for
these shifts in reliability as we estimated the stability
coefficients. Also as anticipated, modest levels of corre-
lated error emerged for items that were repeated over
time. Median correlations were .16 over 6 months (two
waves), .13 over 12 months (three waves), and .09 over
18 months (three waves). No developmental trends
were evident. Modeling these correlations enabled us
to control some effects of shared method variance.
Of particular interest were the 6-month stabilities
of the latent constructs. During grade 3, stability esti-
mates hovered around .69 (although the stability of
self-perceived sports competence was a bit higher
and the stability of self-perceived physical attractive-
ness was a bit lower). By grade 11, stability estimates
were substantially higher, ranging from .82 to .90. Sta-
bilities generally increased gradually from grade 3 to
11, although this rise was not evident within any
given four-wave analysis (see Figure 2).
We also anticipated a drop in stability associated
with the sixth to seventh grade transition. To test for
such destabilization, the four-wave longitudinal
model was modified by constraining the three 6-
month stability coefficients to be equal to one an-
other. Although we were principally interested in
the grade 6 to 7 transition, this test was conducted
at every grade level to provide a more complete
picture. As anticipated, this equality constraint
frequently disrupted models that included the grade
6 to 7 transition. The 2 associated with these con-
 Cole et al. 1733

Table 4 Median 6-Month Stability Estimates, Factor Loadings, and Correlated Disturbances from Overlapping Structural Equation
Models in Two Cohorts

Academic Social Sports Appearance Behavior

Parameter c1 c2 c1 c2 c1 c2 c1 c2 c1 c2

Median 6-month stability estimates

3.1 → 3.2a .69 .72 .79 .68 .54
3.2 → 4.1 .67 .72 .75 .68 .62
4.1 → 4.2 .67 .69 .76 .75 .70
4.2 → 5.1 .67 .85 .75 .76 .73
5.1 → 5.2 .71 .74 .76 .76 .77
5.2 → 6.1 .78 .79 .81 .77 .74
6.1 → 6.2 .81 .78 .77 .78 .88 .81 .79 .73 .77 .74
6.2 → 7.1 .71 .72 .64 .68 .75 .68 .64 .64 .76 .72
7.1 → 7.2 .86 .81 .85 .79 .83 .87 .83 .75 .83 .72
7.2 → 8.1 .81 .80 .78 .76 .81 .90 .77 .76 .78 .74
8.1 → 8.2 .83 .80 .84 .84 .86 .88 .85 .83 .81 .77
8.2 → 9.1 .78 .82 .81 .79 .75
9.1 → 9.2 .77 .82 .82 .79 .81
9.2 → 10.1 .81 .79 .91 .84 .82
10.1 → 10.2 .80 .74 .84 .81 .82
10.2 → 11.1 .84 .78 .89 .86 .82
11.1 → 11.2 .85 .83 .90 .84 .82
Median factor loadings
Grade 3 .51 .57 .60 .58 .54
Grade 4 .62 .60 .68 .73 .59
Grade 5 .62 .70 .64 .70 .68
Grade 6 .64 .62 .67 .68 .68 .62 .72 .66 .66 .72
Grade 7 .70 .68 .70 .65 .72 .64 .76 .70 .71 .73
Grade 8 .72 .69 .69 .63 .73 .71 .77 .72 .73 .73
Grade 9 .67 .70 .76 .77 .73
Grade 10 .69 .68 .80 .77 .74
Grade 11 .69 .67 .78 .76 .73
Median correlations between
disturbance terms (across lags
of 6, 12, and 18 months)
6-month lag .21 .23 .12 .24 .12 .15 .16 .20 .11 .13
12-month lag .16 .14 .09 .20 .12 .14 .12 .14 .06 .11
18-month lag .14 .16 .03 .15 .10 .11 .05 .05 .03 .09

Note: c1  younger cohort; c2  older cohort.

a Signifies grade interval between fall of grade 3 (3.1) and spring of grade 3 (3.2). Other intervals are indicated similarly.

straints was significant in every case, except for the
analysis of behavioral conduct. For all domains ex-
cept behavioral conduct, the median 2 with 2 de-
grees of freedom was 21.43, ps  .001. Similar con-
straints on models that preceded or followed the
middle school transition did not significantly affect the
model. The median change in 2 was 4.60, ps .10.
Closer examination of Figure 2 reveals that stability es-
timates during the middle school transition dropped
substantially for both cohorts in four of five domains.
Mean-Level Changes in Self-Concept
We hypothesized that children’s self-concept would
generally increase and then stabilize were it not for cer-
tain anticipatable periods of disruption. Between
grades 3 and 6, the average level of self-concept was
expected to increase in all domains. We also expected
gender differences to increase in gender-stereotypic
domains. Between grades 6 and 7, we expected a drop
in most domains of self-concept, after which we ex-
pected another period of recovery. The transition into
high school was expected to be less remarkable in most
respects, except for an increase in academic self-
concept on leaving the middle school environment.
During high school, most domains of self-concept
were expected to reach a relatively stable plateau.
These trends were examined using multilevel model-
ing, which allows change to be specified in terms of
theoretically meaningful parameters that can be exam-
1734 Child Development
Figure 2 Six-month stability of self-perceived competence in
five domains, plotted every 6 months.
ined for gender and cohort differences. This approach
uses all available data and requires fewer assumptions
about missingness, compared with methods such as
pairwise and listwise deletion. Multilevel modeling
also uses REML estimation methods to handle missing
data.
Many psychological applications of multilevel
modeling have relied on straight-line growth models.
The linear model was extended to accommodate the
multiple developmental–educational phases of the
present study. In particular, models of individual
change based on piecewise regression were formed
(Neter, Kutner, Nachtsheim, & Wasserman, 1996, pp.
474–478). Piecewise regression (also called spline re-
gression) allows regression slopes and intercepts to
vary over different time periods. Given the transition
periods described above, change was conceptualized
in the form of three straight lines: one spanning the
elementary school years (eight time points between
grades 3–6), a second spanning the middle school
years (four time points between grades 7–8), and a
third spanning the high school years (six time points
between grades 9–11). Each line was allowed to differ
from the others, accommodating possible discontinu-
ities in the growth of self-concept.
Individual change was modeled in terms of three re-
gression splines requiring six model parameters. The
first two parameters represented the intercept and slope
of the elementary school line. The second pair repre-
sented differences between the regression elementary
and middle school lines (one parameter represented
the change in line elevation; the other represented the
change in line slope). The third pair represented the dif-
ference between the middle school line and the high
school line (again, one parameter represented change in
elevation; the other, change in slope).
This specific parameterization was selected be-
cause the last four parameters directly represented
discontinuities at the transition points of interest. In
particular, this model allowed for possible disconti-
nuities in both elevation and slope. A discontinuity in
elevation might occur if the middle school regression
line were lower or higher than what would have been
anticipated based on the elementary school line. A
discontinuity in slope might occur if middle school
growth in self-concept were faster or slower than
would have been anticipated based on the elemen-
tary school trajectory.
With the piecewise regression multilevel model,
not only can patterns of change be identified, but the
extent to which such patterns differ as a function of
gender or cohort can be examined. In these analyses,
the intercept and slope of each regression spline were
random effects. The covariance matrix of these ran-
dom effects was unstructured. All random effects
were allowed to have a nonzero mean. Gender and
cohort were modeled as fixed effects. Gender effects
were of particular theoretical interest. Cohort ef-
fects were of interest only insofar as they reflected in-
consistencies from one cohort to the other. Therefore,
all possible interactions involving gender were in-
cluded in the final model, but interactions with cohort
were included only if they were statistically signifi-
cant. Out of 35 interactions involving cohort, only 3
were significant,   .05, suggesting that the overall
pattern of change was similar across cohorts.
The results for each domain of competence are de-
scribed separately. For each analysis, a table of pa-
rameter estimates for males and females is presented,
and t tests for effects combined over gender and for
the difference between genders are provided. In Fig-

ure 3, graphs are presented that accompany each
table. The solid lines represent the splines derived
from each analysis. The broken lines represent the
shifts from one spline to the next (roughly corre-
sponding to the change in intercept). The lines that
extend from the left correspond to the left ordinate
and represent the younger cohort. The lines that ex-
tend further to the right correspond to the right ordi-
nate and represent the older cohort. Differences in the
heights of the two ordinates represent cohort main
effects.
Academic competence. Results for academic compe-
Figure 3 Estimated trends in self-perceived competence in
five domains broken down by gender and cohort. Left and
right ordinates represent scales for younger and older cohorts,
respectively.
Cole et al. 1735
tence appear in Table 5 and Figure 3. As hypothe-
sized, self-perceived academic competence increased
at a modest but significant rate during elementary
school (.32 and .22 points per year for males and fe-
males, respectively). The gender difference was not
statistically significant. Between the beginning of
third grade to the end of sixth grade, this translated
into an average increase of .94 points in self-perceived
academic competence.
As expected, the transition from elementary to
middle school was marked by a large and significant
drop in self-perceived academic competence. In Fig-
ure 3, this drop appears as the shift in elevation
between the elementary and middle school splines.
Table 5 shows that the scores at the beginning of
middle school were an average of 1.19 points lower
than would have been expected based on the elemen-
tary school spline. The gender difference in this drop
was not significant, t  .51. Both females and males
showed recovery during middle school, but the rate
of this recovery was significantly greater for females
(.75 points per year) than for males (.34 points per
year).
In keeping with our hypothesis, the transition be-
tween middle and high school was quite different
from the elementary to middle school transition. Av-
erage competence at the beginning of ninth grade was
higher than would have been predicted based on the
middle school regression line. The transition to high
school corresponded with an immediate benefit in
self-perceived academic competence. On average,
scores increased .55 points on transition into high
school. After this transition, these slopes diminished
to .03 and .02 for males and females, respectively.
Behavioral conduct. Results for self-perceived be-
havioral conduct appear in Table 6 and Figure 3. Con-
trary to our expectations, self-perception in this do-
main declined significantly during elementary school
for both males and females (.33 and .35 points per
year, respectively). Between the beginning of grade 3
and the end of grade 6, self-perceived behavioral con-
duct declined an average of 1.19 points. In keeping
with our gender stereotype hypothesis, females per-
ceived themselves as better behaved than did males.
The estimated mean difference at the beginning of
third grade was 1.10 points, t  3.73. This gender
gap neither shrank nor widened during the elemen-
tary years.
Only the slope of the regression line changed dur-
ing the transition from elementary school to middle
school. The downward trajectory that characterized
the elementary school years was no longer evident
during middle school. In fact, the slope during mid-
dle school was somewhat positive both for males (.24)
1736 Child Development

Table 5 Piecewise Multilevel Model of Changes in Self-Perceived Academic Competence

Genders Combined Genders Separate

Parameter Estimate Estimate t Test of

Effect Estimate t Test for Males for Females Difference

Elementary school spline

Intercept at grade 3 11.67 63.45*** 11.69a 11.65a .32
Slope .27 4.25*** .32a .22a .84
Middle school spline
Intercept at grade 7 11.57 88.94*** 11.87a 11.28a 2.27*
Intercept shift at grade 7 1.19 8.13*** 1.12a 1.27a .51
Slope .54 6.14*** .34a .75a 2.33**
Slope change from elementary school .27 2.40** .01 .53a 2.32*
High school spline
Intercept at grade 9 13.21 80.14*** 13.30a 13.12a .60
Intercept shift at grade 9 .55 2.88** .76a .34 1.14
Slope .00 .05 .03 .02 .29
Slope change from middle school .54 4.53*** .31 .77a 1.94

a Within-gender estimate was significant, p  .05.

* p  .05; ** p  .01; *** p  .001.

and females (.04), although neither was significantly
different from zero. In both cases, however, the slope
increased relative to the slope during elementary
school. As expected, the elementary school gender
gap persisted through the middle school years.
The transition from middle school to high school
was marked by a discontinuity in intercept, not slope,
t  2.13. Scores at the beginning of grade 9 were .41
points lower than would have been expected based
on the middle school regression line. The scores be-
gan to increase during high school, although the
slope was of moderate size, .19, p  .05. Not until
the end of grade 11 did scores recover from the dis-
continuity that occurred during the transition into
high school. Somewhat surprising was the disappear-
ance of the gender gap during this period of time.
During high school, females no longer perceived
themselves as better behaved than did males.
Social acceptance. Results for self-perceived social
acceptance appear in Table 7 and Figure 3. As antici-
pated, the trajectory of social self-concept was signif-
icant and positive during elementary school. The

Table 6 Piecewise Multilevel Model of Changes in Self-Perceived Behavioral Conduct

Genders Combined Genders Separate

Parameter Estimate Estimate t Test of

Effect Estimate t Test for Males for Females Difference

Elementary school spline

Intercept at grade 3 13.10 71.66*** 12.55a 13.65a 3.73***
Slope .34 5.33*** .33a .35a .22
Middle school spline
Intercept at grade 7 11.49 89.28*** 11.09a 11.88a 3.07**
Intercept shift at grade 7 .25 1.72 .14 .35 .72
Slope .14 1.42 .24 .04 1.04
Slope change from elementary school .48 3.97*** .57a .39a .75
High school spline
Intercept at grade 9 11.35 66.18*** 11.32a 11.38a .19
Intercept shift at grade 9 .41 2.13* .25 .57a .85
Slope .19 2.05* .12 .27 .77
Slope change from middle school .06 .40 .12 .23 1.25

a Within-gender estimate was significant, p  .05.

* p  .05; ** p  .01; *** p  .001.

 Cole et al. 1737

Table 7 Piecewise Multilevel Model of Changes in Self-Perceived Social Acceptance

Genders Combined Genders Separate

Parameter Estimate Estimate t Test of

Effect Estimate t Test for Males for Females Difference

Elementary school spline

Intercept at grade 3 11.14 58.20*** 11.44a 10.85a 1.63
Slope .67 10.05*** .65a .70a .41
Middle school spline
Intercept at grade 7 13.63 116.05*** 13.62a 13.64a .08
Intercept shift at grade 7 .21 1.37 .41 .01 1.33
Slope .31 3.44*** .25 .38a .72
Slope change from elementary school .36 3.17*** .40a .32a .35
High school spline
Intercept at grade 9 14.41 95.49*** 14.69a 14.14a 1.90
Intercept shift at grade 9 .16 .90 .58a .25 2.36**
Slope .15 1.81 .05 .25a 1.23
Slope change from middle school .16 1.35 .20 .13 .28

a Within-gender estimate was significant, p  .05.

** p  .01; *** p  .001.

growth rate was noteworthy for both males and fe-
males (average increases of .65 and .70 points per
year, respectively). Indeed, this trajectory was among
the steepest observed in the study. No gender differ-
ences were evident.
The middle school transition coincided with a dis-
continuity in the rate of change in perceived social ac-
ceptance. Although the middle school slope remained
positive, .31, t  3.44, it was significantly smaller than
it had been during elementary school. On average,
the slope was almost half as steep during middle
school. Gender differences remained nonsignificant.
The transition from middle school to high school
displayed a different type of discontinuity, and re-
sulted in the only statistically significant gender dif-
ference in perceived acceptance. The transition into
high school coincided with an intercept shift for
males, but not for females. The average score for males
was .58 points higher than would have been pre-
dicted based on middle school regression (the shift
for females was .25 points in the opposite direction).
The slope of this line was small and not significant,
representing a plateau relative to elementary and
middle school lines.
Physical appearance. Results for self-perceived physi-
cal appearance appear in Table 8 and Figure 3. As ex-
pected, gender differences were evident in both slope
and intercept during elementary school. At the begin-
ning of grade 3, females’ self-perceived appearance
was 1.16 points below that of the males’ (intercepts
were 11.40 and 12.56, respectively). After grade 3, fe-
males’ and males’ self-perceived appearance di-
verged even farther. For females, self-perceived ap-
pearance declined at a statistically significant rate of
.23 points per year. Males’ self-perceived appearance
increased at a nonsignificant rate of .05 points per
year. Between the beginning of grade 3 and the end of
grade 6, females’ self-image declined an average of
.80 points, whereas males’ scores increased .18 points.
At the beginning of middle school, females’ scores
were 2.37 points lower than males’. No new signifi-
cant effects emerged during middle school, however.
The only significant effect during this period was a
significant slope change for females (from .23 in el-
ementary school to .20 in middle school); however,
the change was not significantly different from the
slope change for males.
The transition to high school produced two signif-
icant changes from the middle school trajectory. First,
scores at the beginning of high school were .40 points
higher than would have been expected based on the
middle school projections. In Figure 3, this shift seems
larger for females (.59 points) than for males (.21
points); however, the gender difference was not sig-
nificant. As hypothesized, a significant positive slope
emerged during the high school years. On average,
perceived appearance increased at a rate of .33 points
a year. Once again, the difference appeared larger for
females (.48) than for males (.17), but this difference
was not significant.
Sports competence. Results for self-perceived sports
ability appear in Table 9 and Figure 3. In keeping with
our hypotheses, self-concept in sports increased sig-
nificantly during this period both for males and fe-
1738 Child Development

Table 8 Piecewise Multilevel Model of Changes in Self-Perceived Physical Appearance

Genders Combined Genders Separate

Parameter Estimate Estimate t Test of

Effect Estimate t Test for Males for Females Difference

Elementary school spline

Intercept at grade 3 11.98 55.81*** 12.56a 11.40a 3.25***
Slope .09 1.16 .05 .23a 2.12*
Middle school spline
Intercept at grade 7 11.74 78.98*** 12.92a 10.55a 8.00***
Intercept shift at grade 7 .10 .56 .14 .05 .26
Slope .08 .74 .03 .20 1.05
Slope change from elementary school .17 1.23 .09 .42a 1.93
High school spline
Intercept at grade 9 12.30 66.27*** 13.07a 11.53a 4.19***
Intercept shift at grade 9 .40 1.96* .21 .59a .93
Slope .33 3.47*** .17 .48a 1.65
Slope change from middle school .25 1.66 .21 .29 .26

a Within-gender estimate was significant, p  .05.

* p  .05; *** p  .001.

males (.67 and .57 points per year, respectively). Com-
mensurate with our gender stereotypy hypothesis,
the gender difference in the intercepts was also signif-
icant. Even at the beginning of grade 3, males re-
garded themselves as better at sports than did fe-
males, t  6.56, p  .001. During this period, the
slopes were not significantly different, and the gender
gap did not widen.
As expected, the transition into middle school in-
terrupted the gains in elementary school. Average
scores for males and females dropped noticeably at
the beginning of grade 7. The intercept was .90 points
lower, t  5.79, than suggested by the elementary
school trajectory. This drop was exacerbated by an ac-
companying decline in the slope during middle
school. Whereas the elementary school slope had
been positive, the slope during middle school was
negative (.15 points per year). Although the middle
school slope was not significantly different from zero,
t  1.66, it was significantly different from the pre-

Table 9 Piecewise Multilevel Model of Changes in Self-Perceived Sports Competence

Genders Combined Genders Separate

Parameter Estimate Estimate t Test of

Effect Estimate t Test for Males for Females Difference

Elementary school spline

Intercept at grade 3 10.66 35.62*** 11.81a 9.52a 6.56***
Slope .62 6.51*** .67a .57a .79
Middle school spline
Intercept at grade 7 12.25 99.22*** 13.53a 10.97a 10.35***
Intercept shift at grade 7 .90 5.79*** .96a .83a .44
Slope .15 1.66 .21 .08 .78
Slope change from elementary school .77 5.77*** .88a .65a 1.06
High school spline
Intercept at grade 9 11.40 57.78*** 12.97a 9.82a 8.98***
Intercept shift at grade 9 .56 2.74** .13 1.00a 2.28*
Slope .10 .90 .11 .09 .13
Slope change from middle school .05 .35 .10 .01 .45

a Within-gender estimate was significant, p  .05.

* p  .05; ** p  .01; *** p  .001.


vious slope of .62 during elementary school, t  5.77,
p  .001.
Unexpectedly, the transition from middle school to
high school corresponded with a mean level drop for
females. Females’ ninth grade average was 1.00 point
lower than predicted by their middle school trajec-
tory. Males showed no significant drop, leading to the
largest gender difference in the study, t  8.98, p 
.001. The high school slope was not significantly dif-
ferent from the middle school slope for either gender.
On average, the high school slope was .10 (not signif-
icant), suggesting essentially no change in perceived
sports competence after the beginning of ninth grade.
An alternative growth model. Analyses based on
piecewise spline regression models suggested the
presence of discontinuities in trajectories of self-
perceived competence in various domains from ele-
mentary school to high school. A rival hypothesis is
that trajectories were continuous but nonlinear.
Marsh (1989) suggested that self-competencies follow
continuous quadratic trajectories as a function of age.
Multilevel modeling allowed us to compare these two
competing models, even though they were not hierar-
chically nested, by calculating values of Akaike’s In-
formation Criterion (AIC) for each model.2 In each of
the five domains, the AIC for the spline model was
superior to the AIC for the quadratic model, suggest-
ing that the spline model provided a better explana-
tion of the data than did the quadratic model. Thus, the
data supported the view that developmental trajecto-
ries are not smooth quadratic functions, but are in-
stead discontinuous functions exhibiting disconti-
nuities between elementary school, middle school,
and high school.
DISCUSSION
In this study, we found support for several of our
hypotheses about the trajectories and stabilities of
self-concept, certain transitional effects, and several
anticipated gender differences. These findings are
discussed in the context of four developmental
periods.
2 Because the fixed effects of the two types of models differed
from one another, it was necessary to use maximum likelihood
estimation instead of restricted maximum likelihood estimation
in calculating appropriate AIC values. Furthermore, in all five
domains, spline models included separate regression lines for
every gender/school/cohort combination. All intercepts and
slopes were random effects. Separate quadratic curves for fe-
males and males (as well as a cohort main effect) were also
tested. The intercept, slope, and quadratic trend were regarded
as random effects.
Cole et al. 1739
Middle to Late Childhood
Results of the study provided mixed support for
our hypotheses about the later elementary school
years. First, we anticipated this to be a period of re-
covery following the well-documented declines dur-
ing the earlier elementary school years. In keeping
with this expectation, moderate to strong positive tra-
jectories were seen between grades 3 and 6 in self-
perceived academic competence, social acceptance,
and sports competence. These results were consistent
across gender. We speculate that these trends are the
result of a general motivation to construct and main-
tain a positive self-image (Cooley, 1902; Harter, 1989;
James, 1892), coupled with an increasing repertoire
of social-cognitive strategies for maintaining and en-
hancing one’s conception of self. These methods in-
clude overestimation (Banaji & Prentice, 1994;
Baumeister, Tice, & Hutton, 1989), selective social
comparison (see Dunning’s 1993 review), and the
strategic association with others whose successes
yield vicarious benefits (Beach & Tessor, 1995; Tessor,
1988).
Social and cognitive development during middle
childhood paves the way for such strategic behavior.
Children learn to invest in activities or roles in which
they perceive themselves as relatively competent
(Eccles et al., 1983, 1984; Eccles, Wigfield, & Schiefele,
1998; Wigfield et al., 1997). Children also learn to de-
value activities or roles in which they perceive them-
selves as less competent (Harter, 1985). Furthermore,
children learn to allocate effort and attention strategi-
cally so as to enhance or preserve positive self-
appraisals (Dweck, 1986, 1991; Middleton & Midgley,
1997; Nicholls, 1984). In other words, children be-
come increasingly adept at building and maintaining
positive self-concepts over this period of develop-
ment. All other things being equal, we would expect
steady increases in self-conceptualizations. Of course,
all other things are not always equal.
In the domains of physical attractiveness and be-
havioral conduct, very different patterns emerged,
which contradicted our hypothesis. Self-perceived
physical attractiveness declined over middle child-
hood for females (but not for males). Similar results
emerged in work by Harter (1999) and Marsh (1985,
1989; Marsh et al., 1998). Females’ self-image tended
to diminish more rapidly than did that of males’ (al-
though the effect was not significant in Marsh et al.’s
1998 study of the early elementary school years). In
the domain of physical appearance, studies consis-
tently reveal that women’s bodies are scrutinized far
more than men’s (Polivy & Herman, 1987; Silberstein,
Striegel-Moore, & Rodin, 1987). Unrealistically high
1740 Child Development
standards for and frequent negative feedback about
female attractiveness have been associated with eat-
ing disorders and depression at almost all ages (Vohs,
Bardone, Joiner, & Abramson, 1999). We speculate
that as females become increasingly concerned with
gender role identity, such standards and feedback
take their toll on this domain of self-concept.
The other exception was that males’ and females’
perceptions of their conduct steadily diminished over
this same time period. Surprisingly few studies have
examined age effects on this domain of self-concept.
Instruments developed by Marsh, Eccles, Wigfield,
and others simply have not included behavioral sub-
scales. This domain is nevertheless important, espe-
cially during the elementary school years when con-
siderable educational attention focuses on teaching
proper conduct. In Harter’s (1985) norms for her mea-
sure, some evidence supports the idea that males’
self-perceived conduct drops between third and sixth
grade; however, these are cross-sectional results, based
on relatively small samples. We speculate that driving
this negative trajectory is the fact that punishment for
misbehavior dramatically outpaces rewards for good
behavior in most social and educational settings. Quiet,
well-behaved students are more likely to be ignored
in school (McCormick & Pressley, 1997). Such pat-
terns of reinforcement may impede the enhancement
of self-image in the behavioral domain.
Second, in keeping with our expectation, gender
differences were evident in directions consistent with
gender-role stereotypes. Females perceived them-
selves as better behaved than did males, and males re-
garded themselves as more attractive and better at
sports than did females. These differences were well
established at the beginning of our study, and (con-
trary to our expectations) did not continue to diverge
over the course of middle childhood. Nevertheless,
the findings are quite consistent with previous re-
search, showing that such gender differences emerge
as early as kindergarten and are remarkably consis-
tent over time (Eccles et al., 1989; Eccles, Wigfield,
Harold, & Blumenfeld, 1993; Marsh, 1985, 1989; Marsh
et al., 1998; Marsh & Hocevar, 1985; Wigfield et al., 1991,
1997). The only difference between our results and those
of other researchers is that in our data no gender differ-
ence emerged in self-perceived academic competence.
We anticipated this, however, because our measure
did not divide academic competence into the subtypes
that often generate gender differences. (e.g., reading/
writing versus math/science) We suspect that asking
about global academic competence enabled children
to focus selectively on preferred domains.
Third, we hypothesized that children’s self-
concepts would become increasingly stable. In all five
domains, stability coefficients increased between
grades 3 through 6, in keeping with claims by Eccles
et al. (1983), Marsh et al. (1998), Shavelson et al. (1976),
and Wigfield (1994). During these years, children’s
self-perceptions become increasingly correlated with
others’ appraisals, task expectancies, objective crite-
ria, and domain value. We posit that this rising stabil-
ity results from the increasing integration of these
self-constructs into a more coherent system of self-
beliefs. These results extend those of Marsh et al.’s
(1998) and Wigfield et al.’s (1997) studies and suggest
a rather complete picture of the stability of multiple
domains of self-concept across middle childhood.3
Both of these studies provided stability estimates for
the early elementary school years that were some-
what smaller than our grade 3 estimates. For the
grade levels on which our studies overlapped, stabil-
ity estimates were quite comparable. The overall pic-
ture becomes one of steadily increasing stability of
domain-specific self-concept over the course of middle
childhood.
Fourth, gender differences in our stability estimates
were not significant, suggesting that individual dif-
ferences in these domains stabilize at about the same
rate for males and females. Fifth, differences between
domains were evident at the beginning of the study.
Most notably, the 6-month stability of self-perceived
sports competence was quite high (.79), whereas the
stability of self-perceived behavioral conduct was
substantially lower (.59). By grade 6, however, these
differences were no longer evident. Both Marsh et al.
(1998) and Wigfield et al. (1997) also found sports self-
concept to be one of the more stable domains during
elementary school, perhaps because of the frequent
and overt feedback that accrues to children as they
engage in sports.
Early Adolescence
Results of our investigation provided support for
most of our hypotheses about early adolescence and
associated transitions. This study’s sample made the
transition from elementary to middle school between
grades 6 and 7, a time during which many other physi-
ological and cognitive transitions also occur (Simmons
et al., 1987). Therefore, we anticipated a drop in both
3 Two factors made this comparison difficult. First, our esti-
mates were corrected for measurement error, whereas Marsh et
al.’s (1998) and Wigfield et al.’s (1997) estimates were not. Sec-
ond, our estimates represented 6-month stabilities, whereas
Marsh et al. and Wigfield et al. computed 1-year stability coeffi-
cients. Consequently, we disattenuated and recomputed Marsh
et al.’s and Wigfield et al.’s estimates to make them comparable
with ours.

mean level and stability of self-concept. Our results
provided partial support for both of these hypotheses.
First, the mean levels of academic and sports self-
concept dropped significantly on entry into middle
school. Comparing these results with other studies is
complicated by design differences and variations in
the timing of educational transitions. Eccles et al. (1989)
and Wigfield et al. (1991) described generally down-
ward trends for academic and sports self-concept over
grades 6 and 7 when this period contained a transi-
tion into middle school. Hoge et al. (1990) reported
relatively stable or slightly increasing levels of aca-
demic self-concept during grades 6 and 7 in schools in
which the transition had already occurred, suggest-
ing what the trends might look like after such a school
transition. Self-concept reduction may be due to
changes in social reference group (Marsh, Relich, &
Smith, 1983) or to a poor fit between developmental
stage and educational environment (Eccles & Midg-
ley, 1989), both of which coincide with the middle
school transition.
Over the same transitional period, we found that
the stability of self-perceived competence dropped in
all domains except behavioral conduct. Prior to the
transitions, approximately 63% of the variance in
these domains was stable. During the transitions,
only 46% of the variance was stable, suggesting that
such transitional periods might represent develop-
mental windows during which new variables may
exert considerable influence. These results support
our contention that responses to these transitions
varied considerably from person to person. Not every
young adolescent experiences these changes to the
same extent—or even in the same direction (Block &
Robbins, 1993; Harter, 1998). Like Simmons et al.
(1987), we speculate that these changes have multiple
determinants, including the number of changes to
which adolescents are exposed, structural and philo-
sophical differences between schools, the youth’s in-
vestment in particular domains, gender-role identifi-
cation, and personality variables (Block & Robbins,
1993; Eccles & Midgley, 1989; Hoge et al., 1990; Marsh,
1989; Nottelmann, 1987; Simmons & Blyth, 1987).
Third, we anticipated improvement in or mainte-
nance of self-concept following this transition. In the
academic and social domains, self-perceived compe-
tence recovered after the beginning of middle school.
In the sports, behavior, and appearance domains, levels
remained relatively constant, providing support for
the general principle that individuals tend to build
and maintain positive self-conceptions (Harter, 1989).
Fourth, and in a closely related vein, we found that in-
dividual differences in self-concept were re-established
soon after the transition into middle school. This pe-
Cole et al. 1741
riod can be thought of as the shuffling of a deck that
was relatively stable both before and after the transi-
tion. Even the prior upward trend in stability resumed,
lending further support to the tenet that self-concept
increases in stability over development (Shavelson et
al., 1976; Wylie, 1979).
Fifth, and as expected, the previously described
(gender stereotypic) differences re-emerged during
middle school. Males continued to regard themselves
as better athletes and better looking than did females,
and females continued to regard themselves as better
behaved. These findings are consistent with previous
longitudinal and cross-sectional investigations (Marsh,
1989; Wigfield et al., 1991). Somewhat surprisingly, a
gender difference also emerged in self-perceived aca-
demic competence, with males regarding themselves
as more competent than did females. We are hesitant
to interpret this finding for several reasons. The dif-
ference was, frankly, unexpected, especially given our
use of a global measure of academic competence.
Comparison to previous research is difficult, because
other reports of gender differences have broken aca-
demic competence into more specific subject areas.
Furthermore, the effect was small and short lived
(disappearing by the beginning of high school). Rep-
lication in other samples and with alternative mea-
sures would help to clarify this finding.
Middle Adolescence
The results of this study also supported our hy-
potheses about middle adolescence and transitions
associated with high school. The study participants
made the transition into high school between grades 8
and 9, at which time we expected some recovery of
self-perceived competence in the academic domain,
followed by a plateauing of mean levels of self-concept
and increasing levels of stability in all domains.
As expected, self-perceived academic competence
improved with the transition out of the middle school
environment. This result compliments previous re-
search attesting to the detrimental effects of middle
school on children’s academic self-concept. Just as en-
trance into middle school has been associated with
various problems (Eccles et al., 1991; Eccles & Midg-
ley, 1989; Midgley et al., 1989), the exit from middle
school was associated with an improvement in at
least academic self-concept. Also associated with this
transition (although not anticipated) were improve-
ments in self-perceived social acceptance for males
and improvements in self-perceived physical attrac-
tiveness for females. On the down side, self-perceived
behavioral conduct and sports competence dimin-
ished during this transition, at least for females.
1742 Child Development
After this transitional period, growth in most do-
mains of self-perceived competence reached a pla-
teau. The mean for each domain remained relatively
constant from grade 9 through grade 11. The only ex-
ception was physical appearance for females, which
continued to show some positive gains (although not
enough to close the gender gap). As expected, the sta-
bility of individual differences in self-concept contin-
ued to increase, reaching the highest levels at any
point during the study. By grade 11, 6-month stability
coefficients ranged from .82 to .90, signifying very
high levels of stability in all domains. In general, indi-
vidual differences, as well as mean levels of self-
concept stabilized.
Care should be taken, nevertheless, not to overgen-
eralize these results. Other domains of self-concept
are still relatively recent constructions at this age.
Harter (1988) described competencies pertaining to
close relationships, dating relationships, and job be-
havior (see also Buhrmester, 1990). Marsh (1989,
1990b) described adolescent domains pertaining to
opposite sex relationships, spiritual development,
and problem solving. Individual differences in such
domains may be unstable for years to come.
Finally, we expected that gender differences would
be maintained. Results generally reflected this expec-
tation; however, some exceptions emerged. Males
continued to perceive themselves as better at sports
than did females. In fact, this gap was at its widest dur-
ing high school. The gender difference in self-perceived
sports competence is well established in cross-sectional
studies (e.g., Marsh, 1989). Even Harter’s (1988) nor-
mative data reflect such gender differences between
grades 8 and 12. Similarly, males continued to regard
themselves as more attractive than did females; how-
ever, this gap closed somewhat as females’ self-image
improved slightly during these years. This persistent
gender difference in self-perceived physical appear-
ance replicates other findings (e.g., Harter, 1999;
Marsh, 1989). The modest recovery of females during
high school is not reflected in other studies; however,
such studies were not longitudinal.
Conclusions and Caveats
In summary, we found support for several broad
hypotheses. Previous accounts suggest that many do-
mains of self-concept diminish over the course of
middle childhood and early adolescence (Marsh,
1989; Shavelson et al., 1976; Wigfield et al., 1997). Our
data suggest a more complex pattern that varies by
gender; domain; and various educational, social, and
developmental transitions. We speculate that discrep-
ancies between our results and those of prior studies
may relate to various methodological differences.
Our study was longitudinal, whereas some of the pre-
vious findings derived from cross-sectional designs.
Furthermore, we implemented a multilevel modeling
data analytic strategy that utilized all available data
and was less subject to the biasing effects of nonran-
dom attrition. Using these methods, we found sup-
port for the general principle that self-concept improves
and stabilizes over periods of time not interrupted by
dramatic developmental, social, and educational tran-
sitions. We found evidence that the transition from
sixth to seventh grade (a time associated with puber-
tal, cognitive, and educational transitions) was asso-
ciated with destabilization in most domains and pre-
cipitous reductions in a few domains of self-concept.
During the transition from eighth to ninth grade (a
time associated with transition into high school and
the emergence of more complex cognitive structures),
we found evidence of some increases and decreases
in various domains of self-concept but no evidence of
destabilization. We also found gender differences in
directions consistent with gender-role stereotypes;
however, these differences were evident from the be-
ginning of our study. The gender difference in self-
perceived sports competence increased somewhat
over time, whereas the gender gap in self-perceived
conduct disappeared during the middle school years.
Despite the considerable scope of this study, cer-
tain shortcomings and caveats suggest avenues for
future research. First, the current study sampled only
nine elementary schools, two middle schools, and
two high schools. Previous research has revealed that
academic, social, and cultural context impacts the de-
velopment of self-concept (Crain, 1996; Eccles, Wig-
field, Midgley, et al., 1993). Extension of this study to
a wider variety of educational and cultural settings
would provide opportunities to test the generalizabil-
ity of our findings. Second, our high school data de-
rived from a single cohort. Replication of the high
school portion of this study would enable us to test
for cohort effects, as we did at the earlier grade levels.
Third, we were able to administer only one instru-
ment to measure five domains of self-concept. Having
multiple measures of self-concept that examine other
aspects of this complex construct would expand
greatly what is known about self-concept develop-
ment. Finally, the study completely confounded vari-
ous transition effects. For example, the effects of pu-
berty and the shift to formal operational logic could
not be distinguished from the effects of educational
and social transitions. We emphasize that the current
results pertain to the combined influence of these fac-
tors, and we encourage additional research to disen-
tangle these effects.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT
This project was supported in part by grants from the
National Institutes of Mental Health. The authors are
grateful to the students, teachers, parents, and princi-
pals of the South Bend Community School Corpora-
tion for their support and assistance during the exe-
cution of this project. They are especially grateful to
Rhonda Singleton for her invaluable help and good
humor throughout.
ADDRESSES AND AFFILIATIONS
Corresponding author: David A. Cole, Department
of Psychology and Human Development, Vanderbilt
University, Box 512, Peabody College, Nashville, TN
37203; e-mail: david.cole@vanderbilt.edu. Scott E.
Maxwell, Joan M. Martin, Lachlan G. Peeke, Jane M.
Tram, Kit B. Hoffman, Mark D. Ruiz, Farrah Jacquez,
and Tracy Maschman are at the University of Notre
Dame, IN; A. D. Seroczynski is at Bethel College,
South Bend, IN.
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