The Bidirectional Relationship between Rumination and Self-Esteem: Evidence from Longitudinal Tracking and Diary Methods

• Published in: Studia psychologica Vol. 66; no. 3; pp. 193 - 206
• Main Authors: Li, Xiaowen, He, Yuanqing, Ye, Kaili, Xu, Hao
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Bratislava Institute of Experimental Psychology, Slovak Academy of Sciences 01.09.2024; Slovak Academy of Sciences, Centre of Social and Psychological Sciences
• Subjects: Analysis; Anxiety; Diaries; Diary method; Emotions; Hypotheses; Longitudinal studies; Longitudinal tracking method; Medical research; Mental depression; Mental health; Questionnaires; Recall; Rumination; Rumination (Psychology); Self esteem; Validity
• ISSN: 0039-3320; 2585-8815
• DOI: 10.31577/sp.2024.03.900

Rumination and self-esteem are pivotal in mental health research. Existing studies indicate that there is an association between rumination and self-esteem, however, there is a lack of evidence for bidirectional influences. This study employed longitudinal and diary methods to investigate their bidirectional influences. The initial phase involved a two-wave survey, conducted over a year, with 1157 participants to examine the bidirectional predictive relationship between rumination and self-esteem. Cross-Lagged Panel Model (CLPM) indicated that baseline rumination could forecast subsequent self-esteem levels, and vice versa. To reduce recall bias, the second phase involved a 28-day diary study with 185 participants, revealing that daily fluctuations in rumination could predict the following day's self-esteem, and similarly, daily self-esteem levels could predict the next day's rumination. This research elucidates the bidirectional influences between rumination and self-esteem, introducing a bidirectional spiral ascension model. This model holds significant theoretical implications for mental health research.