Anxiety Affects State Self-Esteem as Well as State Self-Efficacy

Abstract: Although anxiety has been linked to self-esteem in correlational and longitudinal studies, its causal effect on self-esteem has not been experimentally tested. To fill this gap, we conducted two studies: a pilot ( N = 58) and a main experiment ( N = 172), in which we experimentally induced anxiety to test its impact on state self-esteem. In the main study, we additionally examined the effect of anxiety on state self-efficacy. The results confirmed detrimental effects of experiencing anxiety on state self-esteem as well as state self-efficacy. Our findings are discussed with regard to the consequences of anxiety and the potential mechanisms underlying its impact on state self-esteem.