Within‐Person Dynamics Between Identity and Self‐Esteem: A Longitudinal Diary Study

OBJECTIVE: Although identity and self-esteem have been extensively discussed as closely interrelated core components of the self-system, longitudinal evidence regarding their micro-level dynamics at the daily level remains limited. The present study examined short-term within-person longitudinal associations between three identity states (consolidated identity, disturbed identity, and lack of identity) and self-esteem. METHOD: Data were collected daily over 4 days in a sample of 261 South Korean adults and analyzed using Random Intercept Cross-Lagged Panel Models. RESULTS: Increases in self-esteem were significantly associated with subsequent decreases in disturbed identity and lack of identity on the following day, but were not associated with changes in consolidated identity. Conversely, among the three identity states, only increases in consolidated identity were positively associated with subsequent increases in self-esteem. CONCLUSION: These findings reveal asymmetric prospective associations between identity and self-esteem at the daily level, underscoring the importance of distinguishing between positive and negative identity development states.