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Unconditional self-acceptance (USA) is important for mental health. Studies reported that university students would develop the USA when they feel socially supported, included, and matter. Nevertheless, those factors are dependent on social feedbacks. Amidst the COVID-19 outbreak is, they had to follow the social distancing protocols and interact online with each other. This change might have altered the way they perceive the social support and mattering. It is hypothesized that these alterations predicted their USA through their perceived social support (PSS) and the sense of social inclusion (state self-esteem). To test the hypothesis, 214 young adults (85 men, 129 women), aged between 18 to 25 (M=22.80, SD=1.92) were asked to complete a demographic form and the scales of each variable. Students from University X, Malaysia were chosen as the population as they studied fully online when we started this study; unfortunately, the university went back to physical study before we managed to collect our target sample size. The results of Bootstrapping with 5,000 samples and 95% confidence interval showed that state self-esteem (SSE) fully mediated the relationship between mattering and USA, while PSS did not. Therefore, the hypothesis of serial mediation was not supported.

A few years ago, Slater, Johnson, Cohen, Comello, and Ewoldsen (2014) proposed an interesting perspective about people’s impetus to engage with narratives: the temporarily expanding the boundaries of the self (TEBOTS) model. The TEBOTS model suggests that the self is composed of three psychological elements, which are self-esteem, self-control, and self-presentation (Baumeister, 1998), and is inherently restricting individuals’ self-realization. To deal with those inherent limitations of the self, people turn to narratives for temporary self-expansion to satisfy fundamental intrinsic needs (Ryan & Deci, 2000). Utilization of the TEBOTS model has already generated promising findings (Eden, Daalmans, & Johnson, 2017; Johnson, Ewoldsen, & Slater, 2015; Johnson, Slater, Silver, & Ewoldsen, 2016; Krakowiak & Tsay-Vogel, 2018), indicating that it has the potential to explain psychological processes that were not previously fully disclosed. That said, past research on the TEBOTS model has not looked into self-esteem as a predictor of narrative engagement, even though “[s]elf-esteem is arguably one of the most important constructs in psychology” (Rhodewalt & Tragakis, 2003, p. 66). For the TEBOTS model, Slater et al. (2014) used Baumeister’s (1998) definition of selfhood, which postulates that the self consists of three psychological aspects: self-esteem, self-presentation, and self-control. Given the importance that Slater et al. (2014) hereby assigned self-esteem as a potential predictor of narrative engagement in their TEBOTS model, it seems inevitable to scrutinize it in the realm of TEBOTS research. To fill the gap, a preliminary study (Study 1) was preregistered and conducted (see Explanation of Existing Data for more details). Results of Study 1 found that decreased state self-esteem did not predict greater narrative engagement, thus falsifying the study’s predictions based on the TEBOTS model. To test if state self-esteem influences narrative engagement, like Study 1, this follow-up study will test the same hypotheses by implementing a slightly altered research design which includes two narratives instead of one. In doing so, the follow-up study serves the general need for a replication to test the explanatory power of the results of Study 1 and launches further investigation of the hitherto elusive role that state self-esteem plays in the context of self expansion. Additionally, the incorporation of a second narrative allows for more adequate inspection of the limitations of Study 1 regarding the narrative (see Hypotheses for more details). References: Baumeister, R. F. (1998). The self. In D. T. Gilbert, S. T. Fiske, & G. Lindzey (Eds.), Handbook of social psychology (4th ed., pp. 680–740). New York: McGraw-Hill. Eden, A., Daalmans, S., & Johnson, B. K. (2017). Morality predicts enjoyment but not appreciation of morally ambiguous characters. Media Psychology, 20(3), 349–373. doi:10.1080/15213269.2016.1182030 Johnson, B. K., Ewoldsen, D. R., Slater, M. D. (2015). Self-control depletion and narrative: Testing a prediction of the TEBOTS model. Media Psychology, 18(2), 196–220. doi:10.1080/15213269.2014.978872 Johnson, B. K., Slater, M. D., Silver, N. A., & Ewoldsen, D. R. (2016). Entertainment and expanding boundaries of the self: Relief from the constraints of the everyday. Journal of Communication, 66(3), 386–408. doi:10.1111/jcom.12228 Krakowiak, K. M., & Tsay-Vogel, M. (2018). Are good characters better for us? The effect of morality salience on entertainment selection and recovery outcomes. Mass Communication and Society, 21(3), 320–344. doi:10.1080/15205436.2017.1407797 Leary, M. R. (2004). The sociometer, self-esteem, and the regulation of interpersonal behavior. In R. F. Baumeister & K. D. Vohs (Eds.), The handbook of self-regulation: Research, theory, and application (pp. 373–391). New York: Guilford. Leary, M. R., & Baumeister, R. F. (2000). The nature and function of self-esteem: Sociometer theory. In M. Zanna (Ed.), Advances in experimental social psychology (Vol. 32, pp. 1–62). San Diego, CA: Academic Press. Leary, M. R., Haupt, A. L., Strausser, K. S., & Chokel, J. T. (1998). Calibrating the sociometer: The relationship between interpersonal appraisals and state self- esteem. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 74(5), 1290–1299. Mruk, C. J. (2006). Self-esteem research, theory, and practice: Toward a positive psychology of self- esteem (3rd ed.). New York: Springer. Rhodewalt, F., & Tragakis, M. W. (2003). Self-esteem and self-regulation: Toward optimal studies of self-esteem. Psychological Inquiry, 14(1), 66–70. Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000). Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being. American Psychologist, 55(1), 58–78. doi:10.1037110003-066X.55.1.68 Slater, M. D., Johnson, B. K., Cohen, J., Comello, M. L. G., & Ewoldsen, D. R. (2014). Temporarily expanding the boundaries of the self: Motivations for entering the story world and implications for narrative effects. Journal of Communication, 64(3), 439–455. doi:10.1111/jcom.12100

The overarching aim of this study is to explain how comparing self to others in social media might predict one’s sense of life satisfaction. In order to achieve that, we test the hypothesis that mattering and state self-esteem play a serial mediation that explains the link between social comparison in social media and life satisfaction. One hundred and forty-seven participants’ ages between 18 to 35 were recruited to participate in this research and were asked to fill up the Iowa-Netherlands Comparison Orientation Measure, General Mattering Scale, State Self-Esteem Scale and Riverside Life Satisfaction Scale questionnaires. Bias-free Bootstrap Method with 5000 sample has been conducted to analyze the relationship among the variables, and the results suggested that the overall model of the predictor significantly contributed to life satisfaction. Nevertheless, because social comparison did not predict the sense of mattering, serial mediation did not occur as per hypothesized. Our supplementary analyses indicated that state self-esteem fully mediated the contribution of mattering on life satisfaction. Implication, limitation and suggestions are discussed at the end of the paper.

The protective role of mattering on suicide ideation among university students was examined. Our study is grounded in the Interpersonal-Psychological Theory of Suicide, which led to a hypothesis that between depression levels and state self-esteem has significant serial multiple mediating effects on the relationship between mattering and suicide ideation. University students from various nationality who study in Indonesia and Malaysia (n=509) responded to General Mattering Scale, State Self-Esteem Scale, Beck’s Depression Inventory, and Suicide Ideation Attributes Scale, as well as demographic details including their gender, spirituality, education, birth order and nationality. The result of Bootstrap analyses with 95% confident interval from 5000 samples suggested that the serial mediation partially occurred to the link between mattering and suicide ideation.

State self-esteem, the momentary feeling of self-worth, functions as a sociometer involved in maintenance of interpersonal relations. How others’ appraisal is subjectively interpreted to change state self-esteem is unknown, and the neural underpinnings of this process remain to be elucidated. We hypothesized that changes in state self-esteem are represented by the mentalizing network, which is modulated by interactions with regions involved in the subjective interpretation of others’ appraisal. To test this hypothesis, we conducted task-based and resting-state fMRI. Participants were repeatedly presented with their reputations, and then rated their pleasantness and reported their state self-esteem. To evaluate the individual sensitivity of the change in state self-esteem based on pleasantness (i.e., the subjective interpretation of reputation), we calculated evaluation sensitivity as the rate of change in state self-esteem per unit pleasantness. Evaluation sensitivity varied across participants, and was positively correlated with precuneus activity evoked by reputation rating. Resting-state fMRI revealed that evaluation sensitivity was positively correlated with functional connectivity of the precuneus with areas activated by negative reputation, but negatively correlated with areas activated by positive reputation. Thus, the precuneus, as the part of the mentalizing system, serves as a gateway for translating the subjective interpretation of reputation into state self-esteem.

Mass media are one of the most powerful conveyors of beauty ideals, promoting an unrealistic image of female beauty that is impossible for the majority of females to achieve. Internalization of such ideal standards leads to negative affect, body-focused anxiety, and dissatisfaction. Present study compared two different approaches aimed at reducing such negative outcomes, one based on awareness of the deceptive nature of media techniques (i.e., photo retouching), and the other based on the use of "real" women as models. One hundred and fifty-one female undergraduates participated in the study. Results showed that retouching salience can reduce the level of internalization of beauty ideals and thus the negative effects of media images exposure, such as negative mood and decrease in self-esteem. On the contrary, ideal images and "real" images play a similar role in fostering internalization of beauty ideals. Implications are discussed.Keywords: mass media, positive and negative mood, state self-esteem, photo retouchingIntroductionAmong the possible mechanisms for transmission of ideals, such as through family and peers, the mass media are probably the most powerful conveyor of beauty ideals, promoting an unrealistic image of female beauty that is impossible for the majority of females to achieve (Levine & Murnen, 2009). Indeed, the media uniformly idealize an artificial icon of female beauty that is predominantly slim, yet incredibly toned and curvaceous, with perfect skin and hair (Want, 2009).Socio-cultural theory attributes many negative psychological outcomes among Western women to the media's projection and promotion of this "body perfect" ideal. Literature has provided convincing empirical evidence for the relationship between exposure to media models and women's body dissatisfaction and drive for thinness (e.g., Grabe, Ward, & Hyde, 2008; Groesz, Levine, & Murnern, 2002; Tiggemann, 2003). The implications of these findings for women's wellbeing and physical health have been well documented, in terms of depression (Grabe & Hyde, 2009), body shame and anxiety (Grabe & Hyde, 2009; Harper & Tiggemann, 2008), lower self-esteem (Bardone-Cone & Cass, 2007; Rollero, 2013), negative mood (Rollero, 2013; Tiggemann & McGill, 2004) and disordered eating (Harrison & Cantor, 1997). As Grabe and colleagues (2008) showed in their meta-analysis, these effects of media exposure are demonstrated in both the experimental and the correlational literature, regardless of assessment technique, individual difference variables, media type, or other study characteristics.However, it is not exposure to "body perfect" ideals per se that seems detrimental: the real problem seems to come when people internalize such standards of appearance (Giles & Close, 2008). The process of internalization of beauty ideals refers to the extent to which an individual regards the societal norms of size and appearance as appropriate standards for his or her own appearance (Thompson & Stice, 2001). These standards, in turn, determine which visible body attributes are important for "being beautiful". In sum, media convey beauty ideals and the internalization of these messages may guide the perception of one's body and worth (Rollero, & Tartaglia, 2013; Vandenbosch & Eggermont, 2012).The meta-analysis conducted by Groesz and colleagues (2002) showed that women with higher levels of intern alization at baseline are adversely influenced by media images the most. Specifically, media internalization leads to negative affect and bodyfocused anxiety (Dittmar, Halliwell, & Stirling, 2009; Dittmar & Howard, 2004). Moreover, internalization of sociocultural standards of appearance significantly predicts women's drive for thinness and body dissatisfaction (Bair et a l. , 2012; Lokken , Worthy, & Trautmann, 2004; Tiggemann, 2003).However, the level of internalization of media standards should not be considered as an individual unchangeable trait. …

Literature suggests that the perception of being cyber-victimized is a stronger predictor of depression symptoms than the perception of being victimized offline, and that learned-helplessness can explain the prediction of perceived cyber-victimization on perceived depression. Nevertheless, other studies suggested that the link between perceived cyber-victimized and learned-helplessness is weakened by state self-esteem. This study investigates the double mediation effect of state self-esteem and learned-helplessness on the relationship between perceived cyber-victimized and perceived depression. 104 participants between 18 and 30 years of age (63 females, 41 males, 1 prefer not to say) have been recruited through haphazard sampling method to fill in the Cyberbullying Victimization Scale, State Self-Esteem Scale, Learned Helplessness Scale, and Beck’s Depression Inventory. Our findings suggest that the double mediation effect occurs. As a conclusion, our findings suggested that cyberbullied social media users will only fall into perceived depression when their state self-esteem is also negatively affected by their perception of being cyberbullied, up to the point where they learn that they are helpless. Further implication are discussed at the end of the paper.

This study was an attempt to examine the relationship between state self eteem, loneliness and life-satisfaction in adulthood. Participants were 213 (50 boys and 163 girls) students from shiraz university, who completed the State Self-Esteem Scale(SESS); the short form of the Social and Emotional Loneliness Scale for Adult (SELSA-S) and Satisfaction With Life Scale(SWLS). To examine reliability of measures, Cronbach alpha coefficient, and to determine the validity, factor analysis method were applied. The results of regression showed that appearance self-esteem was stronger positive predictor and emotional loneliness was stronger negative predictor of life satisfaction. Implications and details of findings are discussed.