Self-esteem modulates the latency of P2 component in implicit self-relevant processing

Previous study has shown that the latency of P2 component was more prolonged in processing self-relevant words compared to processing non-self-relevant words. However, the prolonged P2 latency may index the self-relevance of the words, the valence of the words, or an interaction of the two. The present study aimed to (1) further clarify the specific psychological significance of the prolonged P2 latency in implicit self-processing and (2) investigate the potential association between self-esteem and the latency of P2 in processing implicit self-relevant information. Nineteen participants were examined using event-related potentials (ERPs) technology. They were exposed to positive and negative words and were asked to make a judgment about the color of each word. For the data analysis, words were grouped individually according to their degree of self-relevance (low vs. high) for each participant. Results showed that the latency of P2 was more prolonged in processing the negative-high self-relevant words compared to processing the positive-high self-relevant words. Also, self-esteem was negatively correlated with the P2 latency in processing negative-high self-relevant words. Overall, the results of the present study suggested that levels of self-esteem might modulate neural correlates of self-referential processing.