Charting self-esteem during marital dissolution
Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 3, 2026

Multimodal Protocol for Assessing Metacognition and Self-Regulation in Adults with Learning Difficulties
Published on: September 27, 2020
Wiebke Bleidorn1, Ted Schwaba1, Jaap J A Denissen2
1Department of Psychology, University of California Davis, Davis, California.
Objective:
The purpose of this study was to chart changes in self-esteem before and after marital dissolution to identify the factors that shape individuals' self-esteem during this life transition.
Method:
We analyzed 10 annual waves of self-esteem data from 291 divorcees from a nationally representative panel study of the Netherlands (N ~ 13,000). We charted the course of self-esteem before and after marital dissolution and tested a broad set of moderator variables that may shape individuals' self-esteem trajectories.
Results:
The average divorcee experienced significant decrease in self-esteem preceding marital dissolution and remained stable afterward. There were substantial individual differences in self-esteem trajectories, both before and after marital separation. Divorcees who experienced financial hardship, were affiliated with a church or religion, or scored low in Conscientiousness showed the most pronounced decrease in self-esteem during the years approaching marital dissolution.
Conclusion:
This study highlights the importance of assessing people multiple times before and after marital dissolution to dissect how people approach and respond to this life event. Results are consistent with perspectives that view divorce as an opportunity to abate the strains of an unhappy marriage.
Related Concept Videos
Ending Relationships
Self-Esteem
Self-Discrepancy and Its Effects
Protecting Self-Esteem
Sources of Self-Esteem I: Family Experience
Sources of Self-Esteem III: Social Comparison

