Dissimilar effects of task-relevant and interpersonal threat on independent–interdependent self-construal in individuals with high self-esteem Ken’ichiro Nakashima, 1 Kuniaki Yanagisawa 2 and Mitsuhiro Ura 3 1 Preschool Education Section, Nagasaki Women’s Junior College, Nagasaki, Japan, 2 Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan, and 3 Graduate School of Integrated Arts and Sciences, Hiroshima University, Hiroshima, Japan Previous research has indicated that individuals with high trait self-esteem (HSEs) become more independent and less interdependent after experiencing a task-relevant threat. However, these studies have not investigated other sources of ego threats, such as interpersonal threats. Therefore, the moderating effects of the degree of trait self-esteem on task-relevant and interpersonal ego threats were investigated in relation to independent, or interdependent self-construal. It was predicted that in HSEs, the level of task-relevant stress would be positively– negatively related to their independence–interdependence, whereas the level of interpersonal stress would be negatively–positively related to their independence–interdependence. In individuals with low trait self-esteem (LSEs), the two types of stresses and independent–interdependent self-construal may not have a significant relationship. We conducted a questionnaire survey with undergraduates. Correlational analysis of the results indicated that in HSEs, greater task-relevant stress was related to heightened independence, whereas greater interpersonal stress had the opposite effect, indicating lower independence and heightened interdependence. However, these stresses were not related to the self-construal of LSEs. These findings suggest that task-relevant and interpersonal threat could have differential effects on independent and interdependent self-construal for HSEs, but not in LSEs. Key words: dark side of high self-esteem, independence, interdependence, interpersonal threat, task-relevant threat, trait self-esteem. The sense of one’s worth, self-esteem, has become a well- known concept. Many teachers and therapists have focused efforts on boosting self-esteem, on the assumption that a high level of self-esteem causes positive outcomes and ben- efits (see Stinson et al., 2008). However, individuals with high self-esteem (HSEs) do not always have an advantage in adaptation. Previous studies have revealed that HSEs who experience ego threat ‘over-emphasize’ themselves as independent and autonomous. Therefore they may be per- ceived as antagonistic or selfish and evaluated negatively by others. In contrast, ego threat causes individuals with low self-esteem (LSEs) to emphasize themselves as inter- dependent and connected to others. Therefore they may be perceived as cooperative or friendly and evaluated positively. HSEs and LSEs may thus receive different evaluations by others, in spite of the fact that both are motivated to pursue the same goal of buffering the threat (e.g. Heatherton & Vohs, 2000; Vohs & Heatherton, 2001). In these studies, ego threat was manipulated by creating stress from task-relevant failure; other types of ego threat were not considered. A different type of ego threat, one evoked by an interpersonal stress, may be particularly important in affecting self-construal. Leary and Baumeister (2000) suggested that individuals threatened by an interper- sonal stress are motivated to bolster relations with others for social connection needs. In a similar vein, social exclu- sion, one type of interpersonal stress, often prompts indi- viduals to think and behave in cooperative ways so that they may be accepted by others (Ouwerkerk, Kerr, Gallucci, & Van Lange, 2005). Moreover, HSEs are willing to interact with others even after confronting interpersonal stress (Yanagisawa, Nishimura, & Ura, 2010). Such an interaction not only leads them to receive social support (Aspinwall & Taylor, 1992), but also to feel a social connection (Zadro, Williams, & Richardson, 2004). This implies that a threat by an interpersonal stress may function to boost the inter- dependent tendency of HSEs. The purpose of this study was to clarify whether the level of trait self-esteem moderates the type of threat that is related to independence or interdependence. This study proposes that task-relevant Correspondence: Ken’ichiro Nakashima, Preschool Education Section, Nagasaki Women’s Junior College, 19-1, Yayoi-machi, Nagasaki 850-8512, Japan. Email: nakaken@nagasaki-joshi.ac.jp This work was supported by a Grant-in-Aid for Research Activity Start-up from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (number 22830128). Received 3 September 2010; accepted 4 June 2012. Asian Journal of Social Psychology © 2012 The Authors Asian Journal of Social Psychology © 2012 Blackwell Publishing Asia Pty Ltd with the Asian Association of Social Psychology and the Japanese Group Dynamics Association Asian Journal of Social Psychology (2012) DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-839X.2012.01386.x