Scale Analysis

The Collective Self-Esteem Scale (CSES), developed by Luhtanen and Crocker in 1992, is a tool used to assess an individual’s self-esteem derived from their identification with a social group. The scale includes four subscales: Private Collective Self-Esteem, which measures the individual’s evaluation of their group; Public Collective Self-Esteem, which measures the individual’s perception of how others view their group; Membership Esteem, which measures the individual’s satisfaction with being a member of the group; and Importance to Identity, which measures the significance the individual attributes to the group as part of their personal identity. Examples of items used in the scale include statements such as “I am proud of the group I belong to” and “My group has a good reputation.” Participants rate these statements using a scale from 1 (Strongly Disagree) to 5 (Strongly Agree). This scale allows for an understanding of how individuals perceive and evaluate their identity in relation to their social group, as well as the importance they attribute to it.

Scale Purpose

The purpose of this scale is to measure the self-esteem associated with an individual’s identification with a social group. Specifically, the scale assesses how individuals view their group and how they feel about their membership in it. It includes four dimensions: private collective self-esteem (evaluation of the group by the individual), public collective self-esteem (perception of the group by others), membership esteem (satisfaction with group membership), and importance to identity (significance of the group to personal identity). Through these dimensions, the scale aims to understand how social identity influences self-esteem and an individual’s psychological well-being.

Scale Scoring

The CSES-57 consists of 57 items which are rated as follows:
1 = Strongly Disagree
2 = Disagree Quite a Lot
3 = Disagree Somewhat
4 = Neutral
5 = Agree Somewhat
6 = Agree Quite a Lot
7 = Strongly Agree

References

Luhtanen, R., & Crocker, J. (1992). A collective self-esteem scale: Self-evaluation of one’s social identity. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 18(3), 302–318.
Leonardelli, G. G., & Brewer, M. B. (2001). Minority and majority discrimination: When and why. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 37, 468–485.
Tom, David M. (2006). Effects of perceived discrimination: Rejection and identification as two distinct pathways and their associated effects. PhD dissertation, Ohio State University.