Relation between self-esteem and socially desirable responding and the role of socially desirable responding in the relation between self-esteem and performance

This investigation examines the relation between self-esteem and socially desirable responding by integrating previous findings via a meta-analysis. In 55 studies containing 73 independent samples (N = 11,901), the correlation between self-esteem and Impression Management was weak, that between self-esteem and Self-Deceptive Enhancement was from moderate to strong, and that between self-esteem and omnibus socially desirable responding was moderate based on Cohen’s guidelines (1988). The effects of all moderators, including the measures of self-esteem and socially desirable responding, and mean sample age and sample gender, on the relation between self-esteem and socially desirable responding were non-significant. Socially desirable responding did not function as a useful suppressor or spurious variable in the relation between self-esteem and performance.