Rosenbergsjálfsmatskvarða

Rosenbergsjálf is the Icelandic designation for the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES), a widely used psychometric instrument for assessing global self-esteem. Developed by social psychologist Morris Rosenberg in 1965, the scale comprises ten statements about the respondent's self-worth and overall regard for themselves. Respondents rate each item on a four-point Likert scale, from strongly disagree to strongly agree. Half of the items are positively worded and half are negatively worded; the negatively phrased items are reverse-scored. The total score, typically ranging from 0 to 30, serves as an index of overall self-esteem, with higher scores indicating higher self-esteem.

The instrument's brevity and straightforward scoring have contributed to its widespread use in psychology, sociology, education, and health research, including large-scale surveys and clinical assessments. The Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale has been translated into many languages and adapted for diverse populations, with numerous studies reporting satisfactory reliability and validity across cultures. Critics note potential limitations, including social desirability bias, cultural differences in item interpretation, and concerns about cross-cultural equivalence of the construct. Despite these criticisms, the scale remains a standard measure for screening, monitoring changes over time, and comparing groups.

In Icelandic-language scholarship, Rosenbergsjálf has been used in studies on adolescent development, mental health, and psychosocial wellbeing as a concise indicator of global self-esteem.