Self-Perception Profile for Adolescents

Self-Perception Profile for Adolescents (SPPA, Harter, 1988; Adaptation: Facio et al., 2006) is a
scale that evaluates global self-esteem and self-concept across different specific domains. It
consists of eight subscales of five items each (physical appearance, romantic appeal, closes
friendship, social competence, behavioral conduct, scholastic competence, athletic competence,
and global self-worth or self-esteem).

Physical appearance assesses to what extent the adolescent is satisfied with his or her
appearance;

he Influence of Physical Appearance

Physical appearance has a strong effect on how people are perceived by others. Two aspects of
physical appearance are particularly important: attractiveness and baby-faced features.

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Attractiveness

Research shows that people judge attractive-looking people as having positive personality traits,
such as sociability, friendliness, poise, warmth, and good adjustment. There is, however, little
actual correlation between personality traits and physical attractiveness.

People also tend to think that attractive-looking people are more competent. Because of this bias,
attractive people tend to get better jobs and higher salaries.

Baby-Faced Features

People’s attractiveness does not have much influence on judgments about their honesty. Instead,
people tend to be judged as honest if they have baby-faced features, such as large eyes and
rounded chins. Baby-faced people are often judged as being passive, helpless, and naïve.
However, no correlation exists between being baby-faced and actually having these personality
traits.

Evolutionary theorists believe the qualities attributed to baby-faced people reflect an evolved
tendency to see babies as helpless and needing nurture. Such a tendency may have given human
ancestors a survival advantage, since the babies of people who provided good nurturing were
more likely to live on to reproduce.
Romantic appeal assesses the extent to which the adolescent is considered attractive to people
with whom he would be interested in having a love relationship;

Close friendship assesses the perception of your ability to make close friends; Adolescents are
influenced both by their friends' behaviors and by the features of their friendships.

Social competence evaluates to what extent the adolescent feels accepted by his peers;

Behavioral conduct assesses to what extent you are satisfied with your behavior, you believe you
are doing the right thing and you avoid getting into trouble;

The result suggest that addictive behavior, not paying attention to studies, getting angry over small
issues, fighting back, disobedience, and stealing were the most commonly identified behavioral related
problems of children, with these problems seen as interrelated and interdependent. Results indicate
that community members view the family, community and school environments as being the causes of
child behavioral problems, with serious impacts upon children’s personal growth, family harmony and
social cohesion. The strategies reported by parents and teachers to manage child behavioral problems
were talking, listening, consoling, advising and physical punishment (used as a last resort).

Scholastic competence evaluates how adolescents perceive their academic ability;

Early childhood and concurrent factors associated with adolescents’ self-perceptions of scholastic
competence and global self-worth were examined longitudinally (at ages 12 and 15) among 88
adolescents from low-income families (87 African American). General linear mixed model analyses
indicated that family conflict in adolescence, early childhood educational intervention, and academic
achievement were predictors of perceived scholastic competence in adolescence, that the effects of the
early home environment were moderated by early childhood educational intervention, and that the
effects of the early home environment were stronger in earlier adolescence than in middle adolescence.
Perceptions of scholastic, social, and physical competence, as well as the adolescents’ perceptions of
concurrent family conflict, were significant predictors of global self-worth. This work adds to the
understanding of the development of self-concepts by highlighting the influence of both early and
concurrent factors on adolescents’views of themselves.

Athletic competence evaluates how the adolescent perceives his ability in sports; job
competence, evaluates how the adolescent perceives himself in his ability to carry out a job;

Global self-worth assesses the extent to which the adolescent likes his or her person, is happy
with how he/she lives and how he/she is. It is a global value judgment. In each item, there are
two contrary statements and the adolescent must choose one and then establish the degree of
agreement with the chosen option. The scores of the items are summed and a score is obtained in
each domain evaluated, the higher scores reflect a better self-perception. Given the sample
characteristics, the job competence domain was not administered. The instrument has adequate
indicators of validity.
physical self-perceptions in British adolescents has been undertaken in previous studies, a comparison
of different school types, and differing learning environments that each affords, requires
examination.Purpose: To investigate the physical self-perceptions of adolescents in order to identify if
significant differences in levels of Global Self-Esteem (GSE), Physical Self-Worth (PSW) and their
subordinate physical self-perceptions are apparent in these potentially different physical education
environments.Participants and setting: Some 605 participants (327 male and 278 female pupils) aged
12–15 studying in Years 8, 9 and 10 at one independent school, two comprehensive schools and two
specialist sports colleges in West Yorkshire, England.Intervention: Two questionnaires were
administered to each participant: the Children and Youth Physical Self-Perception Profile (CY-PSPP) and
the Children and Youth Perceived Importance Profile (CY-PIP).Research design: A cross-sectional,
quantitative survey.Data collection and analysis: In order to ensure pupils had been exposed to the
particular physical education learning environment for a period of time, data collection took place in the
penultimate month of the school year. Questionnaires were administered during physical education (PE)
and games lessons to keep disruption of other areas of their timetable to a minimum with the
questionnaires administered by the lead author or by a trained member of the PE department. A three-
way MANOVA was employed to determine gender/year group/school type interactions.Findings:
Significant differences on SPORT, CONDITION, STRENGTH and PSW (p < 0.05) were reported. Males
scored significantly higher than females on all physical self-perceptions and PSW (p < 0.05). There were
year differences on all physical self-perceptions (p < 0.05). Males in independent and sports colleges
scored significantly higher than males in the comprehensive schools on CONDITION, BODY, STRENGTH
and PSW (p < 0.05). Females in state comprehensive schools also scored significantly higher than males
in state comprehensive schools on CONDITION (p < 0.05).Conclusions: The findings tend to support the
widely held view that the physical self-perceptions of males are significantly higher than females,
although the picture becomes increasingly complex when school type effects are taken into account.
Longitudinal studies from the year of entry to the different school environments are required to identify
any possible causal relationships between school type and subsequent development of GSE, PSW and its
sub-domains in adolescents. It is suggested that alternative, constructivist curriculum models may have
a positive effect upon the physical self-perceptions and levels of engagement within adolescence; a
greater understanding of such models is particularly pertinent in light of the current QCA Review.