Social Psychology, Vol 56(5), 2025, 244-248; doi:10.1027/1864-9335/a000588
Although anxiety has been linked to self-esteem in correlational and longitudinal studies, its causal effect on self-esteem has not been experimentally tested. To fill this gap, we conducted two studies: a pilot (N = 58) and a main experiment (N = 172), in which we experimentally induced anxiety to test its impact on state self-esteem. In the main study, we additionally examined the effect of anxiety on state self-efficacy. The results confirmed detrimental effects of experiencing anxiety on state self-esteem as well as state self-efficacy. Our findings are discussed with regard to the consequences of anxiety and the potential mechanisms underlying its impact on state self-esteem. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved)