Tennessee Self-Concept Scale

Abstract

The Tennessee Self-Concept Scale (TSCS) is a widely utilized, 100-item psychological instrument designed to assess self-concept as a multidimensional construct. Developed by William H. Fitts, the scale measures both internal and external aspects of an individual’s self-perception. Despite historical questions regarding its precise factor structure, the TSCS remains one of the most frequently cited measures in research concerning self-concept. The scale provides a comprehensive profile across numerous subscales, including several clinical and empirical measures, with the Total Score serving as the primary indicator of overall self-esteem.

Keywords

Tennessee Self-Concept Scale, TSCS, self-concept, self-esteem, psychological assessment, W. H. Fitts, personality scales, psychometrics

Authors

William H. Fitts

Purpose

The primary purpose of the TSCS is to provide a standardized, quantitative measure of an individual’s self-concept across various dimensions. It is intended for use in clinical, counseling, and research settings to evaluate self-perception, track therapeutic progress, and identify areas of psychological distress or strength.

The scale aids practitioners in understanding how individuals view themselves across crucial domains—such as physical, family, and moral-ethical self—and provides empirical scores related to maladjustment and personality integration, allowing for a detailed diagnostic profile. The Total Score is specifically highlighted as the most important single measure, representing overall self-esteem.

Construct

The TSCS operationalizes self-concept as a hierarchical and multidimensional construct, encompassing both internal self-perceptions (how one feels about oneself) and external self-perceptions (how one relates to the world and others). The scale was meticulously constructed using a large pool of items derived from existing self-concept instruments and self-descriptions.

The construction process involved seven clinical psychologists who matched items into 15 initial content areas. An item was included only if all psychologists achieved consensus. These items were grouped to form the core dimensions of the scale, alongside ten items adapted from the L-Scale of the MMPI, intended to measure defensiveness or attempts to present oneself favorably.

Validity

The validity of the TSCS has been assessed through multiple approaches. Content validity was established through the representativeness of the TSCS items and the rigorous use of facet-design methodology during development, ensuring comprehensive coverage of the self-concept domain.

To establish convergent and discriminant validity, the TSCS scores were correlated with other established psychological measures, notably the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) and the Edwards Personal Preference Schedule. The results, detailed in the manual, highlighted statistically significant correlations supporting the scale’s theoretical underpinnings. Furthermore, several studies have established criterion validity by examining the relationship between TSCS scores and various measurable outcome variables. While empirical studies support the distinction between internal and external aspects of self-concept, the original 15 distinct facets of self-concept are generally not independently supported by factor analytic findings.

Reliability

The TSCS demonstrates acceptable levels of reliability across its scores. The internal consistency, measured using the split-half method, yielded a high value of 0.91 for the Total Score, suggesting excellent internal homogeneity. Additional reliability studies are thoroughly documented in the scale manual.

Test-retest reliability, assessed over a two-week interval using a sample of 60 university students, showed strong stability for major scores. These coefficients ranged from 0.60 (for row variability measures) up to 0.92 (for the total score and the psychosis scale), confirming that the TSCS provides consistent measurements over short periods. Means, standard deviations, and internal consistency reliability data are also provided for the WPS Test Report Sample.

Factor Analysis

Numerous factor analytic studies have been conducted on the TSCS to clarify its underlying structure, with a detailed description and summary presented in the revised manual. Overall, the consistent factor analytic findings support an eight-factor model that aligns with the scale’s conceptual division into internal and external self-aspects.

These eight factors are categorized as follows:

• Internal Self (Row) Subscales (3): Identity, Behavior, and Self-Satisfaction.
• External Self (Column) Subscales (5): Moral-Ethical, Social, Personal, Physical, and Family.

Factor loadings derived from confirmatory rotation procedures for both internal (row) and external (column) factors are reported, lending empirical weight to the separation of these broad dimensions, even if the original, finer 15-facet structure is not supported by factor analysis.

Instrument

Test Type: Standardized self-report inventory

Format: 100 items answered on a 5-point Likert-type scale (Completely False = 1 to Completely True = 5).

Language Available: Primarily English (Original source material only confirms English manual).

Population Group: Adolescents and Adults

Age Group: 12 to 68 years

Population Details: The original standardization sample consisted of 626 individuals, representing diverse economic, social, and educational levels.

Test Methodology: The scale uses a fixed-response format. Beyond the five external aspects (Physical Self, Moral-Ethical Self, Personal Self, Family Self, Social Self), the TSCS includes six empirical scales: Defensive Positive (29 items), General Maladjustment (24 items), Psychosis (23 items), Personality Disorder (27 items), Neurosis (27 items), and Personality Integration (25 items). The instrument offers two distinct scoring modes: the Counseling mode (14 scores) and the Clinical Research mode (20 scores). Scores are also obtained for Total Conflict and Number of Deviant Signs.

Keywords

self-report, psychological assessment, psychometric properties, Fitts, self-esteem, clinical research, personality integration, psychometric properties

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Not provided in source material.

Affiliation Email addresses: Not provided in source material.

Correspondence Address: W. H. Fitts, Western Psychological Services (Original Publisher).

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The Tennessee Self-Concept Scale was originally published in 1965, with a revised manual released in 1988, which includes updated norms and a comprehensive review of the literature. The instrument is commercially available through Western Psychological Services (WPS), which holds the copyright and manages permissions and fees. Computer scoring services and profiles are available through the publisher.

Reference’s

Fitts, W. H. (1965). Manual: Tennessee Self-Concept Scale. Los Angeles, CA: Western Psychological Services.

Allen, J. L. (2010). The effectiveness of group music psychotherapy in improving the self-concept of breast cancer survivors. PhD dissertation, Temple University.

Coleman, J. J. (2010). The effects of participation versus non-participation in interscholastic sports on achievement. EdD dissertation, Trevecca Nazarene University.

Pittman, S. (2009). The impact of parent-training on parent-perceived child disruptive behaviors and parent-perceived self-efficacy. EdD dissertation, Cardinal Stritch University.

Tarquin, K. (2007). Relationships among aspects of student alienation and self-concept. PhD dissertation, State University of New York, Buffalo.

Thomas, S. I. (2006). African American adolescent females: An investigation of racial identity, skin color, and self-concept during adolescent development. PhD dissertation, Kent State University.

Items of the Tennessee Self-Concept Scale

IMPORTANT: The following scale items must be preserved in their original language and must not be changed in any way.

8. I am a calm and easygoing person.
9. I have a lot of self-control.
10. I try to please others, but I don’t overdo it.
11. I wish I didn’t give up as easily as I do.
12. I am satisfied with the way I treat other people.
13. I ought to get along better with other people.
14. I try to change when I know I’m doing things that are wrong.
15. I take the blame for things without getting mad.
16. I try to understand the other fellow’s point of view.
17. I sometimes use unfair means to get ahead.