How Does the Number of Response Options Impact the Psychometric Properties of the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale?

The Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale is the most frequently used measure of self-esteem in the social sciences and it is often administered with a different number of response options. However, it is unclear how the number of response options impacts the psychometric properties of this measure. Across three experiments (Ns = 739, 2,358, and 1,461), we evaluated how different response options of the Rosenberg influenced (1) internal consistency estimates, (2) distributions of scores, and (3) associations with criterion-related variables. Internal consistency estimates were lowest for a 2-point format compared to response formats with more options. Using 4 or more response options better approximated a normal distribution. We found no consistent evidence that criterion-related correlations increased with more response options. Collectively, these results suggest that the Rosenberg should be administered with at least four response options and we favor a 5-point Likert-type option for practical reasons.