本研究の目的は,青年期における劣等感の発達的変化を,自己の重要領域との関連から明らかにすることである。中学生・高校生・大学生549名に,予備調査から選択された劣等感項目50項目への回答と,自己の重要領域に関する自由記述を求めた。劣等感項目は予備調査と同様の8因子が抽出され,自己の重要領域に関する記述は10カテゴリーに分類された。自己の重要領域と劣等感得点との関連を検討したところ,中学生では知的能力を重要領域としており,学業成績の悪さに劣等感を感じ,高校生では対人魅力を重要領域としており,身体的魅力のなさに劣等感を感じていた。そして,大学生になり,自己承認を重要領域とするようになると友達づくりの下手さに劣等感を感じるが,人間的成熟を重要領域とするようになると劣等感はあまり感じられなくなることが明らかとなった。

The present study investigated developmental changes in inferiority feelings in adolescents and young adults, in relation to important areas of the self, using a cross-sectional design. Participants, junior high students (7th 8th and 9th, grades, N = 204 ; average age 13.25), senior high students (10th, 11th, and 12th grades, N = 173, average age 16.27), and university students (N = 172, average age 19.88), completed a questionnaire of 50 items measuring inferiority feelings that had been selected from a preliminary survey, and also wrote a description of important areas of the self. Factor analysis extracted the same 8 factors relating to inferiority feelings that had been extracted in the preliminary survey. The descriptions of the self were classified into 10 categories, and the relation between the important areas of the self and the inferiority feeling scores investigated. The results were as follows : (1) the junior high school students regarded intellectual abilities as an important area of the self, and had inferiority feelings regarding poor grades in the school, (2) the senior high students regarded personal attractiveness as an important area, and had inferiority feelings regarding bodily attractiveness, and (3) the university students regarded self-approval as an important area, and had inferiority feeling about the lack of social skills. However, those university students who regarded maturity as an important area did not have strong inferiority feelings.