Introduction
The Hare Area-Specific Self-Esteem Scale (HASE) is a 30-item self-report measure of how young people evaluate their own worth in three social areas: with peers, at school and at home. Bruce R. Hare developed it in 1975 as an unpublished manuscript, and Allen L. Shoemaker first published it in 1980.
Unlike global self-esteem measures, the HASE shows where a young person feels high or low self-regard, for example strong self-esteem at school but low self-esteem among peers. It is also abbreviated HASSES. This guide explains its structure, scoring and use.
Key Features of the Hare Area-Specific Self-Esteem Scale (HASE)
Purpose and Use
The HASE provides a quick yet specific assessment of how adolescents judge their own worth and significance in distinct social areas. It identifies the specific domains where a young person may experience high or low self-regard.
Target Population
The HASE is intended for preadolescents and adolescents, including school-age children.
Structure
The HASE has 30 items, with 10 items in each of three areas:
Area
What it covers
Items
Peer self-esteem
Feeling accepted, liked, valued and included by other young people, and one's social standing among peers
10
School self-esteem
Feeling competent and adequate as a student, accepted and valued at school, and a sense of belonging with classmates
10
Home self-esteem
Feeling valued and important to family members, accepted at home, and one's position within the family
10
The scale measures contextual self-esteem, rather than separate constructs such as self-confidence, body image, academic motivation or social anxiety.
Scoring Method
Item scores: each item is scored by its response category, with positively and negatively worded items scored in opposite directions.Subscale scores: sum the items in each area to get separate peer, school and home scores.Higher scores indicate higher self-esteem in that area, and lower scores indicate lower self-esteem. No cut-off scores have been established.
Administration Format
The HASE is a self-report questionnaire.
Applications of the Hare Area-Specific Self-Esteem Scale (HASE)
The HASE supports several uses:
Psychological assessment: identifying the areas where a young person's self-esteem is high or low.Research: studying self-esteem and psychosocial functioning in children and adolescents.School and family research: examining peer, school and family relationships.Languages and availability
The HASE was first published in English in Educational and Psychological Measurement (Shoemaker, 1980). No translations are listed.
Reliability and Validity
Shoemaker's 1980 study examined the construct validity of area-specific self-esteem using the Hare scale.
Validation studies:
Construct validity of area specific self-esteem: the Hare Self-Esteem Scale (1980): study linkLimitations and Considerations
Keep these points in mind:
No cut-offs: no cut-off scores have been established.Limited evidence: only one validation study is cited in this guide.No short form: no officially established short form has been identified.Three areas only: it covers peers, school and home, not other areas such as body image.Other Versions And Related Questionnaires
No officially established short form has been identified.
These questionnaires are related:
Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES); see the ResRef RSES guideCoopersmith Self-Esteem Inventory (CSEI)Piers-Harris Children's Self-Concept Scale (Piers-Harris 2)Tennessee Self-Concept Scale (TSCS)Self-Description Questionnaire (SDQ)Additional Resources
The first published article: linkNo contact information for the developer was found.Browse more pediatrics questionnaires in the ResRef database.Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
What does the Hare Area-Specific Self-Esteem Scale measure?The HASE measures how young people evaluate their own worth and acceptance in three areas of life: with peers, at school and at home, rather than giving one global self-esteem score.
How is the HASE scored?Positively and negatively worded items are scored in opposite directions, then the 10 items in each area are summed. This gives separate peer, school and home scores, where higher scores mean higher self-esteem.
Who can complete the HASE?The HASE is intended for preadolescents and adolescents, including school-age children. It was designed to assess self-esteem across the main social settings of young people's lives.
Does the HASE have cut-off scores?No. Cut-off scores have not been established. Higher scores indicate higher self-esteem in that specific area, and lower scores indicate lower self-esteem in that area.
A Word from ResRef About the Hare Area-Specific Self-Esteem Scale (HASE)
The Hare Area-Specific Self-Esteem Scale is a self-report measure developed by Bruce R. Hare to assess self-esteem across three specific areas of a young person's life: home, school and peer relationships. The scale consists of 30 items, with 10 items assessing each domain. It was originally developed for school-age children and adolescents and is designed to provide an area-specific assessment of self-esteem rather than measuring only global self-esteem. Higher scores indicate higher self-esteem within the respective domain. The scale is primarily useful for psychological assessment and research involving self-esteem and psychosocial functioning in children and adolescents.
References
Shoemaker, A. L. (1980). Construct Validity of Area Specific Self-Esteem: the Hare Self-Esteem Scale. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 40(2), 495–501. https://doi.org/10.1177/001316448004000231