This study of 210 fifth-grade children attempted to assess whether children of varying race, socioeconomic status (SES) and sex differ in their levels of general and area-specific (school, peer, and home) self-esteem. Also investigated was the question of whether children are capable of maintaining differing levels of esteem across the different areas of experience, and, if so, whether the capacity to do so varies with the subject's racial, SES, and/or sex characteristics. A 35-item general self-esteem scale devised for this study was administered. Findings indicated that there were variations in general and area-specific self-esteem across both racial and socioeconomic lines, although there were no significant differences by sex. There were significant differences in general, school, and peer self-esteem by SES with the upper SES group scoring higher. There was a significant difference in school self-esteem by race with the whites scoring higher. There were no significant differences in home self-esteem by race or SES. There were variations in the degree to which and order in which the area-specific esteems predicted general self-esteem both by race and SES. The study suggests that low SES exercises a greater "negative" influence on self-esteem than race; that the relationship of general self-esteem to the area-specific esteems, and the relationship of the area-specific esteems to each other varies across race and SES lines. (Author/SB)