Discuss the recent controversy about the importance of self-esteem, and summarize some of the related research

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Recently, a controversy has risen about the importance self-esteem plays in influencing life outcomes. Some theorists contend that it is somewhat epiphenomenal—if good things happen, self-esteem is high; if not, self-esteem is low. According to this viewpoint, high self-esteem is a consequence rather than a cause of positive social adjustment. However, other theorists assert that a solid sense of self-esteem is a positive resource that facilitates productive achievement experiences and offers some protection against mental health problems, substance abuse, and antisocial behavior. So which is it? Is high self-esteem a resource that promotes positive development or merely a consequence of favorable life outcomes?

Although the controversy is far from resolved, at least two recent studies imply that a positive self-evaluation predicts favorable outcomes ahead, whereas low self-esteem forecasts a less rosy future. In their longitudinal study of adolescents from high-risk environments, Jean Gerard and Cheryl Buehler found that youth with higher levels of self-esteem were less inclined to become depressed or to display future conduct disorders. A second longitudinal study in New Zealand found that adolescents with low self-esteem displayed poorer mental and physical health, worse economic prospects, and higher levels of criminal behavior in their mid-20s than did adolescents with high self-esteem. What's more, one meta-analytic review reported that programs designed to boost the self-worth of low self-esteem children and adolescents produce notable improvements in participants' personal adjustment and academic performances. Taken together, these findings do seem to imply that a solid sense of self-worth is a potentially valuable resource that helps children and adolescents cope with adversity and achieve favorable development outcomes.

However, note that there can be a dark side to having high self-esteem for some children. Consider the aggressive bully who derives (and maintains) his high self-esteem by dominating other children. In a recent short-term longitudinal study, Medhavi Menon and colleagues found that aggressive preadolescents with high self-esteem came to increasingly value the rewards they gained by behaving aggressively and to increasingly belittle their victims—cognitions known to perpetuate or even intensify future aggression and antisocial conduct. So it is probably more accurate to conclude that high self-esteem is likely to foster adaptive development in the years ahead to the extent that it derives from prosocial or otherwise adaptive life experiences rather than antisocial or maladaptive conduct.