Self-Esteem Research, Theory, and Practice Toward a Positive ...

Self-Esteem Research Problems and Issues 47REALITYIntrospectionObservationCase Study(Interviews)Correlation(Survey, Tests)PhenomenologyExperimentationHuman Science ParadigmQualitativeHuman beingsLived realitiesDescribing meaningSubjectivityPlatonic Roots0Vs.Natural Science ParadigmQuantitativeNatural thingsPhysical realitiesMeasuring behaviorObjectivityAristotelian RootsFigure 2.2A Methodological Continuum.of self-esteem work is to turn the traditional methodological pyramid onits side. Instead of a simple hierarchy, this literal shift in perspectiveresults in a continuum of methods, as shown in Figure 2.2.Figure 2.2 shows us that scientific methods actually have a range ofcharacteristics when applied to understanding human phenomena. To theright of the midpoint, for instance, we encounter a focus on external realitiesand their measurement that is characteristic of the natural sciences.This approach begins with observation and progresses toward an increasingdegree of “objectivity” that culminates with the experimental method.Such a progression in quantitative sophistication helps us to understandthe natural world by observing properties, measuring characteristics, anddiscovering cause-and-effect relationships, often in that order.People exist as objects in this world, so the methods of natural sciencemay be applied to us too. However, it is also true that human beings areunique in that we are conscious, which means we live in a world of experienceand meanings, as well as one consisting of physics and biology. Themethods to the left of the midpoint reflect more of a human science paradigmand are better able to access internal realities because the focus is on