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

Major Self-Esteem Theories and Programs 127In addition to theoretical potential, then, this approach to selfesteemhas practical applications that may be helpful in understanding awide range of human behavior that includes groups, relationships, andeven clinical phenomena. In short, although the evolutionary approach isthe newest major perspective on self-esteem, it certainly brings much tothe theoretical table in the field of self-esteem work, just as it does elsewherein the social sciences.Summary of Findings about TheoriesThere are many other theories concerning self-esteem that are worth considering.For example, Self-Determination Theory (SDT) offers importantinsights and considerable research on self-esteem. In Chapter 5, we will seethat the work this approach has generated on what is called “intrinsicmotivation” is essential to understanding how self-esteem is tied to authenticity.However, the approach itself focuses on autonomy, competence, andrelatedness as central motivations and not self-esteem. Instead, SDT understandsself-esteem as being contingent on them. Therefore, rather thanexhausting all the standing theoretical views of self-esteem, we must askthe more phenomenological question: What do the general theories of selfesteemshow us about developing a good theory about it?Several “findings” emerge in this regard. First, major perspectives inthe social sciences offer unique ways of seeing self-esteem. For example,we saw that the psychodynamic, social learning, humanistic, existential,and evolutionary perspectives all offer at least one major theory of selfesteem,which suggests that the topic is a viable one today. This point isimportant because we will see in Chapter 7 that some of the newer psychologicalpoints of view, such as the new positive psychology, do notseem to understand self-esteem this way. Second, there seems to be a fairlyconsistent set of specific self-esteem themes or issues that are addressed inthese theories. They include understanding self-esteem as a developmentalphenomenon; showing how there can be types of self-esteem; and appreciatingthat self-esteem is tied to motivation, which links it to behavior inseveral ways. Finally, although each general theory of self-esteem startsout at the abstract level, they all open up implicit or explicit pathways tochanging self-esteem at the practical level much as good theories should.MAJOR SELF-ESTEEM ENHANCEMENT PROGRAMSMost of the major theories of self-esteem presented in this chapteremphasize theory and often include research support, but they tend to beweak in terms of practice. In the late 1980s, several applied programs