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

The Crucial Issue of Defining Self-Esteem 7(Deci & Ryan, 1995; Kernis, 2003b). Also, recent developmental workseems to be making considerable progress in terms of understanding theantecedents of self-esteem (Harter, 1999), something that StanleyCoopersmith (1967) called for decades ago. Perhaps even more important,the ongoing critical look at self-esteem that has come to characterizemuch of the field today has not only led to re-examining oldtheories, but has also stimulated the formation of some powerful andexciting new ones, such as Self-Determination Theory, TerrorManagement Theory, or Sociometer Theory. In other words, recentevents in the field are so important that they must be considered whenthinking about self-esteem today.The third and final reason for taking another look at self-esteem isthat several new, positive forces are now at work in the field that maycreate exciting possibilities that were out of reach in the past. Thesedevelopments arise from within the field, but also they come to the psychologyof self-esteem from outside the discipline. For example, it isalready well established that there is a relationship between self-esteemand happiness that even critics recognize (Baumeister et al., 2003). Otherwork suggests that self-esteem can affect, or at least interact with,immunocompetence (Bartoletti & O’Brien, 2003), which implies thatself-esteem may be related to physical, as well as mental, well-being. Stillother material points to a relationship between self-esteem and authenticity(Kernis, 2003a, 2003b), which brings up interesting possibilitiesconcerning self-actualization and the “good life.” The point is thatalthough it is necessary to continue to appreciate the limits of self-esteemas its critics point out, it is just as important to make room for moredevelopments. Why should the critical attitude that challenges old workon self-esteem stop there? It may well turn out to be that the phase of reexaminingwork on self-esteem prepares the way for a new period ofrefinement and growth. After all, separating the next crop of wheat fromthe chaff is the hallmark of the scientific method because that is how itcreates progress in a given field.In addition, new developments can also mean new synergies. The relationshipbetween self-esteem work and the new positive psychology is anarea to explore in this regard. Like many others, I was first introduced tothe contemporary version of this term while in the audience of MartinSeligman’s presidential address to the American Psychological Association.In that speech, he called for the kind of psychology that wouldArticulate a version of the good life that is empirically sound and, atthe same time, understandable and attractive. We can show the worldwhat actions lead to well-being, to positive individuals, to flourishingcommunities, and to a just society. (Seligman, 1999, p. 2)