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

246 SELF-ESTEEM RESEARCH, THEORY, AND PRACTICEone has fared reasonably well while facing the “big choices” in life.Existentially, self-esteem is always at risk because it may be challenged byvarious situations of life at any time. If we handle them competently, thenall is well and good: We earn a feeling of worth that reflects our basichumanity and connectedness to others. If we do not, then our humanityis diminished in a significant way and we are usually aware of that, too.As mentioned in Chapter 5, one of the most appealing things about selfesteemwhen it is seen structurally is that it acts like a behavioral compass.Those who find the value of facing challenges of living in a worthyfashion are more likely to strive to act in ways that maintain such an existential,behavioral, positive “true north” in the future. It would be difficultto understand how a psychology that attempts to focus on positivehuman behavior and positive human potential is not interested in selfesteemwhen it is seen in this way.In sum, researching self-esteem moments can make a significantcontribution to both forms of positive psychology. Such situations andthe experiences that they bring can be identified, described, analyzed,and even cataloged. Not only can such self-esteem knowledge increaseour ability to understand important existential situations and howdecisions are made in them, but also it can lead to practical applications.For instance, in addition to allowing people to think about suchpossibilities in advance, knowledge about the types of situations thatcan affect self-esteem can be useful in helping parents create environmentsthat foster its development, in assisting organizations that areconcerned with promoting virtue, and so forth. Such activities are prioritiesof positivistic positive psychology, which implies that selfesteemshould have an important place in this approach to healthyliving and optimal functioning, just as it has in the original positivepsychology.Self-Esteem and Applied Positive PsychologyThe other natural tie-in between the established field of self-esteem andthe emerging field of positivistic positive psychology is more concrete andpractical. Since its inception, the new positive psychology has expressedan interest in applying its principles to everyday life (Seligman &Csikszentmihalyi, 2000). Two general strategies are mentioned in thisregard. One involves helping people to deal with existing problems andissues in a positive way, which is sometimes called “positive clinical psychology”(Peterson & Seligman, 2004). The other focus is on prevention,particularly through enhancing the development of various positivehuman qualities, such as courage, wisdom, resilience, and so forth, as