Cognition and Emotion? The Dead End in Self‐Esteem Research

Bibliographic Data

ID8975484
AuthorsThomas J Scheff (University of California, Santa Barbara, corresponding author), David Fearon (0000-0002-0295-3118), David S Fearon
Year2004
Volume34
Issue1
Pages73-90
Publication date2004-02-16
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal for the Theory of Social Behaviour (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0021-8308 • E-ISSN: 1468-5914
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/j.1468-5914.2004.00235.x
OpenAlexW1998034023
LanguageEN
Citations received20
References cited31

This article suggests that studies of self‐esteem using scales have reached a dead end, and suggest alternative directions. First we show how significance tests have obscured meager results. According to reviews, this huge body of research has yielded no substantial findings. Some sub‐fields show consistent, but trivially small, effects; reviews of the entire field show none at all. Most important, the size of effects does not seem to be increasing. Three questions are raised: 1. Are new standards needed to determine when to continue or stop a given line of research? 2. Are new approaches needed alternative to standardized scales and statistical tests? 3. Should future studies of self‐esteem emphasize feeling and social components at least as much as cognitive (self‐evaluative) components? Studies of self‐esteem using interview techniques by George Brown and his colleagues suggest the need to move closer to actual data. An exploratory study that takes this direction a step further is described. We analyze social and cognitive/emotional elements second by second in discourse about topics relevant to self‐appraisal and self‐feeling

Cognition · Cognitive psychology · Exploratory research · Feeling · Field (mathematics · Self · Self-esteem · Social science · Sociology · Cultural Differences and Values · Emotions and Moral Behavior · Psychology · Social and Intergroup Psychology · Social Psychology

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