The Social importance of self-esteem / edited by Andrew Mecca, Neil J. Smelser, and John Vasconcellos.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Mecca, Andrew.

Smelser, Neil J.

Vasconcellos, John.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Deviant behavior.

Self-esteem.

Social problems.

United States--Social conditions.

United States.

Social conditions.

Physical Description:

xxi, 346 pages ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

Berkeley : University of California Press, [1989]

Summary:

Does the well-being of a society depend on the well-being of its citizenry? Does individual self-esteem play a causal role in chronic social problems such as child abuse, educational failure, teenage pregnancy, alcohol and drug abuse, welfare dependency, or crime and violence?

In an attempt to answer these questions, the State of California established the Task Force to Promote Self-Esteem and Personal and Social Responsibility in 1986. This body was charged, in part, with compiling research on the connections that might exist between self-esteem and social problems and with suggesting policy guidelines relating to the welfare of Californians and the expenditure of public resources. The essays in this volume, prepared by faculty members of the University of California, draw on research in the social sciences to explore these issues. They assess the substantive assertions and research findings in the field and make careful evaluations of their implications. In some cases, strong connections between self-esteem and problem behavior are established; in others, the connections are weak. And there are many cases in which a causal relationship is, as yet, unproven or imperfectly understood. Self-esteem emerges as simultaneously one of the most central and one of the most elusive factors in understanding and explaining the behaviors that constitute major social problems.

One of the central conclusions of this book is that research on these issues needs to be improved, particularly in the areas of comparative and longitudinal studies. Guidelines setting out future directions for research are proposed, and some points of policy direction are elaborated. These essays may indeed promote important research, for the premise that social stability and well-being are largely dependent on the psychological state of a people poses a challenging and provocative counteremphasis to the assumption that social institutions are the primary determinants of individual welfare.

Contents:

Self-Esteem and Social Problems: An Introduction / Neil J. Smelser 1

The Association Between Child Maltreatment and Self-Esteem / Bonnie Bhatti, David Derezotes, Seung-Ock Kim, Harry Specht 24

Self-Esteem and Failure in School: Analysis and Policy Implications / Martin V. Covington 72

Self-Esteem and Teenage Pregnancy / Susan B. Crockenberg, Barbara A. Soby 125

Crime, Violence, and Self-Esteem: Review and Proposals / Thomas J. Scheff, Suzanne M. Retzinger, Michael T. Ryan 165

Self-Esteem and Chronic Welfare Dependency / Leonard Schneiderman, Walter M. Furman, Joseph Weber 200

Alcohol and Drug Use and Self-Esteem: A Psychological Perspective / Rodney Skager, Elizabeth Kerst 248

Alcohol and Drug Use and Self-Esteem: A Sociocultural Perspective / Harry H. L. Kitano 294.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN:

0520067088

0520067096

OCLC:

19455972