SELF-TRAPS
The Elusive Quest for Higher Self-Esteem
"For too long, 'self-esteem' has been an almost mystical entity in the public mind-something that seems really important, but no one knows why. This remarkable book brings together the best current research on how people's self-conceptions guide their lives (including groundbreaking studies by the author) and in the process uncovers what self-esteem is all about."
Daniel M. Wegner, University of Virginia, author of "White Bears and Other Unwanted Thoughts"
"Self-Traps" is the single most cogent, and coherent discussion to date on a topic that lies at the very core of behavioral science."
Robert A. Scott, Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences
"Self-traps is a well-written, uncommonly thoughtful, nicely integrated treatment of the self-esteem literature... The scope of its coverage is wide indeed. Swann has the rare ability to move back and forth between the worlds of the research laboratory and everyday experience in a way that illuminates both areas. This is an interesting and provocative book, one that will likely become a modern classic."
David J. Schneider, Rice University
"At once scholarly and accessible, this is an important and original hook by one of the most productive and thoughtful researchers on self-esteem and the sense of self It makes a noteworthy contribution to our society's dialogue on a topic more at the root of many of our difficulties than we have realized."
Paul L Wachtel, City University of New York, author of The Poverty of Affluence
Once considered the province of the "New Age" fringe, the self-esteem movement has catapulted itself into the American mainstream. The most visible, and controversial, example of this trend is the California Task Force to Promote Self-Esteem and Personal and State Responsibility. With hundreds of smaller programs cropping up in elementary schools throughout the country and a host of diverse groups now taking for granted that raising self-esteem will cure everything from alcoholism to poor grades and poverty, the need for a comprehensive and well-researched examination of the assumptions that underlie today's self-esteem movements has never been more pressing.
In SELF-TRAPS: The Elusive Quest for Higher Self-Esteem (W.H. Freeman and Company; June 3, 1996; $23.95 hardcover), social psychologist William Swann not only dissects the mistaken assumptions of current self-esteem programs, but also incisively analyzes the nature of self-worth and the "self-traps" that make achieving and sustaining a sense of self-esteem so difficult in America today. Swann demonstrates how individuals infer their self-views from their experiences with others, arguing that self-esteem isn't just "all in the head," but can only be understood as part of a larger, intricate dynamic involving society as well as the self.
Swann draws on the work of renowned psychologists and sociologists, including Harry Stack Sullivan, Daniel Stern, Claude Steele, Robert Karen, Mary Ainsworth, William Damon, George Herbert Mead and Arlie Hochschild, in this wide-ranging and strikingly original book. Not a self-help book, SELF-TRAPS also presents Swann's own research, including his studies of partners, both married and dating, conducted over the past decade. Swann demonstrates that the closest partners tend to verify their partner's self views, whether these views are negative or positive. Through his research, Swann has been able to explain, for example, why individuals suffering from low self-esteem regularly gravitate to relationships in which they are denigrated or abused.
Swann also offers a compelling examination of John Bowlby's attachment theory to suggest the origins of low self-esteem. No other book offers such a full examination of the highly complex nature of self-esteem conflicts and how these are played out in all of our relationships as well in our professional lives. Swann reveals how the authentic achievement of self-esteem is often undermined by American social norms of competence and love, suggesting what we can do to encourage and sustain feelings of self worth in our society.
About the Author
William B. Swann, Jr., is a professor of psychology at the University of Texas, Austin. A social psychologist with strong interests in developmental and clinical psychology, Dr. Swann is an internationally recognized expert in the study of how self-esteem develops and is maintained, the role of self-esteem in personal relationships, and the impact of people's self-knowledge on their psychological difficulties. Dr. Swann is the recipient of prestigious awards from both the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Mental Health, including the Research Scientist Development Award.
| Publication date: | June 3, 1996 |
| Price: | $23.9Shc |
| Pages: | 256 |
| ISBN: | 0-7167-2898-2 |
| Hometown: | Austin, Texas |
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