Self-Esteem Is Postive

Thoughts on John Rosemond’s Stance on High Self-Esteem
Family psychologist John Rosemond argues that people with high self-esteem consistently underperform; opposing the traditional thought that high self-esteem elevates performance. In his article, he references research correlating self-esteem to depression, examples in history, and how courage is a better option to obtain rather than high self-esteem. However, people with high self-esteem are often confident and content with themselves and their lives while people with low self-esteem often lack confidence and have a negative self-image. Rosemond begins his article citing research which finds that people with high self-esteem are especially prone to depression. He states that having too much self-esteem is the cause of depression, not having too little self-esteem. Yet, having low self-esteem often gives way to destructive behaviors and in most cases, people with low self-esteem have few friends from fear of approaching others and being rejected, resulting in loneliness. Loneliness and depression often go hand in hand and can deepen depression as loneliness progresses. George Washington and Abraham Lincoln are two historic examples Rosemond utilizes to prove his argument that humble and modest people accomplish great things. He says that their great accomplishments were due to the dedication to causes much larger than themselves however these presidents could have possessed a high self-esteem and achieved these accomplishments. Those with high self-esteem are usually in search of someone or something to give power to knowing that they themselves are in full control of their own life. People with high self-esteem have no power over the actions and thoughts of other people thus, dedicating themselves to a cause and manipulating them in favor of their image is a way to gain power over a group of people. Rosemond proposed that courage is what parents should be attempting to help their children develop instead