October 6, 2002

BFP Editorial Hits Home RunToday

Three cheers for the Freep editorial board today. Taking the position, backed by research, that the self esteem movement is "psychobabble," the writers have hit the mark. The shallow values ensconced within the self-esteem movement do not a successful, happy, contented person make. A few years ago Bill Bennet authored a small book titled The Book of Virtues: A Treasury of Great Moral Stories. Here, the values are identified that really matter in a healthy society and in the life of an individual . Among them are self-discipline, compassion, responsibility, friendship, work, courage, perseverance, honesty, loyalty and faith. Clear positions are refreshing in Freep editorials that have moved toward the middle-of-the road on important issues. The editors speaking out about the myths and untruths of contemporary thinking is long overdue. More, please!
Excerpts...
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File the self-esteem movement under the category of debunked psychobabble. The tendency in recent years to blame everything from poor academic performance to violent crime on low self-worth has been convincingly refuted by recent research.

Part of the problem is that American society often promotes a false definition of self- worth. Rather than identify themselves through such old-fashioned concepts as virtue, character and religious faith, many Americans base their self-image on their physical attractiveness, career status or financial wealth. Since those factors are notoriously fleeting, the loss of external standards of self-esteem often contributes to depression and other psychological complaints.


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