Self-Esteem Innumerable Variables Impact Research

Self-Esteem

Innumerable variables impact research on self-esteem among pre-adolescents. The primary problem is a definition of terms. Self-esteem may manifest differently in different individuals. Some may express self-esteem via their behavior rather than verbally, rendering surveys less reliable than observations. In other cases, the reverse may be true. Whether or not to rely on self-report data also presents problems for researchers seeking to test self-esteem hypotheses among a pre-teen population. While it is important to gather quantifiable data, it is also important to include qualitative measures. Therefore, finding comparable samples from available subjects is difficult at the level of basic research methods.

Finding comparable samples from available subjects can also be problematic due to sample size, sample diversity, and the corresponding generalizability of the data. Large sample sizes make it easier to generalize data but more difficult to conduct the actual study. Sample diversity should be maintained but again, a large sample size may not be cost-effective. Moreover, a larger sample size would reduce the possibility for meaningful qualitative data. Larger samples require more easily measurable data such as quantifiable survey instruments. These survey instruments provide hard numbers but may not allow meaningful comparisons between subjects from different backgrounds.

The most important challenge to finding comparable samples from available subjects is diversity. Just as each individual exhibits self-esteem differently, culture, gender and family structure will also impact self-esteem measures. Moreover, self-esteem may be manifest differently among different cultures. Some cultures encourage brash individualism and the purposeful display of self-esteem, whereas in other cultures self-esteem is encouraged to be self-containment and humble self-reliance. These differences need to be explored and elucidated before drawing conclusions from a diverse sample size. A researcher would do well to investigate self-esteem among highly specific population samples to avoid confusion between variables.

Gender is an important variable to consider in self-esteem research. Girls and boys are socialized to express their self-esteem differently. Therefore, it would be nearly impossible to research self-esteem among a pre-adolescent population without taking gender into account. The ways girls express self-esteem will differ from the ways boys do, making it necessary to examine male and female populations separately. For the same reason, class and family background need to be taken into consideration as well as ethnicity and race.