THE BIG EGO TRIP
Finding true significance in a culture
of self-esteem
By Glynn Harrison
IVP. 224 pages. £9.99
ISBN 978 1 844 746 200
Glynn Harrison has served us well in providing a corrective view on \u2018self-esteem\u2019. Not only does this psychiatrist look at the roots and development of the \u2018self-esteem\u2019 phenomenon, but also its extent, e.g. how it has shaped current educational thinking. This chapter alone should be read by parents and teachers.
As the author writes: \u2018Unless we understand the scale of this cultural change, we shall never find sufficient motivation to unpick its influence in our own hearts, or to rescue our children from its claim on their lives\u2019.
From the change in secular ideology regarding \u2018the self\u2019 and self-esteem the author charts how this infiltrated the church, our view of children and thus the education of our children. What is more, this thinking doesn\u2019t even deliver what it hoped to have achieved.
I found that the use of my highlighter pen increased as I went through the book. I think there are two reasons for this. Firstly, much of the first two-thirds of the book looks at various scientific studies and the theories of psychologists, while the last third looks at the Christian worldview as a response. Secondly, after a challenging chapter entitled \u201cAll roads lead to philosophy\u2019, Harrison puts forward his strongest arguments. However, although challenging the culture of \u2018self-esteem\u2019, he does not opt for the \u2018wretched worm\u2019 approach, but draws us into looking at our being called into something bigger than ourselves and that we should develop a healthy self-compassion.
There is a lot in this book, which, being an IVP book, is primarily for a readership that is involved or interested in areas where they have to address such issues.
Some caveats
I think that something could have been said about the defensive function of our self-images, although he gets near to saying this on several occasions \u2014 i.e. low self-esteem serves a function \u2014 it is a self-protective response to a deeper issue.
Also, the repeating of true statements to oneself often seems tiresome and ineffective because it fails to acknowledge the power of idols in our life that claim our heart allegiance.
Richard A. Goodwin,
education and counselling consultant, trainer and speaker;
Hope Church, Gravesend (although not a member)
