Self-ESTEEM has historically been treated as a simple, unidimensional attitude toward the self. However, decades of attitudinal research question the wisdom of measuring and thinking about self-esteem unidimensionally. It is hypothesized that, consistent with research on other types of attitudes, people may simultaneously possess both positive and negative attitudes toward themselves. That, is people may view themselves both positive and negatively at the same time. The research proposed here is an initial step toward the development of both a suitable measure and an empirically-grounded theory of bidimensional self- esteem. This research also examines positive and negative self-esteem as predictors of concurrent and long-term marital satisfaction. Taken together, these studies have the potential to refine existing theory and treatment by providing a more fine-grained account of the nature and correlates of positive and negative attitudes toward themselves.
