Interest in the affective domain of SLA has grown steadily over the years since affective variables became incorporated in SLA models in the pioneering work of Gardner and Lambert (Reference Gardner and Lambert1959). Among the range of affective factors investigated, the two that have generated the most solid traditions of inquiry are the constructs of motivation and anxiety. Much less has been written about the construct of self-esteem in foreign language (FL) learning, despite its recognized importance in educational psychology as a critical factor in children’s academic and social development and as a prerequisite in the hierarchy of human needs before personal growth and self-actualization can take place (Maslow, Reference Maslow1968). This edited work constitutes possibly the first book-length treatment of the topic of self-esteem in FL learning and thus represents an important contribution to the field.

Most of the contributors are researchers and practitioners based in Spain who are members of a research group that has a shared interest in affective factors in language learning, and, on the whole, this practical pedagogical perspective predominates in the book. This is perhaps to be expected, given that the literature on self-esteem is firmly anchored in educational psychology, particularly in relation to the early years of schooling through adolescence, when self-concepts develop. There is thus a strong focus on classroom applications, with the final 4 (of 11) chapters devoted to the description and illustration of practical activities to enhance student self-esteem.

Chapters 1–7 offer theoretical discussion and analysis of self-esteem in relation to associated affective and social factors such as anxiety, motivation, self-confidence, beliefs, interpersonal relations, and social and personal identity. Throughout these chapters, the point is repeatedly made that the concept of self-esteem deserves much greater attention in language education. Put simply, self-esteem is concerned with how individuals see and value themselves, and these self-perceptions largely evolve in the context of relations with others. As both Horwitz (in the preface) and Arnold (chapter 2) point out, when limited language skills mean that people feel unable to express their true sense of self in a competent manner, self-esteem can suffer, with negative repercussions for engagement in language learning. Collectively, the main idea of the argument in these chapters is that language teachers need to take into account learner self-esteem as an integral part of their classroom practice. However, there is also acknowledgment of the fact that theorizing and research on self-esteem remain somewhat underdeveloped, even within the field of general education. In one of just two chapters that report original research on self-esteem in language learning, De Andrés makes the point that a weakness of much empirical research on self-esteem is a lack of systematic measurement tools that reflects a lack of conceptual consensus in how self-esteem is defined and operationalized.

In sum, it seems that this particular field of inquiry within SLA is still very much undertheorized and underresearched. In this respect, this work seems to have more to offer in the way of practical advice for classroom teachers than groundbreaking theoretical and empirical insights for SLA researchers. Nevertheless, this work—especially the two concise yet comprehensive overview chapters by Rubio and Arnold—serves a very useful purpose in introducing this field of inquiry in a clear-sighted way, in elucidating connections with other relevant theoretical concepts, and in pointing to a basic agenda for theory, research, and classroom practice. This book has a clear three-part structure (overview, theory and research, implementation and classroom applications), helpful summaries at the beginning of each chapter, and plenty of illustrative material for teachers as well as a few sample research instruments. Useful additions may have been a subject-author index and perhaps a more elaborated agenda for research to balance the practical pedagogical agenda advocated.