The goal of her program of research is to delineate the normative trajectories of self-esteem and achievement and understand the role of self-esteem and achievement as a cause and/or consequence of important life experiences. To address these issues, she uses a wide range of research designs, including experimental, cross-sectional, longitudinal, and twin studies, and a wide range of statistical procedures, including structural equation modeling, quantitative genetics, latent growth curve modeling, hierarchical linear modeling, and meta-analytic procedures.