Self-esteem is a personal assessment of one’s self-worth that can be influenced by social and cultural factors. Low self-esteem can lead to depression and antisocial behavior, but building self-esteem through positive techniques can help. Mental health professionals can administer self-assessment tests to gauge self-esteem levels.
Self-esteem is a concept in psychology that refers to the personal assessment of someone’s self-worth. Someone with high self-esteem tends to be very confident, feels good, and has a lot of personal pride. Individuals with low self-esteem, on the other hand, think they are worthless and struggle with confidence and pride. From an early age, people establish their own self-worth, and there are a number of factors that can influence someone’s sense of self-worth.
Social and cultural factors play a huge role. For example, a child who is regularly praised by parents and teachers is more likely to feel secure and valuable, while a child who is frequently criticized or who lives in an unstable home may feel worthless. Peer approval can also be an important factor in self-esteem; people who are popular tend to feel better about themselves, while people who are marginalized and ignored by their peers feel less confident and proud of themselves.
Low self-esteem can contribute to the development of depression and antisocial behavior. It’s also usually undeserved, because it’s a reflection of personal opinion, not someone’s actual worth and abilities. Everyone has unique talents and abilities, including people with low self-esteem, and people are sometimes surprised to learn that people who lack self-confidence may have hidden aspects of their personalities, such as an amazing talent for music or excellent writing skills .
Because building self-esteem depends so much on social factors, parents and teachers are often encouraged to use praise and other positive techniques to build trust in their caretakers’ minds. When a child becomes disheartened because an art project isn’t going well, for example, an instructor might point out that the use of color is interesting or ask if the child wants to work in another medium to explore other possibilities. By positively empowering children and reminding them that they are valuable, people can ensure that those children feel good about themselves.
Adults can be similarly influenced and can also work on self-esteem building exercises that are designed to boost confidence. A wage worker at the bottom of the totem pole might, for example, go home and make a list of their skills and positive traits, as a reminder that lackluster performance at work doesn’t make someone useless. Some people also find that their self-esteem improves when they get active, engage in community activities, or do something simple like get a haircut or buy a nice pair of shoes.
Low self-esteem is difficult to quantify. When people seek help from a mental health professional because they feel bad about themselves, the professional can administer a self-assessment test designed to gauge someone’s feelings. By examining the answers to the test questions and observing how the patient interacts with people and behaves, the therapist can learn about the patient’s level of trust and provide treatment accordingly.
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