essay on self esteem college

Essay on Self Esteem

Students are often asked to write an essay on Self Esteem in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

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100 Words Essay on Self Esteem

Understanding self-esteem.

Self-esteem is the opinion we have about ourselves. It’s about how much we value and respect ourselves. High self-esteem means you think highly of yourself, while low self-esteem means you don’t.

Importance of Self-Esteem

Self-esteem is important because it heavily influences our choices and decisions. It allows us to live life to our potential. High self-esteem leads to confidence, happiness, fulfillment, and achievement.

Building Self-Esteem

Building self-esteem requires positive self-talk, self-acceptance, and self-love. It’s about focusing on your strengths, forgiving your mistakes, and celebrating your achievements.

250 Words Essay on Self Esteem

Introduction.

Self-esteem, a fundamental concept in psychology, refers to an individual’s overall subjective emotional evaluation of their own worth. It encompasses beliefs about oneself and emotional states, such as triumph, despair, pride, and shame. It is a critical aspect of personal identity, shaping our perception of the world and our place within it.

The Dual Facet of Self-Esteem

Self-esteem can be divided into two types: high and low. High self-esteem is characterized by a positive self-image and confidence, while low self-esteem is marked by self-doubt and criticism. Both types significantly influence our mental health, relationships, and life outcomes.

Impact of Self-Esteem

High self-esteem can lead to positive outcomes. It encourages risk-taking, resilience, and optimism, fostering success in various life domains. Conversely, low self-esteem can result in fear of failure, social anxiety, and susceptibility to mental health issues like depression. Thus, it’s crucial to nurture self-esteem for psychological well-being.

Building self-esteem involves recognizing one’s strengths and weaknesses and accepting them. It requires self-compassion and challenging negative self-perceptions. Positive affirmations, setting and achieving goals, and maintaining healthy relationships can all contribute to enhancing self-esteem.

In conclusion, self-esteem is a complex, multifaceted construct that significantly influences our lives. It is not static and can be improved with conscious effort. Understanding and nurturing our self-esteem is vital for achieving personal growth and leading a fulfilling life.

500 Words Essay on Self Esteem

Self-esteem, a fundamental aspect of psychological health, is the overall subjective emotional evaluation of one’s self-worth. It is a judgment of oneself as well as an attitude toward the self. The importance of self-esteem lies in the fact that it concerns our perceptions and beliefs about ourselves, which can shape our experiences and actions.

The Two Types of Self-esteem

Self-esteem can be classified into two types: high and low. High self-esteem indicates a highly favorable impression of oneself, whereas low self-esteem reflects a negative view. People with high self-esteem generally feel good about themselves and value their worth, while those with low self-esteem usually harbor negative feelings about themselves, often leading to feelings of inadequacy, incompetence, and unlovability.

Factors Influencing Self-esteem

Self-esteem is shaped by various factors throughout our lives, such as the environment, experiences, relationships, and achievements. Positive reinforcement, success, and supportive relationships often help to foster high self-esteem, while negative feedback, failure, and toxic relationships can contribute to low self-esteem. However, it’s important to note that self-esteem is not a fixed attribute; it can change over time and can be improved through cognitive and behavioral interventions.

Impact of Self-esteem on Life

Self-esteem significantly impacts individuals’ mental health, relationships, and overall well-being. High self-esteem can lead to positive outcomes, such as better stress management, resilience, and life satisfaction. On the other hand, low self-esteem is associated with mental health issues like depression and anxiety. It can also lead to poor academic and job performance, problematic relationships, and increased vulnerability to drug and alcohol abuse.

Improving Self-esteem

Improving self-esteem requires a multifaceted approach. Cognitive-behavioral therapies can help individuals challenge their negative beliefs about themselves and develop healthier thought patterns. Regular physical activity, healthy eating, and adequate sleep can also boost self-esteem by improving physical health. Furthermore, positive social interactions and relationships can enhance self-esteem by providing emotional support and validation. Lastly, self-compassion and self-care practices can foster a more positive self-image and promote higher self-esteem.

In conclusion, self-esteem is a critical component of our psychological well-being, influencing our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. It is shaped by various factors and can significantly impact our lives. However, it’s not a fixed attribute, and with the right strategies and support, individuals can improve their self-esteem, leading to better mental health, relationships, and overall quality of life. Therefore, understanding and fostering self-esteem is essential for personal growth and development.

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Why It's Important to Have High Self-Esteem

Sarah Vanbuskirk has over 20 years of experience as a writer and editor, covering a range of health, wellness, lifestyle, and family-related topics. Her work has been published in numerous magazines, newspapers, and websites, including The Spruce, Activity Connection, Glamour, PDX Parent, Self, Verywell Fit, TripSavvy, Marie Claire, and TimeOut New York.

Rachel Goldman, PhD FTOS, is a licensed psychologist, clinical assistant professor, speaker, wellness expert specializing in eating behaviors, stress management, and health behavior change.

Verywell / Laura Porter

What Is Self-Esteem?

• Defining High Self-Esteem
• Why It's Important

Risks of Low Self-Esteem

Can you have too much self-esteem.

• Contributing Factors

Cultivating High Self-Esteem

Ways to improve self-esteem.

It's easy to discount the importance of having high self-esteem. However, having positive personal regard can be the difference between feeling good about and taking care of yourself and not.

We've likely all heard the advice to believe in yourself, value yourself, be your own cheerleader, and that you can't fully love others until you love yourself —and all of that is true. But what exactly does that really mean in real life? Essentially, that having high self-esteem is vital to a successful, happy life .

But how exactly do you know if your self-esteem is high enough? Below, we'll take a look at what self-esteem is, why it's important, and how to build yours up.

We'll also break down the negative effects of having low self-esteem, the difference between occasionally being down on yourself and truly having poor self-esteem, whether your self-esteem can be too high, factors that contribute to low self-esteem, and tips for cultivating a more positive self-outlook and self-respect.

In order to have high self-esteem, it's important to understand what self-esteem really is. Self-esteem is giving respect and admiration to yourself. The American Psychological Association defines self-esteem as "the degree to which the qualities and characteristics contained in one’s self-concept are perceived to be positive."

High self-esteem is not just liking yourself but generally affording yourself love, value, dignity, and respect, too. Positive self-esteem also means believing in your capability (to learn, achieve, and contribute to the world) and autonomy to do things on your own. It means you think your ideas, feelings, and opinions have worth.

In other words, self-esteem is how you feel about yourself (inside and out), encompassing what you think about and value in yourself and how you relate to others. It's also related to how you feel others view, treat, and value you. This is why those in abusive situations or who have experienced trauma (particularly as children) are more likely to suffer from low self-esteem, concurrently and in the future, as a result.

Self-esteem isn't dependent entirely on one thing or set of thoughts. Instead, a person's self-esteem is made up of your view of all the things that define you as a person, including your personality, accomplishments, talents, capabilities, background, experiences, relationships, and physical body, as well as how you perceive others see you.

Each person may put a particular emphasis on certain areas that impact self-esteem, such as putting extra importance on your looks , relationship status, talents, or professional accomplishments (or lack thereof), when forming your self-image and how you feel about it.

Self-Esteem vs. Depression

Note, too, that low self-esteem is not the same as depression . While the two concepts overlap, low self-esteem is considered a risk factor for depression (see more on this below) rather than being the same thing.

While depression is a mental health condition that impacts the mind and body, self-esteem describes the way you think and feel about yourself. Additionally, some people have more stable self-esteem, while other's feelings about themselves are more mood- and life event-reactive—and more prone to plummet.  

Remember, whether your self-esteem is high or low is influenced by the many factors that make you, you—some of which are in your control, some are not.

Ultimately, what matters most is what you focus on from those many factors and how much grace and compassion you afford yourself with regard to the things you're less thrilled about.

Whether you realize it or not, your self-esteem is the picture you paint of yourself, the parts of you that you choose to emphasize. Essentially, as famed naturalist philosopher Henry David Thoreau once said, "The question is not what you look at, but what you see.”

What It Means to Have High Self-Esteem

High self-esteem means generally holding yourself in positive regard. This doesn't mean you love everything about yourself or think you are perfect. On the contrary, even for those with high self-esteem, it's common to be self-critical and have some parts of yourself that you are less proud of or happy with than other elements.

However, if you have high self-esteem, the positive thoughts about yourself outweigh the negative—and the negative doesn't make you discount your worth as a person . High self-esteem can also fluctuate depending on the circumstance.

Essentially, high self-esteem is a frame of mind that lets you celebrate your strengths, challenge your weaknesses, and feel good about yourself and your life. It allows you to put daily ups and downs in perspective because, at your core, you value, trust, and respect yourself. High self-esteem helps you say, "I've had a bad day," for example, instead of saying, "I have a bad life."

High self-esteem also helps you understand that everything isn't about you, enabling you to not take everything personally and not be overly reactive. Strong self-respect lets you see beyond yourself and feel confident of your place in the world.

Characteristics of high self-esteem include:

• Holding yourself in positive regard
• Celebrating your strengths and challenging your weaknesses
• Keeping daily ups and downs in perspective
• Having strong self-respect and self-confidence

Interestingly, having high self-esteem does not always align with the circumstances or qualities that you might objectively assume should correlate with feeling good about yourself.

For example, some research shows that physical attractiveness does not predict high self-esteem . In fact, one study showed that teens with "facial attractiveness" scored lower on self-esteem ratings than their peers. In other words, the person who seems to have it all—great job, romantic partner, beauty, fit body—may not see it that way.

Signs of High Self-Esteem

How do you know if you have high self-esteem? Here are a few signs:

• You feel comfortable expressing your opinions, if they are different from those around you.
• You're confident in your abilities.
• You don't let challenges hold you back.
• You don't let a setback change how you feel about yourself.
• You treat yourself with love and respect versus calling yourself names or discrediting yourself.
• You're willing to set boundaries with people who don't value and respect you

Why High Self-Esteem Is Important

According to the American Psychological Association, having high self-esteem is key to positive mental health and well-being. High self-esteem is good because it helps you develop coping skills , handle adversity, and put the negative into perspective.

If you have a higher self-concept you also don't tend to put undue focus, blame, self-doubt, hopelessness, or weight on the parts you aren't happy about. You're also better able to cope with stress , anxiety, and pressure, whether from school, work, home, or peers.

Rather than feeling hopeless , stuck, or unworthy due to any perceived "failings," a person with high self-esteem is more likely to look for what they can change or improve upon. If struggling with a project at work, for example, someone with high self-esteem might ask a supervisor for help coming up with solutions versus berating themselves for being ineffective at their job.

Conversely, someone with low self-esteem is more likely to become entrenched in negative feelings about themself. In fact, research shows that feeling positive and respectful about yourself, particularly as a child, goes a long way in helping you adapt and adjust to the challenges of life.

A healthy self-concept and self-respect can enable you to realize that it's not the end of the world if something goes wrong, someone rejects you, you make a mistake, or you have some faults.

Self-Esteem and Prosocial Behavior

High self-esteem is also linked to prosocial behavior (actions with the intent to benefit others, such as generosity and qualities like empathy), flexibility, and positive familial relationships. In fact, a 2014 study found that college students with higher self-esteem and more loving and supportive relationships with their families were more successful at school and adapted better to the social adjustment of living in a new environment.  

Self-Esteem and Stress

How you experience stress is also strongly related to your level of self-esteem. Prosocial behavior (which, as noted above, is more likely with higher self-esteem) is known to reduce the negative impact of stressors on daily life, helping you to manage stress more effectively.   Studies have also found a positive relationship between positive self-esteem and motivation to accomplish goals, self-efficacy, and self-control.   Higher levels of self-esteem are also predictive of greater academic success.  

High Self-Esteem Boosts Overall Well-Being

Additionally, high self-esteem is considered to be protective against many mental health conditions, such as depression and anxiety. In fact, studies show that having high self-esteem is directly correlated to your satisfaction with your life and to the ability to maintain a favorable attitude about yourself in challenging situations.  

Research also shows that people with higher self-esteem are happier in their jobs, have better social relationships, and generally, a more positive sense of well-being.  

Like many elements of mental health, researchers often describe self-esteem as existing on a spectrum.

Like anything in life, your self-image is prone to change and grow as you mature and live your life, and in response to key life events.

However, it's also true that people tend toward a certain set-point of self-esteem that can be persistent, whether high, low, or somewhere in between. Social interactions, attention, emotional regulation, decision-making, and life satisfaction are all impacted by lower self-image.

As noted above, when you have high self-esteem, you're better able to shake off unfavorable events and the negative judgments or moods of others that may be directed your way. Conversely, when you have a lower self-concept, you're more likely to take criticism or rejection personally and to assume someone else's problems are about you.  

This combination can make people with low self-esteem more reactive to day-to-day circumstances and personal interactions. Those with lower self-esteem are also less likely to keep their emotions in check, cope well with challenges, and look at life from a healthy perspective.

Often low self-esteem means small things become blown up into bigger issues that can feel insurmountable, further ratcheting down self-regard.

Feeling Down vs. Poor Self-Esteem

Essentially, low self-esteem isn't just having a bad mood or a bad day. Everyone feels down when negative things happen but these feelings typically pass and, especially for those with positive self-esteem, don't have a drastic impact on self-worth. Instead, low self-esteem is a chronically negative self-image that, while it may ebb and flow with the positive and negative events in your life, for the most part, stays with you over time, regardless of life circumstances.

Your level of self-regard may be, in part, a function of the natural variation in personality types , affect, genetics, and/or in response to upbringing, peers, and life events. However, when self-esteem is particularly low, as noted above, it can put you at risk of many mental health challenges.

Susceptibility to Depression

The link between low self-esteem and mental health conditions is particularly strong. Interestingly, research shows convincingly that poor self-esteem contributes to depression , rather than the reverse. This means that depression doesn't create low self-regard. Instead, thinking poorly of yourself makes you more vulnerable to depression.  

Additionally, studies indicate that higher self-esteem offers protection from mental health conditions, likely due to the improved coping skills, higher positivity, and resiliency that comes with this more accepting and affirmative self-talk.   Essentially, low self-esteem begets feeling bad about yourself, which makes leading a fulfilling life, reaching your goals , and having positive social and intimate relationships harder.

Critically, studies show that low self-esteem is highly correlated to depression, anxiety , emotional problems, substance use , stress, eating disorders , and suicidal ideation .   Research also shows a strong correlation between low self-esteem and anxiety disorders , particularly with social phobias and social anxiety disorder .  

If you or a loved one are having suicidal thoughts, contact the  National Suicide Prevention Lifeline  at  988 for support and assistance from a trained counselor. If you or a loved one are in immediate danger, call 911. For more mental health resources, see our  National Helpline Database .

Risky Behaviors

Studies also show a link between poor self-esteem and an increased risk of risky health behaviors, particularly in teens, such as drug and alcohol use, drunk driving, self-harm , smoking, and carrying a weapon.   Essentially, those who value and respect themselves the least are more willing to make more dangerous choices that may impact their health and safety.

Additionally, improvements in self-esteem are shown to be helpful in the recovery from addiction . In fact, studies show that this relationship of low self-esteem and poor choices is particularly evident in adolescents who already are at a disadvantage for decision-making due to their still-developing executive function skills .   Research has also found a link between low self-esteem and risky sexual behaviors in teens.  

Low Self-Confidence

Research also finds a clear correlation between low self-confidence and low self-esteem, as well as the reverse. Additionally, having high self-confidence encourages self-reliance, self-advocacy, and trust in yourself and your abilities, all factors that bolster high self-esteem—and create a framework for positive mental health and quality of life.  

An unrealistic or overly elevated self-concept may be as unhealthy as a negative one. However, it's important to distinguish between healthy high self-esteem and arrogance. High self-esteem is not being egotistical, thinking you are infallible, or better than others.

High Self-Esteem vs. Arrogance and Narcissism

Arrogance is when a person's self-concept veers from reality and becomes the dominant force in their life, and we might assume that too much self-esteem equals an inflated ego.

However, this type of narcissistic self-concept isn't necessarily a natural progression from healthy self-esteem, which values the self but not above all others.

Instead, narcissism or arrogance describes a person who focuses primarily on themselves, considers themselves more important or worthwhile than others, and often, doesn't even think about how their actions impact those around them. Really, it can be argued that what looks like "too much self-esteem" is actually the opposite.

In fact, while narcissists may seem to have high self-esteem, studies show that grandiose beliefs about yourself often actually mask a poor self-image, feelings of shame, and self-directed anger hiding underneath.

People with narcissistic personality disorder are also more prone to comorbid mental health conditions like depression and anxiety, experience feelings of helplessness, and have unstable personal relationships.  

Factors Contributing to Low or High Self-Esteem

While, as noted above, a complex web of influences combine to shape your identity, personality, and self-concept, there are specific factors that predict high or low self-esteem. Namely, factors that impact self-esteem include whether or not you had a supportive upbringing, where your needs, thoughts, feelings, contributions, and ideas are valued. Positive thinking , heredity , personal outlook, your peers, and other role models all matter a lot as well.  

Experiencing challenging life events or trauma like divorce, violence, racism, neglect, poverty, a natural disaster, being bullied, or otherwise treated poorly can also contribute to low self-esteem.  

The effectiveness of your coping skills , the relative positivity of your personal outlook, and general resiliency, all factors that can be innate or learned, greatly impact the influence negative experiences may have on your self-esteem as well.  

Cultivating high self-esteem (and resiliency) is no easy task, but it's certainly possible and within your grasp—and can make a huge difference in your life. As noted above, it's key to understand that a significant component of self-esteem is your thought patterns, what you focus on, and optimism rather than simply on objective facts or events of your life.

In other words, it's about what you see (and say to yourself) when looking at your physical self, skills, accomplishments, or future potential.

Building up your self-esteem takes work, determination, and a willingness to examine and counter negative thoughts about yourself—and to actively bolster your self-image with positive ones. It's vital to give yourself grace, to let go of certain things that bother you as well as to work on those areas that you can (and want) to change.

If you value yourself, and have high enough self-worth, you also know that you deserve to take care of yourself, which then can contribute to trying to do things to improve your self-esteem. It's difficult to take care of yourself if you think poorly of yourself.

Studies show that forgiving yourself for things you regret can also help improve self-esteem.   Essentially, it's about accepting and loving yourself as you are.

When to Get Help

If you have low self-esteem, it can be helpful to work with a counselor or other mental health professional to begin changing your negative self-talk and improve how you see and value yourself.

As noted above, improving your self-esteem takes practice and intention but is well worth your efforts, as there is a clear link between high self-esteem and quality of life. Some strategies that can help you think more favorably about yourself include the following:

Accept Compliments

Notice the urge to deflect praise and instead, hear it and let it in. Interestingly, research shows that difficulty accepting compliments is directly correlated with low self-esteem.  

Give Yourself a Break

Forgive yourself for mistakes and squash your negative self-theories and self-talk . No one is perfect or loves everything about themselves. Don't expect that of yourself. When you start on a negative spiral, ask yourself if you're being fair to yourself or realistic.

Love Yourself—Flaws And All

Yes, you may have things you wish were different, want to change, or just plain aren't happy with, but love and respect yourself anyway.

Value the Person You Are

Aim to accept and find worth in who you are right now. Seek out and feel pride in what makes you unique, happy, and valued.

Recognize the Importance of High Self-Esteem

Once you begin to see how your view of yourself impacts life satisfaction and well-being, you may be more motivated to alter your thinking and value yourself more.

Seek Support

Therapy, such as cognitive-behavioral therapy , can help you work on issues that may be impeding your positive self-outlook and help you build skills to disrupt negative self-talk and attain a more optimistic view of yourself.

Start a Gratitude Journal

In a gratitude journal , write down all the positive things in your life, the things you like about yourself, the accomplishments or qualities you are proud of—then read it over whenever you're feeling down about yourself.

Take Note of Your Thoughts

When negative ones arise, actively choose to either work productively on the issues or decide to let them go. When you have positive thoughts, aim to amplify them, particularly whenever less favorable thinking pops up.

Think of Yourself as a Friend

You're likely to be more patient, forgiving, kind, encouraging, supportive, and proud as you assess a friend than you are of yourself. So, next time you're beating up on yourself, step back, shift your perspective, and look at yourself as you would a friend.

Work on Yourself

If there are things about yourself or your life that you don't feel good about, consider what changes you can make. Then, make a plan to put those changes into action.

A Word From Verywell

High self-esteem is key to life satisfaction. For some, this frame of mind comes easily, for others it's more of a struggle. Luckily, wherever you may be on the self-esteem spectrum, you can work on improving your vision, support, compassion, and love of yourself.

After all, the relationship you have with yourself may ultimately be the one that matters most—it gifts you the resiliency, confidence, kindness, motivation, and love that informs the rest of your life and helps you be the best person you can be.

You might also want to consider reaching out to a therapist to help you learn the skills needed to build your self-esteem.

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By Sarah Vanbuskirk Sarah Vanbuskirk has over 20 years of experience as a writer and editor, covering a range of health, wellness, lifestyle, and family-related topics. Her work has been published in numerous magazines, newspapers, and websites, including The Spruce, Activity Connection, Glamour, PDX Parent, Self, Verywell Fit, TripSavvy, Marie Claire, and TimeOut New York.

What is Self-Esteem? A Psychologist Explains

“Believe in yourself.”

That is the message that we encounter constantly, in books, television shows, superhero comics, and common myths and legends.

We are told that we can accomplish anything if we believe in ourselves.

Of course, we know that to be untrue; we cannot accomplish anything in the world simply through belief—if that were true, a lot more children would be soaring in the skies above their garage roof instead of lugging around a cast for a few weeks!

However, we know that believing in yourself and accepting yourself for who you are is an important factor in success, relationships, and happiness and that self-esteem plays an important role in living a flourishing life . It provides us with belief in our abilities and the motivation to carry them out, ultimately reaching fulfillment as we navigate life with a positive outlook.

Various studies have confirmed that self-esteem has a direct relationship with our overall wellbeing, and we would do well to keep this fact in mind—both for ourselves and for those around us, particularly the developing children we interact with.

Before you read on, we thought you might like to download our three Self-Compassion Exercises for free . These detailed, science-based exercises will not only help you show more compassion to yourself but will also give you the tools to enhance the self-compassion of your clients, students or employees and lead them to a healthy sense of self-esteem.

This Article Contains:

• What is the Meaning of Self-esteem? A Definition

Self-Esteem and Psychology

Incorporating self-esteem in positive psychology, 22 examples of high self-esteem, 18 surprising statistics and facts about self-esteem, relevant research, can we help boost self-esteem issues with therapy and counseling, the benefits of developing self-esteem with meditation, can you test self-esteem, and what are the problems with assessment, 17 factors that influence self-esteem, the effects of social media, 30 tips & affirmations for enhancing self-esteem, popular books on self-esteem (pdf), ted talks and videos on self-esteem, 15 quotes on self-esteem, a take-home message, what is the meaning of self-esteem.

You probably already have a good idea, but let’s start from the beginning anyway: what is self-esteem?

Self-esteem refers to a person’s overall sense of his or her value or worth. It can be considered a sort of measure of how much a person “values, approves of, appreciates, prizes, or likes him or herself” (Adler & Stewart, 2004).

According to self-esteem expert Morris Rosenberg, self-esteem is quite simply one’s attitude toward oneself (1965). He described it as a “favourable or unfavourable attitude toward the self”.

Various factors believed to influence our self-esteem include:

• Personality
• Life experiences
• Social circumstances
• The reactions of others
• Comparing the self to others

An important note is that self-esteem is not fixed. It is malleable and measurable, meaning we can test for and improve upon it.

Self-esteem and self-acceptance are often confused or even considered identical by most people. Let’s address this misconception by considering some fundamental differences in the nature and consequences of self-esteem and unconditional self-acceptance.

• Self-esteem is based on evaluating the self, and rating one’s behaviors and qualities as positive or negative, which results in defining the self as worthy or non-worthy (Ellis, 1994).
• Self-acceptance, however, is how the individual relates to the self in a way that allows the self to be as it is. Acceptance is neither positive nor negative; it embraces all aspects and experiences of the self (Ellis, 1976).
• Self-esteem relies on comparisons to evaluate the self and ‘decide’ its worth.
• Self-acceptance, stems from the realization that there is no objective basis for determining the value of a human being. So with self-acceptance, the individual affirms who they are without any need for comparisons.
• Self-esteem is contingent on external factors, such as performance, appearance, or social approval, that form the basis on which the self is evaluated.
• With self-acceptance, a person feels satisfied with themselves despite external factors, as this sense of worthiness is not derived from meeting specific standards.
• Self-esteem is fragile (Kernis & Lakey, 2010).
• Self-acceptance provides a secure and enduring positive relationship with the self (Kernis & Lakey, 2010).
• When it comes to the consequences on wellbeing, while self-esteem appears to be associated with some markers of wellbeing, such as high life satisfaction (Myers & Diener, 1995) and less anxiety (Brockner, 1984), there is also a “dark side” of self-esteem, characterized by egotism and narcissism (Crocker & Park, 2003).
• Self-acceptance is strongly associated with numerous positive markers of general psychological wellbeing (MacInnes, 2006).

Self-esteem has been a hot topic in psychology for decades, going about as far back as psychology itself. Even Freud , who many consider the founding father of psychology (although he’s a bit of an estranged father at this point), had theories about self-esteem at the heart of his work.

What self-esteem is, how it develops (or fails to develop) and what influences it has kept psychologists busy for a long time, and there’s no sign that we’ll have it all figured out anytime soon!

While there is much we still have to learn about self-esteem, we have at least been able to narrow down what self-esteem is and how it differs from other, similar constructs. Read on to learn what sets self-esteem apart from other self-directed traits and states.

Self-Esteem vs. Self-Concept

Self-esteem is not self-concept, although self-esteem may be a part of self-concept. Self-concept is the perception that we have of ourselves, our answer when we ask ourselves the question “Who am I?” It is knowing about one’s own tendencies, thoughts, preferences and habits, hobbies, skills, and areas of weakness.

Put simply, the awareness of who we are is our concept of our self .

Purkey (1988) describes self-concept as:

“the totality of a complex, organized, and dynamic system of learned beliefs, attitudes and opinions that each person holds to be true about his or her personal existence”.

According to Carl Rogers, founder of client-centered therapy , self-concept is an overarching construct that self-esteem is one of the components of it (McLeod, 2008).

Self-Esteem vs. Self-Image

Another similar term with a different meaning is self-image; self-image is similar to self-concept in that it is all about how you see yourself (McLeod, 2008). Instead of being based on reality, however, it can be based on false and inaccurate thoughts about ourselves. Our self-image may be close to reality or far from it, but it is generally not completely in line with objective reality or with the way others perceive us.

Self-Esteem vs. Self-Worth

Self-esteem is a similar concept to self-worth but with a small (although important) difference: self-esteem is what we think, feel, and believe about ourselves, while self-worth is the more global recognition that we are valuable human beings worthy of love (Hibbert, 2013).

Self-Esteem vs. Self-Confidence

Self-esteem is not self-confidence ; self-confidence is about your trust in yourself and your ability to deal with challenges, solve problems, and engage successfully with the world (Burton, 2015). As you probably noted from this description, self-confidence is based more on external measures of success and value than the internal measures that contribute to self-esteem.

One can have high self-confidence, particularly in a certain area or field, but still lack a healthy sense of overall value or self-esteem.

Self-Esteem vs. Self-Efficacy

Similar to self-confidence, self-efficacy is also related to self-esteem but not a proxy for it. Self-efficacy refers to the belief in one’s ability to succeed at certain tasks (Neil, 2005). You could have high self-efficacy when it comes to playing basketball, but low self-efficacy when it comes to succeeding in math class.

Unlike self-esteem, self-efficacy is more specific rather than global, and it is based on external success rather than internal worth.

Self-Esteem vs. Self-Compassion

Finally, self-esteem is also not self-compassion. Self-compassion centers on how we relate to ourselves rather than how we judge or perceive ourselves (Neff, n.d.). Being self-compassionate means we are kind and forgiving to ourselves, and that we avoid being harsh or overly critical of ourselves. Self-compassion can lead us to a healthy sense of self-esteem, but it is not in and of itself self-esteem.

We explore this further in The Science of Self-Acceptance Masterclass© .

Esteem in Maslow’s Theory – The Hierarchy of Needs

The mention of esteem may bring to mind the fourth level of Maslow’s pyramid : esteem needs.

While these needs and the concept of self-esteem are certainly related, Maslow’s esteem needs are more focused on external measures of esteem, such as respect, status, recognition, accomplishment, and prestige (McLeod, 2017).

There is a component of self-esteem within this level of the hierarchy, but Maslow felt that the esteem of others was more important for development and need fulfillment than self-esteem.

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Dr. Martin Seligman has some concerns about openly accepting self-esteem as part of positive psychology . He worries that people live in the world where self-esteem is injected into a person’s identity, not caring in how it is done, as long as the image of “confidence” is obtained. He expressed the following in 2006:

I am not against self-esteem, but I believe that self-esteem is just a meter that reads out the state of the system. It is not an end in itself. When you are doing well in school or work, when you are doing well with the people you love, when you are doing well in play, the meter will register high. When you are doing badly, it will register low. (p. v)

Seligman makes a great point, as it is important to take his words into consideration when looking at self-esteem. Self-esteem and positive psychology may not marry quite yet, so it is important to look at what research tells us about self-esteem before we construct a rationale for it as positive psychology researcher, coach, or practitioner.

Examples of these characteristics are being open to criticism, acknowledging mistakes, being comfortable with giving and receiving compliments, and displaying a harmony between what one says, does, looks, sounds, and moves.

People with high self-esteem are unafraid to show their curiosity, discuss their experiences, ideas, and opportunities. They can also enjoy the humorous aspects of their lives and are comfortable with social or personal assertiveness (Branden, 1992).

Although low self-esteem has received more attention than high self-esteem, the positive psychology movement has brought high self-esteem into the spotlight. We now know more about what high self-esteem looks like and how it can be cultivated.

We know that people with high self-esteem:

• Appreciate themselves and other people.
• Enjoy growing as a person and finding fulfillment and meaning in their lives.
• Are able to dig deep within themselves and be creative.
• Make their own decisions and conform to what others tell them to be and do only when they agree.
• See the word in realistic terms, accepting other people the way they are while pushing them toward greater confidence and a more positive direction.
• Can easily concentrate on solving problems in their lives.
• Have loving and respectful relationships.
• Know what their values are and live their lives accordingly.
• Speak up and tell others their opinions, calmly and kindly, and share their wants and needs with others.
• Endeavor to make a constructive difference in other people’s lives (Smith & Harte, n.d.).

We also know that there are some simple ways to tell if you have high self-esteem. For example, you likely have high self-esteem if you:

• Act assertively without experiencing any guilt, and feel at ease communicating with others.
• Avoid dwelling on the past and focus on the present moment.
• Believe you are equal to everyone else, no better and no worse.
• Reject the attempts of others to manipulate you.
• Recognize and accept a wide range of feelings, both positive and negative, and share them within your healthy relationships.
• Enjoy a healthy balance of work, play, and relaxation .
• Accept challenges and take risks in order to grow, and learn from your mistakes when you fail.
• Handle criticism without taking it personally, with the knowledge that you are learning and growing and that your worth is not dependent on the opinions of others.
• Value yourself and communicate well with others, without fear of expressing your likes, dislikes, and feelings.
• Value others and accept them as they are without trying to change them (Self Esteem Awareness, n.d.).

Based on these characteristics, we can come up with some good examples of what high self-esteem looks like.

Imagine a high-achieving student who takes a difficult exam and earns a failing grade. If she has high self-esteem, she will likely chalk up her failure to factors like not studying hard enough, a particularly difficult set of questions, or simply having an “off” day. What she doesn’t do is conclude that she must be stupid and that she will probably fail all future tests too.

Having a healthy sense of self-esteem guides her toward accepting reality, thinking critically about why she failed, and problem-solving instead of wallowing in self-pity or giving up.

For a second example, think about a young man out on a first date. He really likes the young woman he is going out with, so he is eager to make a good impression and connect with her. Over the course of their discussion on the date, he learns that she is motivated and driven by completely different values and has very different taste in almost everything.

Instead of going along with her expressed opinions on things, he offers up his own views and isn’t afraid to disagree with her. His high self-esteem makes him stay true to his values and allows him to easily communicate with others, even when they don’t agree. To him, it is more important to behave authentically than to focus on getting his date to like him.

23 Examples of Self-Esteem Issues

Here are 23 examples of issues that can manifest from low self-esteem:

• You people please
• You’re easily angered or irritated
• You feel your opinion isn’t important
• You hate you
• What you do is never good enough
• You’re highly sensitive to others opinions
• The world doesn’t feel safe
• You doubt every decision
• You regularly experience the emotions of sadness and worthlessness
• You find it hard keeping relationships
• You avoid taking risks or trying new things
• You engage in addictive avoidance behaviors
• You struggle with confidence
• You find it difficult creating boundaries
• You give more attention to your weaknesses
• You are often unsure of who you are
• You feel negative experiences are all consuming
• You struggle to say no
• You find it difficult asking for your needs to be met
• You hold a pessimistic or negative outlook on life
• You doubt your abilities or chances of success
• You frequently experience negative emotions, such as fear, anxiety or depression
• You compare yourself with others and often you come in second best

It can be hard to really wrap your mind around self-esteem and why it is so important. To help you out, we’ve gathered a list of some of the most significant and relevant findings about self-esteem and low self-esteem in particular.

Although some of these facts may make sense to you, you will likely find that at least one or two surprise you—specifically those pertaining to the depth and breadth of low self-esteem in people (and particularly young people and girls).

• Adolescent boys with high self-esteem are almost two and a half times more likely to initiate sex than boys with low self-esteem, while girls with high self-esteem are three times more likely to delay sex than girls with low self-esteem (Spencer, Zimet, Aalsma, & Orr, 2002).
• Low self-esteem is linked to violence, school dropout rates, teenage pregnancy, suicide, and low academic achievement (Misetich & Delis-Abrams, 2003).
• About 44% of girls and 15% of boys in high school are attempting to lose weight (Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse, n.d.).
• Seven in 10 girls believe that they are not good enough or don’t measure up in some way (Dove Self-Esteem Fund, 2008).
• A girl’s self-esteem is more strongly related to how she views her own body shape and body weight than how much she actually weighs (Dove Self-Esteem Fund, 2008).
• Nearly all women (90%) want to change at least one aspect of their physical appearance (Confidence Coalition, n.d.).
• The vast majority (81%) of 10-year old girls are afraid of being fat (Confidence Coalition, n.d.).
• About one in four college-age women have an eating disorder (Confidence Coalition, n.d.).
• Only 2% of women think they are beautiful (Confidence Coalition, n.d.).
• Absent fathers, poverty, and a low-quality home environment have a negative impact on self-esteem (Orth, 2018).

These facts on low self-esteem are alarming and disheartening, but thankfully they don’t represent the whole story. The whole story shows that there are many people with a healthy sense of self-esteem, and they enjoy some great benefits and advantages. For instance, people with healthy self-esteem:

• Are less critical of themselves and others.
• Are better able to handle stress and avoid the unhealthy side effects of stress.
• Are less likely to develop an eating disorder.
• Are less likely to feel worthless, guilty, and ashamed .
• Are more likely to be assertive about expressing and getting what they want.
• Are able to build strong, honest relationships and are more likely to leave unhealthy ones.
• Are more confident in their ability to make good decisions.
• Are more resilient and able to bounce back when faced with disappointment, failure, and obstacles (Allegiance Health, 2015).

Given the facts on the sad state of self-esteem in society and the positive outcomes associated with high self-esteem, it seems clear that looking into how self-esteem can be built is a worthwhile endeavor.

Luckily, there are many researchers who have tackled this topic. Numerous studies have shown us that it is possible to build self-esteem, especially in children and young people.

How? There are many ways!

Recent research found a correlation between self-esteem and optimism with university students from Brazil (Bastianello, Pacico & Hutz & 2014). One of the most interesting results came from a cross-cultural research on life satisfaction and self-esteem, which was conducted in 31 countries.

They found differences in self-esteem between collective and individualistic cultures with self-esteem being lower in collectivist cultures. Expressing personal emotions, attitudes, and cognitive thoughts are highly associated with self-esteem, collectivist cultures seem to have a drop in self-esteem because of a lack of those characteristics (Diener & Diener 1995).

China, a collectivist culture, found that self-esteem was a significant predictor of life satisfaction (Chen, Cheung, Bond & Leung, 2006). They found that similar to other collectivist cultures, self-esteem also had an effect on resilience with teenagers. Teenagers with low self-esteem had a higher sense of hopelessness and had low resilience (Karatas, 2011).

In more individualistic cultures, teenagers who were taught to depend on their beliefs, behaviors, and felt open to expressing their opinion had more resilience and higher self-esteem (Dumont & Provost, 1999).

School-based programs that pair students with mentors and focus on relationships, building, self-esteem enhancements, goal setting , and academic assistance have been proven to enhance students’ self-esteem, improve relationships with others, reduce depression and bullying behaviors (King, Vidourek, Davis, & McClellan, 2009).

Similarly, elementary school programs that focus on improving self-esteem through short, classroom-based sessions also have a positive impact on students’ self-esteem, as well as reducing problem behaviors and strengthening connections between peers (Park & Park, 2014).

However, the potential to boost your self-esteem and reap the benefits is not limited to students! Adults can get in on this endeavour as well, although the onus will be on them to make the changes necessary.

Self-esteem researcher and expert Dr. John M. Grohol outlined six practical tips on how to increase your sense of self-esteem, which include:

6 Practical Tips on How to Increase Self-Esteem

1. take a self-esteem inventory to give yourself a baseline..

It can be as simple as writing down 10 of your strengths and 10 of your weaknesses. This will help you to begin developing an honest and realistic conception of yourself.

2. Set realistic expectations.

It’s important to set small, reachable goals that are within your power. For example, setting an extremely high expectation or an expectation that someone else will change their behavior is virtually guaranteed to make you feel like a failure, through no fault of your own.

3. Stop being a perfectionist.

Acknowledge both your accomplishments and mistakes. Nobody is perfect, and trying to be will only lead to disappointment. Acknowledging your accomplishments and recognizing your mistakes is the way to keep a positive outlook while learning and growing from your mistakes.

4. Explore yourself.

The importance of knowing yourself and being at peace with who you are cannot be overstated. This can take some trial and error, and you will constantly learn new things about yourself, but it is a journey that should be undertaken with purpose and zeal.

5. Be willing to adjust your self-image.

We all change as we age and grow, and we must keep up with our ever-changing selves if we want to set and achieve meaningful goals.

6. Stop comparing yourself to others.

Comparing ourselves to others is a trap that is extremely easy to fall into, especially today with social media and the ability to project a polished, perfected appearance. The only person you should compare yourself to is you (Grohol, 2011).

The Positivity Blog also offers some helpful tips on enhancing your self-esteem, including:

• Say “stop” to your inner critic.
• Use healthier motivation habits.
• Take a 2-minute self-appreciation break.
• Write down 3 things in the evening that you can appreciate about yourself.
• Do the right thing.
• Replace the perfectionism.
• Handle mistakes and failures in a more positive way.
• Be kinder towards other people .
• Try something new.
• Stop falling into the comparison trap.
• Spend more time with supportive people (and less time with destructive people).
• Remember the “whys” of high self-esteem (Edberg, 2017).

Another list of specific, practical things you can do to develop and maintain a good sense of self-esteem comes from the Entrepreneur website:

• Use distancing pronouns. When you are experiencing stress or negative self-talk, try putting it in more distant terms (e.g., instead of saying “I am feeling ashamed,” try saying “Courtney is feeling ashamed.”). This can help you to see the situation as a challenge rather than a threat.
• Remind yourself of your achievements. The best way to overcome imposter syndrome—the belief that, despite all of your accomplishments, you are a failure and a fraud—is to list all of your personal successes. You might be able to explain a couple of them away as a chance, but they can’t all be due to luck!
• Move more! This can be as simple as a short walk or as intense as a several-mile run, as quick as striking a “power pose” or as long as a two-hour yoga session; it doesn’t matter exactly what you do, just that you get more in touch with your body and improve both your health and your confidence.
• Use the “five-second” rule. No, not the one about food that is dropped on the ground! This five-second rule is about following up good thoughts and inspiring ideas with action. Do something to make that great idea happen within five seconds.
• Practice visualizing your success. Close your eyes and take a few minutes to imagine the scenario in which you have reached your goals, using all five senses and paying attention to the details.
• Be prepared—for whatever situation you are about to encounter. If you are going into a job interview, make sure you have practiced, know about the company, and have some good questions ready to ask. If you are going on a date, take some time to boost your confidence, dress well, and have a plan A and a plan B (and maybe even a plan C!) to make sure it goes well.
• Limit your usage of social media. Spend less time looking at a screen and more time experiencing the world around you.
• Meditate. Establish a regular meditation practice to inspect your thoughts, observe them, and separate yourself from them. Cultivating a sense of inner peace will go a long way towards developing healthy self-esteem.
• Keep your goals a secret. You don’t need to keep all of your hopes and dreams to yourself, but make sure you save some of your goal striving and success for just you—it can make you more likely to meet them and also more satisfied when you do.
• Practice affirmations (like the ones listed later in this piece). Make time to regularly say positive things about yourself and situations in which you often feel uncertain.
• Build your confidence through failure. Use failure as an opportunity to learn and grow, and seek out failure by trying new things and taking calculated risks (Laurinavicius, 2017).

Now that we have a good idea of how to improve self-esteem , there is an important caveat to the topic: many of the characteristics and factors that we believe result from self-esteem may also influence one’s sense of self-esteem, and vice versa.

For example, although we recommend improving self-esteem to positively impact grades or work performance, success in these areas is at least somewhat dependent on self-esteem as well.

Similarly, those who have a healthy level of self-esteem are more likely to have positive relationships, but those with positive relationships are also more likely to have healthy self-esteem, likely because the relationship works in both directions.

While there is nothing wrong with boosting your self-esteem, keep in mind that in some cases you may be putting the cart before the horse, and commit to developing yourself in several areas rather than just working on enhancing your self-esteem.

Based on research like that described above, we have learned that there are many ways therapy and counseling can help clients to improve their self-esteem.

If done correctly, therapy can be an excellent method of enhancing self-esteem, especially if it’s low to begin with.

Here are some of the ways therapy and counseling can a client’s boost self-esteem:

• When a client shares their inner thoughts and feelings with the therapist, and the therapist responds with acceptance and compassion rather than judgment or correction, this can build the foundations of healthy self-esteem for the client.
• This continued acceptance and unconditional positive regard encourage the client to re-think some of their assumptions, and come to the conclusion that “Maybe there’s nothing wrong with me after all!”
• The therapist can explain that self-esteem is a belief rather than a fact and that beliefs are based on our experiences; this can help the client understand that he could be exactly the same person as he is right now and have high self-esteem instead of low, if he had different experiences that cultivated a sense of high self-esteem instead of low self-esteem.
• The therapist can offer the client new experiences upon which to base this new belief about herself, experiences in which the client is “basically acceptable” instead of “basically wrong.” The therapist’s acceptance of the client can act as a model for the client of how she can accept herself.
• Most importantly, the therapist can accept the client for who he is and affirm his thoughts and feelings as acceptable rather than criticizing him for them. The therapist does not need to approve of each and every action taken by the client, but showing acceptance and approval of who he is at the deepest level will have an extremely positive impact on his own belief in his worth and value as a person (Gilbertson, 2016).

Following these guidelines will encourage your client to develop a better sense of self-love , self-worth, self-acceptance , and self-esteem, as well as discouraging “needless shame” and learning how to separate herself from her behavior (Gilbertson, 2016).

One of these methods is meditation—yes, you can add yet another benefit of meditation to the list! However, not only can we develop self-esteem through meditation , we also gain some other important benefits.

When we meditate, we cultivate our ability to let go and to keep our thoughts and feelings in perspective. We learn to simply observe instead of actively participate in every little experience that pops into our head. In other words, we are “loosening the grip we have on our sense of self” (Puddicombe, 2015).

While this may sound counterintuitive to developing and maintaining a positive sense of self, it is actually a great way to approach it. Through meditation, we gain the ability to become aware of our inner experiences without over-identifying with them, letting our thoughts pass by without judgment or a strong emotional response.

As meditation expert Andy Puddicombe notes, low self-esteem can be understood as the result of over-identification with the self. When we get overly wrapped up in our sense of self, whether that occurs with a focus on the positive (I’m the BEST) or the negative (I’m the WORST), we place too much importance on it. We may even get obsessive about the self, going over every little word, thought, or feeling that enters our mind.

A regular meditation practice can boost your self-esteem by helping you to let go of your preoccupation with your self, freeing you from being controlled by the thoughts and feelings your self-experiences.

When you have the ability to step back and observe a disturbing or self-deprecating thought, it suddenly doesn’t have as much power over you as it used to; this deidentification with the negative thoughts you have about yourself results in less negative talk over time and freedom from your overly critical inner voice (Puddicombe, 2015).

Self-esteem is the topic of many a psychological scale and assessment, and many of them are valid, reliable, and very popular among researchers; however, these assessments are not perfect. There are a few problems and considerations you should take into account if you want to measure self-esteem, including:

• Lack of consensus on the definition (Demo, 1985).
• Overall gender differences in self-esteem (Bingham, 1983).
• Too many instruments for assessing self-esteem, and low correlations between them (Demo, 1985).
• The unexplained variance between self-reports and inferred measures such as ratings by others (Demo, 1985).

Although these issues are certainly not unique to the measurement of self-esteem, one should approach the assessment of self-esteem with multiple measurement methods in hand, with the appropriate level of caution, or both.

Still, even though there are various issues with the measurement of self-esteem, avoiding the measurement is not an option! If you are looking to measure self-esteem and worried about finding a validated scale, look no further than one of the foundations of self-esteem research: Rosenberg’s scale.

Measuring Self-Esteem with the Rosenberg Scale

The most common scale of self-esteem is Rosenberg’s Self-Esteem Scale (also called the RSE and sometimes the SES). This scale was developed by Rosenberg and presented in his 1965 book Society and the Adolescent Self-Image.

It contains 10 items rated on a scale from 1 (strongly agree) to 4 (strongly disagree). Some of the items are reverse-scored, and the total score can be calculated by summing up the total points for an overall measure of self-esteem (although it can also be scored in a different, more complex manner—see page 61 of this PDF for instructions).

The 10 items are:

1. On the whole, I am satisfied with myself. 2. At times I think I am no good at all. 3. I feel that I have a number of good qualities. 4. I am able to do things as well as most other people. 5. I feel I do not have much to be proud of. 6. I certainly feel useless at times. 7. I feel that I’m a person of worth. 8. I wish I could have more respect for myself. 9. All in all, I am inclined to think that I am a failure. 10. I take a positive attitude toward myself.

As you likely figured out already, items 2, 5, 6, 8, and 9 are reverse-scored, while the other items are scored normally. This creates a single score of between 10 and 40 points, with lower scores indicating higher self-esteem. Put another way, higher scores indicate a strong sense of low self-esteem.

The scale is considered highly consistent and reliable, and scores correlate highly with other measures of self-esteem and negatively with measures of depression and anxiety. It has been used by thousands of researchers throughout the years and is still in use today, making it one of the most-cited scales ever developed.

The Coopersmith Self-Esteem Inventory (1967/1981)

The second most commonly used reliable and valid measure for self-esteem is The Coopersmith Self-Esteem Inventory. Within this test, 50 items are included to measure the test-takes attitudes towards themselves, by responding to statements with the selection of “like me” or “not like me” (Robinson, Shaver & Wrightsman, 2010).

Initially created to test the self-esteem of children, it was later altered by Ryden (1978) and now two separate versions exist; one for children and one for adults.

Find out more about taking this test here .

It might be quicker to list what factors don’t influence self-esteem than to identify which factors do influence it! As you might expect, self-esteem is a complex construct and there are many factors that contribute to it, whether positively or negatively.

For a quick sample of some of the many factors that are known to influence self-esteem, check out this list:

• Commitment to the worker, spouse, and parental role are positively linked to self-esteem (Reitzes & Mutran, 1994).
• Worker identity meaning is positively related to self-esteem (Reitzes & Mutran, 2006).
• Being married and older is linked to lower self-esteem (Reitzes & Mutran, 2006).
• Higher education and higher income are related to higher self-esteem (Reitzes & Mutran, 2006).
• Low socioeconomic status and low self-esteem are related (von Soest, Wagner, Hansen, & Gerstorf, 2018).
• Living alone (without a significant other) is linked to low self-esteem (van Soest et al., 2018).
• Unemployment and disability contribute to lower self-esteem (van Soest et al., 2018).
• A more mature personality and emotional stability are linked to higher self-esteem (van Soest et al., 2018).
• Social norms (the importance of friends’ and family members’ opinions) about one’s body and exercise habits are negatively linked to self-esteem, while exercise self-efficacy and self-fulfillment are positively linked to self-esteem (Chang & Suttikun, 2017).

If you’re thinking that an important technological factor is missing, go on to the next section and see if you’re right!

Although you may have found some of the findings on self-esteem covered earlier surprising, you will most likely expect this one: studies suggest that social media usage negatively impacts self-esteem (Friedlander, 2016).

This effect is easy to understand. Humans are social creatures and need interaction with others to stay healthy and happy; however, we also use those around us as comparisons to measure and track our own progress in work, relationships, and life in general. Social media makes these comparisons easier than ever, but they give this tendency to compare a dark twist.

What we see on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter is not representative of real life. It is often carefully curated and painstakingly presented to give the best possible impression.

We rarely see the sadness, the failure, and the disappointment that accompanies everyday human life; instead, we see a perfect picture, a timeline full of only good news, and short blurbs about achievements, accomplishments, and happiness .

Although this social comparison with unattainable standards is clearly a bad habit to get into, social media is not necessarily a death knell for your self-esteem. Moderate social media usage complemented by frequent self-reminders that we are often only seeing the very best in others can allow us to use social media posts as inspiration and motivation rather than unhealthy comparison.

You don’t need to give up social media for good in order to maintain a healthy sense of self-esteem—just use it mindfully and keep it in the right perspective!

By viewing self-esteem as a muscle to grow we establish a world of new opportunities. No longer do we have to view ourselves in the same light.

Use these 10 tips to strengthen the attitudes towards yourself:

1. Spend time with people who lift you up 2. Giveback by helping others 3. Celebrate your achievements, no matter the size 4. Do what makes you happy 5. Change what you can – and let go of what you can’t 6. Let go of perfectionism ideals 7. Speak to yourself like a friend 8. Get involved in extra-curricula’s 9. Own your uniqueness 10. Create a positive self-dialogue.

Influential American author, Jack Canfield explains “Daily affirmations are to the mind what exercise is to the body.” (watch this YouTube clip).

Affirmations are a great way to boost your self-esteem and, in turn, your overall wellbeing. There are tons of examples of affirmations you can use for this purpose, including these 17 from Develop Good Habits :

• Mistakes are a stepping stone to success. They are the path I must tread to achieve my dreams.
• I will continue to learn and grow.
• Mistakes are just an apprenticeship to achievement.
• I deserve to be happy and successful.
• I deserve a good life. I deny any need for suffering and misery.
• I am competent, smart, and able.
• I am growing and changing for the better.
• I love the person I am becoming.
• I believe in my skills and abilities.
• I have great ideas. I make useful contributions.
• I acknowledge my own self-worth; my self-confidence is rising.
• I am worthy of all the good things that happen in my life.
• I am confident with my life plan and the way things are going.
• I deserve the love I am given.
• I let go of the negative feelings about myself and accept all that is good.
• I will stand by my decisions. They are sound and reasoned.
• I have, or can quickly get, all the knowledge I need to succeed.

If none of these leap out and inspire you, you can always create your own! Just keep in mind these three simple rules for creating effective affirmations:

• The affirmations should be in the present tense. They must affirm your value and worth right here, right now (e.g., not “I will do better tomorrow” but “I am doing great today.”).
• The affirmations should be positively worded. They should not deny or reject anything (i.e., “I am not a loser.”), but make a firm statement (e.g., “I am a worthy person.”).
• The affirmations should make you feel good and put you in a positive light. They should not be empty words and they should be relevant to your life (e.g., “I am a world-class skier” is relevant if you ski, but is not a good affirmation if you don’t ski.).

Use these three rules to put together some positive, uplifting, and encouraging affirmations that you can repeat as often as needed—but aim for at least once a day.

There are many, many books available on self-esteem: what it is, what influences it, how it can be developed, and how it can be encouraged in others (particularly children). Here is just a sample of some of the most popular and well-received books on self-esteem :

• Self-Esteem: A Proven Program of Cognitive Techniques for Assessing, Improving, and Maintaining Your Self-Esteem by Matthew McKay, PhD ( Amazon )
• The Self-Esteem Guided Journal by Matthew McKay & C. Sutker ( Amazon )
• Ten Days to Self-Esteem by David D. Burns, MD ( Amazon )
• The Six Pillars of Self-Esteem: The Definitive Work on Self-Esteem by the Leading Pioneer in the Field by Nathanial Branden (if you’re not a big reader, check out the animated book review video below) ( Amazon )
• The Self-Esteem Workbook by Glenn R. Schiraldi, PhD ( Amazon )
• The Self-Esteem Workbook for Teens: Activities to Help You Build Confidence and Achieve Your Goals by Lisa M. Schab, LCSW ( Amazon )
• Believing in Myself by E Larsen & C Hegarty. ( Amazon )
• Being Me: A Kid’s Guide to Boosting Confidence and Self-Esteem by Wendy L. Moss, PhD ( Amazon )
• Healing Your Emotional Self: A Powerful Program to Help You Raise Your Self-Esteem, Quiet Your Inner Critic, and Overcome Your Shame by Beverly Engel ( Amazon )

Plus, here’s a bonus—a free PDF version of Nathaniel Branden’s The Psychology of Self-Esteem: A Revolutionary Approach to Self-Understanding That Launched a New Era in Modern Psychology .

If reading is not a preferred method of learning more, fear not! There are some great YouTube videos and TED Talks on self-esteem. A few of the most popular and most impactful are included here.

Why Thinking You’re Ugly is Bad for You by Meaghan Ramsey

This TED talk is all about the importance of self-esteem and the impact of negative self-esteem, especially on young people and girls. Ramsey notes that low self-esteem impacts physical as well as mental health, the work we do, and our overall finances as we chase the perfect body, the perfect face, or the perfect hair. She ends by outlining the six areas addressed by effective self-esteem programs:

• The influence of family, friends, and relationships
• The media and celebrity culture
• How to handle teasing and bullying
• The way we compete and compare ourselves with others
• The way we talk about appearance
• The foundations of respecting and caring for yourself

Meet Yourself: A User’s Guide to Building Self-Esteem by Niko Everett

Another great TEDx Talk comes from the founder of the Girls for Change organization, Niko Everett. In this talk, she goes over the power of self-knowledge, self-acceptance, and self-love. She highlights the importance of the thoughts we have about ourselves and the impact they have on our self-esteem and shares some techniques to help both children and adults enhance their self-esteem.

Self-Esteem – Understanding & Fixing Low Self-Esteem by Actualized.org

This video from Leo Gura at Actualized.org defines self-esteem, describes the elements of self-esteem, and the factors that influence self-esteem. He shares why self-esteem is important and how it can be developed and enhanced.

How to Build Self Esteem – The Six Pillars of Self-Esteem by Nathaniel Branden Animated Book Review by FightMediocrity

This quick, 6-minute video on self-esteem outlines what author Nathaniel Branden sees as the “Six Pillars” of self-esteem:

• The practice of living consciously Be aware of your daily activities and relationship with others, insecure reflections, and also personal priorities.
• The practice of self-acceptance This includes becoming aware and accepting the best and the worst parts of you and also the disowned parts of ourselves.
• The practice of self-responsibility This implies realizing that you are responsible for your choices and actions.
• The practice of self-assertiveness Act through your real convictions and feelings as much as possible.
• The practice of living purposefully Achieve personal goals that energize your existence.
• The practice of personal integrity Don’t compensate your ideals, beliefs, and behaviors for a result that leads to incongruence. When your behaviors are congruent with your ideals, integrity will appear.

The speaker provides a definition and example of each of the six pillars and finishes the video by emphasizing the first two words of each pillar: “The Practice.” These words highlight that the effort applied to building self-esteem is, in fact, the most important factor in developing self-esteem.

Sometimes all you need to get to work on bettering yourself is an inspirational quote. The value of quotes is subjective, so these may not all resonate with you, but hopefully, you will find that at least one or two lights that spark within you!

“You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.”

Sharon Salzberg

“The greatest thing in the world is to know how to belong to oneself.”

Michel de Montaigne

“The man who does not value himself, cannot value anything or anyone.”

“Dare to love yourself as if you were a rainbow with gold at both ends.”

“As long as you look for someone else to validate who you are by seeking their approval, you are setting yourself up for disaster. You have to be whole and complete in yourself. No one can give you that. You have to know who you are—what others say is irrelevant.”

“I don’t want everyone to like me; I should think less of myself if some people did.”

Henry James

“Remember, you have been criticizing yourself for years and it hasn’t worked. Try approving of yourself and see what happens.”

Louise L. Hay

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be?”

Marianne Williamson

“I don’t entirely approve of some of the things I have done, or am, or have been. But I’m me. God knows, I’m me.”

“To me, self-esteem is not self-love. It is self-acknowledgement, as in recognizing and accepting who you are.”

Amity Gaige

“Self-esteem is as important to our well-being as legs are to a table. It is essential for physical and mental health and for happiness.”

Louise Hart

“Self-esteem is made up primarily of two things: feeling lovable and feeling capable. Lovable means I feel people want to be with me. They invite me to parties; they affirm I have the qualities necessary to be included. Feeling capable is knowing that I can produce a result. It’s knowing I can handle anything that life hands me.”

Jack Canfield

“You can’t let someone else lower your self-esteem, because that’s what it is—self-esteem. You need to first love yourself before you have anybody else love you.”

Winnie Harlow

“A man cannot be comfortable without his own approval.”

“Our self-respect tracks our choices. Every time we act in harmony with our authentic self and our heart, we earn our respect. It is that simple. Every choice matters.” Dan Coppersmith

17 Exercises To Foster Self-Acceptance and Compassion

Help your clients develop a kinder, more accepting relationship with themselves using these 17 Self-Compassion Exercises [PDF] that promote self-care and self-compassion.

Created by Experts. 100% Science-based.

We hope you enjoyed this opportunity to learn about self-esteem! If you take only one important lesson away from this piece, make sure it’s this one: you absolutely can build your own self-esteem, and you can have a big impact on the self-esteem of those you love.

Self-esteem is not a panacea—it will not fix all of your problems or help you sail smoothly through a life free of struggle and suffering—but it will help you find the courage to try new things, build the resilience to bounce back from failure, and make you more susceptible to success.

It is something we have to continually work towards, but it’s absolutely achievable.

Stay committed.

Keep aware of your internal thoughts and external surroundings. Keep focused on your personal goals and all that is possible when self-doubt isn’t holding you back.

What are your thoughts on self-esteem in psychology? Should we be encouraging it more? Less? Is there an “ideal amount” of self-esteem? We’d love to hear from you! Leave your thoughts in the comments below.

You can read more about self-esteem worksheets and exercises for adults and teens here .

Thanks for reading!

We hope you enjoyed reading this article. Don’t forget to download our three Self Compassion Exercises for free .

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Interesting, and clear and quite precise in this definitions…..definitions are the most important.

Extremely good article addressing the prevalence of low self-esteem in Western society and how to overcome it. But did it consider the possibility self-esteem could ever be too high? I am still influenced by my old-school upbringing, where being labeled as “conceited” was a a thing. I was told that’s only an attempt to compensate for low self esteem, along with “egomania” and other disorders, but perhaps related to the driven personalities that have influenced much of history.

Excellent, Elaborative, Enduring and Eloquent ESSAY 🙂 Loved this article, very clear, very informative, very useful and practically implementable if determined to improve the quality of one’s life. THANK YOU is a small word for the author of this article.

thak you for this good article

Very helpful. Thank you very much

Thanks for sharing it. I’m happy after reading it , please keep continue to enlighten people

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Excellent essay writing blog for students seeking help with paper writing. We provide exclusive tips and ideas that can help create the best essay possible.

Brilliant Self Esteem Essay: Writing Guide & Topics

Self-esteem is a personal trait that has proven to withstand both high and low tides. It is a state which carries within itself a wide range of beliefs about oneself. Also referred to as self-respect, self-esteem is the confidence in one’s worth or abilities.

It is a subject of great interest to many people. Having a spiced up and captivating essay about self-esteem can guarantee a considerable readership or high grades for students. Many people, especially college students, have a problem with this, and hence we are here to help.

To start us off, let us look at a self-esteem essay example on the effect of social media on self-esteem:

Effect of Social Media on Self-Esteem Essay

“In the last decade, social media has tremendously gained popularity. Its impact and power have left permanent effects on many people and different facets of life. Many people have, therefore, developed high or low self-esteem concerning social media. More research shows that there exists a strong relationship between self-esteem and social media. Facebook has caused a decrease in self-esteem in many people.

Many teenagers are using social media, especially Facebook, to build relationships. There are a lot of people on Facebook of all ages, races, gender, and ethnicity. It is, therefore, natural for teens to mingle and socialize on this platform. Most of the people on social media purport to live “flashy lifestyles,” while in reality, that is not the case. It, therefore, creates a decreased self-esteem on those who cannot live up to those standards.

Social media, through social networking sites, enables people to make social comparisons. For instance, people may try to copy the lifestyles of celebrities. However, those who cannot meet their celebrity status tend to have low self-esteem. The psychological distress of such individuals is higher, resulting in low levels of self-esteem. Many people have, therefore, become victims of lower self-esteem and, consequently, low self-growth.

In conclusion, social media has a very high impact on the self-esteem of individuals. Usage of social media for social networking, communication, and building and maintaining of relationships has diverse effects. There should be sufficient information to help people not fall victims of these adverse effects.”

From the self-esteem essay conclusion above, it is evident that we have not introduced any new idea. You only need to restate the thesis statement and provide a solution to the problem.

We are now going to explore some exciting self-esteem topics with explanations on what to cover in such essays.

“What is Self-Esteem Essay” Topics

• Self-esteem essay, Low Self-Esteem: An expository essay

Here, you will have clearly and concisely investigate low self-esteem, evaluate pieces of evidence, expound on it, and provide an argument concerning it.

• What is Self-esteem? A critical analysis of theories on the function of self-esteem.

Such an essay requires you to explore the various approaches that show the role of self-esteem in individuals or society at large.

• Understanding the concept of self-esteem

It is a topic that digs deep into the breadth and depth of self-worth and makes readers get a clear picture.

• A descriptive study of self-esteem

It is about describing or summarizing self-esteem using words instead of pictures.

• State self-esteem

Topics on Social Media and Self-Esteem Essay

• The Paradox Effect of social media on self-esteem

Describe how social media is giving off the illusion of different choices while making it harder to find viable options.

• Self-esteem and ‘vanity validation’ effect of social media

Show how the interaction of people with social media for an extended period, inevitably feels compelled to continue to check for updates.

• The Dark Side of Social Media: How It Affects Self-Esteem
• Social Media and Confidence

How is one’s self-worth in terms of confidence boosted by social media?

• Social media and depression

Let readers see how depression can result from the use of social media with real-life experiences.

• Importance of Self-Esteem

Self-Concept and Self-Esteem Essay Topic Ideas

Explain how self-concept underpins self-esteem. Evaluate the different approaches to self-esteem. You can also discuss the application of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs of self-actualization. Giving the usefulness of the motivational theory for boosting self-esteem will add weight to your essay.

Topic Ideas on How to Improve Self-Esteem

• Tips to Improve Self-Esteem

Give detailed and well-researched advice on how people can boost their self-esteem

• Steps to Improving Self Esteem

Here are more topic ideas on how to improve self-esteem: 1. Top 5 tactics to change how to improve how you see yourself 2. Things you can do to boost your self-esteem 3. Understanding and building low self-esteem

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Self Esteem Essay Examples & Topics

• Adolescence
• Childhood Trauma
• Children Observation
• Cognitive Psychology
• Communication
• Criminal Psychology
• Critical Thinking
• Growth Mindset
• Human Development
• Human Nature
• Interpersonal Communication
• Metacognition
• Nonverbal Communication
• Personality
• Psychoanalysis
• Self Assessment
• Self Concept
• Social Psychology
• Socialization
• Stereotypes

High Self-Esteem Development Towards Self-Image

1. Introduction Self-esteem is a core value to everyone, and it is important to boost or maintain at a high level. Life is a continuing journey and it is better to learn how to build a high self-esteem now than to struggle with remedying a depleted one later. During those life experiences, this work will help your self-esteem become the best it can be. An understanding of the internal operations of your self-esteem and how to challenge the negative thoughts and build a realistic positive approa ...

Beauty Standards and Their Impact Essay

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Self-esteem and university students: Findings from a multi-center study

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N Ketata, H Ben Ayed, M Baklouti, M Trigui, S Yaich, M Abdelmoula, H Feki, J Damak, Self-esteem and university students: Findings from a multi-center study, European Journal of Public Health , Volume 31, Issue Supplement_3, October 2021, ckab165.593, https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/ckab165.593

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Self-esteem refers to the degree to which a person esteem himself or herself. Accordingly, low self-esteem has a remarkable impact on mental health that may influence successful development and life outcomes, especially for young people. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence and factors predisposing to low self-esteem among university students (US) in Southern Tunisia.

A cross-sectional study performing a stratified randomized sample of 8 universities was conducted in Sfax, Southern Tunisia, on April 2021. A structured an anonymous self-administered questionnaire including the 10-item Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale was applied for a total of 1071 US.

Among 1071 US, 759 cases (71%) were females, giving a male to female ratio of 0.4. Their mean age was 22.2 ±2.5 years. There were 1035 single US (96.5%), 246 smokers (23%) and 140 alcohol consumers (13.1%). Students with low self-esteem were identified at a prevalence of 29.5%. Living in a urban region (OR = 1.7; p = 0.004), studying in a private university (OR = 2.5; p = 0.013), having a low monthly income (<2 minimum wage) (OR = 1.6; p = 0.014) and a chronic disease (OR = 2.1; p < 0.001) were major risk factors of low self-esteem. Moreover, daily TV time >4 hours (OR = 5.9; p = 0.009) and absence of leisure activities (OR = 1.8; p = 0.006) were significantly associated with higher prevalence of low self-esteem. Otherwise, practicing physical activity 3 times/week (OR = 0.6; p = 0.04) and high academic performance (OR = 0.8; p = 0.004) were identified as protective factors of low self-esteem.

The findings from the current study highlighted that low self-esteem was ranking at an alarming rate among US. These results therefore suggested the need for a school-based or web-based provision aiming at proactively increasing students' self-esteem and skills for dealing with their academic career and self-confidence.

Low self-esteem and its associated factors.

University students.

• physical activity
• chronic disease
• leisure activities
• mental health
• self administration
• protective factors
• self esteem
• academic performance
• college students

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Self-Esteem, Essay Example

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Self-esteem could be described as one’s worth in his/her own eyes. I realized early in my life that we usually give huge weight to others’ opinions of ourselves and as a result strive to be what others want us to be rather than who we actually are. This led to a life full of contradiction and I eventually decided to learn more about myself including my strengths and weaknesses. Surprisingly, this approach also helped me better understand other people and my friends soon started trusting me just as one trusts his/her own family members. They would share everything with me because they claimed I do not judge people and can put myself in others’ shoes. The experience proved to be more educational than I could have ever imagined as if I had completed an academic degree in human relations or psychology. As I learnt more about myself and about other people, I became more confident in my abilities and also learnt to ignore others’ skepticism regarding my abilities and goals. But at the same time, improved self-esteem has also made me more appreciative of human potential and I now focus more on the good side of the people rather than the negative side. I make active efforts to recognize the true potential in people and encourage them to become the best they are and this approach doesn’t only define my personal life but also my professional life. As I see the world, there are seven billion people on earth but everyone wants to feel important and be valued. They want to be appreciated for their individual traits and they are constantly seeking approval from others to boost their own morale. Just as negative opinions hurt one’s morale and even self-esteem, positive reinforcements sometimes do more to inspire people than any other incentive.

Self-esteem has also taught me to be respectful towards people from different generations as well as cultural backgrounds. Just as there are certain universal truths, there are also universal traits shared by different cultures. I have also learnt that respect is the key to open communication and ensuring cooperation from others. Everyone has a different view of life and the world and one may have different opinions but it is always possible to make others feel important by showing respect for their views. Similarly, when we display positive behavior such as protecting others’ self-esteem, we also influence others to adopt the same behaviors in their lives.

I am proud of what I have been able to achieve but I have not come this far just because I had self-esteem but also because many others demonstrated their trust in me. A society prospers when we take care of those who are most vulnerable and this is why I have been inspired to pursue in career in nursing whether as a care provider at the moment or a nurse educator in the near future. People surprise us when they are in a supportive environment. Thus, the key to a more prosperous society is to have high self-esteem and also to encourage others to be their best.

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The Effects of Self-Esteem and Academic Engagement on University Students’ Performance

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The success or failure of a student depends on several factors, including self-esteem, academic engagement, and motivation. Self-esteem and motivation have been found to influence academic engagement, which, in turn, contributes to academic performance. Through a quantitative study, 243 university students were surveyed to analyze the effects of self-esteem and motivation on their academic engagement, which would be reflected in their academic performance. The results show that self-esteem has effects on emotional and behavioral disengagement. Motivation shows greater effects on academic engagement, with metacognitive engagement predicting students’ academic performance. Therefore, promoting metacognitive strategies that help students learn to plan, monitor, and self-regulate their learning will contribute to their performance.

1. Introduction

The success or failure of a student’s learning process includes many factors; the ones that play an essential role include self-esteem, motivation, and academic engagement. System theory states that the mind is divided into three separate systems, which are the motivational, affective, and cognitive systems. The motivational system includes the basic components that make an organism aware of hunger, thirst, and even the need to reproduce in order to survive. The affective system includes emotions, such as cheerful states, enthusiasm, etc. The cognitive system comprises thought-related processes, such as reasoning, memory, and judgment, the basis for understanding the events that occur all over the world [ 1 , 2 ].

In the educational context, the motivational system or academic motivation is defined as an energizing catalyst that starts the action. It is also studied as a variable that is influenced by the context [ 3 ].

Academic engagement, also known as commitment (in this research, both terms are used to refer to the same concept), pushes the student to participate during educational activities [ 4 , 5 ]. The academic engagement level is not only crucial to ensuring that students successfully finish their learning process, but also acts as a shield against the dangers they face as young people [ 6 ]. Academic engagement has been divided into three elements for better analysis: emotional, behavioral, and cognitive [ 7 , 8 , 9 ]. Analyzing how motivation influences a student’s engagement is crucial in order to determine a student’s involvement level with the learning process, which is then reflected in terms of academic advantage; this is because it has been proven that motivation influences academic engagement, which contributes to academic achievement at the same time [ 10 ].

Self-esteem is another key factor that influences academic performance; it is relevant because it has been closely related to motivation and academic achievement [ 11 ]. Self-esteem refers to the positive or negative perception of a student’s self-worth [ 12 , 13 ], which affects a student’s ability to complete or not complete educational tasks. Therefore, it is essential to include this factor because it has been proven that it is positively associated with performing a task.

It is also very common for academic performance to be evaluated by looking only at the grades that the student obtains while studying, and this is seen as the golden measure of success in education [ 14 ]. It is also known that the psychosocial self-esteem factor influences grades [ 15 , 16 ], and that it is closely related to academic performance through emotions (affective states) and motivation [ 17 ]. Therefore, analyzing the effect of self-esteem on academic involvement will provide empirical evidence that enables the proposal of strategies that encourage appropriate levels of motivation, in order to impact educational performance positively.

Therefore, this research proposes a conceptual model that explores the effects of self-esteem, motivation, and the components of academic engagement as factors that positively influence a student’s performance. This research introduces empirical evidence for how self-esteem can affect a student’s engagement level in learning, which at the same time, is reflected in their academic performance.

2. Theoretical Background

2.1. motivation, academic engagement, and self-esteem.

In the educational field, motivation has been studied as a dependent variable that is influenced by the academic context, study field, and the task to be completed [ 3 , 18 ].

Several theories have been proposed in order to study the interrelation between motivation, engagement, and self-esteem, and two of them have received attention. The first one is Pintrich and de Groot’s [ 19 ] expectancy-value theory, which considers the role of motivation in fulfilling goals or tasks. These authors propose two main elements as the basis of this theory. The first one plays a crucial role in the determination of educational performance, and it refers to students’ belief in their capacity to perform educational tasks, as well the sense that they have control over and responsibility for their performance; this element was denoted as expectancy, and involves self-efficacy and students’ beliefs about their control over the learning process, which is also considered in Bandura’s [ 20 ] work. The other element was denoted as value and includes extrinsic motivation, intrinsic motivation towards the objective, and the value a student assigns to the task.

The second theory is self-determination, proposed by Ryan and Deci [ 21 ]; this states that students possess psychological needs that are provided by the motivational fundament used to prove that they are very committed to their academic activities [ 22 ]. This theory is considered the conceptual basis that explains self-esteem-related components. This theory also proposes a link between engagement, motivation, and academic achievement, and explains how changing to a new level of engagement affects motivation and the learning context.

Researchers such as Skinner and Belmont [ 7 ] and Reschly and Christenson [ 9 ] point out that academic achievement is an established goal that includes emotional, behavioral, and cognitive involvement [ 8 ].

Emotional engagement involves students’ positive and negative affective answers to the learning environment and academic tasks [ 8 ]. It includes positive emotions such as enjoyment, enthusiasm, interest, satisfaction, and vitality. The opposite behavior to involvement is called lack of interest; applied to this concept are synonyms such as disaffection or detachment. When a student is uninterested, that person shows negative emotional states, such as boredom, frustration, depression, anxiety, or even rage. Generally, unhappy students are submissive, and they do not attempt to face challenges [ 7 ].

According to González et al. [ 23 ], behavioral engagement refers to students’ participation in their academic activities, tasks, homework, and the learning environment, as well as the time and attention spent on educational tasks. In addition, Reschly and Christenson [ 9 ] and Reschly [ 24 ] mention that behavioral commitment refers to the degree to which a student participates in academic, social, or extracurricular activities, and it includes behaviors such as starting an action, making an effort to complete it, making attempts, persisting, and working with intensity, attentiveness, concentration, and participation [ 6 ]. On the other hand, behavioral disengagement includes negative behaviors that show a lack of interest in educational activities, such as passiveness, forsaking, distraction, or being mentally disconnected and unprepared [ 6 ].

Cognitive involvement implies students’ psychological investment and effort made in their learning process [ 23 ]. This is when the student moves from using simple cognitive strategies, in which their commitment is low, to using more sophisticated cognitive strategies, such as self-regulation or metacognition [ 25 ]. Metacognitive engagement is the knowledge of knowledge [ 26 ], and is found at a higher level of cognition [ 27 , 28 ]. When students are engaged with metacognitive actions, this leads them to self-regulated learning and to learning to plan, regulate, and monitor their knowledge. Planning helps the student to determine the best way to approach a problem. Monitoring implies being able to understand and comprehend the problem to be studied and, finally, regulating or controlling their learning [ 8 , 29 ].

Studying students’ involvement levels is essential determining their academic performance; this idea has been corroborated by several researchers that have suggested that student engagement is related to academic achievement [ 4 , 6 , 30 ].

Self-esteem is defined as the positive or negative attitude towards oneself. It is also considered a characteristic of liking or disliking oneself [ 13 ]. In the educational environment, it is the students’ positive or negative perception of self-value and capability [ 12 , 13 ]. It is also considered as the level of belief a student has in being able to obtain good grades.

Self-evaluation comprises basic characteristics, such as self-esteem and self-efficacy [ 31 ]; both impact the wellbeing, motivation, behavior, and performance of students in the fields of educational and work [ 17 ]. In the educational environment, both constructs (self-esteem and self-efficacy) are essential characteristics that contribute to explaining individual differences in motivation, attitudes, and academic performance among students.

Self-efficacy is the trust that each individual has in achieving an objective in a particular situation; it is considered a critical element that enables students to achieve their educational goals and face decisions throughout their lifetime [ 32 ].

It has been found that self-esteem, self-efficacy, and expectations are some of the essential components that may influence student engagement, considerably affecting the quality and level of involvement [ 33 ].

Researchers [ 17 ] have found self-esteem to be closely related to affective processes, affective evaluation, or feelings, while self-efficacy has also been associated with motivational processes, motivational belief, or judgement. According to these researchers, students’ motivational and affective states are mediators that influence the relationship between self-esteem and educational performance in a different way. Therefore, self-esteem is related to academic performance through emotions (affective states) and motivation.

2.2. Motivation, Academic Engagement, and Self-Esteem in Academic Performance

The previous research mentioned below has provided empirical evidence of the relationships proposed in the conceptual model shown in Figure 1 .

Proposed conceptual model.

One of the essential components to understanding the involvement level of a student in educational activities is motivation. Many researchers have analyzed this connection and confirmed the impact of motivation on academic engagement [ 20 , 34 , 35 ]. Self-efficacy is one of the factors that comprises the construct of motivation [ 19 ].

Since academic engagement comprises emotional, behavioral, and cognitive elements, many researchers have analyzed these elements and motivation; for instance, Wang and Eccles [ 36 ] examined the way that motivation influences emotional, behavioral, and cognitive engagement, finding that it impacted all elements. In this way, the effects of motivation on students’ emotional, behavioral, and cognitive involvement were confirmed, as observed in the conceptual model of Figure 1 .

Moreover, the influence of motivation on academic performance has been analyzed; for instance, Sun’s research [ 37 ] showed evidence of a positive connection between a motivation element (self-efficacy) and academic performance. Self-efficacy is a predictor of motivation and academic performance over time in multiple environments and populations [ 38 ].

Likewise, and by analyzing the effects of self-efficacy on academic engagement, the researcher Pellas [ 39 ] found that students who showed higher levels of self-efficacy and intrinsic value were also more likely to use cognitive and self-regulation strategies (a component of metacognitive engagement). Therefore, it is established that there is a relationship between student motivation and the metacognitive engagement involved.

It has also been found that self-efficacy is related to academic engagement, as Salamela-Aro and Upadyaya’s research [ 40 ] showed; they conducted a longitudinal study with adolescents, confirming a positive relationship between self-efficacy and academic commitment. This suggests that perceived self-efficacy influences the degree of commitment and effort a student invests when performing a task [ 20 , 41 ].

2.3. Effects of Self-Esteem in Emotional, Behavioral, Cognitive, and Metacognitive Engagement

According to Griffiths and colleagues [ 33 ], some essential elements that may influence student engagement are self-esteem, self-efficacy, expectations, and relations among peers [ 20 ], all of which substantially affect the quality and level of involvement.

Previous researchers have discovered that self-esteem can predict academic performance [ 15 , 16 ]. Therefore, there is not only a direct relationship, but also a reciprocal connection, meaning that the school grade positively predicts self-esteem [ 42 ].

Pellas’ research [ 39 ] analyzed how computer self-efficacy, metacognitive self-regulation, and self-esteem influenced students’ academic engagement [ 43 ] in online careers at university. His discoveries revealed that self-esteem, computer self-efficacy, and self-regulation were meaningful predictors of students’ cognitive engagement but not of their behavioral engagement, which was negative. The research also showed that students’ self-esteem was not only positively correlated with emotional and cognitive engagement, but also negatively correlated with behavioral engagement elements.

Regarding emotional and behavioral engagement, van der Kaap-Deeder et al. [ 44 ] carried out two studies to determine the relationship between self-esteem, motivation, and engagement. Their results showed a positive relationship between self-esteem and emotional and behavioral engagement, as well as emotional disaffection and anxiety towards exams. Moreover, Zeigler-Hill et al.’s [ 45 ] study showed that unstable self-esteem was related to academic disaffection.

The relation between self-esteem and metacognitive engagement has also been verified, as shown in a study by Du and colleagues [ 46 ], who analyzed how students used self-regulated learning (considered a metacognitive strategy) to solve a specific task. Their results confirmed that self-esteem was a factor influencing students’ ability to self-regulate learning.

A study by Zuffianò et al. [ 47 ] found that self-esteem was not related to academic performance, suggesting that this was because the construct used in their research assessed self-esteem in general, and that, in fact, a more specific construct called academic self-esteem should be proposed.

Regarding behavioral engagement, previous educational research has shown that it significantly affects academic performance [ 8 , 48 , 49 ].

In the same way, studies have shown that emotional engagement has an effect on academic performance [ 50 , 51 ]. For instance, Tze et al. [ 52 ] conducted a meta-analysis that analyzed the relationship between academic boredom, motivation, and academic performance. Their findings showed that boredom in class had more adverse effects on academic performance than boredom while studying.

Some of the literature has analyzed the influence of cognitive engagement on academic performance [ 19 , 53 , 54 ]. For instance, Broadbent’s study [ 54 ] found that students who applied cognitive strategies, such as elaboration and time management, had better educational grades.

On the other hand, the research by Chen and Wu [ 55 ] confirmed that there was a relationship between metacognitive engagement and students’ academic performance.

The works described above provide evidence for the relationships proposed in the conceptual model shown in Figure 1 .

3. Materials and Methods

3.1. data collection.

The sample was obtained from 243 university students who were told about the study’s objectives and then decided to participate voluntarily; they were told that they could leave the study at any time, and the students agreed to their answers for each item being be used in this study [ 56 ]. The sample was collected from students undertaking degrees in sciences and social sciences enrolled in either industrial management, computer science or industrial engineering courses at a public university. The sample included students from all semesters. They were surveyed online during the second semester of the 2020 school year. The participants’ ages were between 19 and 21; 108 were male and 134 were female. Their teachers reported the students’ final grades after the last examination, which were used to measure academic performance (AP). The final grade ranged from 1 to 10.

To calculate the causal relations in the theoretical model, Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was used. SEM analysis was conducted using the partial least squares method, using the software SmartPLS version 3 (SmartPLS GmbH, Oststeinbek, Germany).

The general rule of sample size was considered for calculating the model quality. Wang and Wang [ 57 ] suggest that the sample size depends on the number of indicator variables (items). They mention that five cases per indicator variable are sufficient. The number of students that answered all the items was 243, and 30 was the number of indicator variables in the analysis SEM. Therefore, the sample size was sufficient to reach the quality of the model in this study.

3.2. Instruments

The Rosenberg [ 12 ] self-esteem scale was used in this research, which measures how a person evaluates their worth as a human being. The scale has been widely tested in different studies showing good psychometric characteristics [ 58 ], and has also been validated in the Mexican context [ 59 ]. This scale contains the same number of positive and negative questions. An example of a positive question would be “overall, I am satisfied with myself”; a negative one would be “I feel like I don’t have much to be proud of”. Negative questions were recorded, so that a lower number indicated a higher level on the scale. Items were evaluated using the Likert scale from 1 to 5, used the following rankings: 5 = totally agree, 4 = agree, 3 = neither agree nor disagree, 2 = disagree, 1 = totally disagree.

The Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ) by Pintrich [ 60 ] and Pintrich and de Groot [ 19 ] was used to evaluate the motivational, cognitive, and metacognitive factors of the students, which were estimated using the expectation and value components. The first component included self-efficacy (SE), control learning beliefs (CLB), and test anxiety (TA). The value component included intrinsic goal motivation (IGM), extrinsic goal motivation (EGM), and beliefs about the importance of a task or the task value (TV).

The MSLQ also captured learning strategies that encompassed help-seeking (HS) and peer learning (PL). Cognitive strategies included organization (OR), elaboration (EL), and rehearsal (RE). Metacognitive strategies included self-regulation (SR) and critical thinking (CT). The response to the instrument was answered using a Likert scale between 1 (not at all true of me) and 7 (very true of me). This instrument has been used and validated in the Mexican context [ 27 , 28 , 61 ].

In the same way, Skinner et al.’s [ 6 ] instrument, Student Engagement and Disaffection in school (SED), was used. The scale measures emotional engagement and disengagement, as well as behavioral engagement and disengagement. Emotional engagement included enjoyment (EN), enthusiasm (ET), fun (FU), pride (PR), and interest (IN). Emotional disengagement included boredom (BO), disinterest (DI), frustration (FR), sadness (SA), and anxiety (AN). Behavioral engagement included involvement (IN), effort (EF), and attention (AT). Behavioral disengagement included being distracted (DI), mentally withdrawn (ME), and passive (PA). As with the MSLQ, this instrument has been previously used in studies by [ 27 , 28 , 61 ]. The scale was evaluated on a 5-point Likert scale, where 1 meant completely disagree, and 5 meant completely agree.

The SED and MSLQ instruments were applied mid-semester, and the self-esteem instrument was applied at the end of the semester.

3.3. Data Analyses

The reliability of the items was verified before using the SEM method. The reliability analysis was measured using Cronbach alpha values; despite there being no minimum value universally accepted, many authors suggest that this must be higher than 0.70 [ 62 , 63 ].

The convergent validity was verified through the composite reliability (CR) and average variance extracted (AVE). Composite reliability values up to 0.7 and 0.5, respectively, are considered acceptable [ 64 ]. Discriminant validity was verified through the Fornell–Larcker [ 65 ] criterion; it was verified when the square root of the AVE values was higher than the correlation among the rest of the constructs.

4.1. Reliability and Validity

After analyzing the theoretical model using the Structural Equation Modeling technique, the validity of the constructs was verified. Therefore, the enthusiasm (ET) and pride (PR) variables were removed from emotional engagement. Test anxiety (TA) was removed from motivation. Table 1 shows the acceptable values using the Cronbach’s alpha, CR, and AVE of the resulting constructs, which shows that the construct validity of the structural model was reached.

CR, AVE, and Cronbach’s alpha of the constructs of the causal model.

Table 2 shows the discriminant validity values, in which the values below the diagonal are lower than the ones crosswise (in bold); therefore, the discriminant validity of the theoretical model was reached.

Discriminant validity of the constructs of the causal model.

Self-esteem (SE), Motivation (MO), Emotional Engagement (EE), Emotional Disengagement (ED), Behavioral Engagement (BE), Behavioral Disengagement (BD), Metacognitive Engagement (ME), Cognitive Engagement (CE), Learning Engagement (LE) and Academic Performance (AP). The values in bold are the square-root of AVE of each of the constructs.

Table 2 shows that the correlation between the constructs was lower than the square root of the AVE values; therefore, discriminant validity was reached.

4.2. Causal Model

Figure 2 shows the resulting model, in which the causal relationships that were confirmed from the proposed conceptual model are observed.

Significant relationships of the causal model *** p < 0.001.

The results revealed a negative relationship between self-esteem and emotional and behavioral disengagement. At the same time, it was notable that motivation played a dominant role in the resulting model by showing effects on emotional, behavioral, cognitive, metacognitive, and learning engagement. Among the elements that comprise motivation, self-efficacy and the task value were the ones that showed higher effects.

Moreover, we discovered the existing positive connection between metacognitive engagement and academic performance; in contrast, self-esteem had no effects on emotional, behavioral, learning, cognitive, and metacognitive engagement, or on academic performance.

5. Discussion

For students, self-esteem is the subjective evaluation of their worth, or the positive or negative attitude they have towards themselves [ 12 ]. This perception can contribute to how much students believe in their own academic ability. The result of this research showed that self-esteem had effects on emotional and behavioral disengagement. This result may be due to the fact that the level of self-esteem observed in the sample was M = 2.49, evaluated on the Likert scale from 1 to 5.

Those students who do not believe in their abilities may experience emotional disengagement, including boredom, frustration, sadness, and anxiety. Moreover, they may manifest behavioral disinterest with attitudes such as distraction, mental detachment, and passivity. This result agreed with the research by Zeigler-Hill et al. [ 45 ], who showed that unstable self-esteem was related to high levels of academic disinterest.

This study revealed no relationship between self-esteem and academic performance, which coincided with other investigations that have found that this may be because other factors affect this relationship [ 66 ] or that the self-esteem construct is a weak predictor [ 16 ].

Students who have a positive evaluation of themselves, that is, high self-esteem, can pour this positive evaluation into their school activities and believe that they can also perform well [ 66 ]. On the contrary, this research found that the students had low levels of self-esteem. This could mean that it had no direct correlation with academic performance, which would coincide with Hyseni Duraku and Hoxha [ 67 ], who proposed that the evidence regarding the effect of self-esteem on academic performance in higher education students is controversial.

This study also found that motivation affected the emotional, behavioral, cognitive, and metacognitive engagement of students, as well as their emotional and behavioral disengagement. This finding coincided with Martin et al. [ 34 ] and Sinatra et al. [ 35 ], who mentioned that motivation was essential in order to explain academic engagement.

The results showed that there was a strong correlation between students’ motivation and emotional commitment, which means that motivated students showed interest and enthusiasm in their classes and even had fun. This relationship was also found in the investigations of Skinner et al. [ 30 ] and Wang and Eccles [ 36 ]. Further, the study by Acosta-Gonzaga and Walet [ 68 ] also showed that fun was an essential factor in learning mathematics through online exams.

In a similar way, it was found that there was a strong relationship between motivation and behavioral engagement, so that committed students paid attention in their class, made an effort, and became involved in their activities [ 30 , 36 , 69 ].

However, it was also found that motivation influenced emotional [ 52 ] and behavioral disengagement. Although its effects were lesser than emotional and behavioral engagement, this result shows that students may feel boredom, frustration, and even anxiety in their classes. They also may display negative behaviors such as distraction or passivity.

Motivation’s effects on cognitive engagement have been proven. Motivated students apply more complex cognitive strategies, such as organization and elaboration, instead of simple strategies [ 70 ], proving the link between motivation and cognitive engagement [ 36 ].

Moreover, this research demonstrated a relationship between motivation and learning strategies. This coincided with Zhang et al.’s [ 71 ] research, which found that learning strategies were mediators between motivation and vocabulary acquirement (educational performance).

The effects of motivation towards metacognitive engagement were also verified; this same relationship was found by Butz et al. [ 72 ], who found that motivation influenced cognitive processes, mentioning that students who reported higher levels of self-efficacy and intrinsic value (motivation factors) also reported high levels of the use of cognitive and metacognitive strategies (self-regulation).

In the same way, the relation between metacognitive engagement and academic performance was verified [ 55 ], suggesting that students used metacognitive strategies such as critical thinking and self-regulation, which influenced their academic performance. Therefore, motivated students tend to plan, monitor, and self-regulate their learning process. Planning helps them to determine how to approach the problem. Monitoring implies understanding the topic to be studied, thus regulating their learning [ 8 , 29 ].

The results of this study were consistent with the research by Fredricks et al. [ 8 ], who found that students’ academic performance was enhanced when motivation was involved in emotional, cognitive, and behavioral engagement.

6. Conclusions

Whether or not students achieve their academic goals depends on several personal factors. Therefore, this study investigated the effects of general self-esteem and academic motivation on academic performance. Although controversial results were found in the self-esteem study, it was thought this would reveal effects on cognitive strategies, academic commitment, and academic performance. The results showed effects on the emotional and behavioral disinterest of the student; that is, when students do not fully trust their abilities to perform their academic tasks, they show emotions such as boredom, anxiety, sadness, or frustration, and exhibit behaviors such as passivity, distraction, and mental detachment. This implies that school administrators and teachers could propose actions that help promote the personal worth of the student. For instance, they could recommend successful academic experiences to students, and teachthem how to manage anxiety and stress.

However, it was observed that academic motivation affects the components of school engagement, so it can be assumed that motivated students will be more engaged and have better academic achievement. Motivated students show skills such as self-efficacy and intrinsic worth, and report metacognitive skills such as critical thinking and self-regulation, which influence their academic performance. Teachers could provide master classes to students by giving exceptional examples of success during their learning in order to promote students’ motivation.

6.1. Limitations of the Research

Some limitations are considered. For instance, academic engagement was measured using students’ self-reports, and the sample size was gathered from a single university.

6.2. Future Research

Future work could consider analyzing the academic self-esteem and self-concept constructs in a conceptual model for a comparative study of public and private university students, including a larger sample size.

Acknowledgments

The author would like to thank the Instituto Politécnico Nacional for their support of this research.

Funding Statement

This research was funded by the Instituto Politécnico Nacional, grant number SIP20230418. The APC was funded by the Instituto Politécnico Nacional.

Institutional Review Board Statement

Informed consent statement.

Informed consent was obtained from all subjects involved in the study.

Data Availability Statement

Conflicts of interest.

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Disclaimer/Publisher’s Note: The statements, opinions and data contained in all publications are solely those of the individual author(s) and contributor(s) and not of MDPI and/or the editor(s). MDPI and/or the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to people or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content.

106 Ideas, Examples, and Topics on Self Esteem

🏆 best research title about self esteem, 💡 interesting self-esteem topics for discussion, 📌 good self-esteem research topics, 🔎 simple & easy research titles about low self-esteem, ❓ research questions about self-esteem.

• Self Concept and Self Esteem in Interpersonal Communication Low self-esteem is associated with a person’s emotional response to self-perception and social expectation. Low-self esteem is associated with the feeling of failure to meet social expectation.
• Self-Esteem and Confidence in the Workplace Secondly, gradual learning and improvement of job skills will help to feel more confident and show management that the employee is ready to learn and develop. We will write a custom essay specifically for you by our professional experts 808 writers online Learn More
• Facebook Effects on Our Self-Esteem The title of the article “Facebook envy: how the social network affects our self-esteem” speaks for itself: the author Andrea Shea reflects on the impact that the social media has on its users, and in […]
• Effects of Self-Esteem and Gender on Goal Choice The paper contains a discussion about the relationship between self esteem and gender to the type of goals that people make. Therefore, there is a link between high self-esteem and the behavior to make difficult […]
• Self-Esteem and Students’ Health More so, life satisfaction is closely connected with the concept of self-esteem, and mental health also depends on proper development of self-esteem. It is also necessary to remember that a number of factors influence development […]
• The Effects of the Media on Creativity and Self-Esteem The controversy surrounding British sprinter Linford Christie and the British tabloid press in the mid nineties illustrates a crucial and heart breaking example of the media’s might in the area of self esteem.
• Instagram Addiction and Impact on Self-Esteem The effect of social media use is reported to have a mixed effect on the user. First, social media addiction may have a varying effect on self-esteem depending on the type of use.
• Instagram Addiction and Self-Esteem in Kuwaiti High School Students Besides, the study will explore the impact of social media and reveal the possible ways to resolve the social media addiction issues affecting the youth.
• Instagram Addiction and Self-Esteem in High School Students To test the relationship between social media Instagram addiction and self-esteem in American high school students, a descriptive survey where students will be enrolled in an online, blinded survey will apply.
• Case Study of LY LY: Building Self-Esteem At the same time, I would try to build trust and respect between the teacher and Ly Ly. I would also create the learning program according to Ly Ly and her classmates’ abilities and interests.
• Child Neglect Might Affect a Child’s Self-Esteem in Adulthood Three situations in different locations are to be thoroughly discussed to illustrate the issue of the research. Indeed, the observation at the chosen playground seemed to be fruitful because of children of different ages.
• Self-Handicapping, Self-Esteem, and Self-Compassion The higher the level of stress tolerance, the more successfully a person copes with anxiety, and, on the contrary, the lower the level, the more challenging it is for one to handle an unusual situation. […]
• Promoting Self-Esteem in School-Age Children During the early school-age period, self-esteem concerns the way children accomplish set academic tasks and their performance in extracurricular activities.
• The Relationship Between Polygamy and Self-Esteem in Children in Saudi Arabia Family cohesion in polygamous families is crucial for exploring in the context of this study because it directly involves the psychological well-being of children as well as the subsequent development of their self-esteem and adaptation […]
• The Role of Self-Esteem in Education Speaking about practice, it is also possible to note the ambiguous nature of schools that promote self-esteeming by constantly saying to children that they can do anything, while teachers manipulate them by means of rewards […]
• Psychology. “Self-Esteem” Book by Dr. Matthew McKay Self-Esteem: A Proven Program of Cognitive Techniques for Assessing, Improving, and Maintaining Your Self-Esteem is the book which teach people to live in piece with our society and with oneself.
• The Increasing of Self-Esteem Importance This is part of a consciousness process in which one goes beyond what comes to be recognized as the illusion of separate selfhood.
• Fathers’ Work, Conflicts and Children’s Self-Esteem On the other hand, the active involvement of the mother in the child’s life as well as the nature of the father’s occupation were found to act as mitigating factors to the quality of the […]
• The Self Esteem: Scientific Approach In this respect the reliability of the research props up against the analysis of what is known at the time. The thing is that it is really the better predictor of high results compared to […]
• Concept of the Self and Self-Esteem Among the most common and widely used ways of self, the approach is self-esteem and self-concept.self-esteem refers to how an individual views himself from an emotional or affective aspect.
• Concept Analysis of Loneliness, Depression, Self-esteem The purpose of this direct study was to look at levels of depression, self-esteem, loneliness, and communal support, and the relationships stuck between these variables, in the middle of teenage mothers participating in the New […]
• Evaluating the Self-Esteem of the Homeless The mission statement of the program indicates the central role played by the agency to the welfare of the society.”The Doe Fund’s mission is to develop and implement cost-effective, holistic programs that meet the needs […]
• Relationships Between Anxiety, Perceived Support and Self-Esteem In particular, it sought to determine whether there is a relationship between anxiety, perceived support from friends, and self-esteem whereby anxiety and perceived support from friends act as predictors of the level of self-esteem.
• Self-Esteem and Rejection: It Is Not Personal Taking things personally is problematic for many reasons, one of which is the bias connected to the perception of a situation.
• Striving for Self-Esteem in Business The learning points from these articles are that self-assessment is only possible in the latter stages of business development and not the beginning, all businesses must go through ISO 9000 certification series and excellence models […]
• Social Psychology Role: Self-Esteem and Human Development The relation between the concepts and the response is closely analyzed to determine the most important criteria people’s actions can be judged by. A person is stereotyped and the thinking leads to over-generalize towards others.
• Mean Self-Esteem Scores for Boys and Girls The aim of this study was to determine if there was any difference in mean self-esteem scores for boys and girls.
• Counseling Low Self-Esteem and Decision Making John was allowed to go out and meet with his friends, and the aunt was less concerned about the kind of company that he kept.
• Women with Low Self-Esteem – Psychology Despite the fact that the given study is focused on the effects of separation on the women formerly engaged into relationships, it will still be necessary to consider certain issues concerning childhood; however, in the […]
• The Link Between Self-Esteem and Self-Efficacy In explaining the dynamics of how self-esteem affects self-efficacy, it is important to note that low sense of self-worth will incapacitate the ability of an employee to succeed in specific situations due to lack of […]
• Effects on Psychological Growth and Self-Esteem In 2007, approximately 794,000 cases of child maltreatment and abuse were reported in the US, translating to a maltreatment rate of 11 in every 1000 children.
• Psychology Issues: Self-Esteem and Violence In my opinion, the argument by Boden, Fergusson, and Horwood is sociological since its main aim is to test the link between our self-esteem and later hostility and violent behavior.
• High Self-Esteem Development Towards Self-Image People’s health and appearance have to be satisfactory and correspond to people’s idea of ‘a norm’ as it has been proven that the better a person’s health is the higher self-esteem he/she has.
• Concept of Self, Self-Esteem, and Behavior The concept of the self According to McLeod self concept is the perception that an individual holds about him or herself.
• Women, Alcohol, Self-Concept, and Self-Esteem: A Qualitative Study of the Experience of Person-Centred Counselling This essay discusses the research setting and sample, the selection of the setting and the data collection procedure to be used during the project.
• Raising a Child With High Self Esteem A good illustration of this is can be observed early on in babyhood growth of children who act in response and connect themselves to the adults or caregivers who show utmost love and care and […]
• Social Networks and Self-Esteem Due to this fact, the main aim of this paper it to determine the impacts that social networks have on people and the role they play in the determination of the self-esteem of an individual.
• Self Esteem and Culture in a Learning Environment Reflectively, the conceptual idea of this treatise is an in-depth analysis of the aspects of social environment and objective and their influence on quality of learning, self-evaluation, goal setting, decision making, and inclusive education as […]
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writing about self esteem?

i wrote a supplement essay (to use at 3 schools) about low self esteem as a girl in STEM, and my experiences with teachers who invalidate that feeling. i think it’s very well written compared to the other essays i’ve written, and very true to my experiences. my main common app essay is about my love for a certain subject; it’s funny and lighthearted (so i think it sort of balances out this heavier topic, at least a little). and im only using this riskier supplement at schools that are big reaches anyway.

is this a bad idea? i’m not sure if it’s too negative. my parents both liked the essay a lot, but they are english majors, not college admissions experts. i’m hoping for some perspective – thanks!

Unless you’ve demonstrated how u have overwhelmingly prevailed in STEM in spite of the low self-esteem (e.g., won a kick-butt science talent award), then why draw attention to any negatives? Do u just want to leave adcomms w the impression that u are lacking in confidence?

The college essay is not therapy. It’s not an occasion for rant or catharsis.

@GMTplus7 you are articulating my worry exactly. on one hand, i’m in a stem magnet, did a research internship, have some stem ec’s and very high grades, and i plan on studying stem. the focus of my essay is trying to understand the “imposter syndrome” when it comes to stem classes. but i still think that you are probably right, and that the essay is too negative – is there any way i could pm you my essay?

thanks for your help!

If you’re interested in science, then just be interested in science. Why even dredge up feelings of inadequacy? What’s the point???

Your attitude determines your altitude. Don’t let the AAdComms think for a second that you might crash & burn. Give them a reason to say YES. Don’t give them a reason to say “gee, I don’t know about this person…”

Think about the point of this essay.

It’s not Confession. It’s not an audition for Reality TV. It’s not therapy.

It’s to “Give them a reason to say yes.”

Pointing out that you’ve had self esteem issues probably won’t do that. Instead, it will cause concern that perhaps being away from home on your own will turn those issues into something more serious.

Whether or not the school is a “big reach” doesn’t matter. If you’re going to bother to apply, then send them the best application you can. I’m not convinced that this essay is part of that “best application.”

@bjkmom :Wow!

My apologies. I wrote in a hurry, trying to get my point across in the 3 or 4 minutes I had before getting the kids up for school. I realize now that what sounded fine in my head came across as unkind.

Let me rephrase my answer.

Each of us has a story to tell. That story has some ups and downs, some triumphs and some struggles. And each part of that story is appropriate for particular times and places.

In my opinion, writing about self esteem issues is a part of the story better reserved for another time and place.

The point behind this essay is to give the Adcom, in the 2 minutes or so he/she spends on your essay, the desire to meet you, to have you attend his/her school. You want to give them a reason to say yes. You don’t want to leave them with any lingering worries about problems you might have attending their school, or any school.

Bringing up those self esteem issues, in my opinion, does not “give them a reason to say yes.” So I see no reasons to include them in a college application.

But thank you, @Waiting @exhale , for making me reread my response. Again, the words sounded fine in my head at 5:37 A.M. In print, at 9:58 PM, they sounded very harsh. That was absolutely not my intention and, again, I apologize.

@bjkmom : I think you have misunderstood my exclamation. I thought it the most brilliantly concise piece of redirection that I have come across. (Since I’ve been on this website, I think there has been one other that took my breath away.) I did not think it brash or insensitive, nor snappy and ‘pull yourself up by your bootstrap,’ hard.

Too often we do get mired in what has been our struggle, and forget to show our shine.

Perhaps I should have said, “Wow! I’m going to remember to use this as young people approach me for words of advice. Even the modest, humble child who does not necessarily feel there are esteem issues to deal with, but who simply does not know how to blow one’s own horn, could use this statement as fuel in their tank.”

Further, how wonderful of you to care about the OP’s feelings enough, even with the veil of anonymity here on the internet, to come back and make redress.

@Waiting2exhale You sound like John the Savage. Are you trying to sound like Shakespeare? It’s very annoying.

Thanks to everyone for your help, and I really appreciate the outside perspectives. @bjkmom I didn’t think you were too harsh the first time, but I appreciate your kind follow-up comment.

@ccer4lyfe : Not only do I not know who John the Savage is, I take umbrage at your annoyance, Sir.

OP, I did not really understand the reference to “teachers who invalidate that feeling.” If you mean that you had teachers who got you over the feeling of low self-esteem in STEM, then SAY SO in a very positive way, Do not use a double negative to try to convey a positive. I almost think you meant that the teachers reinforced that feeling, but it’s really hard to tell from your post. If you would like a non-STEM reader (psych major/law school), PM me or send to this user name as a gmail address. I think I’ve helped others.

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Building Self-Esteem

13 February, 2020

8 minutes read

Author:  Donna Moores

Evidently, self-esteem is seen as a personal trait which tends to be enduring and stable, the one that encompasses within itself a host of beliefs about oneself. In reality, self-esteem means different things to diverse people. To some it means feeling good and loving yourself unconditionally. To others it is a feeling which is at the center of one's being of self-confidence, self-worth and respect. Therefore, it is vital for one to have high self-esteem since it paves the way for love and success in life (Bruceeisner, 2012).

Certainly, people often overlook the importance for individuals to have a healthy or positive self-esteem. On the very basic level, a positive self-esteem is delineated by various qualities. They include being able to accept responsibilities for one’s own actions, respect and tolerance for others, being able to handle criticisms, and of course, being able to take charge of one’s own life. Also, it’s about taking a great pride in your own achievements, possessing a great level of integrity and loving others while being loved. The majority of people in the community, especially those in the business and entrepreneurial sectors, believe that possessing a healthy or positive self-esteem will aid in being a successful professional in your field of work.

In the medical field of the economy, for example, doctors, nurses and other people working in the medical community have a belief that possessing a positive self-esteem is very crucial in the maintenance of a healthy life by individuals. In contrast to the thought that a positive or healthy self-esteem is vital in an individual’s professional life, it also plays a very important role in alleviating psychological disorders.

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What Are the Effects of Underappreciation?

When an individual possesses a low self-esteem, he or she tries to impress others or prove others a focal point in their lives. However, this is deemed to be a total waste of one’s time and energy and can even result in psychological issues. In particular, a person without a healthy or positive self-esteem tends to have contempt towards people and usually acts arrogantly. They usually blame themselves for their actions and failures, lack confidence in themselves and mostly doubt their acceptability and self-worth (Reasoner, 2012).

These elements do not only show the negative part of an individual’s life. They are also quite unhealthy to the emotional well-being of an individual. This is because an unhealthy or negative self-esteem is damaging to an individual’s emotional health. This backs the fact that a healthy or positive self-esteem indeed can aid in alleviating psychological disorders.

The Relation of Self-Esteem to Science

One of the peculiar psychological disorders that are mostly stroked by self-esteem is known as Borderline Personality Disorder. Individuals are not willing to validate their feelings for other people or trust others when they usually do not feel well about themselves. People who suffer from borderline personality disorder coupled with a poor self-esteem can exasperate the anger which is mostly present in this type of psychological issue. More often than not, a burst of angry tirade is as a result of a lot of unresolved matters which have been posponed for later. Hence, the only way a person with borderline personality can assert his or her feelings or thoughts is through anger. In addition, having a healthy or positive self-esteem can help alleviate this issue and curtail the feeling of anger associated with borderline personality.

In particular, an individual who experiences borderline personality psychological disorder most often associates some form of suspicion to people who want to be their friends. A person with this kind of issue has a feeling that their friendship with others will end as the time goes on. This is because they think they have nothing to offer in the new friendship, which is actually wrong. Therefore, possessing a healthy or positive self-esteem can aid an individual who has a psychological disorder like the borderline personality to comprehend the fact that they deserve to be happy and achieve success in everything they do. Specifically, this is linked to their professional life or personal life, and also to the sense of self-worth.

A typical example of it is when an individual gets a job that he or she has always wanted, let say a dream job. A person possessing a psychological disorder like borderline personality will position himself or herself for failure. Meanwhile, the staff may use the opportunity given a mistake and can even flare up at the employer for placing them in a position to fail. On the other hand, an individual with a healthy or positive self-esteem will realize that he or she indeed deserves the job. In addition, they’ll recognize and appreciate the opportunity given to him or her to achieve success. A person with a healthy self-esteem will thank and respect the one who gave him that opportunity.

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The Importance of Rational Self-Esteem

Self-esteem is significant to an individual’s well-being and mental health since it has the capability of leading him or her to a more deserving social behavior and better health. Obviously, low self-esteem is often characterized with a range of broad social problems and mental disorders like eating disorders, depression, suicidal tendencies and anxiety. Notably, some schools of thought in the field of medicine, most often in the field of psychological disorders, believe that healthy physical and mental health are a result of comprehending the development of self-esteem and its outcomes.

Self-esteem can, therefore, be explained as the sum of a person’s knowledge and beliefs about his or her personal qualities and attributes. It is a cognitive composition that combines the concrete and abstract views about oneself and also controls the possession of information of self-relevance. Moreover, an individual who possesses suicidal tendencies has the urge or feeling of hurting himself or herself as he/she is feeling unhappy and unworthy.

Consequently, having a healthy or positive self-esteem alleviates any negative emotions and feelings an individual with any form of suicidal tendencies might go through. In addition, research has proven that self-esteem is a crucial psychological factor which contributes to quality and healthy life. It has also been proven with research that subjective well-being extremely corresponds with high self-esteem (Zimmerman, 2000). Therefore, it plays a major role in the mental well-being and happiness of individuals.

Overall, self-esteem and mental well-being of an individual are directly related. Any alteration in a person’s self-esteem, be it high self-esteem or low self-esteem, will affect the psychology of that person. Likewise, a healthy or positive self-esteem definitely helps in alleviating psychological disorders and puts an individual on the pedestal of high belief and confidence in him or herself.

• Bruceeisner, D. (2012). Meaning of Self-Esteem. Squidoo Journal Website Retrieved from: http://www.squidoo.com/self_esteem
• Reasoner, R. (2012). The True Meaning of Self-Esteem. National Association for Self-Esteem Website Retrieved from:http://www.self-esteem-nase.org/what.php
• Zimmerman, S.L. (2000). Self-Esteem, Personal Control and Optimism. Midwestern University. Dissertation Abstract. Retrieved from:http://her.oxfordjournals.org/content/19/4/357.full#ref-123

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