Used in psychology to reflect a person's
overall evaluation or appraisal of his or her own worth. Self-esteem
encompasses beliefs (for
example, "I am competent", "I am worthy") and is a term emotions such as
triumph, despair, pride and shame[citation needed].
Self-esteem can apply specifically to a particular dimension (for example,
"I believe I am a good writer and I feel happy about that") or have
global extent (for example, "I believe I am a bad person, and feel bad of y
self in general.
The original definition
presents self-esteem as a ratio found by dividing one’s successes in areas of
life of importance to a given individual by the failures in them or one’s
“success / pretensions”.[6] Problems
with this approach come from making self-esteem contingent upon success: this
implies inherent instability because failure can occur at any moment.[7] In the
mid 1960s Morris Rosenberg and
social-learning theorists defined self-esteem in terms of a stable sense of
personal worth or worthiness.[8] Nathaniel Branden in 1969
defined self-esteem as "...the experience of being competent to cope with
the basic challenges of life and being worthy of happiness". According to
Branden, self-esteem is the sum of self-confidence (a
feeling of personal capacity) and self-respect (a feeling of personal
worth). It exists as a consequence of the implicit judgement that every person
does about, on one side, his/her ability to face life's challenges, that is, to
understand and solve problems, and, on the other side, his right to achieve happiness, or, in
other words, to respect and defend his own interests and needs.[9] This
two-factor approach, as some have also called it, provides a balanced
definition that seems to be capable of dealing with limits of defining
self-esteem primarily in terms of competence or worth alone.
People with a healthy level
of self-esteem
- firmly believe in certain values and
principles, and are ready to defend them even when finding opposition, feeling
secure enough to modify them in light of experience
- Are able to act according to what they think
to be the best choice, trusting their own judgment, and not feeling guilty
when others don't like their choice.
- Do not lose time worrying excessively about
what happened in the past, nor about what could happen in the future. They
learn from the past and plan for the future, but live in the present intensely.
Fully trusts in their capacity to solve problems, not hesitating after
failures and difficulties. They ask others for help when they need
- Consider themselves equal in dignity to
others, rather than inferior or superior, while accepting differences in
certain talents, personal prestige or financial standing.
- Take for granted that he is an interesting and
valuable person for others, at least for those with whom he has a
friendship.
- Resist manipulation, collaborate with others
only if it seems appropriate and convenient.
- Admits and accepts different internal feelings
and drives, either positive or negative, revealing those drives to others
only when they choose.
- are able to enjoy a great variety of activities. are sensitive to feelings and needs of others; respect generally accepted social rules, and claim no right or desire to prosper at others' expense.
- Heavy self-criticism, tending to create a habitual state of
dissatisfaction with oneself.
- Hypersensitivity to criticism, which makes oneself feel easily attacked and
experience obstinate resentment against critics. Chronic indecision,
not so much because of lack of information, but from an exaggerated fear
of making a mistake.
- Excessive will to please: being unwilling to say "no", out
of fear of displeasing the petitioner.
- Perfectionism, or
self-demand to do everything attempted "perfectly" without a
single mistake, which can lead to frustration when perfection is not
achieved.
- Neurotic guilt:
one is condemned for behaviors which not always are objectively bad,
exaggerates the
- with everything.
- Defensive complains
about them indefinitely, never reaching full forgiveness.
- Floating hostility, irritability out in the open, always on the
verge of exploding even for unimportant things; an attitude characteristic
of somebody who feels bad about everything, who is disappointed or
unsatisfied enjoy life.[
- tendencies, a general negative (one is pessimistic about everything: life, future, and, above all, oneself) and a general lack of will to magnitude of mistakes or offenses and
Negative
indicators
A person with low
self-esteem may show some of the following symptoms:
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