Importance of Self Esteem in Psychology

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Importance of Self-Esteem in Psychology

Maria Chang

Florida National University

Capstone-DBX-DL01

Professor: Thomas Buzzerd

November 24th, 2024

Importance of Self-Esteem in Psychology

Abstract

Self-esteem as a concept is multidimensional that is, it occupies a central position in psychological functioning as it wires the ways people view themselves and relate to others. The empirical sense of learning refers to knowledge that impacts thinking, feeling, and acting or how individuals address issues, interactions, and identity. Self-esteem could either be low or high, and while low self-esteem is always seen as bad or dangerous, high self-esteem has also been positively linked to higher standards of health, well-being, and increased positives self-regulation skills and coping. On the other hand, low self-esteem can lead to different mental health problems including anxiety depression, and stress. This work focuses on the effect of treatment procedures in regard to self-esteem, stressing on the possibilities to improve affective psychological functioning. CBT for instance could help building up of self-esteem by challenging negative self-appraised beliefs as wells as non-adaptive approaches to dealing with life challenges. Lastly, the research emphasizes self-esteem as the effective means for improving social skills, favorable emotional status, and quality of life thus staying in the focus of psychologists’ interest and applied activities.

Introduction

Self-esteem is one of the foundational concepts in psychology to define the evaluation by the person about his/her worth and ability (Leary, 2022). Self-esteem has also been analyzed in the past as an outcome for mental health and al all-important factor in individual and interpersonal growth (Mruk, 2018). Its value is in its function as the preventive measure against stress and being the factor that helps build optimal psychological protection profile among the people especially during certain stages of their development such as adolescence (Ali & Gujar, 2019). This research specifically concerns self-esteem as a key constituent of psychological well-being and seeks to extend theoretical understanding of its role in dyadic interactions, psychological functioning, social systems, and in general overall life adaptation.

Methods

Participants

The sample included ten to sixteen year-olds, and participants’ characteristics were heterogeneous in terms of gender, SES and cultural backgrounds (Krauss et al., 2020). Adolescence was selected as a developmental area of focus because it has multiple significant developmental tasks central to identity and self-concept formation.

Settings

Studied was made in clinical, academic as well as social settings. Such contexts enabled understanding of general self-estim across various aspects of life within the context of family and peers (Orth & Robins, 2022).

Dependent Variables

Self-esteem assessments included about general self-esteem and self-esteem by domain: Rosenberg Self Esteem Scale among others (Hohman & Brown, 2020).

Independent Variables

Interventions covered were CBT, use of self-reflection, and affirmations. These were considered to decipher their role on enhancing self- acceptance and other psychological consequences (Mruk, 2018).

Design

Quantitative and Qualitative research designs were adopted in a study, using qualitative observation in parallel with interventional studies. Self-esteem data were collected at the beginning of the study to monitor shifts after applying interventions to determine self-esteem changes (Orth & Robins, 2022).

Results

Findings

Literature evidence showed that high self-esteem mediators resulted in better mental health irrespective of one’s age, including low symptoms of emotional distress, better resilience, and positive social interaction (Ali & Gujar 2019.; Orth & Robins 2022). In addition, more particularly focused on the family factors that were perceived as significant to adolescent self-esteem, it was revealed that reporters’ perceived, more communicating and warm family environments helped develop self-esteem in adolescents (Krauss et al., 2020).

Analysis

Cultural and digital factors that contributed to self-esteem were also established in the course of the study. For example, collectivists get self-esteem from the group or the overall society, while on their part, individualists get self-esteem from the results they achieve (Hohman & Brown, 2020). The third group of factors involves use of social media where patterns of use relate to low self-esteem as well as narcissistic properties (Alyedreessy & Rashid 2020).

Discussion

Goal Achievement

The study also brought out how self-esteem affects mental health, behaviors, and relationships in not a limited and simplified way. Self-esteem, was positively correlated to the psychological well-being, increased psychological hardiness as well as better relations with other people (Leary, 2022).

Limitations

Another study limitation was the cultural variation with regard to self-esteem measures. For instance, the indices of self-esteem determined within the framework of WE might not work adequately in NE populations (Hohman & Brown, 2020). Some of the observed limitations methodological included the use of self-reporting instruments.

Implications

The presented results imply that self-esteem enhancing strategies can yield significant therapeutic and school-related improvements. Educating for positive family climate, and preventing digital activities related to low self-esteem might have positive effects on mental health (Krauss et al., 2020; Alyedreessy & Rashid, 2020).

Future Research

More research is needed on self-esteem in multicultural and at different developmental ages populations. Use of longitudinal designs may help to get more understanding of how self-esteem will continue to affect mental health, as well as the relevant functioning in society in the long run (Orth & Robins, 2022).

References

Ali, A., & Gujar, N. (2019). Effects of psychological capital and self-esteem on emotional and behavioral problems among adolescents. Journal of Mental Health and Human Behaviour, 24(2), 85. https://doi.org/10.4103/jmhhb.jmhhb_59_19

Alyedreessy, L., & Rashid, T. (2020). Examining the relationships between self-esteem, narcissistic traits and usage of social media services of Instagram and Twitter. International Journal of Psychosocial Rehabilitation, 24(Special Issue 1), 36–42. https://doi.org/10.37200/ijpr/v24sp1/pr201131

Hohman, Z. P., & Brown, J. K. (2020). Self-esteem and self-enhancement. Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190236557.013.246

Krauss, S., Orth, U., & Robins, R. W. (2020). Family environment and self-esteem development: A longitudinal study from age 10 to 16. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 119(2), 457–478. https://doi.org/10.1037/pspp0000263

Leary, M. R. (2022). The social and psychological importance of self-esteem. In The social psychology of emotional and behavioral problems: Interfaces of social and clinical psychology (pp. 197–221). https://doi.org/10.1037/10320-007

Mruk, C. J. (2018). The importance of self-esteem. In Feeling Good by Doing Good (pp. 27–46). https://doi.org/10.1093/med-psych/9780190637163.003.0002

Orth, U., & Robins, R. W. (2022). The benefits of self-esteem: Reply to Krueger et al. (2022) and Brummelman (2022). American Psychologist, 77(1), 23–25. https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0000969