The role of self-esteem in personality development article on psychology on the topic

Formation of personal self-esteem

The structure of self-esteem formation can be considered as a component of personal development, which includes two components: cognitive and emotional, working in inextricable unity. The cognitive component reflects the individual’s knowledge about himself to varying degrees of generalization and expression, the emotional component is the attitude towards himself, the so-called accumulating “attitude towards himself.” After all, an individual acquires any knowledge about his own personality only in a social context. Then this knowledge inevitably becomes overgrown with emotions.

The formation of a person’s self-esteem occurs under the influence of several interrelated factors, which include communication interaction with the surrounding society, the active activity of the individual, self-observation and self-control. A person, carrying out any form of activity, invariably finds himself in situations in which he is forced to develop his attitude to actions and deeds, behavior in general, evaluate his own skills and abilities to produce something, and demonstrate various aspects of his personality.

There is no specific type of activity that will have a greater or lesser impact on the formation of positive self-esteem. However, we can still conclude that a significant impact on the development of self-esteem (adequate or inadequate) is exerted by activities that become leading at a specific stage of an individual’s life. For example, the conditions for developing self-esteem in children or adolescents lie in educational activities and everything that is interconnected with it. For older individuals, work activity often becomes the main condition for developing adequate self-esteem. However, at the same time, for all individuals the role of a single condition is purely individual. Since professional activities or studies do not always bring satisfaction, they can often even act as a source of stress, negative experiences and uncertainty. Therefore, in order to assert oneself and increase self-confidence, in addition to educational or work activities, there are many other activities, such as hobbies.

An important characteristic of a mature personality is the emergence of differentiated self-esteem. This means that an individual is able to reasonably assess his own potential depending on the field of activity, he can sensibly accept both his strong and weak traits, and is not upset when something is discovered beyond the boundaries of his understanding

The formation of self-esteem plays a vital role in the development of personality. It determines the development of the level of aspirations of the individual, the level of confidence and uncertainty, which affects the success of the individual in life and the self-sufficiency of the individual as a whole. Therefore, the role of self-esteem in the formation of personality is quite difficult to overestimate.

Self-esteem structure

In the structure of self-esteem, psychologists distinguish two components: cognitive and emotional:

• The cognitive component (from the Latin cognition - knowledge) includes a person’s knowledge about himself, his abilities, skills, capabilities, weaknesses and strengths. This component is formed in the process of self-knowledge and largely affects the level of self-esteem. Inadequate self-esteem, as a rule, is associated either with ideas about one’s own “I” that do not correspond to reality, or with their unformedness.
• The emotional component is the individual’s attitude towards himself and various manifestations of his own personality. The emotions that we experience towards ourselves are very contradictory: approval and disapproval, self-respect or lack thereof, love or rejection of ourselves.

The differences between these two components are purely theoretical; in real life they coexist in inextricable unity - our knowledge about our qualities is always emotionally charged.

Types of personality self-esteem in psychology

In psychology, there are three types of self-esteem. The classification is based on the degree to which a person’s self-importance corresponds to objective data. The more realistically a person evaluates himself, the more successful his relationships with people are and the higher his success in all areas of life.

Adequate self-esteem

With this type of self-perception, a person’s assessment coincides with reality. A person soberly realizes his strengths and weaknesses, knows his capabilities and needs, and determines his inner potential.

Such a person is capable of self-criticism and working on mistakes. Weaknesses are eliminated and strong characteristics are cultivated.

Inadequate self-esteem

Distorted self-esteem suggests that a person’s opinion of himself is far from objective. Radical self-perception can be overestimated or underestimated when a person either does not accept himself at all or believes that he has qualities that are not actually inherent in him. Inadequate self-esteem interferes with communication and professional achievement.

Mixed self-esteem

In this case, a person treats himself differently at different periods of his life, sometimes he shows more confidence, sometimes he becomes weak and complex.

We can also talk about a mixed view if we really look at ourselves in terms of some qualities, but inadequately in terms of other characteristics. For example, we confidently achieve success in our profession, but in our personal lives we consider ourselves unworthy of a suitable partner.

Levels and types of self-esteem

There are 3 levels of self-esteem:

1. High or inflated self-esteem - a person behaves self-confidently, sometimes even too much, firmly believes that there are two opinions: one is his, the other is incorrect. Personal merits are undeservedly raised to the hundredth degree. While one’s own shortcomings are not realized at all.
2. Normal – presupposes the ability to realistically analyze one’s actions and actions, constructively criticize oneself for mistakes and, if something happens, support, and not incinerate. Such a person does not run away from responsibility, has an adequate level of aspirations, knows about his strengths and accepts his shortcomings.
3. Low self-esteem – characterized by high anxiety, vulnerability, inability to praise oneself, and devaluation of one’s merits. Such a person constantly compares himself with others to his disadvantage and suffers from this, seeing only his own shortcomings.

A mentally healthy person without neurotic disorders is characterized by normal self-esteem. Low and high levels can be equally dangerous for an individual.

In the first case, the quality of life suffers, because insecure people do not take risks, do not try, miss millions of opportunities, are subjected to mistreatment, which they themselves allow, and do not know how to stand up for themselves.

In the second case, the conviction that one is right often leads to a dead end. Failure to admit a small loss often results in a big failure. A small mistake gives rise to a number of others: they accumulate like a snowball and lead to big losses in the future (people, work, relationships).

Let us immediately note the types of self-esteem :

1. Adequate is a normal perception of oneself, normal self-esteem.
2. Distorted - this includes high and low self-esteem, since neither one nor the other corresponds to reality. A person either overestimates his importance and value, or greatly underestimates it.
3. Mixed - includes the first two types. This means that at different moments in life a person can evaluate himself differently.

Formation of adequate self-esteem

Self-esteem is one of the most essential conditions determining the transformation of a small individual into a personality. It develops in subjects the need to comply not only with the surrounding individuals and environment, but also with the level of their own personal assessments. Correctly developed adequate self-esteem is not just knowledge of one’s own personality and not the sum of some traits, but a certain attitude towards one’s own personality. It determines the comprehension of personality as a separate stable object.

M. Fennel presented self-esteem as the central link of voluntary self-regulation. In her opinion, it determines the direction and level of activity of the individual, his position in relation to the environment, society, and his own person, and is a mechanism of the most complex psychological nature. It is involved in a mass of interconnections and relationships with the formations of the individual’s psyche and represents an important determinant of all forms of its activity and communication interaction. The initial abilities to evaluate one’s own personality are laid in early childhood, and their formation and improvement occurs throughout the entire life course of the individual.

R. Nemov believed that self-esteem allows an individual to maintain stability regardless of the variability of situations, while providing the individual with the opportunity to remain himself.

The formation of adequate self-esteem of a person is extremely important for interpersonal interactions, establishing relationships with society, for successful communication, and success in a certain type of activity.

And special attention should be paid to the formation of a child’s self-esteem, since all the formations of his personality are just beginning to form, then self-esteem is much easier to influence and change. After all, a baby does not come into the world with a pre-determined attitude towards his own personality and potential.

Just like all other personality traits, his self-esteem develops in the course of upbringing, mastery of activities and interpersonal interaction.

As children grow older, they learn to understand themselves and their own “I”, and evaluate their own qualities. It is this evaluative component of the “I” that is called self-esteem. It represents the core of self-awareness, and the degree of the individual’s claims interconnected with it. The degree of aspiration is understood as the level of difficulty of the goals set by the child for himself.

Self-esteem and the level of a child’s aspirations have a huge impact on emotional well-being, his development, and success in various areas of activity. Nowadays, the impact of a child’s self-esteem on his actions, behavior, actions and interpersonal contacts is becoming increasingly undeniable.

The formation of positive self-esteem in children is primarily influenced by family upbringing and the pedagogical influence of teachers.

It is probably very difficult to overestimate the impact of family upbringing on children's self-esteem. The level of self-esteem depends on the parents - whether it will be adequate or not. For adequate children's self-esteem, constant support from significant adults, the manifestation of sincere care for children and frequent positive assessment of their actions, behavior and deeds are very important. Children should never be humiliated. If a child makes a mistake or does something wrong, you need to explain to him what is wrong and show him how to do it. Try to evaluate his behavior, not his personality characteristics. Don't be afraid to praise your child. You just need to praise correctly - not for the qualities given to him by nature, but for his achievements, victories, no matter how small.

Teachers play an equally important role in developing children’s self-esteem. After all, school-age children spend a significant part of their time within the walls of schools. And educational activity is the main one at this stage of development. Therefore, it is believed that the most important factor determining the adequate formation of a child’s self-esteem is the assessment of teachers. Giving an assessment of the children’s knowledge and skills, the teacher simultaneously assesses their personalities, their potential, abilities and place among others. This is how children perceive teachers’ assessments.

Ways to correct self-esteem

It is imperative to increase self-esteem. It's never too late to learn to love yourself and accept yourself with all your shortcomings. This is a characteristic that can be easily corrected with diligent, targeted practice.

1. It is advisable to engage in self-development, gain new knowledge, skills and impressions

   . The more the intellect is pumped up and the horizons are broader, the more self-confident a person is. In addition, he becomes an interesting conversationalist and people notice this, are drawn to him, and begin to compliment him.

2. By the way, about compliments

   . Learn to receive them with the air of an English queen. There is no need to justify yourself with the phrase “You look so good!”, It’s better to answer: “It is what it is!”

3. You should never overuse excuses

   . A person with good self-esteem is confident in himself, so he is responsible for all his actions and has no need to apologize.

4. Learn to create a good mood for yourself, smile and praise yourself for any reason.

   . Got up from the couch to wash the floor? “What a great fellow I am!” But if you don’t get up, then you don’t need to scold yourself. Say: “Let my gorgeous legs rest a little.”

   Read also:  How to understand that a man is lying and deceiving a woman?
5. Forgive yourself for mistakes, everyone makes them

   . You need to get rid of the feeling of guilt; it is aggression directed against yourself.

As you work to improve your self-image, remove yourself from toxic people who criticize and devalue and let them pour their venom elsewhere. When you love yourself, their opinion will become indifferent to you, or you will be able to respond adequately.

How to increase self-esteem: advice from psychologists

When a child is small, he is helpless: his survival is entirely dependent on adults, whom he gives the status of gods. The baby believes everything he is told and agrees to everything, as long as mom and dad don’t leave and turn away.

However, childhood time has passed. Now you are an adult who has the right to decide who you are and what you are worth, to change old, ineffective beliefs.

Below are some tips on how to increase your self-esteem and confidence:

1. an individual with low self-esteem is, as a rule, a very framed person. He constantly controls his words and actions, afraid of doing something wrong, incorrectly, breaking certain rules and causing condemnation from others. So here it is. It would be nice to understand that the concept of a norm does not exist .
   The norm was invented by society, but what do you want? We are not talking about extremes (they are provided for in the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation), but about what you want to eat for breakfast, what books to read, how to dress and with whom to sleep, how to relax, with whom to be friends and who to hate. Life is yours, you choose. But in order to choose, you need to hear yourself, your needs;
2. self-esteem depends on the depth and breadth of your personal experience, as well as from his recognition by himself (not by others!). Therefore, it is important to appreciate your past achievements and perform new deeds. Taken together, all this adds “weight” in one’s own eyes.
   For example. Housewives often have a problem with self-esteem: at home all day, routine, screaming children. A feeling of uselessness and worthlessness is created. How can such a woman love herself and increase her self-esteem?

   In fact, upon closer examination, you can see that she does a lot of useful work: washing, cooking, caring for children and raising them. And there is also a husband who also requires attention and clean socks. What would happen if this mother and wife disappeared from the life of her family in one second? Its value to loved ones is obvious, isn’t it?

   It may also turn out that there are even too many tasks performed by the housewife, but all of them are aimed at satisfying the needs of others, and not their own. And if others take what she has done for granted, then the woman does not attach importance to her work. This is the first one. Secondly, she has long forgotten about her desires, which leads to despondency and a drop in self-esteem.

   What to do? See your contribution to the family, let go of some of your responsibilities, start taking care of yourself too;

3. you have the right to feel what you feel .
   This point needs to be memorized like “Our Father.” A person with low self-esteem is afraid of his experiences, especially “bad” ones (in parentheses, because bad ones do not exist). “Being angry is bad,” “being jealous is ugly,” “being offended is stupid,” “crying is humiliating,” etc. By suppressing emotions, a person dooms himself to mental suffering and terrible health. Any feelings are legal, normal and correct, because they were created by nature itself, and she never does something for nothing.
4. review your environment : limit communication with toxic people. Often next to insecure individuals there are those who gladly take advantage of their instability. With whom do you often feel guilty? Or ashamed? Who constantly asks you for favors, and you can’t refuse, but you would like to? Who openly criticizes you, devalues ​​your work, appearance, behavior?

How to increase self-esteem around critics? No way. The environment greatly influences a person, so you need to surround yourself with a positive and supportive society.

Level of self-esteem

The level of self-esteem depends on the degree to which a person loves himself and compares with other people.

Understated

A person with low self-esteem treats himself without much warmth; he is not satisfied with the way his life is shaping up.

In external manifestations such an individual is expressed:

• frequent self-criticism;
• regularly occurring feelings of guilt;
• desire to please other people;
• fear of doing something wrong.

At the same time, a person’s objective data is good, there is potential, but due to the fear of making a mistake, they are often not realized.

Low

The most undesirable level of self-assessment, which does not allow you to build successful relationships and achieve results.

A person with low self-esteem is identified by the following symptoms:

• apologies are appropriate and inappropriate;
• neurotic feeling of guilt;
• constant justifications for one’s words and actions;
• lack of initiative due to complete lack of self-confidence.

With low self-esteem, an “imposter complex” is always present. If a person has achieved success, done something well, he will say that this is an accident and he has no merit in it.

His speech is replete with phrases such as: “I’m not sure,” “I can’t, I won’t succeed.” By the way, perfectionism is a manifestation of low and low self-esteem. Everyone knows examples when girls, seemingly with an ideal appearance, which many can only dream of, torture themselves with diets, go under the knife of plastic surgeons and develop severe pathologies.

Normal

Having normal self-esteem is a great success for a person! People are fully aware of their pros and cons, take their virtues and sins for granted, and try to correct the latter. A person respects and loves himself.

In external manifestations, such self-perception is expressed as follows:

• ability to make decisions and take responsibility for them;
• calm expression of one's opinion;
• stress resistance;
• adequate perception of criticism from the outside;
• realistic expectations.

A person who evaluates himself normally lives easily, calmly, harmoniously, she has many friends, and has all the opportunities for a successful personal life. The likelihood of mental and psychosomatic illnesses is low. A person does not gnaw at himself with a feeling of guilt; he realizes mistakes, corrects them and moves on.

High, overpriced

The essence of high and inflated self-esteem is the same - a distorted idea of ​​oneself in the direction of praising advantages and ignoring shortcomings. An inflated self-perception is better for a person than an underestimated one, because it allows one to move forward. But such people have few close friends; they are often left alone.

Characteristics of a person with high self-esteem:

• narcissism, narcissism;
• intolerance of any criticism;
• unshakable confidence in one’s rightness;
• blaming the failures of others;
• lack of habit of asking for forgiveness, even if it is to blame;
• constant competition with colleagues and friends;
• lack of desire and skills to listen to the opponent.

Such a person is not interested in people, in principle. He often boasts, talks about his successes, and considers himself underestimated. The individual believes that the whole world should revolve around him; he does not ask, but orders.

Self-esteem and its role in personality formation

 The article discusses the causes of low self-esteem, as well as its impact on the formation of a teenager’s personality, presents the results of a study of the level of self-esteem conducted by the author, and also presents a set of exercises to increase the level of self-esteem.

Key words : self-esteem, personality, self-concept of personality.

Unfortunately, most people, due to their complexes, insecurities and low self-esteem, cannot find their place in life. Because of this attitude, people around them do not take them seriously and do not listen to their opinions. People with low self-esteem are no longer noticed.

At all times, people have strived to become successful and happy. This is especially true in modern society. But for career growth, family well-being, love and happiness, every person needs to have correct self-esteem.

Self-esteem is a person’s assessment of himself, his qualities, capabilities and his place among other people. Self-esteem is formed by comparing yourself with other people and by comparing the level of your aspirations with the results of your activities. Adequate self-esteem allows you to correctly formulate the goals of self-education. It is formed when the subject reveals an opinion about himself and his actions from people who come into contact with him in the family, in an educational institution, or on vacation; critically compares himself with others. If the result of these contacts is low self-esteem, the person begins to find insurmountable obstacles in every task. He often loses self-confidence. It becomes more difficult for him to work, more difficult to contact colleagues, and communicate with people. A high level of self-esteem leads to confident actions and correct decisions. Low levels of self-esteem lead to uncertainty, timidity and, as a result, uncertainty in the decision-making process. [2]

Some of the reasons for low self-esteem include the following:

– we live in a negative society, we constantly deal with negative people. At every step they show you that you are going the wrong way. Those who cannot withstand this tension choose the simpler path - to merge with the masses and abandon their goals. There are a lot of such people, society simply steals their dreams;

– a person’s abilities, appearance and intelligence were repeatedly ridiculed or questioned by parents and teachers, friends;

– attaching significant importance to any event in which you failed;

– comparing yourself with other people. You cannot compare yourself with other people, because all people are different. Each person is unique and has his own list of values;

– setting such high priorities for yourself that it is impossible to achieve them.

“I” concept is a person’s generalized idea of ​​himself, a system of attitudes regarding his own personality, or, as psychologists also say, “a theory of himself.” The formation, development and change of the “I” concept is determined by internal and external factors. The social environment (for example, school, family, numerous formal and informal groups in which the individual is included) has a huge influence on the formation of the “I” concept. The family has the greatest influence on the formation of the “I” concept in the process of socialization. With age, the experience of social interaction in informal groups and school becomes more significant in the development of the “I” concept. However, the family as an institution for the socialization of the individual continues to play a crucial role also in adolescence and youth [1]

In the most general form, in psychology there are two forms of “I” - concepts - real and ideal. The term "real" does not imply that the concept is realistic. The main thing here is the individual’s idea of ​​himself, of “what I am.” The ideal “I” - concept (ideal “I”) reflects the individual’s idea of ​​himself in accordance with desires (“what I would like to be”). Of course, the real and ideal “I” concepts not only may not coincide, but in most cases they are necessarily different. The discrepancy between the real and ideal “I” concept leads to various consequences: both negative and positive. On the one hand, the discrepancy between the real and ideal “I” can become a source of serious intrapersonal conflicts. On the other hand, the discrepancy between the real and ideal “I”-concept becomes a source of self-improvement of the individual and his desire for development. In fact, on the idea that the real and ideal “I” concepts in most cases, to varying degrees, naturally do not coincide, some methods for measuring the adequacy of self-esteem are built.

We decided to identify the level of self-esteem of my classmates, as well as establish the relationship between academic performance and the level of self-esteem. For the study, the method of S.V. Kovalev was chosen (test - questionnaire “Determination of the level of self-esteem”). This technique is intended to determine the level of self-esteem of an individual. It consists of 32 judgments to which you need to express your attitude using the proposed answer options. A total of 28 people were interviewed.

According to the results of the study, it was revealed that 46% of students in my class have low self-esteem, 36% have an average level of self-esteem, 18% of respondents have a high level of self-esteem. If we compare the level of self-esteem of students by gender, it was found that male students generally have a slightly higher level of self-esteem than their female peers. From this we can conclude that girls in my class experience greater self-doubt than boys of the same age. Self-esteem and school performance have been found to be related. Someone who succeeds academically tends to have high self-esteem.

In order to help students with low self-esteem increase their level, we compiled a set of special exercises and introduced them to those children who, based on the results of the survey, had a low level of self-esteem. Here are some of them:

– exercise “Mirror”. Look at yourself in the mirror more often. And when you watch, tell yourself positive words about what you like about yourself. For example: “you are a successful person”, “I love you”, “I believe in you”, “you always make the right decisions”, “you came into this world to be successful”, etc. Try to always notice in yourself namely positive traits. Love yourself for who you are. If for some reason you don’t like your appearance, start noticing only the beautiful in it. Fight your complexes. After all, it can’t be that you only have shortcomings! Compliment yourself more often. Give yourself gifts. Don't forget to praise yourself for every task. And over time, your image will definitely change [1];

– exercise “Diary of Victories”. Take a blank notebook and title it “Success Diary.” Write down in it everything that you managed to plan and do well during the day, all your victories. We forget and omit all the bad things. It's good if you make at least five entries a day in your diary. It can even be small things. It may be difficult for you at first. The rule is simple: when in doubt, always take a positive answer. It is better that you have an excess than a lack of self-confidence. Self-esteem will be formed in favor of its increase [1];

– exercise “Be in harmony with your thoughts.” Only after you understand that every person, including you, has his own inner world, will you begin to get along with him. Your inner world is, of course, different from the inner world of other people. And all because each person is an individual. You must clearly realize that you are a person who deserves the respect and attention of others.

The image of “I” in youth is not yet fully established. As we grow older, our characteristics (both positive and negative) become more stable. Helping a teenager improve their self-esteem is not easy, but it is possible. Those teenagers who are confident and value themselves highly have many incentives to look good in the eyes of other people and maintain a high reputation.

The practical significance of our work lies in the fact that its materials can be used as a guide when working with schoolchildren to increase their level of self-esteem.

Literature:

1. Barlas T.V. Popular psychology. From conflicts to finding the “I”. - M.: Publishing House, 1997. - 160 p.
2. Dubrovina I.V. School psychological service: Questions of theory and practice. - M.: Pedagogy, 2001. — 232 p.
3. Pomvanova K. N. Psychology of age-related crises: Textbook. A manual for higher education students. ped. textbook establishments. - M., 2000. - 184 p.
4. Psychology of a teenager. Textbook./ Ed. Corresponding member of RAO A. A. Rean - St. Petersburg: “Prime-EURO-ZNAK”, 2003. - 480 p.
5. Dictionary of a practicing psychologist / Comp. S. Yu. Golovin. — 2nd ed., revised. and additional - M.: ACT, 2001. - 976 s.

Formation of self-esteem of a junior schoolchild

The formation of self-esteem is closely interconnected with the active activity of children, with self-control and self-observation

Various activities, games, communication invariably draw their attention to themselves, put them in circumstances in which they must somehow relate to themselves and evaluate their own abilities, the ability to produce something, obey certain requirements and norms, and demonstrate individual personality traits

Self-esteem is an important and necessary component of the formation of self-awareness, i.e. a person’s comprehension of himself, individual physical strength, intellectual abilities, actions, deeds, motivations and goals of behavior, attitude towards the surrounding society, towards other individuals and himself.

The level of aspirations of children and self-esteem have a huge impact on success in certain types of activities.

Throughout the school year, the self-esteem of a junior schoolchild is formed. A separate situational self-esteem, not associated with a meaningful idea of ​​one’s own personality, appears much earlier than the personal “I-concept”. However, self-esteem becomes more constant and independent of situations only if it is interconnected with the “I-concept,” and meaningful differences between them are not revealed. In the first year of study, the image of one’s “I” increases several times.

For educational activities, a junior schoolchild really needs the ability to competently set goals, manage his behavior, and control himself. And for this you need knowledge about yourself, your potential. The process of developing self-control depends on the degree of formation of self-esteem. Schoolchildren are able to exercise self-control only with the help and guidance of adults or with the participation of peers. Primary school children's ideas about themselves are the basis of self-esteem. Children's self-awareness is realized in educational activities.

Children evaluate themselves during educational activities in two ways. The first is to compare the degree of personal aspirations with the objective consequences of personal activity. The second is in comparing one’s own personality with other individuals. And the higher the degree of claims, the harder it will be to satisfy them. Successes and failures in a certain type of activity significantly affect a person’s assessment of his own skills and abilities in this activity. So, for example, failures generally lower aspirations, while successes, on the contrary, increase them

Comparison is also important. After all, when evaluating himself, the child, voluntarily or involuntarily, tries to compare himself with other children, while he takes into account not only his own successes, but also the entire current social situation

What is self-esteem

Self-esteem

- this is a person’s level of understanding of himself, his positive and negative qualities, assessment of his personality, part of the self-concept.

Self-perception is inextricably linked to the degree of self-love. The more a person loves himself, the more adequate and higher his self-esteem.

Personal self-esteem is a very significant indicator and influences how a person’s life will turn out. Confidence in your merits, faith in your own strengths allows you to achieve success. On the contrary, humiliation, feelings of guilt and shame, and unjustified shyness prevent internal needs from manifesting and being realized. Basic self-esteem is formed in childhood, but this is a category that can change over time and is subject to correction.

Self-esteem is...

In psychology, this concept refers to how we perceive ourselves: what is our significance among people, as well as the importance of our activities for others.

“Self” and “evaluation” – evaluation of oneself: one’s appearance, body, feelings, personal qualities, character, behavior, preferences, actions, etc.

It doesn’t matter who exactly the person is (position, social status) and what he does (janitor or writer). The point is how he evaluates all this.

You can be a firefighter, save many people from death every day and still consider yourself insignificant. Or you can lead an asocial lifestyle, torture animals, engage in robbery, do dirty tricks to your loved ones and imagine yourself to be unique perfection.

It is important to note: the level of satisfaction with yourself and your existence directly depends on what and how you think about yourself. The more positive the perception of one’s own person, the easier and more joyful a person’s life is, the higher his achievements. And vice versa.

Self-Esteem Functions

The description and content of the functions of personality self-esteem, as a basic concept in psychology, are given in the table.

Levels of personality self-esteem

In addition to the periods of formation of personal self-esteem, there are levels in psychology. There are three of them:

Low – this level is considered a problem in psychology. It is formed under the influence of parents in childhood. Such people are characterized by indecision, dependence on the opinions of other people, a desire to avoid responsibility and shift it onto the shoulders of others, excessive demands, and envy.

This is “distorted” egoism - the individual is so immersed in his own failures that he does not notice what is happening around him and does not pay attention to the problems of his loved ones. Average or "normal". This level is found in those who are self-confident and are aware and adequately evaluate their negative and positive qualities.

People with a similar “mindset” are proactive and adapt well to any conditions established by society. Tall is characteristic of the successful and influential. If an individual has significant achievements in any area, then with a high probability a similar mechanism is triggered. However, there are many cases of unreasonably high assessment of one’s actions and achievements, when self-esteem is much “more extensive” than the quantity and quality of real actions.

In addition to levels, psychology distinguishes types of assessment - adequate and inadequate. The first correctly interprets the actions and characteristics of the individual. A person is able to really look at himself from the outside and set achievable goals. In the case of an inadequate appearance, the individual forms an incorrect idea of ​​himself - he either underestimates or overestimates the existing “level”. Correction of such deviations is impossible without the use of special tests and techniques. They will help determine what the real picture is and whether it is worth working with a psychologist.

Formation of personal self-esteem

This process (and the result, i.e. self-esteem and level of aspirations) is influenced by 2 factors - the attitude of relatives and friends and awareness of one’s own actions. The latter does not appear spontaneously - it is developed through interaction with other people. Relatives and educators should teach children to control their actions, to coordinate their own “wants” with the desires of others.

A feature of the process is that in each age period accompanying activities play a large role. For example, younger schoolchildren devote a significant part of their time to studying - the decisive factor here will be grades and entries in the diary.

This process includes 4 stages:

1. From birth to one and a half years - in psychology it is also called procedural-situational. The child does not see the connection between his own actions and characteristics. There is a tendency for bias in assessment, since this is based on external performance results. The latter are often determined not by the child’s actual capabilities, but by simple chance. The child acquires a sense of trust in the world and a positive attitude towards the world.
2. From one and a half to 3-4 years - the stage is called qualitative-situational. Self-awareness occurs, a sense of autonomy/dependence on the adult’s reactions to one’s own actions develops. A connection is established between quality and action.
3. 4 – 6 years – scientific name – qualitatively conservative. The stage is typical for the child to develop an understanding of what kind of person he will become. Depending on the situation in the family, the girl/boy develops a feeling of initiative or a feeling of guilt - the most powerful negative impact is exerted by strict control and the presentation of many demands.
4. 6 – 14 years or qualitative-dynamic period. Self-analysis becomes objective, but at the same time it is dynamic. A sense of hard work develops. The danger is the inability or inability to perform certain tasks - this contributes to a lower self-esteem.

All four periods are interconnected. Each of them arises on the foundation of the previous one. Earlier levels build up later ones - this is what explains the complex nature of their functioning.

The role of self-esteem in personality development article on psychology on the topic

The role of self-esteem in personality formation.

In life, we constantly express our attitude towards our surroundings: like or dislike, beautiful or ugly, cheap or expensive, etc. This is an assessment - determining the value, establishing the quality, degree, level, value of something or someone. The assessment is based on comparison with some sample or example. Have you ever assessed yourself? Your qualities, advantages and disadvantages? Did your assessment of yourself match that of others?

Let's look at a criterion that may be the most decisive in the development of a child's personality, a criterion that determines his self-confidence, his effectiveness in demonstrating independence, but is not always correct (objective) - this is the assessment of you by those around you. Your own selves are nothing more than transformed (converted) ideas, opinions of the people around you. And God forbid, if these opinions are negative, evil, you yourself can become evil. This is how such transformations occurred with Lermontov’s “hero of our time” Pechorin:

“Yes, this has been my lot since childhood! Everyone read on my face signs of bad qualities that were not there; but they were anticipated - and they were born. I was modest - I was accused of guile: I became secretive. I felt good and evil deeply; no one caressed me, everyone insulted me: I became vindictive; I was gloomy - other children were cheerful and talkative; I felt superior to them; they put me below. I became envious. I was ready to love the whole world - no one understood me: and I learned to hate.”

Evaluating yourself, your qualities, your strengths and weaknesses is called self-esteem. However, it is formed under the influence of various factors, including the assessment of others...

Self-esteem is the value that an individual attributes to himself or to his individual qualities. The main evaluation criterion is the individual’s system of personal meanings. The main functions performed by self-esteem are regulatory, on the basis of which problems of personal choice are solved, and protective, ensuring relative stability and independence of the individual.

It is known that self-esteem acts as the most important means of self-regulation. Formed in the process of activity, self-esteem is addressed to its different stages. Self-esteem, reflecting the stage of orientation in one’s capabilities in upcoming activities, is aimed at the future and is called prognostic. Self-esteem, which manifests itself in the course of activity and is aimed at its correction, is called corrective. Self-assessment at the final stage of activity, the content of which is the assessment of performance results, is called retrospective. It may be complete or incomplete, objective or inadequate.

In our theoretical material, we consider self-esteem as an integrative quality of the individual, formed in the process of activity and manifested in the individual’s critical attitude towards himself, his capabilities, his personal qualities and his place among other people. It should be assumed that the development of self-esteem is based on the process of establishing connections in a person’s mind between his behavior and personality traits.

1) In adults, all types of self-esteem can be found: adequate, stable, overestimated, stable, unstable towards inadequate overestimation or underestimation.

2) The child’s self-esteem is dynamic and at the same time tends to be stable; it later transforms into the internal position of the individual and becomes a motive for behavior.

3) A huge role in the formation of a student’s self-esteem is played by the teacher’s assessment of his educational activities, as well as the correlation of his own successes with the successes of his classmates.

The child's psyche is a kind of piece of paper. And if the quality of this “paper” is determined by heredity, then the text that will be written on it depends entirely on the child’s environment.

Parents, relatives, friends and acquaintances, educators and teachers leave their “autographs” on his psyche. Many years will pass before the child learns to distinguish which external influences need to be accepted and which need to be resisted. But by that time, the “sheet of paper” was already covered with all sorts of notes and the feeling of guilt that you are not as good as Vasya and Petya was firmly lodged in the subconscious. The result is low self-esteem, a feeling of hostility from the outside world and surrounding people, and a feeling of loneliness. There is another manifestation of uncertainty and inadequate self-esteem - inflated self-esteem. People with this kind of self-esteem are no slouches. On the contrary, their posture is fine. An arrogant look and a contemptuous grin (or a completely inscrutable face) complement their appearance. They managed to adapt to this world without ever solving their internal problems, but simply believing in the formula: to be loved, you need to be the best, or at least seem so. The life of the “adapted” is an eternal pursuit of the best, fashionable, prestigious and expensive: from clothes to positions, from cars to life partners. Truly, nothing is impossible for them. Except, perhaps, one thing. Happiness is unknown to them, psychological comfort is unattainable.

A child's and an adult's assessment of himself is part of his self-concept. It represents a person's internal, sometimes unconscious judgment about his own worth. Only the presence of a positive assessment creates in people the experience of emotional well-being, which is a necessary condition for the normal formation of personality.

The formation of correct self-esteem of an individual should be one of the goals of managing upbringing and self-education. With inadequate self-esteem, this cohabitation with society becomes not only difficult, but also unbearable for the child, and then for the adult. The fate of the child in this case will directly depend on a number of random circumstances: neighbors, friends, external environment, acquaintances, etc. As a result, social adaptation, the formation of self-esteem, behavioral skills and demands on oneself and others will be determined by random reasons.

Primary school age The quality of a student’s academic work, as well as all of his behavior, is assessed by the school, and this assessment affects the nature of his relationships with others - teachers, parents, friends. A child who is careless about his studies, skips classes, or does not want to study will naturally be treated differently by others than a schoolchild who diligently fulfills his duties. Along with new responsibilities, the student also receives new rights. It is also very important for a junior schoolchild that, receiving good grades for his academic work, he can expect not only praise from others, but also respect. Encouragement and reward play a special role.

The main prerequisite for the formation of personality at this age is the transition to a new position of the child in society, which obliges him to responsible, socially controlled, purposeful activities, fosters a sense of duty and responsibility to others, the ability to act consciously and in an organized manner, and develops strong-willed qualities in the child.

The child’s new position fills his life with deep content, which affects the general orientation of his personality, experiences, and ideas. At primary school age, the child’s system of relationships with the surrounding reality changes, and therefore his emotional sphere changes and deepens, giving the impression that younger schoolchildren are less emotional than preschoolers. This is explained by the fact that the older the child, the better he knows how to manage his emotions. In this sense, the answers of third grade students are indicative: I want to be calm, not to be nervous. True, such answers are more typical of girls, since at this age it is more difficult for them to restrain their emotions than for boys, whose social development situation from childhood obliged them not to show certain emotions (“don’t cry, you’re a boy!”, etc.). At primary school age, not only new emotions appear, but also those that existed before school change their character and content. In this regard, studies of children's fears are very revealing. In children, fear is most often caused by something that can directly threaten the child. In younger schoolchildren, in relation to circumstances of this kind, there even appears a certain flaunting of fearlessness, since the ability to overcome fear raises the student, both in the eyes of his comrades and in his own eyes. Boys' responses often included desires to be brave. The behavior of the boys in this case, their desire to become bold, courageous, etc. determined by gender stereotype. Other forms of fear appear, arising from different sources, for example, fear of appearing funny, ugly, fear of being ridiculed, etc.

Answers related to appearance occupy a large place: I don’t want to be fat, have narrow eyes, short arms, etc. It is worth noting that during this period of development, a particularly intensive formation of the child’s moral feelings occurs, which at the same time means the formation of the moral side of his personality.

The life of a collective cannot proceed in an organized manner if it is not governed by certain rules of social behavior. Such a classroom organization practically confronts a child entering school with the need to learn the norms and rules of social behavior and public morality.

Those rules and requirements that the collective sets for the child then appear for him not as something alien to his own life and activity, but as a necessary element of his life in the collective of the class, school, as a necessary condition for his existence. For third grade students, answers like: I want to be kind, good-natured, sympathetic, I don’t want to be evil, etc. were typical.

Due to the fact that the student’s new position imposes new responsibilities on him, ideas about work arise in his mind. To fulfill responsibilities (and younger schoolchildren have many of them, both at school and at home), you need to make some effort. Children feel this and reflect this feeling in their answers: I want to clean often, I don’t want to be lazy, I want to be hardworking. Studying at school places fundamental demands on the child. Firstly, it requires the child to consciously set a special goal - to learn. Secondly, it requires subordinating your mental processes to this goal. At the beginning of school, children do not yet know how to actively memorize educational material or be constantly attentive. This is clearly demonstrated by the large number of answers: I want to retell well, I want to have a good memory, I want to be attentive. The thinking of a junior schoolchild is concrete. In our case, when asked specifically what psychological qualities you would like to add or decrease in yourself, the child sometimes answers very specifically: I don’t like the length of my hair, the fact that I have narrow eyes, etc., I want to retell it well , don’t get bad grades... A junior schoolchild rarely abstracts himself from reality, and this prevents him from distinguishing between non-psychological and actually psychological qualities.

Adolescence

When a child enters adolescence (7th grade), a very important shift occurs in the development of his self-awareness. It is associated with the emergence of a sense of adulthood. This feeling expresses a completely new attitude towards the world and oneself.

Comparing himself with adults, the teenager comes to the conclusion that there is no difference between him and the adult. He begins to demand from those around him not to consider him small, the child understands that he also has rights. A new development of this age - a child puts himself on an equal footing with adults, but he does not yet have a sense of true belonging to adulthood, but there is a great desire to be recognized among adults.

At this age, the discovery of one’s “I”, awareness of one’s individuality is characteristic; one looks for and finds flaws in oneself. Some people become dissatisfied with themselves. Teenagers strive to occupy a respected position among their peers, so it is the peer who becomes the role model. Some people see their own shortcomings, while others have inflated self-esteem, but it’s much worse when it’s the other way around, because the teenager is very worried if he finds himself worse than others.

In our case, boys need wit and confidence, but girls need calmness and modesty.

But what’s interesting is that boys would like to reduce laziness and selfishness, and girls would like to reduce laziness and irritability. But we should not forget that at this age puberty occurs and the feelings of adolescents are somewhat heightened. And in this period there is a negative phase, which is caused by increased irritability, whims, etc. Dissatisfaction with oneself is often expressed as “melancholy” or aggressive behavior.

There may be contradictions in the answers. Let's say they want to add modesty, then subtract it - this is explained by the formation of individuality. Self-confidence turns into shyness, cheerfulness gives way to isolation. Thus, only after a crisis of self-awareness does a teenager acquire a “sense of individuality.” The period of self-education, where the boy seeks and strives for the ideal of a “real man”, and the girl of a “real woman”. It is clear why these phenomena are expressed especially intensely in adolescents; these experiences are associated with a whole complex of features characteristic of this particular age: with the intensive development of self-esteem, the level of aspirations, the presence of a desire for self-affirmation; and these are the components that give rise to affective conflict and the affect of inadequacy that we described. The importance and role of self-esteem in adolescence is further enhanced by the fact that acute affective experiences have a decisive influence on the formation of character. Research has found that children with affective experiences that arise from a conflict between the child's self-esteem and his aspirations, at the same time, have corresponding affective forms of behavior.

They are prone to exaggerated and inadequate reactions, they are touchy, aggressive, distrustful, suspicious, stubborn, etc. This spoils their relationships with others, making them difficult to live with and difficult to tolerate in a team. Long-term preservation of this kind of behavior and such relationships with people leads to the fact that these affective forms of behavior are consolidated and can become stable character traits. Consequently, negative traits arise in a child reactively as a form of his defense against difficult experiences, and the beginning of the formation of such traits often dates back to adolescence. The emergence of stable self-esteem, as well as stable ideals that embody schoolchildren’s aspirations regarding the moral sphere and qualities of their personality, become the most important factors in their development by the end of adolescence. This means that during this period, internal factors of development begin to become more and more important, defining a new type of relationship between the child and the environment: the teenager is already becoming capable of independent development through self-education and self-improvement. The establishment of this type of development prepares the adolescent for the transition to a new age level, to high school age, where internal development factors become dominant.

In accordance with a person’s habitual holistic perception of the unity of his feelings, mind and will, manifestations of self-esteem can be presented in emotional, cognitive and volitional forms. At the socio-psychological level, the behavioral form of self-esteem is distinguished. At the same time, self-esteem as part of self-awareness allows you to carry out not only the function of self-regulation of behavior, but also two others: psychological protection and cognitive (cognitive) function. The formation of optimal self-esteem depends heavily on the fairness of the assessment of all these people. Adequate assessment of oneself in a situation of interaction with other people is one of the main indicators of socio-psychological adaptation. If self-esteem is deformed, then this is already a sufficient condition for social maladjustment. Adolescence is the final stage of primary socialization. The main institutions of socialization are primarily the family and the school, respectively, parents, peers and teachers. The leading motive during the formation of self-esteem is the desire to establish oneself in a group of peers, to gain authority, respect and the attention of comrades. It is typical for a young person to strive to maintain a status in the group that supports his increased self-esteem. Under the influence of the assessment of others, the individual gradually develops his own attitude towards himself and self-esteem of his personality, as well as certain forms of his activity: communication, behavior, activity, experiences.

In practice, there are two types of low self-esteem: low self-esteem combined with a low level of aspiration (totally low self-esteem) and a combination of low self-esteem with a high level of aspiration. In the first case, a person tends to exaggerate his shortcomings, and, accordingly, regard achievements as the merit of other people or attribute them to simple luck. The second case, called the “affect of inadequacy,” may indicate the development of an inferiority complex and internal anxiety of the individual. Such people strive to be the first in everything, so any situation testing their competence is assessed by them as threatening and often turns out to be very difficult emotionally. A person with the second type of low self-esteem is usually characterized by a low assessment of others.

Knowing a person’s self-esteem is very important for establishing relationships with him, for normal communication, in which people, as social beings, inevitably engage.

The four main sources of value judgments that can have a significant impact on self-esteem are family, school, reference group and intimate-personal communication.

The role of self-esteem in the self-education of older schoolchildren

1. Personality orientation in high school students.
2. Formation of self-esteem.
3. Self-awareness: “discovery of the Self.”
4. Self-education of high school students.
5. Relationships with significant adults - parents.
6. Relationships with significant adults - teachers.
7. Relationships with peers.

High school students show a certain caution in self-assessment. They are more willing to talk about their shortcomings than their strengths. Both girls and boys call it “temper,” “rudeness,” and “selfishness.” Among the positive traits, the most common self-assessments are: “loyal in friendship”, “I don’t let my friends down”, “I will help in trouble”, that is, those qualities that are important for establishing contacts with peers, or those that interfere with this, come to the fore (temper, rudeness, selfishness, etc.)

Inflated self-esteem is noticeably revealed in the exaggeration of one's mental abilities. This manifests itself in different ways: those who find it easy to study believe that in any mental work they will be at the top of their game; those who excel in a particular subject are willing to believe in their special talent; even low-achieving students usually point to some other achievement they have.

Self-esteem is the awareness of one's own identity, regardless of changing environmental conditions. The basis of self-esteem is self-awareness, since at a certain stage of development self-awareness becomes self-esteem. Self-awareness is knowledge about oneself, an attitude towards this knowledge and, as a result, an attitude towards oneself and it manifests itself in the form of self-esteem.

The formation of personality also includes the formation of a relatively stable image of “I”, that is, a holistic idea of ​​oneself. The image of “I” (sometimes also called the “concept of “I” or “I - concept”) is a complex psychological phenomenon that cannot be reduced to a simple awareness of one’s qualities or a set of self-esteem. The question “Who am I?” implies not so much self-description as self-determination: “Who can and should I become, what are my capabilities and prospects, what have I done and can still do in life?” The high level of development of self-awareness of a senior schoolchild, in turn, leads to self-education. As research shows, even junior schoolchildren can characterize their actions, but they are not able to establish connections between their actions and the characteristics of their personality. They explain their behavior only by external circumstances. To the question: “Why do you constantly violate discipline in class?”, they can answer like this: “Petya showed me his horns, so I laughed, and then began to tell how we went to the forest.” A teenager who establishes a connection between personality traits and his actions looks somewhat different in this regard. The following type of motivation is typical: “I’m afraid of the dark, I try to jump over the “horse” because I have a weak will.” However, the teenager does not yet have a generalized and stable opinion about himself. He cannot yet separate the essential from the non-essential in his behavior and character. The self-education of a teenager does not take on an independent character and remains situational.

The need for self-determination encourages a senior student to systematize and generalize his knowledge about himself.

However, the self-education of older schoolchildren faces great difficulties, since this age is characterized by serious contradictions. The most typical of them:

1. The desire to show strong-willed efforts in self-education and at the same time not always a positive attitude towards specific methods of self-education that adults recommend;

2. Sensitivity, receptivity to the moral assessment of one’s personality on the part of the team and the desire to show indifference to this assessment, to act in one’s own way (“Just think, they give advice, I myself know how to live”);

3. Striving for ideals and adherence to principles in large, responsible matters and unprincipledness in small, insignificant matters;

4. The desire to develop perseverance, endurance, self-control and at the same time the manifestation of childish spontaneity, impulsiveness in behavior, speech, a tendency to exaggerate one’s own grief, and minor troubles.

Teaching is the leading activity of a high school student. But the motives for learning change with age. For a high school student, studying and acquiring knowledge now becomes primarily a means of preparing for future activities. But not everyone does. High school students define school more functionally, as “an educational institution where they give knowledge and educate us into cultured people.” The range of interests and communication of high school students increasingly extends beyond the boundaries of school, making it only a part, but an essential part, of their surrounding world. In the middle classes, there are relatively few students whose main interests are focused outside of school, and such facts are perceived as an alarming signal. In the ninth and tenth grades this is already a statistically normal phenomenon. School life is seen as temporary and of limited value. Although high school students still belong to school, the reference groups with which they mentally correlate their behavior are increasingly located outside it. In adolescence, attitudes towards teachers and with teachers become significantly more complex and differentiated. Like parents, the teacher has several “persons” in the child’s mind, corresponding to the functions performed by the teacher:

• replacement of parents;
• power that administers punishments and rewards;
• an authoritative source of knowledge in a particular area;
• senior comrade and friend.

In principle, a high school student is ready to be satisfied with more or less specialized relationships of an intellectual order. A teacher who knows and teaches his subject well is respected, even if he does not have emotional intimacy with the students. At the same time, the high school student really wants to meet a true friend in the person of the teacher, and the level of his requirements for such friendship is always high. Attachment to a beloved teacher often has the character of passion and unconditional devotion. But there cannot be many such attachments. Most high school students have a close emotional connection with one or two teachers, and with age this relationship becomes more and more selective. Adolescence is not a phase of “preparation for life,” but an extremely important stage of life’s journey that has independent, absolute value. Whether the teenage years will be happy and creative, or whether they will remain in the memory of a high school student as filled with petty conflicts, dull cramming and boredom, largely depends on the atmosphere prevailing at school, on his relationships with teachers. But this is one of the aspects through which self-esteem is formed. The other is the young man’s peer group, which plays a special role at this age. The desire to have loyal and devoted friends invariably opens the list of the most important life values ​​of 15-17 year olds, often ahead of even love among them. At the heart of youth’s desire for friendship is a passionate need to understand others, understand oneself to others, and self-disclosure.

The study of schoolchildren’s self-esteem is carried out according to the following parameters:

• the degree of awareness and integrity of perception of one’s cognitive and communicative capabilities;
• the presence of a range and degree of objectivity of the rating scale;
• level of regulation of cognitive activity;
• behavior in a situation of choice;
• expression of emotions in situations of success and failure;
• the degree and form of expression of criticism of oneself and one’s actions;
• attitude towards evaluation of one’s activities by others; level of social aspirations;
• the degree of consistency of the individual’s internal requirements for himself with external conditions; level of personal and situational anxiety.

Formation of student self-esteem

Subjective self-esteem has a significant impact on the effectiveness of various types of activities and the development of an individual’s personality in all periods of its formation. Adequate self-esteem gives an individual self-confidence, helps to correctly set goals and successfully achieve them in various areas of life, gives the necessary personal qualities, such as initiative, activity, enterprise, activity, and the ability to adapt.

At a certain age stage, the development of self-esteem is predominantly influenced by the type of activity that is leading during this period. The leading activity of primary school students is educational activity. The formation of the baby’s self-esteem mainly depends on how it goes. The success of educational activities is directly related to his success in learning and academic performance.

The formation of students' self-esteem is the main new development of personality. The assessment activities of teachers are the basis for developing self-esteem in children studying in primary school. The development of student self-esteem continues to develop when the teacher shows a positive attitude towards students, believes in their capabilities, and demonstrates a desire to help them learn. And the methodological side of the development of adequate self-esteem comes down to the use in educational activities, mainly, of subjective standards, which create precedents for students’ reflective assessment of their actions.

To develop adequate self-esteem in younger schoolchildren, a teacher must use various mechanisms and methods. The main way is feedback. All looks, gestures, words, movements, and intonations directed to the baby are feedback. It must be taken into account that the child absorbs and appropriates such feedback. With their help, he forms his self-esteem. And if the feedback has a positive direction, then it will ensure the development of a high level of self-esteem and, conversely, if it has a negative direction, it will ensure the development of a low level.

What influences the formation of self-esteem

Self-esteem is developed in a person from early childhood.

• It matters how parents show their love for their child
  . If love is unconditional and does not depend on good behavior, such a child will grow up with normal or high self-esteem. When he understands that he will be loved only for something (put away toys, got an excellent mark, took out the trash), then in adulthood the person will believe that he cannot be loved just like that, and a good attitude must be earned.
• The attitude of parents towards the successes and failures of the child plays a big role
  . Parents’ value judgments such as “You can handle this”, “Such a smart kid will definitely do it” have a positive role in the formation of self-esteem.

Accordingly, statements in the spirit of: “They don’t ask you”, “You understand a lot”, “Well, as always, you are armless” for many years lay in a person the attitude that he is “bad”, good for nothing, stupid, incompetent, etc.

Self-esteem can decline already in adulthood. For example, a person tries to build a career, works a lot, improves his qualifications, but career growth does not occur. The individual begins to doubt his abilities. If self-esteem was initially normal, the reason for the failure will be found. Low self-esteem can drop even lower.

Women are often deliberately devalued by men with whom they are in intimate relationships. A complex partner deliberately humiliates his wife or girlfriend in order to be able to impose his will on her. The woman begins to be perplexed and analyze what is wrong with her. If her parents instill self-respect and love, then the girl will break up with a toxic partner; if not, she will suffer and prove her need to an unsuitable man.

How self-assessment is formed

So, self-esteem is my own perception of myself. Does this mean that everyone “sets their own price”? And no, and yes.

No - because you were once taught to evaluate yourself in a certain way and you continue to do this out of habit:

1. low self-esteem - if all through childhood a child was told that he was a crooked, mediocre creature who was good for nothing, that he would never succeed, and, in general, nothing good would come from “that kind of person”... With what amount of knowledge about themselves do such people grow up? children? What place do they give themselves among those around them when they become adult uncles and aunts?
   It often happens that a person grows up insecure and repressed, even though his parents never said or did anything bad to him. On the contrary, he was praised in every possible way and motivated: “Did you get an A? Fine. Next time get an A+.” “Look how Petenka reads poetry beautifully, you should learn to do this too.” “If you take 1st place in the competition, I’ll spend the whole weekend with you.”

   There is no aggression, no insults or humiliation in these words, right? They seem kind and have good intentions. They seem.

   Comparing yourself to others is human nature. But when a child is constantly compared and not at all in his favor, when he is forced to deserve love, affection and respect even through stroking... He learns that “I can only be good if I do something for others. By myself I am nothing.” In the future, he will definitely face the question “how to love yourself and increase self-esteem”;

2. normal self-esteem - if parents show love, warmth and care, convey to the child that he is important and needed, he will grow up with confidence in his worth as an individual person. He will become a self-confident person who knows how to love himself and therefore claims the same attitude towards himself from the outside, is not afraid to make mistakes, achieves high results on all fronts of life;
3. and another pattern of upbringing that creates inflated self-worth - when a child is literally praised, I turn a blind eye to his shortcomings, and attribute positive traits and qualities that I want to see in him. Such an individual is a candidate for inadequate, inflated self-esteem. Parents themselves, without realizing it, doom their offspring to problems in the future.

The good news is that we can influence our self-esteem . Having reached adulthood, we are able to change the previously imposed idea of ​​ourselves, subjecting past experiences to criticism.

But increasing your self-esteem is like taking off; raising your level is always more enjoyable, right? But coming down to earth is much more difficult: a person has to face enormous disappointment in himself and admit to the lack of superhero qualities. It's painful and unpleasant.

Self-esteem is a floating phenomenon that can be corrected . “It doesn’t matter what our parents did to us. What matters is what we do now with what was done to us.”

Something like this was said by one of the authoritative psychologists and he was damn right.

Before you change anything, you need to understand how you perceive yourself. To do this, you need to pass a self-esteem test, of which there are now many on the Internet.

Methods and tests for personality self-esteem

Many techniques are used to diagnose self-assessment. Let's highlight the main ones:

• Dembo-Rubinstein technique. Three settings are significant in it: realism, height, stability. During diagnosis, the subject determines his condition using selectable scales, taking into account some nuances. The research is simple to perform: a table is drawn on a regular sheet, each of its columns is one of the properties, and its position is the content of the property at the moment. At the bottom are the values ​​that the subject is trying to get rid of, at the top are those that he wants to possess. This test must be performed in combination with a subsequent interview.
• Budassi personality self-assessment technique. It analyzes the parameter quantitatively and reveals its adequacy. Based on self-assessment. It is carried out by 2 possible methods - it requires comparing ideas with actual indicators or with other people.
• Cattell test. This questionnaire is the most common diagnostic method that analyzes individual psychological traits. The purpose of the study is to discover 16 personality factors.
• Leary test. Based on the diagnosis of value judgments in relation to oneself and loved ones, the description of the ideal “I”. Consists of 128 statements revealing 8 types of relationships.
• Test for the study of G. Eysenck's states. Relevant when identifying traits of aggressiveness, frustration, and rigidity in behavior. Information is presented briefly. The list indicates conditions that may be typical or, on the contrary, not characteristic of the subject.