From our Leaders of Wellbeing
Mrs Flynn and Mrs Reinke
The Role of Self Esteem
Self-esteem is crucial to children’s academic achievement, participation, engagement in activities, social relationships, and, ultimately, their sense of wellbeing.
Children low in self-esteem tend to be shy and introverted, with self-imposed limitations and a fixed mindset. Those high in self-esteem are enthusiastic, active, feel a greater sense of worth, and, perhaps most importantly, feel comfortable with who they are (Keshky & Samak, 2017; Dweck, 2017).
It follows that supporting a child as they grow and develop their self-esteem can improve their psychological wellbeing and what they get out of, and put into, life.
Self-esteem is a measure of how we see ourselves–our sense of self-worth.
Being high in self-esteem makes us feel valued, boosting our self-belief, ability to perform, subjective wellbeing, and overall psychological health. It facilitates our growth as individuals and provides a buffer against setbacks and failures (Ellis, 2019; Jordan, Zeigler-Hill, & Cameron, 2017).
Low self-esteem has the opposite effect, to the point where we may not even like who we are (Abdel-Khalek, 2016; Orth, 2017).
And, far from being fixed, self-esteem “waxes and wanes through life” (Robins & Trześniewski, 2005). Although relatively high in young children–possibly due to unrealistic positive self-views–it lowers as they grow, perhaps partly due to a poor self-image.
Self-esteem then climbs through adulthood, peaking at around the age of 60, before finally decreasing in old-age (Robins & Trześniewski, 2005; Orth, 2017).
Self-esteem plays a crucial role in children’s happiness, sense of worth, and overall development. After all, children higher in self-esteem feel more confident and capable. They are proud of who they are and what they achieve and are comfortable asking for help and standing up for themselves (Cunningham, 2019).
Higher self-esteem in child development promotes:
- Resilience – the ability to recover from mistakes and failure
- A sense of control that is crucial to intrinsic motivation (Ryan & Deci, 2018)
- Independent activity
- Feeling respected
- Security in relationship building
- The ability to make well-balanced decisions despite peer pressure
A lack of positive feedback or appropriate support can lead to low self-esteem and:
- Feelings of frustration, anger, sadness, and anxiety
- Loss of interest in learning
- Difficulty making and keeping friends
- Withdrawal and increased likelihood to bend to peer pressure
- Self-defeating coping skills, for example, avoidance and early quitting
By adolescence, self-esteem is a factor in health and welfare, and a predictor for students’ academic achievement (Nguyen, Wright, Dedding, Pham, & Bunders, 2019). Indeed, elevated self-esteem leads to more positive outcomes–now and later–identified by occupational success, better social relationships, improved coping skills, positive perception by peers, and an increased sense of wellbeing.
On the other hand, low self-esteem is related to antisocial behaviour, substance abuse, and even, catastrophically, suicide cases.
Without a doubt, creating an environment that supports the growth of self-esteem, such as setting goals, has far-reaching benefits. When successful, children with appropriate support can see that hard work pays off, and they are ready for new challenges. When they fail, they bounce back and still feel good about themselves.