Self-help books may be helpful for some, but for the larger audience it don't, says a study. Psychologists have found that positive self-statements in such books may actually leave people with low self-esteem and feeling worse about themselves.
In a research that was conducted by psychologists Joanne V. Wood, John W. Lee and W.Q. Elaine Perunovic, it's been found that individuals with low self-esteem actually felt worse about themselves after repeating positive self-statements.
The study involved a few participants with low self-esteem and high self-esteem to repeat the self-help book phrase 'I am a lovable person.'. Then the psychologists measured the participants' moods, and their momentary feelings about themselves. Then came the answers: It was found out that people with low self-esteem felt worst after repeating the positive self-statement, compared to another low self-esteem group who did not repeat the self-statement. It wasn't the case with those wit high self-esteem.
People will high-self esteem didn't show much signs of feeling ill.
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If people are instructed to focus exclusively on positive thoughts, they may find negative thoughts to be especially discouraging. |
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In a follow-up study, the psychologists allowed the participants to list negative self-thoughts along with positive self-thoughts. Surprisingly, they found that moods of the participants with low self-esteem fared better when they were allowed to have negative thoughts than when they were asked to focus exclusively on affirmative thoughts.
The psychologists suggested that, like overly positive praise, unreasonably positive self-statements, such as "I accept myself completely," could provoke contradictory thoughts in individuals with low self-esteem. Such negative thoughts can overwhelm the positive thoughts, and if people are instructed to focus exclusively on positive thoughts, they may find negative thoughts to be especially discouraging.
So, the study concluded with some mixed reactions. It was understood that self-esteem can act dicey, and it's the people who needed to understand that. The authors concluded: "Repeating positive self-statements may benefit certain people [such as individuals with high self-esteem] but backfire for the very people who need them the most."
The study has been published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.
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Tags: momentary feelings, negative thoughts, positive self statements, high self esteem, wq elaine perunovic, self help book.
