Self-esteem, also called self-respect or self-love, is a term used in psychology to reflect a person’s overall evaluation on his or her own worth. In short, it is somebody’s opinion of oneself. High self-esteem is a good opinion of oneself and low self-esteem is a bad opinion of oneself.
Many early theories suggested that self-esteem is a basic human need or motivation. American psychologist Abraham Maslow, for example, included self-esteem in his hierarchy of needs. He described two different forms of esteem: the need for respect from others and the need for self respect. According to Maslow, when people fulfill a need for self-esteem, then they can seek the last self-actualization need. So self-esteem is the next-to-last need in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.
But it is not good when people have not enough or too much self-esteem. Not enough self-love can lead people to become depressed and hopeless or to tolerate abusive situations and relationships. People who self-esteem is low can see themselves as victims. But there are some ways in which people can improve their self-respect. For example, people with low self-esteem should get their facts right and take a realistic view of themselves. Moreover, everyone should know that disappointments and failures are a part of daily life and life isn’t always fair. On the other hand, too much self-respect results in an inability to learn from failures. And it’s occasionally a sign of narcissism.
All in all, I would like to say that it is really important to have high (but not too high) self-esteem because it helps to keep a positive outlook on life.
References:
References:
