The pursuit of high self-esteem is a cultural mistake. There are touted benefits I don’t think I need to repeat, but there are costs as well: distorted or narcissistic self-perception, emotional instability due to contingent self-worth, and hostility towards those who threaten one’s ego. These are traits unbecoming of a rationalist, to say the least. More recent research points to self-compassion as the superior strategy. The attitude produces the same benefits, but without the drawbacks. [Epistemic status: there is published research on this topic, but I’m generally suspicious of findings in psychology due to the replication crisis.]
The pursuit of high self-esteem is a cultural mistake. There are touted benefits I don’t think I need to repeat, but there are costs as well: distorted or narcissistic self-perception, emotional instability due to contingent self-worth, and hostility towards those who threaten one’s ego. These are traits unbecoming of a rationalist, to say the least. More recent research points to self-compassion as the superior strategy. The attitude produces the same benefits, but without the drawbacks. [Epistemic status: there is published research on this topic, but I’m generally suspicious of findings in psychology due to the replication crisis.]