The 7 Most Common Causes Of Low Self-esteem In Adolescence
Self-esteem is closely related to people’s mental health and both its excess and a deficit can cause serious alterations on an emotional and behavioral level.
As it is such an important issue for the correct development of the individual, this is one of the fundamental areas of intervention in psychotherapy. But to avoid major complications, it is important to detect self-esteem problems in young people in time and understand what kinds of situations can trigger them. Therefore, in this article we explain The main causes behind low self-esteem in adolescence
Self-esteem is one of the most studied phenomena in the world of psychology and also one of those that has the greatest impact on the personality of any individual, regardless of their age, social status or purchasing power. And since it is something that can affect anyone, self-esteem problems are generally quite widespread within our society.
In essence, self-esteem can be defined as the assessment that the individual makes of oneself, taking into account your beliefs about the “I”. That is, it does not only include information that can be expressed in words; It also encompasses a series of emotions and feelings. Thus, self-esteem has a lot to do with the way in which the person perceives themselves with respect to their ideal “I”, that is, how they would like to be.
It can be stated that self-esteem is made up of 4 main elements: perceptual processes (all the information we receive from the environment and from our body and actions, which conditions the opinion we have about ourselves); the self-concept (that is, all those ideas, opinions or thoughts that we generate about ourselves based on what we perceive), the emotional load (how all this affects us emotionally) and the references that one has around them (famous , influencers, prominent professionals in our sector…) and in our own imagination (our deceased grandfather, religious figures…).
What are the main causes of low self-esteem in adolescence?
Below we review the causes of the most common self-esteem problems among the adolescent population (although all of them are related to each other to a greater or lesser extent).
1. Insecurities with one’s own body
Adolescence is one of the stages of human development in which the greatest insecurities are observed in young boys and girls who begin to form the personality they will have in adulthood.
The biggest insecurities during adolescence have to do with one’s own body and the gradual (or even relatively sudden) changes that are observed in it In this stage of transformation, most people are dissatisfied with the changes in their bodies or they expect these changes to happen more quickly or in a more harmonious and proportionate way.
In addition to that, there can also be great insecurities in cases of boys and girls who have “non-normative” bodies within their peer group, especially considering that they begin to compare themselves with beauty canons linked to the figure of young people. adults considered attractive, older than them.
2. Social pressure
The social pressure to which many adolescents are subjected is also usually one of the main causes of low self-esteem and problems of all kinds for many people.
At that age, adolescents’ role models stop being parents and become their peers that is, young people of the same age or a little older who may be friends or classmates and from whom they need recognition and acceptance to feel part of a reference group.
Possible difficulties in studies and school performance almost always result in a drastic drop in the self-esteem of an adolescent, since the educational center becomes one of the main sources of self-affirmation, socialization and personality formation
In addition to that, the lack of skills in sports activities, especially in the case of boys during recess time, can also have a decisive impact on the level of self-esteem.
4. Toxic relationships
At this age is also when the first relationships begin to develop, and a toxic relationship It can significantly affect both the self-esteem of the person who suffers from it and many other elements of their personality and mental health
In addition to that, when a relationship is toxic in later stages of adolescence, dynamics of emotional dependency can also develop, something that can affect the person for life if professional psychological support is not available.
5. Constant comparisons and hypercompetitiveness
In adolescence they also tend to occur dynamics of comparison and competition between classmates or friends to see who has the best clothes, the best cell phone or other elements that function as class indicators.
Some young boys and girls may feel ashamed of having a low economic status, and this contributes decisively to lowering their levels of self-esteem.
6. Family problems
The family environment is another of the fields on which an adolescent relies to build his future personality This includes both the type of relationship with parents or siblings, the parenting style to which they are subjected, and the amount of affection and understanding they receive at home.
A dysfunctional family model, or negative parenting patterns for the child, are also causes that can significantly reduce the adolescent’s self-esteem. Furthermore, in many cases the young person may feel ashamed of the things that his or her family know about him or her, and since he or she cannot become independent, he or she cannot find an immediate way to stop feeling judged.
In the family or school environment, there may also be cases of physical or sexual mistreatment or abuse, which will represent a serious impact on the mental health of the adolescent who suffers from them. Unfortunately, bullying is very common and although it has been relatively normalized for a long time, today we know that its psychological effects on self-esteem can be devastating.
This is, therefore, another cause that can very negatively affect the victim’s self-esteem and pose a real health problem at all levels.
How to detect and prevent self-esteem problems in adolescents?
Some warning signs for which it is worth seeking professional help They are the following (they do not need to be given all at once):
He avoids at all costs talking about what he has done at school, beyond briefly explaining the subjects taught in class.
He cries relatively frequently without wanting to or knowing how to explain why.
He does not have the initiative to meet up with friends.
He always resists the proposal of attending extracurricular activities (whatever they may be).
Always let others make all the decisions.
He does not set out to learn anything on his own, even if he shows some interest in something.
It manifests self-harming behaviors, or even suicidal ideations. These cases, although they may seem extreme, are unfortunately all too common.
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