The 4 components of self-esteem (explained)

These are the components of self-esteem, the elements that shape this psychological phenomenon.

Self-esteem is a rather complex psychological element in which different mental processes are involved, which are also very complex.

However, despite the complexity of the concept of self-esteem, it is possible to discern within it a series of elements and dimensions that help us understand that this psychological construct is more than the sum of its parts.

In the following we will discover what the main components of self-esteem are, as well as the dimensions that make it up.in addition to the dimensions that conform it.

What is self-esteem?

Self-esteem is a complex construct, in which several elements and dimensions are interconnected. To understand what these components are, we must first understand what exactly self-esteem is.

We can define self-esteem as the way in which we value ourselves, taking as a reference what our ideal "self" should be.. If we consider that we are very close to that "I", our self-esteem will be high, while if it is very far from that supposed ideal, it is most likely that our self-esteem is at rock bottom,

Self-esteem and self-concept are closely related. This second one refers to the set of ideas and beliefs that compose our concept of "I", same ideas that influence our self-esteem, adding an emotional and moral load to them. adding to them an emotional and moral charge.. Depending on how we see ourselves and whether we consider that vision to be positive or not, we will be more or less satisfied with what we believe we are.

Self-esteem can be seen as the consequence of different psychological processes, which can be a threat or an opportunity for our psychological well-being. This same self-esteem can also be the cause of other psychological phenomena, so we can say that self-esteem is both cause and effect of our emotional well-being, self-concept and adaptability to our environment.

We can understand this by thinking of a patient with major depression. Those who suffer from this disorder usually have a very low self-esteem, composed of negative beliefs and feelings about how the patient sees him/herself. A person who does not have a good opinion of himself will not dare to try new things, will be afraid to take risks and will not want to interact with other people as he sees himself as less valid than the rest of society. All this can contribute to isolation and worsening of the disorder.

It should also be noted that not all self-esteem problems are due to low self-esteem. not all problems related to self-esteem are due to low self-esteem.. Having too much inflated self-esteem can also be a problem, something that occurs in some disorders such as bipolar disorder when in the manic phase or in certain personality disorders, such as narcissistic disorder.

One of the objectives of psychotherapy is to ensure that people know how to maintain a balanced self-esteem, well adjusted to reality. We all have our limitations, but we also have strengths that harbor our true potential. No one is perfect, but no one is a complete failure either. Whatever the patient's vision of himself, psychotherapy helps people to value themselves, to see that they are capable of many things and to understand that everyone has weaknesses.

Taking all this into account, it is essential that all psychologists in their clinical practice know what the components of self-esteem are, as well as several of its dimensions. These we are going to see in depth below.

The 4 main components of self-esteem

These are the four psychological components that are considered to give rise to self-esteem.

Perceptual processes

All mental processes are connected to the flow of information that reaches us through our senses.. Our internal world is the result of the stimuli we receive from our environment and, as part of that psychological world, we also have self-esteem.

It could be said that the raw material of this psychological phenomenon is the perceptual processes, everything that our cells and sensory organs capture from the environment and send the information to the brain in nerve signals.

2. Self-concept

The self-concept is the description of ourselves composed by ideas, thoughts and beliefs that we have filed in our mind.. It is a definition of our person, our concept of "I" with all its facets.

This component of self-esteem is formed from the combination of the sensory information that comes to us from the environment and the interpretation we make of it from other thoughts, ideas and beliefs also present in the self-concept.

That is to say, it feeds back on itself, but taking as raw material new information that induces some changes in the way we see ourselves as time goes by..

3. Emotional charge

Emotional charge is the set of emotions associated with everything that crosses our minds.. In this case, we are talking about all those emotions related to our idea of "I".

It is these emotions that lead us to feel good or bad about what we believe we are and, at the same time, can serve as motivation, making us adopt a certain position in the face of a challenge.

It should also be said that it is difficult to distinguish between emotional charge and self-concept when talking about self-esteem. This is because our emotions and our ideas about ourselves are phenomena that occur at the same time and interact with each other.

4. Referents

As last component of the self-esteem we have the referents. The self-esteem of each one will always be constructed taking into account certain aspects of our sociocultural environment, especially the closest social circles to which we are exposed.especially the closest social circles to which we are exposed.

Family, friends, classmates and even TV celebrities influence our self-esteem, serving as models of what we want to be, as well as valuing us more positively or negatively depending on what is in our environment.

For example, if we are the least muscular guy in gym class, this will probably make us feel bad. On the other hand, if we are the smartest girl in our chess club, we will probably value ourselves very well in this aspect.

Everyone we interact with and how we believe they are better or worse than us influences ourselves and how we feel about those goals we achieve.

Added to this, from the interaction with other people we create the ideal image of our "I", which may or may not coincide with our "I".which may or may not coincide with what a person we know is like. It is depending on how close or how far we consider ourselves to be from that ideal "I" that our self-esteem will be higher or lower.

Dimensions of self-esteem

Although we have just seen the main components of self-esteem, there are those who prefer to speak of dimensions when talking about this psychological construct. In fact, these dimensions can be considered as homologous to the components we have just discussed, although they have some nuances that we will see below.

Cognitive dimension

The cognitive dimension has to do with everything that has to do with the person's thoughts about him/herself and the mental processes that give rise to them, including self-image. It has to do with how the person sees him/herself, disregarding the emotions he/she has about him/herself.. It would correspond to the self-concept.

Here we would find ideas such as believing that one is not capable of achieving something, that one is not too intelligent or that one is above other people, to give just a few examples.

2. Affective dimension

The affective dimension is related to the emotional charge that we have seen in the previous classification. As its name suggests, this is the purely emotional dimension of self-esteem and would encompass the emotional reactions to the ideas that the person has about him/herself: sadness, frustration, anger, joy, pride and satisfaction... any of the emotions that the person may feel regarding his/her worth.

3. Behavioral dimension

Finally we have the behavioral dimension of self-esteem, which is the easiest of the three to identify in a person with both high and low self-esteem. This dimension is the result of the other two dimensions combined and manifested in the form of behavior..

When self-esteem is low, we have seen that this is the result of having negative thoughts about oneself that provoke negative emotions. As a result, the person will behave in a withdrawn, fearful or angry manner.

For example, we can see this with a person who wants to join a gym to see if he can get in shape and improve his physique. Although he knows that he will achieve more psychological well-being because he will look better, he is afraid that the other users of the facilities will judge him or look at him with a bad face when he uses the machines and does badly. As a result, although he is encouraged to sign up, he prefers to limit himself to using the elliptical and little else, fearing that if he uses a complicated machine he will make a fool of himself.