Self-confidence describes the mental state of certainty regarding one’s own abilities, strengths, preferences, and characteristics.
What is self-assurance?
Self-confidence describes the mental state of certainty regarding one’s own abilities, strengths, preferences, and characteristics. In psychology, self-confidence refers to the mental state of a person who views the overall image of oneself in an overall positive light and considers oneself to be a person with abilities, strengths and merits. Thus, this inner attitude affects one’s outward demeanor. Self-confident people dare to take on greater challenges, are often strong in communicating with their fellow human beings, and need little outside help in asserting and asserting themselves in their environment. Self-confidence is thus a desirable state for a mentally healthy person. It can develop out of a healthy self-esteem, which must be developed and nurtured as a first step toward greater self-confidence. The prerequisite is the recognition of one’s own personality, whether through one’s own thought process or the attribution of characteristics through external influences. The concept of self-confidence can not only stand for a single person; a group of several people can also demonstrate self-confidence in their appearance.
Function and task
Self-confidence is the result of many years of self-reflection, which is also the reason why many young people still have difficulties with self-confidence in any situation. Experiences must first help them learn about their own personality and perceive it as valuable. Self-confidence can also be developed by belonging to a group whose values and characteristics one accepts and embraces as one’s own. The result of self-confidence is a goal-oriented, confident, and fear-free demeanor that easily persuades others to follow this idea. Since self-confidence also goes hand in hand with experience, self-confident people know what to expect in everyday situations. They develop a confident approach and learn to trust themselves, which in turn gives them a sense of security. It is the combination of confidence and security that keeps self-confidence alive and ensures that they approach new situations with the old confidence they are used to, because they are in a confident-secure mental state and in this way remain free of fear. An important job interview, a presentation at work, the birth and upbringing of a child and similarly demanding life situations are usually handled better and more calmly by an attitude of self-confidence than would a person with self-doubt in the same situation.
Diseases and ailments
A person’s self-confidence develops over many years and requires extensive personality development. It is therefore considered a state, mental health and can almost not arise under (mental) illness. Of course, not only mental illness, but also physical problems of all kinds can reduce self-confidence, as they attack a person’s self-esteem. Low self-esteem is one of the biggest obstacles to self-confidence and is especially prevalent in teenagers and young adults. The lack of self-confidence, along with a lack of self-esteem at this age, can lead to making choices that are meant to improve the ability to like oneself – but often have severe consequences. Eating disorders are a consequence of this cycle, because one of the reasons they can develop is because those affected develop a lack of self-esteem due to their outward appearance and lose their realistic view of their own bodies. They see a distorted image of themselves and react to it, but no longer to reality. Overconfidence stemming from self-esteem, on the other hand, is called pathological narcissism. Here, too, the affected person loses touch with reality because his subjective self-esteem gives him an excessively positive image. Narcissism manifests itself, among other things, through exaggerated self-confidence. Lack of self-confidence is not only a problem in young years, it also becomes topical again with increasing age and can lead to very similar clinical pictures as in puberty.It is estimated that around the age of 60 a person’s self-confidence is at its highest, as they have been able to develop their self-worth well up to this point. However, seniors over the age of 60 may find it difficult to maintain this self-confidence due to various social and health influences. In adulthood, self-confidence is strongly influenced by social influences, such as professional or family successes and failures, friendships, and relationships. Because many socially desirable factors tend to become more burdensome in older age, self-reliance is more difficult to maintain in older people. In societies where old age is viewed less negatively than in most Western countries, however, this is completely different. Here, aging people perceive themselves as the center of society and often still experience increasing self-confidence as a result.
