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Originally Posted by David365  Don't get carried away. I agree with the link between addictions and low self esteem - as with the obesity issue there is a logical progression in using food/alcohol or whatever to compensate with feeling crap. There is little to differentiate between very low self esteem and symptoms of depression, so again issues such as suicide risk come into play.
But high self esteem is more likely to lead to criminal behaviour that low. In 2001 the Rowntree Foundation (in the UK) commissioned an extensive review of all available evidence regarding self esteem. The report found that self esteem is not a risk factor for:-
crime (including violent crime), physical risk taking, racial prejudice, child maltreatment
.. but high self esteem might be.
One problem with low self esteem is people over reflect, think too much about what others think. Whilst at the other end of the spectrum its the "non-reflectors" who are more likely to bully, maltreat others.
Having worked in a prison I can add subjectively that my experience supports that Review - I can recall very few individual with low self esteem! |
Your post reminded me of something that I forgot. English is a confusing language with so many multiple definitions. So I have a question for people reading this. Is self-esteem good or bad? If you said that it was good, you are wrong. If you said that it was bad, you are wrong.
Do not blame me. I did not create these definitions of words. Self-esteem (1) is good and self-esteem(2) is bad. So you (David365 and 1/4) are talking about self-esteem(2). Mirriam-Webster says (def. self-esteem):
1 : a confidence and satisfaction in oneself : self-respect
2 : self-conceit: definition-- an exaggerated opinion of one's own qualities or abilities
It may be better to call it self-love and self-hate. People with a lot of self-love treat others kindly. People with a lot of self-hate treat others badly. So a great example of self-hate and self-esteem(2) is Adolf Hitler. He had very high self-esteem(2) whereas Gandhi had a lot of self-esteem(1) with his principle of non-violence.
A good example of this is the bad areas of Philadelphia that has more than 1 murder daily. Due to lack of self-love or self-esteem(1), they do not care if they are killed or go to jail for life. Note that this is just a generalization and does not apply to everyone there.
Because of their self-esteem(2), if you call them a bad word, they may kill you (literally). Then they spend the rest of their life in prison and they brag about how they killed this MFer who called them a **** **** ******. Self-esteem(2) could be compared to a person trying to look rich when they are not. Self-esteem(1) is love of the true self. Self-esteem(2) is love of the false self AKA the ego.
Socrates said "Know thyself" talking about the true self. Otherwise all you have is your false self (ego). Another good of example of self-esteem(2), depression and taking medications is a former champion. Mike Tyson was heavyweight boxing champion of the world and a prison inmate. Another good example of self-esteem(2) is Heisman Trophy winner OJ Simpson.