Low self-esteem makes us feel bad about ourselves. But did you know that over time it also can cause the development of serious mental conditions such as depression?

Self-esteem is the set of feelings you have about yourself. It’s developed by your experiences, thoughts, feelings and relationships. Unlike self-knowledge, which refers to how much you know about yourself, the core of self-esteem is formed around whether you like yourself or not.

Depression is much more than just feeling sad. It saps your energy, makes everyday activities difficult and interferes with your eating and sleeping patterns. Psychotherapy and/or medication are highly effective in treating depression.

Personality researchers have long wondered about the chicken-and-egg problem of self-esteem and depression. Certainly, if you dislike yourself, you’ll be more likely to be depressed. Conversely, if you’re depressed, you’ll be more likely to feel bad about who you are as a person.

The only way to disentangle the highly related concepts of self-esteem and depression is through longitudinal research, in which people are followed up over time. A study on depression, conducted by University of Basel researchers Julia Sowislo and Ulrich Orth, contrasted the competing directions of self-esteem to depression vs. depression to self-esteem.

The findings almost all overwhelmingly support the vulnerability model of self-esteem and depression. Over time, low self-esteem is a risk factor for depression, regardless of who is tested and how. The study indicated that low self-esteem causes depression but not vice versa.

Therefore, if a person has low self-esteem, there’s an increased risk of developing depression. This is a very important discovery because it shows that improving a person’s self-esteem can make him or her feel better.

The study concluded that there is convincing evidence to support the vulnerability effect of low self-esteem on depression.

According to Lars Madsen, Australian clinical psychologist and self-esteem specialist, the reality often is that self-esteem is a key factor in both the development and maintenance of depression. A person with low self-esteem takes things personally, and in a negative way.

Madsen also confirms the rarity of studies on self-esteem and depression that allow for any causal arguments to be made. However, the comprehensive study noted above concluded that the best way to protect your positive mood is to find ways to boost your self-esteem.

Words to Learn 相关词汇

【心理疗法】xīnlǐ liáofǎ psychotherapy the treatment of mental and emotional disorders through the use of psychological techniques designed to encourage communication of conflicts and insight into problems

【脆弱】cuìruò vulnerability being easily hurt emotionally

自卑让人自我感觉极差。长期自卑还会导致抑郁等严重精神问题。

自信心是什么？是你的经历、思想、感觉和人际交往带来的对自身的感受。不同于自我认知，自尊心的关键在于你是否喜欢自己，而自我认知主要是指人对自身的了解程度。

抑郁不仅仅是感伤那么简单。抑郁症会让人身心疲倦、难以进行日常活

动、食欲不振、睡眠不好。心理疏导和药物是治疗抑郁的有效方法。

人格研究人员一直以来对自信心和抑郁症两者间的因果关系感到十分疑惑。事实也确实如此，如果你不喜欢自己，你更容易抑郁。相反地，如果你感到沮丧，你也更可能会否定自己。

要解开自信心和抑郁这两个高度相关的概念问题，唯一的方法是通过纵向研究，长期跟踪研究对象。（瑞士）巴塞尔大学研究院人员茱莉亚•索维斯洛和乌利希•奥斯进行了一项关于抑郁症的研究，比较了自信对抑郁的影响和抑郁对自信的影响。

几乎所有的研究结果都有力证明了脆弱的自信和抑郁模式。无论被测试者的身份和研究方法如何，自卑都是抑郁症的诱因。这个研究证实自卑会导致抑郁症，反之则不成立。

自卑者患抑郁症的风险更高。这是一个重大发现，说明增强自信会让人自我感觉好很多。

研究得出结论，有令人信服的证据表明自卑对抑郁产生的负面效果。

澳大利亚临床心理学和自信心研究专家拉斯•麦森表示，自信心是抑郁发展和持续的主要原因。自卑的人往往会以消极的方式看待事物。

麦森还证实，由于缺乏研究案例，很难轻易给自信和抑郁下结论。但上述研究指出，保持乐观情绪的最佳方案就是增强自信。

(chinadaily.com.cn)