Self-Defeating Humor and Self-Esteem Self-concept is an individual’s compilation of feelings, self-perception, and an idea of the basis of human personality. Self-esteem, usually identified in a positive approach, is the concept of one’s confidence in abilities and self worth, and the idea of self-respect. Self-evaluative standards evidently have a vital role in shaping future emotions and subsequent behaviors (Kuiper & McHale, 2009; 143.4: 359-76). According to Abraham Maslow’s Theory of Self-Actualization, self-esteem, notably confidence in oneself, respect for and by others, is achieved after physiological needs, safety needs, and love and belonging needs. Self-esteem, then, is combination of several characteristics, which result in a physiological …show more content…
Heavy self-criticism, envy and a pessimistic attitude follow (Kirsh, 2005). Three states of self-esteem are identified: Strong self-esteem is when they have a positive self-image and are secure enough to make decisions and remain unaffected by any adverse scenario that would cause detrimental effects. Vulnerable self-esteem is when there is a positive self-image yet their ability to maintain it is not reliable. People with a vulnerable self-esteem avoid making decisions, blame others when situations were to turn sour to protect their own reputation. People who do not regard themselves as admirable or valuable, defeated and immerse in self-pity, define shattered self-esteem. Shattered self-esteem is undoubtedly related to low self-esteem …show more content…
Psychological well-being is dependent on an individual’s ability to validate oneself by evaluation through comparison of set standards. These standards are usually normative by expected values expressed in their community (Kuiper & McHale, 2009). Using maladaptive styles of humor at the expense of one’s own psychological well-being, namely self-defeating humor, can then be understood as a means of expressing the perception that one does not live up to the norms. Keeping in mind that this humor may seem light and in good faith to the listeners, the teller may question, “Are they laughing with me, or are they laughing at me?” To address this question, it is important to note that individuals using self-defeating humor display an increased level of depression and validate themselves more often of negative self-evaluative standards. This directly results in the individual having a level of self-esteem significantly lower than an individual using adaptive self-enhancing humor. These negative standards held cause firm beliefs, which instigate dependence of one’s own happiness on being social acceptance (Stieger, 2010). If such dependencies manifest, constant use of self-defeating humor results in contingencies about self-worth such as the certainty that the individual is disapproved by and rejected by others. This results in a vicious cycle: Self-injurious humor sends the
Contingencies of self-worth describe people being selective about the domains on which they base their self-esteem. Three studies were done by E. J. Horberg and Serena Chen at the University of California, Berkley on significant others and contingencies of self –worth. Three studies tested the activation and consequences of contingencies of self-worth associated with specific significant others, that is, relationship-specific contingencies of self-worth. The results showed that activating the mental representation of a significant other with whom one strongly likes or is close to let participants to risk their self-esteem in areas in which the significant other wanted them to excel. This was shown in terms of self-reported contingencies of self-worth (Study 1), in terms of self-worth after receiving feedback on a successful or unsatisfactory performance in a relationship-specific contingency area (Study 2), and in terms of feelings of low self-worth after thinking about a failure in a relationship-specific contingency area (Study 3). Across studies, a variety of contingency areas were examined. Also, Study 3 showed that failing in an activated relationship-specific contingency area had negative implications for current feelings of closeness and acceptance in the significant-other relationship. Overall, the findings suggested that people’s contingencies of self-worth depend on that particular social situation and that performance in relationship-specific contingency areas can influence people’s ideas of their relationships (Holberg & Chen, 2010). Contingencies of self-worth along with self-esteem can have an effect on pursuing one’s goals.
The second to last level of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is esteem. This stage includes having and giving respect, pride, and confidence. This stage is what truly separates humans from all other animals. In our community, I feel respected and have a high sense of value when I am succeeding academically and athletically. When I am doing these two things, my esteem is at an all time high, but when I am not, it’s hard to motivate myself at times. In our society today, esteem is based off mostly material things like money, beauty, and objects, but to truly make yourself happy you must take this one step
Narcissism is the egotistic sense of self-importance, but paradoxically underneath this attitude, the narcissist is simply a victim of a fragile low self-esteem. It is the underlying sense of inferiority that is the real problem of the narcissist, and their pretense is just a disguise used to cover their deeper feelings of inadequacy. Since narcissists are often incapable of asserting genuine self-meaning, they seek admiration from others because they desire acceptance and approval (as we all do) but lack the ability to find any from within.
elf-esteem determines how long one goes in life. It affects one’s well-being, performance, productivity and so on. That is why it is very important to study it and know how to deal with ones that will affect one negatively. Low self-esteem as seen in the previous chapter affects one’s life and character.
“The practical disengagement of humor…helps explain the opposition between amusement and negative emotions.” (530) There are three effects of humor; irresponsibility, blocking compassion, and promoting prejudice. Humor can take away what we are/should be doing in life and sometimes there isn’t anything wrong with that. Sometimes when we hear a hateful thing we just laugh it off as if it was no big deal when it really was. “An
In middle childhood, around the age of 7, children start to develop a self – esteem. The development of self -esteem is important because it determines the way a person views ones-self. The Self- esteem formed in middle childhood changes by the time an individual reaches adulthood. There are many longitudinal studies that have been done on the development of self – esteem. One such article is “Cherish Yourself: Longitudinal Patterns and Conditions of Self- Esteem Change in the Transition to Young Adulthood” the researcher wanted to see the change in self –esteem between secondary school and young adulthood, they also wanted to see if gender played a role in the change of self-esteem, this study is explained in the article. In another study, “Self- Esteem Development From Age 14 to 30 Years: A Longitudinal Study,” the researchers studied self –esteem development between the ages of 14 to 30 with a focus on how demographic variable such as gender and ethnicity, the five personality traits; sense of mastery, risk taking, health and income all played a role in self-esteem.
Self-esteem touches everything about a person’s belief about himself and his emotional state. One’s belief can be positive e.g. I love myself, I am a great person. On the other hand, it can be negative e.g. I am useless or I am too fat. Furthermore, emotional state include shame, pride, joy, despair etc.
Maslow’s theory is based on basic needs he believes need to be meet and if not will negatively impact a person. I was intrigued on his view on esteem as my husband and I married young and were both still trying to figure out who were. We have been together for seventeen years and our self-esteem has changed based on how loved we felt by each other. There are may periods in our marriage where we both had low self-esteem because we were not getting certain needs meet from each other and were not quite sure how to draw improve our esteem based on our own self-worth. With some counseling and guidance, we were able to work on building our own self-esteem as well as help build each other up. The more confidant we became in ourselves the easier it was to help boost each others self-esteem and with that we grew and foster a healthier marriage. Maslow believed that; “positive self-esteem further leads them to trust their instincts and is less worried about what is going to happen in the future” ("Self-esteem and Motivation – Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs",
Due to self-depreciating attitudes and beliefs, the individual tends to have a low internal self-esteem. The individual perceives the physical and cultural characteristics identified
Body image to a teenager is everything. Going thru social criticism, academic achievements, hormonal changes, dating and peer pressure is already hard enough; adding self- esteem issues is overwhelming. Usually people are more judgmental about themselves they(do not use as substitute for "each, each one, everybody, every one, anybody, any one, somebody, some one")">they are not missing words: I love my father more than my mother. I love my father more than my mother loves my father. I love my father more than I love my mother)">than others because they compare themselves with others. In modern times, most self- esteem issues result from social media or their peers. Self-esteem is an enormous problem in our community and we need to do something about it.
Insecurity drills a hole into a person’s heart, minimizes their integrity, and accumulates as plaque build up, hindering any kind of future growth. Just as any human being’s growth is stifled by the insecurity within them, the United States as a whole suffers the same from its own tremendous amount of insecurity. This lack of acknowledgement of self-worth causes a ghastly chain reaction; people tend to pursue the wrong ideals, become corrupt, and inevitably lead themselves to their own demise. Insecurity is a route to destruction, and America is speeding down that road to dissolution.
My two top styles of humor are ones that help create and bond relationships, and uplift one’s self. With this, I believe it shows that I am mentally healthy. I am mentally healthier than I thought I was before writing this paper. Self-enhancing humor is positively related to openness to experience, self-esteem, and psychological well-being (Martin el at. 2003). Mentally, I have never been one to suffer from depression or anxiety, which are both very common in busy high school and college students. I have had moments, or times in my life where I have been at a very low point but I have never been diagnosed. I think that my styles of humor mirror how healthy my mental state has been thus far in my life. I do think that I am insure more times than not, which would logically reflect self-defeating humor. Though, I am thankful after taking the Humor Style Questionnaire (Martin el at. 2003) that I am not that
Similarly, Maslow's theory also reflects that humans have an internal force to reach their highest potential (Maslow, 1968). Maslow examined the hierarchy of basic human needs and developed a pyramid of requirements which motivates human beings and shapes their personality. At the bottom of his pyramid are found the basic physiological motivations which are necessary for survival such as food and shelter. The next level incorporates the need for safety, both physical and psychological. This is followed by love and belongingness which relate to receiving and giving affection. Presuming the love need is met, the next level up is the need for esteem which includes the feeling of self-esteem and self-respect. At the top of the pyramid stands the complex need for self-actualization which is a meta-need as per Maslow (1964) and we can reach it through peak experiences. It is the highest level of growth when someone reached her or his capacity to the fullest. Maslow estimated that only 1 percent of people ever really fulfil this need (Maslow,
Self-esteem is an emotional response; a feeling about the self that is more or less positive, and a general personality characteristic; not a temporary attitude or an attitude specific to individual situations. Self-esteem is a personal decide of worthiness (Pervin & Lawrece, 1989). Self-esteem is appreciating one’s own worth, importance and having the character to be accountable for oneself and to act responsibly towards others (Davies, 1998). It doesn’t mean seeing oneself as the greatest person in the world, it is not the same as being conceited; but it is about liking one self, for the most part, as he/she is. It is an affective or emotional aspect of self and generally refers to how we feel about or how we value ourselves
There are two theories that describe how interactions shape our self-views. One defines perceptions of the judgments of others called Reflected Appraisal. It is the notion of receiving supportive and nonsupportive messages. It states that positive appreciation and a high level of self-value is gain when supportive messages are received. In contrast, receiving nonsupportive messages leads to feeling less valuable, lovable, and capable. Everyone that you and I interact with influences these self-evaluations. Either from your past or from present –all shapes how you view yourself, especially from our significant others. The strength of messages from significant others become stronger and eventually affect the health, when they are nonsupportive; depression, for instance, leads to less physical activities that are necessary for a healthy body. However, the foremost important influences are our parents. Supportive parents raise children with healthy self-concepts. While nonsupportive parents raise an unhappy child who view his/her self in negative ways.