Building self-esteem from helping others

NEW RESEARCH shows that for teenagers, helping others could improve their self-esteem during the difficult period of adolescence.

Carried out by researchers at Brigham Young University in the US, and Xinyuan Fu, Central University of Finance and Economics in China, the longitudinal study looked at 681 adolescents, age 11 to 14 years, in two US cities over four years.

Participants were asked to respond to 10 statements such as ‘I feel useless at times’ or ‘I am satisfied with myself’ to assess self-esteem, with the team measuring prosocial behaviour and various aspects of kindness and generosity using statements such as ‘I help people I don’t know, even if it’s not easy for me’, or ‘I go out of my way to cheer up my friends’, or ‘I really enjoy doing small favours for my family’.

The team found that teenagers who exhibited prosocial behaviour – such as helping, sharing and comforting – towards strangers had higher self-esteem a year later. But the same was not true for those who exhibited prosocial behaviour only to friends and family.

“This study helps us to understand that young people who help those with whom they do not have a relationship report feeling better about themselves over time,” said professor Laura Padilla-Walker, one of the co-authors of the study.

“Given the importance of selfesteem during the teen years, this is an important finding.”

Padilla-Walker has worked on