Sociometer Theory Of Self-Esteem Essay

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Self-esteem can be defined as a perception of self and an attitude toward the self that reflects a person overall evaluation of his or her worth, capability, and meaning. It reflects how a person regards his or her capacity, and the value he or she ascribes to himself/herself. As self-esteem influence mental and behavioral health, it is important to understand the concept of self-esteem.
Sociometer theory related to self-esteem states that self-esteem is a psychological gauge of the degree to which people perceive that they are relationally valued and socially accepted by other people. It explains self-esteem in relation with social inclusion and exclusion. Social inclusion or belonging is essential for humans to survive and maintain meaningful relationships, with self-esteem functioning as a sociometer. The theory states that if people receive cues that connote exclusion from their relationship or group, it results into low self-esteem. If people receive cues that connote inclusion from others, it will raise their self-esteem. Therefore, the sociometer theory states that self-esteem is influenced by how an individual
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State self-esteem is the momentary fluctuations in person’s feeling about himself or herself, and the trait self-esteem is the general appraisal of his or her value. Individuals who receive cues that connote acceptance from other people, have high state self-esteem, and those who receive cues that connote rejection, have low state self-esteem. Therefore, state self-esteem is fluctuated by how an individual perceives other see their relationship. On the other hand, traits self-esteem reflects the person’s general sense that he or she is the sort of person who is valued and accepted by other people. It is associated to one’s standing on attributes that one believes are valued by significant

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