Self-esteem has been defined as "a person's overall evaluation or appraisal of his or her own worth." and "the experience of being competent to cope with the basic challenges of life and being worthy of happiness."
Building self-esteem is the subject of numerous articles in psychological literature. Building self-esteem is often included in mental health "treatment plans" all over the world.
Building self-esteem is article of faith in secular psychology. If the person can become more confident in his self-worth and capabilities, the reasoning goes, then he can make progress in addressing whatever issue he is struggling with. There's only one problem: This approach rarely works.
People who come into therapy often have experienced a lifetime of abuse, trauma and failure. This life experience simply cannot be cancelled out.
Using positive self-talk, clients can make progress for awhile. However, whenever they have a setback, their self-concept reverts back to where it was before