Self-doubt has been defined as uncertainty about one’s abilities, potential for success, or competence in performance situations. As self-doubt concerning personal abilities increases, global self-esteem tends to decrease because self-doubt presents the threat to global evaluations of oneself. Hence, self-doubt can lead to both self-handicapping (i.e., creating or claiming obstacles that reduce the probability of
A self-schema is a cognitive structure involving some aspect of the self that is considered important to the individual, such as exercising or participating in a sport. It is derived from generalizations based on past experience. Self-schemas are not only an important part of our overall self-concept (i.e., how we think of ourselves) but they
Contemporary definitions of self-criticism are typically characterized by negative evaluations of the self, often as a result of failing to meet expectations and standards. Individuals who are self-critical typically demonstrate greater depressive symptoms. However, historically self-criticism was not attached to a notion of vice and negative functioning but rather conceptualized as adaptive and essential to