GYre0ePJhZ Posted April 2, 2014 Posted April 2, 2014 A new study was published in March that looked at the impact of inflated praise on children which is something that has been a topic in the Freedomain Radio conversation. For example in this interview of Edelstein "The Death of Self-Esteem": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nYCsx4wanoExcerpt from the British Psychological Society blog on the study: At any rate, the finding builds on a number of experiments conducted in recent years showing that positive praise isn't necessarily good for all children in all circumstances. For children with low self-esteem, although we might feel the need to shower them in adulation, this might end up having precisely the opposite effect. Even words like incredible can end up having a huge unintended impact – so when you're telling children they've done a great job, choose your words wisely. Abstract of the study: In current Western society, children are often lavished with inflated praise (e.g., “You made an incredibly beautiful drawing!”). Inflated praise is often given in an attempt to raise children's self-esteem. An experiment (Study 1) and naturalistic study (Study 2) found that adults are especially inclined to give inflated praise to children with low self-esteem. This inclination may backfire, however. Inflated praise might convey to children that they should continue to meet very high standards—a message that might discourage children with low self-esteem from taking on challenges. Another experiment (Study 3) found that inflated praise decreases challenge seeking in children with low self-esteem and has the opposite effect on children with high self-esteem. These findings show that inflated praise, although well intended, may cause children with low self-esteem to avoid crucial learning experiences. Link to the blog: http://bps-research-digest.blogspot.co.uk/2014/04/inflated-praise-for-your-children.html Link to the study: http://pss.sagepub.com/content/25/3/728
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