Family Anatomy » self-esteem

The impact of chores on self-esteem

Dr. Brian MacDonald, C. Psych. — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 15:58:59 +0000

Preparing the Cake Pans by Di the Huntress

We all want our kids to feel good about themselves. We complement them on their performance, their appearance, and their abilities hoping that they’ll develop self-esteem and grow into happy adults. Unfortunately, as we discussed in Episode 61 of the Family Anatomy Podcast, words don’t cut it when it comes to self-esteem – kids need to develop skills and experience “mastery” to feel good about themselves; these mastery experiences give them accurate information about their skills and capabilities, promoting self-esteem. Researchers believe that this is one of the reasons why participation in extracurricular activities has such a positive impact. While kids live at home, parents can facilitate participation in these activities, but what about when they move on to college or university? Suddenly their beliefs about their capabilities and competence become extremely important, since they must be self-motivated to complete their schoolwork.(...)
Read the rest of The impact of chores on self-esteem (275 words)

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Post tags: chores, mastery, psychology, research-based, responsibilities, self-efficacy, self-esteem, teenagers
Note: Posts on Family Anatomy are for education only, and are not intended to replace professional or medical advice. If you need to talk to someone about family or mental health issues, you can get a referral from your family doctor.

Anatomy of Three Things (Episode 83)

Dr. Brian MacDonald C. Psych. — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 15:22:12 +0000

Doctors Brian and Giuseppe talk about three recent stories from familyanatomy.com, including:

Listen here:

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Website of the Week: Savvy Moms

Leave us a comment, or you can e-mail suggestions or questions to info@familyanatomy.com. Vote for The Family Anatomy Podcast at Podcast Alley and for the blog at Blogger’s Choice!

Note: Posts on Family Anatomy are for education only. If you need to talk to someone about family or mental health issues, you can get a referral from your family doctor.

© Dr. Brian MacDonald C. Psych. for Family Anatomy, 2009. | Permalink | 2 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: body image, self-esteem, sports, stress
Note: Posts on Family Anatomy are for education only, and are not intended to replace professional or medical advice. If you need to talk to someone about family or mental health issues, you can get a referral from your family doctor.

Body Image, Part 2: Anatomy of Body Image (Episode 80)

Dr. Brian MacDonald C. Psych. — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 14:46:04 +0000

Doctors Brian and Giuseppe talk about body image. Research shows that even young children have concerns about how they look. This can become a serious problem, affecting mood and relationships. Some kids even engage in dangerous behaviours to improve their appearance!

How can parents help their kids to be satisfied with their appearance?

How are boys and girls affected by media messages?

What if you’re worried your child is developing an eating disorder?

Found out what we think in this week’s episode!

Listen here:

… or right click here to save the episode for later.

You can also get your free podcast subscription in iTunes. If you use iTunes, you can leave a review!

Website of the Week: Body Image – Loving Yourself Inside and Out

Leave us a comment, or you can e-mail suggestions or questions to info@familyanatomy.com. Vote for The Family Anatomy Podcast at Podcast Alley and for the blog at Blogger’s Choice!

Note: Posts on Family Anatomy are for education only. If you need to talk to someone about family or mental health issues, you can get a referral from your family doctor.

© Dr. Brian MacDonald C. Psych. for Family Anatomy, 2009. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: appearance, body image, Children, eating disorders, kids, Parents, satisfaction, self-esteem
Note: Posts on Family Anatomy are for education only, and are not intended to replace professional or medical advice. If you need to talk to someone about family or mental health issues, you can get a referral from your family doctor.

Body Image, Part 1: How kids can learn to like their looks

Dr. Brian MacDonald C. Psych. — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 14:16:48 +0000

Body image concerns can have a significant impact on the physical and mental health of children and teens. While parents may be legitimately concerned about their kids’ weight, some children are becoming preoccupied about their bodies, comparing them unfavourably to those of celebrities or even to their friends. This week, Family Anatomy will be writing and talking about body image issues, to provide parents with ideas and information to address what seems to be a growing concern.

A recent study in the Journal of Health Psychology reported that about 40% of elementary school-aged girls and 25% of boys are dissatisfied with their bodies; other researchers have found different rates, but body dissatisfaction appears to be a relatively common problem, and the age at which it occurs may be dropping. Links have been found between poor body image and emotional distress, smoking, steroid use, social anxiety, and eating disorders. In the U.S., the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Eating Disorders (ANAD) reports that 7 to 10 million women and 1 million men are affected by eating disorders, with 86% indicating an onset before age 20. A story in the Chicago Tribune suggested that the average age when eating disorders develop has dropped from 13-17 to 9-13 years!(...)
Read the rest of Body Image, Part 1: How kids can learn to like their looks (473 words)

© Dr. Brian MacDonald C. Psych. for Family Anatomy, 2009. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: BMI, body image, Children, exercise, kids, self-esteem, weight
Note: Posts on Family Anatomy are for education only, and are not intended to replace professional or medical advice. If you need to talk to someone about family or mental health issues, you can get a referral from your family doctor.

Kids in Sports, Part 1: Why it Matters

Dr. Giuseppe Spezzano C. Psych. — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 17:00:40 +0000

This week at Family Anatomy, we have decided to post articles about kids and sports. In the first part of this series, we’ll examine why kids’ sports matter.

Most people define sport as an athletic activity that involves rules, physical skill development, and competition. Sport can certainly be seen as a pleasant distraction for fans, although for those who engage in it, it is much more. As the definition suggests, development of physical skill is one of a number of interrelated benefits that sports brings to its participants. Sport can bring you in touch with your body and its capacities and limitations. Becoming aware of your developing skills can also be a source of pride and disappointment. Mastering the skills necessary to do a particular sport well can be an important experiential reservoir for self-esteem. Sport is always a relational exercise as well. Being in competition with others involves deft and subtle interpersonal negotiations related to how people treat one another in victory and defeat. While most parents place their kids in sports simply for the fun of it, when it is closely examined, it is clearly that and much more.(...)
Read the rest of Kids in Sports, Part 1: Why it Matters (286 words)

© Dr. Giuseppe Spezzano C. Psych. for Family Anatomy, 2009. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Children, self-esteem, sports
Note: Posts on Family Anatomy are for education only, and are not intended to replace professional or medical advice. If you need to talk to someone about family or mental health issues, you can get a referral from your family doctor.

FA061 – Anatomy of Self-Esteem

Dr. Brian MacDonald C. Psych. — Tue, 26 May 2009 03:05:06 +0000

Doctors Brian and Giuseppe talk about self-esteem, and how to help your kids to feel good about themselves!

Website of the week: No Time for Flash Cards

Listen here:

You can get your free podcast subscription in iTunes. Vote for The Family Anatomy Podcast at Podcast Alley and for the blog at Blogger’s Choice!

Note: Posts on Family Anatomy are for education only. If you need to talk to someone about family or mental health issues, you can get a referral from your family doctor.

© Dr. Brian MacDonald C. Psych. for Family Anatomy, 2009. | Permalink | 2 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Parenting Tips, self-esteem
Note: Posts on Family Anatomy are for education only, and are not intended to replace professional or medical advice. If you need to talk to someone about family or mental health issues, you can get a referral from your family doctor.

Looking Back: Nostalgia's Effects on the Self

Dr. Giuseppe Spezzano C. Psych. — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 13:00:01 +0000

University of Southampton psychologist Constantine Sedikides and his colleagues conducted an experiment to look at the effects of nostalgia on people’s sense of loneliness and social support. Historically, nostalgia has often been viewed in a negative light. It has been seen as an a way of living in the past and as an impediment to hope and the future. However, Sedikides’ research suggests that nostalgia can have positive effects as well. In his study, researchers induced nostalgia in their participants by asking them to recall past events. The participants who did this reported higher self-esteem and increased feelings of being loved and protected by others. At the same time, the researchers found that people who reported feeling lonely were also more likely to report low levels of social support and more likely to engage in nostalgia. Considering these results as a whole, Sedikides and his colleagues speculate that nostalgia can help mitigate loneliness in people who have little social supports.

(...)
Read the rest of Looking Back: Nostalgia's Effects on the Self (135 words)

© Dr. Giuseppe Spezzano C. Psych. for Family Anatomy, 2009. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: loneliness, nostalgia, self-esteem, social support, well-being
Note: Posts on Family Anatomy are for education only, and are not intended to replace professional or medical advice. If you need to talk to someone about family or mental health issues, you can get a referral from your family doctor.

Getting overweight kids off the couch

Dr. Brian MacDonald C. Psych. — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 00:20:40 +0000

A study published online in the Journal of Pediatric Psychology indicates that exercise can increase self-esteem and reduce depressive symptoms in overweight 7 to 11 year-olds.

Researchers at the Medical College of Georgia randomly placed over 200 overweight kids into groups that continued their inactive lifestyle, or exercised after school for 20 or 40 minutes. The activities included basketball, soccer, running games, and jumping rope. This continued for about 3 months. Even though the children’s weight didn’t change much during the study, depressive symptoms decreased and self-esteem increased in the exercise groups. This was the first study to show a dose effect for exercise, meaning that more exercise had a greater impact.

(...)
Read the rest of Getting overweight kids off the couch (317 words)

© Dr. Brian MacDonald C. Psych. for Family Anatomy, 2009. | Permalink | One comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: All Ages, depression, exercise, self-esteem
Note: Posts on Family Anatomy are for education only, and are not intended to replace professional or medical advice. If you need to talk to someone about family or mental health issues, you can get a referral from your family doctor.

Florida becomes 35th state to enact anti-bullying law

Dr. Brian MacDonald C. Psych. — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 03:31:40 +0000

This year, Florida became the 35th state to enact anti-bullying legislation. The law dictates that school districts must submit policies to address bullying by December 1. One board’s proposed policy includes consequences for perpetrators of both real-world and cyber-bullying – repercussions that include counselling for both the perpetrators and the victims. Schools without approved programs will lose funding.

At Family Anatomy, we believe that bullying is a complex issue. Bullies need to be given consequences for their behaviour – and counselling is required. In fact, I think Doctors Giuseppe and Richard would agree that, if possible, family therapy would be especially recommended. Although we do not blame the victims for bullying, we believe that some characteristics make certain students more likely to be a target for bullies. Counselling for victims should include both assertiveness training and strategies to improve self-esteem.

You can read more here.

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© Dr. Brian MacDonald C. Psych. for Family Anatomy, 2008. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: anti-bullying, assertiveness, bullying, cyber-bullying, self-esteem
Note: Posts on Family Anatomy are for education only, and are not intended to replace professional or medical advice. If you need to talk to someone about family or mental health issues, you can get a referral from your family doctor.