"Instead, it evolved as something closer to a social instrument panel that offers a constant readout of where we stand with others and whether our place in the group feels secure. One influential account, sociometer theory (e.g. Leary et al., 1995), argues that self-esteem tracks perceived acceptance and rejection, quietly nudging us to protect our belonging. From an evolutionary standpoint, that makes sense given how for most of human history, being excluded was an existential threat."
"It rises when the social environment feels warm toward us and drops when the reception turns out too cold for our liking. The reading feels deeply personal, but it is not really measuring us as much as it is measuring our perception of how we are being perceived by others. A second-order signal complex enough to be worthy of a movie by Christopher Nolan, which explains why it can feel so immediate and yet so hard to grasp."
Self-esteem evolved as a social instrument that continuously signals one’s standing and group security rather than an internal truth meter. Sociometer theory frames self-esteem as tracking perceived acceptance and rejection and prompting protective behaviors toward belonging. The evolutionary logic roots self-esteem in ancestral risks associated with exclusion. Framing self-esteem as a signal reframes low self-esteem from a fixed diagnosis into actionable feedback. Metaphors such as a thermometer capture how social warmth raises self-esteem and perceived coldness lowers it. Self-evaluations are subjective and highly context-sensitive, shifting across social groups even when the person remains unchanged.
Read at Psychology Today
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