From childhood, we have seen slim, pretty girls in movies. They have perfect skin, perfect hair, and perfect body type. Media and society have also hyped these traits in a girl. Therefore, a narrative has been set for women. There is a certain manner in which they have to behave, talk, and sit. We have seen such cases in our day-to-day life, where many girls are believed to be not so good because of their looks, and capabilities. If a girl is very skinny then, people will give her pieces of advice. If she is a heavier person, then negative remarks are made about her. All this makes girls conscious of their self-image. In this article, we will understand the meaning of self-image for girls.
What Is Self-Image?
Self-image is how individuals perceive themselves, and how they see themselves physically and mentally. This factor plays a crucial role in everyone’s life. When it comes to the meaning of self-image for girls, it holds a valuable essence about the way she see herself. A positive self-image about yourself is crucial to feeling confident and capable. Engaging in activities that encourage a positive self-image can also help to establish a strong personality. This can include positive self-talk, and spending time with people who support you such as your parents or friends.
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Building a positive self-image has many advantages in the development of a strong personality. When girls have a positive lookout on their self-image, then they will be able to focus more on their strengths and work on the negative ones. Moreover, they will be confident in making a decision and to take ownership of their life. This confidence will be evident when they put their opinion or ideas before the world without any hesitation. This optimistic attitude will help to maintain good mental health.
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Why Does Self-image Matter?
Now the question arises why does that self-image even matter? The presence of a self-image lets you interact with the world without any fear. Possessing a positive self-image has a direct link with the confidence, success, or self-esteem we gain in our lifetime.
Self-image Affects Girl’s Self-Esteem And Confidence
We shape our self-image based on many external factors like our society, the kind of people around us, the social and cultural norms, and belief systems. Girls are more vulnerable to these factors because of the expectations society has attached to them. In our country, still, these factors still affect many girls’ self-esteem and confidence. According to a report, around 90% of girls are rejected due to their skin color. This can severely affect their self-esteem, confidence, and mental health. Furthermore, it can lead them to create a negative cycle of emotions and start comparing themselves with others. Not only does it affect their personal life, but their professional life also gets affected like not feeling comfortable or confident during any social activities and any job interview. In many cases, it can lead them to develop stress, anxiety, and depression.
Therefore, girls should emphasize more on themselves and this can be achieved with the help of their parents, and friends. To accept themselves the way they are and be confident about that.
Self-image Influences Motivation And Relationships
The concept of self-image has a significant role in influencing motivation and relationships in a girl’s life. When girls have a positive self-image, they will feel good about themselves and as a result, they feel more motivated about their goals and more open to new challenges. Additionally, girls with a positive self-image tend to have more meaningful relationships. As it will help them to put forth their view comfortably and automatically fill the communication gap. Girls with strong self-images know what they want from a relationship and take their stand if they are treated unfairly.
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However, if we see the other side, girls who have a negative self-image about themselves will not be able to express their opinions and views and be subjected to manipulation in a relationship. All this leads them to stay in an unhealthy relationship where there is no respect for them, eventually creating a negative impact on their self-confidence, esteem, and respect. They will not feel motivated towards their goals and always have a fear while taking risks.
How Do Girls Develop Positive Self-Image?
To develop a positive, strong self-image in girls, they have to recognize their uniqueness and appreciate it. People around her can help to achieve this. Family, friends, and peer groups play a crucial role in this process. In this section, how these factors can help to build a strong self-image?
How Family Peer Groups Influence A Girl’s Image Through Feedback?
Family members and peer groups play a significant role in developing a strong self-image of a girl. Girls are more vulnerable to external issues and there is a standard set for girls in society, which can affect their self-image in many ways. Getting positive feedback from family members can bring a sense of positivity among girls. The negative criticism can hinder their performance and make them feel about themselves. Constructive criticism should be given to them so that it will help them in their later life.
Having a supportive peer is also important to build self-image. It will help girls to put their views and getting positive feedback from them can make them feel confident in themselves.
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How does Role Modeling Influence Self-Image?
Role models could be a great source to build a positive image of yourself. Acquiring positivity from role models can make girls stay positive about their bodies, looks, and self-care. This role model could be anyone. Doing conversation with the role models can help you to express yourself emotionally better and help them to develop their own identity. These role models can also help to understand the importance of setting boundaries being kind to yourself and not giving too much attention to negativity.
How Media Messages Impact Self-Images By Promoting Unrealistic Beauty Standards?
Since social media is accessible and people post most of life happening in it. One thing that we have seen on social media is there is always the good side and nobody posts their struggle or failures. Whatever we see is filtered out whether it is some news or pictures. When it comes to Beauty, we have seen actors having proper clean, healthy skin without any scars and this can lead to the development of an unrealistic beauty standard among girls. Media and social media promote this and it somehow affects every girl living in the society.
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However, one needs to understand that whatever we are seeing is coming to us with lots of filters. Considering the real will only harm our mental health and make us conscious about ourselves. The media should not be supporting this universal beauty standard to develop overall mental health and well-being.
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