Teen Self-Esteem Statistics

Optimism is a key element of self-esteem. 1 in 3 high school students in the USA experience persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness, an increase of 40% since 2009.

4 in 5 teenage girls are unhappy with their body and are afraid of becoming obese.

30% of teen boys want to gain weight to appear more ‘muscly’.

Teens with poor self-esteem are more likely to develop mental health issues such as anxiety and depression. One 2006 study found that teenagers with low self-esteem were 1.26 times more likely to develop depression by age 26 and 1.6 times more likely to develop anxiety.

A study by Trzesniewski et al., (2003) discovered that self-esteem tends to decline in early adolescence and recover in the middle and later stages of adolescence.

One study looked at self-esteem over four years in twelve to sixteen year olds. Adolescent girls were more likely to fall into the “steadily decreasing” self-esteem group. Boys were more likely to be in the “moderate and rising” self-esteem group.

A study of pre-university students in 2010 found a significant positive relationship between self-esteem and academic achievement in the teenage years.

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