Why Affirmations Don’t Work?

Download the Selfpause Affirmation App

It’s no secret that our society is obsessed with positivity. We’re constantly being bombarded with messages telling us to think positive, be positive, and act positive. And one of the most popular ways to supposed achieve this goal is through the use of affirmations. The idea behind affirmations is that if you tell yourself something often enough, you will eventually believe it and start acting accordingly. However, there is a growing body of evidence that suggests that affirmations may not be as effective as we think.

In one study, participants were divided into two groups. One group was asked to repeat the affirmation “I am a lovable person” several times a day for four weeks. The other group was not given any special instructions. At the end of the four weeks, both groups were asked to rate their self-esteem. The results showed that there was no difference between the two groups! This suggests that affirmations may not be effective in increasing self-esteem.

Other research has shown that affirmations can actually backfire and lead to negative consequences. For example, one study found that people who repeated the affirmation “I am a great driver” were more likely to take risks while driving! This is probably because they felt overconfident and believed that they didn’t need to be as careful as other drivers.