Middle school girls' self-confidence increases - but feels worse in high school

Psychology researchers in Lund have compared how students in middle and high school value themselves with a difference of thirty years.

Difference boys and girls

In 1983, a study was done on the self - image of primary school students.

At that time, just over 3,000 students participated.

In 2013, the study was redone, with 1,300 participants.

The result surprised.

- The students in primary school had increased a lot in how they valued themselves.

They think they are better at school, they like their bodies better and are mentally more stable.

The girls also valued themselves higher than the boys and that is quite unusual, says Eva Hoff, associate professor of psychology at Lund University.

The data has now been compiled and published.

- I wanted to access the 30-year comparison and the IT generation's answers are included, says Eva Hoff.

She says that the results make it interesting to follow up with new research.

The girls' self-esteem plummets in high school

That self-esteem declines when children become teenagers and start high school was expected.

But the fact that girls today feel much worse in high school compared to middle school still surprised Eva Hoff.

- Why girls feel worse today than in 1983 when we have come so far with gender equality work, you can really wonder.

It is thought that the girls have good conditions because they feel so good in middle school.

A partial explanation may be that the beauty ideal has become even more skewed and that you are exposed to them via social media.

- But I have to give social media cred as well, because it is not just skewed ideals that are presented today.

In recent years, there has been a counter-ideal where women with normal bodies have also appeared.

Several things have changed in 30 years

The differences between 1983 and 2013 are large, especially when it comes to raising children, how you feel at school and gender equality work.

That could explain why middle school girls value themselves so highly.

- I think you can think about how to support girls during the high school years so that they become a little more critical and understand how their bodies are actually practical and good to have as they are, says Eva Hoff.