Self-criticism

Self-criticism involves how an individual evaluates his or her self. Self-criticism is typically studied and discussed as a negative personality trait in which a person has a disrupted self identity. The opposite of self-criticism would be someone who has a coherent, comprehensive, and generally positive self-identity. Self-criticism is often associated with Major Depressive Disorder. Some theorists define self-criticism as a mark of a certain type of depression (introjective depression), and in general people with depression tend to be more self critical than those without depression. People with depression are typically higher on self-criticism than people without depression, and even after depressive episodes they will continue to display self-critical personalities. Much of the scientific focus on self-criticism is because of its association with depression. Self-criticism is therefore not only an important facet of personality psychology, but is intimately tied to depression. Self-criticism is often a part of the experience of depression, and a focus on this personality trait could improve how we deal with and treat that disorder.

Sidney Blatt has proposed a theory of personality which focuses on self-criticism and dependency. Blatt's theory is significant because he evaluates dimensions of personality as they relate to psychopathology and therapy. According to Blatt, personality characteristics affect our experience of depression, and are rooted in the development of our interpersonal interactions and self-identity. He theorizes that personality can be understood in terms of two distinct dimensions - interpersonal relatedness and self-definition. These two dimensions not only represent personality characteristics, but are products of a lifelong developmental process. Disruption in self-definition or identity leads to self-criticism, and disruption in relatedness leads to dependency. Zuroff (2016) found that self-criticism showed stability across time both as a personality trait and as an internal state. Such a finding is important as it supports the fact that self-criticism can be measured in the same manner as other personality traits.

Similar to Blatt's two personality dimensions, Aaron Beck (1983) defines social dependency and autonomy as dimensions of personality that are relevant for depression. Autonomy refers to how much the person relies on "preserving and increasing his independence, mobility, and personal rights." Furthermore, self-criticism involves holding oneself responsible for any past or present failures. Someone who is a self-critic will attribute negative events as a result of deficiencies in their own character or performance. The personality characteristics that Beck describes as self-critical are usually negative for the person experiencing them. His description of their experience with self-criticism as a personality characteristic is therefore important because it will be similar to their experience of depression.

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