The effect of self-criticism on one's psychological state: A literature review

Abstract

Self-criticism is an insult or punishment that comes from oneself, when a person judges that they have not met the standards that have been set internally so that they have a mindset in response to perceived failures that can create a negation scheme that becomes the basis for depressive thinking. The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of self-criticism on a person's psychological condition. This study used the literature review method. The data for this study were sourced from national scientific journal articles obtained through Science Direct, Google Scholar, and Pubmed. This study found that self-criticism has been associated with self-harm, depression, psychopathology, and has also been directly linked to suicide. This study showed that self-criticism was associated with suicidality, depression, NSSI, relationship need satisfaction, anxiety, disordered eating, and pain response.

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 Corresponding author: Nabella Indra Putry Sukmawaty.
Copyright © 2023 Author(s) retain the copyright of this article. This article is published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Liscense 4.0.
The effect of self-criticism on one's psychological state: A literature review
Nabella Indra Putry Sukmawaty * and Dyah Ayu Retnowati
Midwifery student, Midwifery Study Program, Airlangga University, Indonesia.
World Journal of Advanced Research and Reviews, 2023, 20(02), 1050–1054
Publication history: Received on 11 October 2023; revised on 20 November 2023; accepted on 22 November 2023
Article DOI: https://doi.org/10.30574/wjarr.2023.20.2.2373
Abstract
Self-criticism is an insult or punishment that comes from oneself, when a person judges that they have not met the
standards that have been set internally so that they have a mindset in response to perceived failures that can create a
negation scheme that becomes the basis for depressive thinking. The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of
self-criticism on a person's psychological condition. This study used the literature review method. The data for this
study were sourced from national scientific journal articles obtained through Science Direct, Google Scholar, and
Pubmed. This study found that self-criticism has been associated with self-harm, depression, psychopathology, and has
also been directly linked to suicide. This study showed that self-criticism was associated with suicidality, depression,
NSSI, relationship need satisfaction, anxiety, disordered eating, and pain response.
Keywords: Self-criticism; Psychology; Depression; Suicide
1. Introduction
Self-criticism is an experience in which a person's self-evaluation and sense of self (internal world) become critical,
hostile, and persecuting even in a number of studies, self-criticism has been associated with self-harm, depression,
psychopathology and is also directly associated with suicide (1). Self-criticism is the insult or punishment that comes
from oneself, when a person judges that they have not met the standards that have been set internally so that they have
a pattern of thinking in response to perceived failures that can create negated schemas that form the basis of depressive
thinking (2). Self-criticism exerts high negative affect and low positive affect where in some cases clinical symptoms, for
example individuals who have high self-criticism interpret ordinary events such as receiving an A- on a lab report as
evidence of intellectual incompetence and lack of commitment to studies, thus turning uncomplicated events into
upsetting complications (3). As a second example, highly self-critical women have been found to engage in hostility in
conflictual interactions with their boyfriends, which in turn elicits more hostility from their partners (3). Individuals
who have high self-criticism tend to experience shame, guilt, and hopelessness which makes the individual more
vulnerable to depressive symptoms (4). Self-criticism poses a threat to the enactment of social motives such as self-
critical people being less satisfied in relationships, achieving lower employment status, and enjoying parenthood less
(4). With this in mind, it is important to discuss the effect of self-criticism on one's psychological state.
2. Material and methods
This study used the literature review method. The data for this study were sourced from national scientific journal
articles obtained through Science Direct, Google Scholar, and Pubmed using the keywords "Self-criticism," "Psychology,"
"Depression," "Suicide. The inclusion criteria for this study were titles that fit the research theme, namely the effect of
self-criticism on a person's psychological state and scientific articles published from 2018 to 2023 (the last five years).
Relevant research articles were identified using the literature review method, by comparing similar articles in their
research, especially those related to the influence of self-criticism on psychological conditions.

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3. Results and discussion
Based on the collected and analyzed articles, the findings are presented as follows:
Table 1 List of Articles
No.
Author
Research Title
Method
Result
1.
Catherine
O'Neil et al.
The relationship
between self-
criticism and
suicide probability
A correlation,
regression and
mediation
analysis was
undertaken.
Results demonstrated that self-attacking has a direct
relationship with suicide
probability, alongside established predictors;
entrapment and hopelessness.
Depressive symptomology was not found to be a
significant predictor of suicide
probability in this population.
Addressing particularly hostile forms of self-
criticism may be a promising area in
terms of future research and clinical practice (1).
2.
Catherine B.
Gittins and
aroline
Hunt.
Self-criticism and
self-esteem in early
adolescence: Do
they predict
depression?
cross-lagged
modelling
was used.
Results indicated that self-criticism and depressive
symptoms increased over the time period, while self-
esteem decreased, and these changes were all
related. Self-esteem predicted depressive symptoms
from Time 2 to Time 3, while depressive symptoms
predicted self-esteem from Time 1 to Time 2. Self-
criticism did not predict depressive symptoms, nor
did depressive symptoms predict self-criticism.
These links appeared largely independent of gender.
Self-esteem and depressive symptoms during the
early adolescent period thus appear to have a
somewhat reciprocal relation, while self-criticism
does not appear to predict the development of
depression (2).
3.
Laura M.
Nagy et al.
An experimental
investigation of the
effects of self-
criticism and self-
compassion on
implicit
associations with
non-suicidal self-
injury.
An experimental
investigation.
Results showed that participants in the self-criticism
induction experienced an increase in their implicit
associations with NSSI while implicit associations in
the self-compassion condition did not significantly
change. These results highlight the importance of
self-criticism in NSSI (5).
4.
Mary K.
Lear et al.
The influence of
self-criticism and
relationship
closeness on peer-
reported
relationship need
satisfaction.
The study design
was cross-
sectional.
Results suggest that close relationship partners of
highly self-critical individuals may not experience
optimal psychological need satisfaction, particularly
for relatedness needs, which may contextualize prior
findings of reduced social support among highly self-
critical individuals (6).
5.
Niyati
Thakur and
Nicola
Baumann.
Breaking the
anxious cycle of
self-criticism:
Action orientation
buffers the
detrimental effects
The study used
cross-sectional
data.
The relationship between self-critical style and
psychological symptoms was mediated by anxious
motive enactment. Action orientation moderated the
link between self-critical style and anxious motive
enactment and buffered the effects of a self-critical
style on both anxious motive enactment and
psychological symptoms (4).

World Journal of Advanced Research and Reviews, 2023, 20(02), 1050–1054
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of a self-critical
personality style.
6.
Tieying
Gong et al.
The associations
among self-
criticism,
hopelessness,
rumination, and
NSSI in adolescents:
A moderated
mediation model.
A cross-sectional
design.
Self-criticism was significantly associated with NSSI,
and this association was mediated by hopelessness.
Rumination strengthened the association between
self-criticism and hopelessness, as well as the
association between hopelessness and NSSI (7).
7.
Yossi Levi-
Belz and
Carmel
Blank.
The longitudinal
contribution of
prolonged grief to
depression and
suicide risk in the
aftermath of suicide
loss: The
moderating role of
self-criticism.
A longitudinal
design study.
A moderated mediation model shows that high self-
criticism intensified the relations between PG and
shame and between shame and depression and
suicide risk, above and beyond the contribution of
the longitudinal PG trajectory. Importantly, the
indirect effects of PG on both depression and suicide
risk via shame levels were found only among SLSs
with high levels of self-criticism (8).
8.
Rachel L.
Zelkowitz
and David
A. Cole
Self-criticism As a
Transdiagnostic
Process in
Nonsuicidal Self-
injury and
Disordered Eating:
Systematic Review
and Meta-Analysis
Systematic
Review and
Meta-Analysis.
Results showed equivalent, moderate-to-large
effects for the relation of self-criticism to NSSI (r =
.38; CI: .29 – .46) and DE (r = .40; CI: .34–.45). The
relation of NSSI to self-criticism generalized across
multiple potential moderators. DE behavior type
moderated the relation of self-criticism to DE, with a
stronger relation emerging for purging than
restriction (9).
9.
Andrew C.
Porter et al.
The Unique
Associations of Self-
Criticism and
Shame-Proneness
to Symptoms of
Disordered Eating
and Depression.
All analyses were
conducted via
Mplus using
maximum
likelihood
estimation.
Hypotheses were
tested via path
analysis.
Findings suggest self-criticism may have incremental
utility above-and-beyond shame-proneness as part
of a transdiagnostic underlying cognitive substrate
for depression and disordered eating (10).
10.
In participants with and without NSSI histories, self-
criticism was positively correlated with mood
improvements during pain. Thus, regardless of NSSI
history, self-criticism impacted emotional responses
to pain. Together, results suggest that self-criticism
may not only decrease an important NSSI barrier but
also enhance NSSI benefits, specifically leading to
more mood improvement during pain.
3.1. Self-Criticism and Suicide Probability
Suicide is a major societal problem that impacts individuals and members of the wider community with an increasing
incidence each year (1). Suicidal behavior refers to potentially self-harming actions where there is implicit or explicit
evidence that the person intends to end their life (1). Self-criticism is associated with a range of mental and mental
health disorders, such as eating disorders, social anxiety disorders, and problematic interpersonal relationships to the
point of increasing suicide risk as well as serving as a moderator that intensifies shame to higher levels of suicidal
ideation and behavior (8). Research suggests that one potential route to increasing the likelihood of suicide through
self-injury comes from research on childhood adversity and its impact on self-criticism and shame (1). In this study, it
was seen that depression and suicide risk were significantly and positively associated with self-criticism (8).
Kathryn R.
Fox
Self-Criticism
Impacts Emotional
Responses to Pain
Approx. 2 weeks
before the in-lab
visit, participants
completed a brief
online survey to
assess NSSI history
using the modified
SITBI.

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3.2. Self-Criticism and Depression
Self-criticism is a form of punishment given to oneself when one judges that they have not met internal standards with
this mindset occurring in response to perceived failures and forming the basis of depressive thinking (2). Self-criticism
is associated with a range of mental and mental health disorders, such as eating disorders, social anxiety disorder, and
problematic interpersonal relationships to depression (8). In this study self-criticism and shame proneness associated
with eating disorders and depression but when tested individually only self-criticism was associated with both (10).
Depressive symptoms and self-criticism increased significantly from 12 to 14 years of age which initially predicted
decreased self-esteem, but later, lower levels of self-esteem predicted increased depressive symptoms, which was
demonstrated through cross-lagged analysis (2). These findings ultimately support the possibility of a reciprocal
causality model although the pathway from self-esteem to depressive symptoms and vice versa for both where
depressed mood seems to influence how adolescents evaluate their own worth, and negative beliefs about oneself
overall seem to increase the likelihood of developing depressed mood (2).
3.3. Self-Criticism and NSSI
Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) or deliberate acts of bodily harm without a suicidal motive is a serious and prevalent
health issue with some studies finding that up to 35% of undergraduate students have self-harmed at least once in their
lives (5). This study found that hopelessness mediated the relationship between self-criticism and NSSI, and rumination
moderated the first and second stages of mediation, so that this association was stronger for adolescents with higher
rumination (7). This study showed that there was an association of self-criticism with NSSI but did not differ as a
function of age (adolescents versus adults), clinical status, choice of self-criticism measure, assessment of lifetime NSSI
versus last year's NSSI, and use of dichotomous versus continuous NSSI measures (9). Self-criticism has been shown to
have a strong association with self-harm where in this study participants who underwent self-criticism induction
experienced a significant increase in implicit identification with NSSI, while participants who underwent self-
compassion induction or neutral controls showed no change (5).
3.4. Self-Criticism and Relationship Need Satisfaction
In this study no evidence was found that self-criticism is directly related to need-satisfying peer relationships. However,
higher self-criticism decreased overall relationship need satisfaction among peers in closer relationships (6). The
significant interaction between self-criticism and relationship closeness predicting overall need satisfaction may
explain why this study did not observe the expected direct effect of self-criticism, as higher self-criticism may only
significantly dampen need satisfaction in closer relationships (6).
3.5. Self-Criticism and Anxious
Self-criticism is associated with higher implementation of anxiety motives and action orientation with lower
implementation of anxiety motives. The present study showed that the relationship between self-critical style and
enactment of anxiety motives was moderated by action orientation. In addition, enactment of anxious motives as a
mediator and action orientation as a moderator of this cycle. Action orientation is expected to buffer the detrimental
effects of self-criticism. Consistent with assumptions, our findings suggest that anxious motives partially mediate the
relationship between self-critical style and psychological symptoms . Furthermore, the relationship from self-critical
style through the enactment of anxious motives to psychological symptoms is moderated by action orientation (4).
3.6. Self-Criticism and Disordered Eating
Self-criticism may be related to disordered eating (DE) and depression and that self-critical cognitions are related to
shame (e.g., thoughts of worthlessness and inadequacy) may explain SP's association with disordered eating and
depressive symptoms. The findings are consistent with a model of of disordered eating and depression that suggests
patterns of maladaptive cognitions underlie (10). Researchers found evidence for the association of self-criticism across
different forms of disordered eating behaviour in both adolescents and adults. The relationship between self-criticism
and DE varied significantly from one form of DE to another (9). SC was uniquely associated with eating disorders and
depressive symptoms, controlling for shame-pronenes (SP). However, SP was not associated with disordered eating and
depressive symptoms when controlling for self-criticsm . In addition, self-criticsm accounted for the majority of the
association between disordered eating and depressive symptoms. SP and SC were significantly associated with eating
disorders and depressive symptoms when examined separately. When examined together, only self-criticsm remained
significantly associated with both outcomes (10).

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3.7. Self-Criticism and Disordered Eating
This study shows that self-criticism impacts the benefits and barriers to NSSI in that pain may be less for people who
have high levels of self-criticism, thus lowering the pain barrier to NSSI engagement. Self-criticism can alter mood
benefits of NSSI such that mood improves during the experience of the pain itself among people who are highly self-
critical individuals who engage in this behaviour (11).
4. Conclusion
Self-criticism is a self-inflicted humiliation or punishment, when a person judges that they have not met internally set
standards. In a number of studies, self-criticism has been associated with self-harm, depression, psychopathology, and
has also been directly linked to suicide. This study showed that self-criticism was associated with suicidality, depression,
NSSI, relationship need satisfaction, anxiety, disordered eating, and pain response.
Compliance with ethical standards
Acknowledgements
This article did not receive assistance from the government, private companies, or non-profit organization.
Disclosure of conflict of interest
No conflict of interest to be disclosed.
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