Average Woman Criticises Herself at Least Eight Times a Day

The average woman criticises herself at least eight times a day, new research reveals.

The research of 2,000 women discovered a worrying line of inner negativity with multiple criticisms per day - one in seven women said they criticising themselves regularly throughout their entire day.

Wanting to lose weight and other image-based criticisms were most prevalent, while not earning enough money and deliberately deflecting compliments were other common put-downs.

The study was conducted by Weight Watchers who worked with eight leading experts to explore the result of today's new pressures for modern women on the relationship they have with themselves- 89% of women compliment others in ways they would never compliment themselves.

The research found that evolving cultural conditions for women have triggered unkindness to self as a regular theme. Image-based criticisms were most prevalent as a result of Instagram and other social platforms being the force behind today's visually-driven culture.

This was followed by general lifestyle judgements such as not earning enough money or having the 'right' job, described in the study as a result of today's 'Hall of Mirrors Era', in which women are pressured by multiple options while being bombarded with images of perfection and achievement everywhere they look.

The findings also showed that women begin berating themselves almost straight away each day, with almost half of those surveyed (46%) admitting to criticising themselves at least once before 9:30am.

Alongside frequent self-criticisms, the study found that almost half of those surveyed (42 per cent) admitted to never complimenting themselves, while the remainder gave themselves a positive thought or 'pat on the back' just once a day.

Commenting on the findings, Zoe Griffiths, Head of Public Health and Programme at Weight Watchers, said: "Today's hectic and visually-driven world has meant that we're seeing a rise in women being self-critical, from the way they look to the way they feel at work.

"Our research has shown that being unkind to ourselves has been an underlying theme for women for many years, but a set of very modern cultural conditions have increased the intensity of this unkindness which are hard to avoid.

"At Weight Watchers we know that to adopt a healthy lifestyle it is important to build a better relationship with yourself in order to make a positive change."

This tendency for women to avoid giving any sort of complement to themselves was described by the study's cultural experts as a form of self-diminishment; evidence has shown that women in particular today use language to minimise themselves and their ideas and apologise more frequently for their actions.

Bursts of negative thoughts towards themselves are also far more frequent in front of the mirror or when out clothes shopping than in any other area of life, and a worrying 60 per cent of women admitted to having days where they felt they criticised themselves constantly throughout the day.

Zoe Griffiths added: "We wanted to explore what it truly means to have a strong relationship with yourself. We understand that the way people feel about their body image extends beyond the number on the scale, so our new approach to weight management encourages women to feel empowered to lead healthier lives without focusing purely on weight and to build a better relationship between mind and body."

This Weight Watchers research has been conducted as part of #WomanKind, a nationwide campaign that explores why modern women are unkind to themselves and how they can counter this cultural habit, making healthier choices and building better relationships with themselves.

For the full report or more information visit https://www.weightwatchers.com/uk/womankind

AREAS A WOMAN IS MOST SELF-CRITICAL

Appearance

Relationship

A WOMAN'S 2O MOST COMMON CRITICISMS OF HERSELF

You're too fat/overweight

Your hair is a mess

Your belly looks big

You don't do enough exercise

Feeling scruffy next to other women

Not earning enough money

You say you are having a 'fat day'

Not wearing certain items of clothing because you think you can't pull it off

You wish you were as photogenic as other women on social media

You deflect compliments by saying something negative about yourself

You worry people are talking about you behind your back

Feeling underdressed

I'm not stylish enough

You don't have sex with your partner enough

You aren't as creative as other women

Your bum looks big

You aren't as organised as other women

You don't spend as much time with your friends as you should

You're not wearing enough make-up

You aren't attractive to your partner

ENDS