Although it is not new, many specialists have been talking lately about the so-called “nice girl syndrome.” Sometimes, a character can cause you to harm yourself by avoiding conflict or seeking perfection.
We have all seen it at some point, perhaps in movies, series, books or even songs: a person who at some point stops thinking about others and the impression they generate on others to focus on themselves. Only lately it seems to have a name of its own: good girl syndrome.
This is a concept that, although not new, It began to be heard in the United States very frequently, being imported to other countries, including Spain.. Although it is easy to imagine what it consists of, its interest increases if you delve deeper into it. What is it really based on and how can it harm anyone?
What is good girl syndrome?
Basically, the psychological concept that describes a pattern of behavior in which a person tends to please others, at the expense of their own needs and desires. Lately, many psychologists and writers are using it quite frequently.
The origin of this behavior, if you want to call it that, is not new and usually has a defined origin: an excessive need for approval and acceptance from others. In many ways, it has similarities with another psychological phenomenon such as the inability to say “no.” There are many people who feel bad when they are forced to do it, and try to avoid it.
Most specialists who talk about good girl syndrome are clear about why it arises. It is usually linked, as a general rule, a low self-esteem and a lack of self-confidence. Or what amounts to the same thing, that they base their self-assessment on the impression they are capable of creating on others, with all that that entails on a day-to-day basis.
It is also common for those who suffer from this syndrome to seek to achieve a perfection that, logically, is impossible to achieve. That is to say, a level of self-demand at all levels that, in most cases, comes more from the person themselves than from the people around them. For this reason it is difficult to achieve goals, there is always the feeling of not being enough.
Avoid conflict
Although people often talk about the good girl syndrome when referring to women, many experts show that this is far from accurate. Rather It is a personality behavior or a determined characterand not so much a question of sexual gender. Although there may be logical variations, many men may experience it in a similar way.
What is always common, however, is a continued effort to avoid conflict. what does it mean exactly?
Well, those who suffer from the good girl syndrome they try not argue or confront anyone, which is not negative in itself, but it can become a bad habit when it goes against your own interests.
In short, something that has always existed, but that lately is perhaps defined more precisely. It is difficult to know if we are all born to be good or bad, but it is clear that, at least sometimes, it is essential to stand up.