Building Self-Esteem of Female Youth in Group Counseling: A Review of Literature and Practice

Abstract

This paper reviews current research and practice of building self-esteem of female youth through group counseling. Young girls today face challenges that previous generations of females have never before encountered (Piper, 1994, p.12), which can have severe life effects. Emerging research indicates that although self-esteem is a difficult concept to measure, group counseling is an effective method for improving female youth’s self-esteem and related constructs (O’Dea & Abraham, 1999; Cappel, 1995). Groups focusing on diverse populations and areas for future research are also discussed