Analyzing one's own behavior can be either beneficial or detrimental to one's mental health depending on the method involved.
If we seek to condemn ourselves then we are more likely to analyze only that behavior of ours which is questionable. Hence we may fall into a cycle of guilt and punishment by filtering out only that behavior that conforms to this opinion of ourselves. Many studies of depression show that a depressed individual often accesses more negative memories than positive ones.
But if we engage by analyzing our behavior as a whole, this can be rewarding if we view it as a chance to learn and to grow without condemning ourselves. That said that level of self-awareness might be quite rare.
That's an interesting point.
Analyzing one's own behavior can be either beneficial or detrimental to one's mental health depending on the method involved.
If we seek to condemn ourselves then we are more likely to analyze only that behavior of ours which is questionable. Hence we may fall into a cycle of guilt and punishment by filtering out only that behavior that conforms to this opinion of ourselves. Many studies of depression show that a depressed individual often accesses more negative memories than positive ones.
But if we engage by analyzing our behavior as a whole, this can be rewarding if we view it as a chance to learn and to grow without condemning ourselves. That said that level of self-awareness might be quite rare.