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What science says about positive affirmations

Affirming yourself means reminding yourself of what matters to you and what you're worth. Since the late 1980s, psychology researchers have studied this very simple habit. Here is what they observed.

• Less stressPeople who took a moment to remind themselves of their values produced less cortisol, the stress hormone, when facing a stressful challenge.Creswell et al., Psychological Science, 2005
• The brain respondsIn brain imaging, affirming yourself activates areas linked to self-image and reward.Cascio et al., Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, 2016
• Easier to changePooling 144 experiments, researchers showed that affirming yourself helps adopt better habits. The effect is modest, but it shows up from one study to the next.Epton et al., Health Psychology, 2015
• Effects that lastA large research review notes progress at school, in health and in relationships, sometimes still visible months later.Cohen and Sherman, Annual Review of Psychology, 2014

These studies mostly involve exercises where people remind themselves of their values, and their effects vary from person to person. A thought rings truer when it feels like you: that's why your feed starts from the topics you choose. It is neither treatment nor medical advice.

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