The UK is suffering from a major confidence crisis, with only one in ten adults feeling highly self-confident, and 70% battling against an ‘inner critic’ that’s damaging their self-esteem.

Arden University has launched the UK’s first confidence index, which aims to uncover the areas of the UK that are the most confident, how many of us have an inner critic and what impacts our confidence the most.

The research found that nearly two-thirds (62%) of adults lack confidence, with a third (32%) stating this affects their mental health and wellbeing. It also found that 21% of women severely lack confidence, compared to only 15% of men, and that 27% of women compare themselves to someone else on a daily basis. Women are also more likely to have an inner critic than men (75% compared to 65%).

For most of us, our self-confidence is sent on a downward trajectory as we reach school-leaving age – with 73% of adults developing an inner critic before they turn 17-years-old.

Dr Sophie Ward, a head of department for psychology at Arden University, commented on the research: “To halt the UK’s confidence crisis, we need to ask: where does it all go wrong? It seems that our inner critic tends to arise just as we expect to reach our most confident, faltering our self-esteem along the way.”

Dr Ward adds that an inner critic is your internal voice that may judge, criticise or undermine your self-worth and ability to move through life’s challenges.

“It can manifest as self-doubt, harsh judgement and perfectionism, which can then progress into depression or anxiety. It plays a big role in how we tackle and handle the challenges life throws at us, and if our inner critic is too loud, it can easily prevent us from achieving what we want and are more than capable of doing.”

1 in 5 women severely lack confidence, according to the UK’s first confidence index