Your Anxious Child

In this podcast, I talked with Dr Gordon Flett about the psychology of mattering, a topic in which he has been a leader in the field. Mattering is a core component of one's self concept which refers to a genral sense of being significant, and valued in our relationships. A felt sense of mattering is a strongly protective factor against a variety stressors. Conversely, the absence of mattering has been associated with depression and suicidal ideation. A sense of mattering becomes especially relevant  during the adolescent years as fitting in with peers becomes so important The importance of mattering is an idea that immediately resonates with many people and is the  theme in movies such as It's a Wonderful Life and Mr Holland's Opus. Unfortunately, in keeping with the crisis in youth mental health, survey data suggest that about 30% of adolescents do not feel or are not certain that they matter to anyone. So this is obviously an important topic for us to consider Dr Flett has written two books on the psycholog