Self-affirmation theory, proposed by psychologist Claude Steele in 1988, says that reminding yourself of values you care about protects you when another part of your self-image is under threat. One of the best-known tests of the theory took only fifteen minutes.

The 15-minute values affirmation study

In 2006, the journal Science published an experiment that sounded too small to matter. Seventh graders spent fifteen minutes writing about a value that was important to them, such as family, music or friendship. In the control group, students wrote about a value that wasn’t important to them. Geoffrey Cohen and his colleagues then tracked the students’ grades over the semester.

For African American students, who faced negative stereotypes about their group’s ability, the short writing exercise measurably reduced the racial achievement gap in grades, and follow-up work found effects lasting for years in some groups. Fifteen minutes of writing about what mattered to them changed how these students did in school.

What is self-affirmation theory?

People want to see themselves as good and capable overall. When one part of that picture is threatened, reminding yourself of a different part you value makes you feel secure enough that the threat doesn’t grow. The affirmation doesn’t argue with the threat. It reminds you of the rest of who you are, so the threat matters less.

When values affirmations work best

Cohen and David Sherman’s 2014 review of the field describes how these small affirmations work best where they are needed most: under real pressure, at moments when a setback could otherwise start a downward spiral. Values-affirmation exercises have since been used for exams, health decisions and stress at work. The logic is the same each time: stop a bad spiral early, and the benefit grows over time the way the damage would have.

How to use values affirmations every day

This is why phrases about your values, like “My family matters more than this meeting,” often work better than phrases about outcomes. People who remember what they care about are harder to shake. For help choosing phrases, see how many affirmations to use.

A fifteen-minute essay is one way to remind yourself of your values. SOMOTE is another. It can show you a phrase about your values hundreds of times a day, on your computer and on your phone.