Cooperation vs Competition

I do believe that competition is over-emphasized in American Society. Dont get me

wrong I think that competition is a healthy part of life. Nobody would strive to be better without
the element of competition, however, there comes a time when competition can be taken to a
point that it becomes detrimental and cause low self-esteem. A prime example of having
competition being overly emphasized is demonstrated on the television show Dance Moms. Not
only is the dance instructor competitive but the mothers are constantly fighting and making unnecessary comments about each other and each-others children.
I feel that there are both disadvantages and advantages of such a competitive attitude. The
main advantage that I see is, like I mentioned above, competition drives people to become better
or at least want to become better. This applies not only to competition against others but
competition against ones-self. I have come to realize that I am a very competitive person, not so
much when it comes to competing with other people but when it comes to competing with me to
be the best me I can be. Another advantage is the life lessons that are taught. The biggest life
lesson that I can think of is that life is not always fair and doesnt always go as we would like
and we need to not let that stop us from trying again. There is always going to be someone out
there that may be a little better at something than we are and that doesnt mean that we are not
good. With that being said this is where the disadvantage of competition can rear its ugly head.
There are many out there that take competition so seriously that they believe if you are not first
or the best then you are a loser instilling low self-esteem. Dance Moms Abby Lee Miller is an
example of someone like this. She intentionally makes her students compete against each other
to be the best and shames/bullies those that do not come in first place. Bullying is a major
disadvantage of competition. I think the most common form of bullying as a result of overemphasized competition is both verbal and relational. The text outlines verbal bullying as
teasing, taunting, or name-calling and relational bullying as destroying peer acceptance and
friendship (Berger, 2014, p306).
There is one instance that I noticed with myself where competition interfered with a goal.
I was a dancer growing up and I participated in competitions. There were many times that I
wanted to be the absolute best and win every competition that I competed in. I would get so
nervous before a competition for fear that I would not come in first and be humiliated that I
would psych myself out and not perform to the best of my ability resulting in a loss (in my
opinion). There were times that I would win but then others that I wouldnt. I would get so
wrapped up in the fact that if I didnt win first place that I felt like I was no good and would let it
ruin my self-esteem. I do think that competition is emphasized in children; we encourage
children to be the best at whatever they do. A recommendation I would give to parents regarding
their childs participation in sports, extracurricular activities, or even school would be dont push
your child to be the best or number one, encourage them to be the best that they can be and do

the best that they can do. Put 100% effort into it and enjoy what you are doing, that is what
matters most.

Reference List
Berger, K. S. (2014). Invitation to the life span (2nd edition). New York, NY: Worth Publishers.