Cooperation vs. Competition

     Cooperation is an important part to our well-being. Unfortunately it has been overcome by the need for competition by all ages. In an article by Perry W. Buffington, he describes the studies done by psychiatrists to back up this idea. I agree with the concept he is trying to get across and I believe that as adults, we should be enabling children to use this concept with one another. Even though competition may be good in small doses, the lack of cooperation among individuals is causing a huge decline in people's self-esteem and can have a negative effect on them both physically and psychologically.

 
 To be better is to work with others and not against them. This means supporting one another, working as a team and sharing leadership. All of these things in combination, can create a "better" being and can have a positive influence on others lives. As I stated, competition may be needed as well. Competition is the force that can drive people to work hard towards a goal. However, too much of this causes people to do whatever it takes to get there, even if it means stepping on other people to get there.


      Competition can decrease your self-esteem which can affect grades,our social interaction and our overall mental being whereas cooperation can raise this and create a mental "high" in which we feel good about ourselves and towards others. Games played by children should not be based on competition or include elimination. Working well together is what they should be based on. In order to create that drive caused by competition, you may want to play games with them where you can win or lose as a team. That way children are not winning or losing as an individual, but rather cooperating and working well together in order to win.

     The same goes for elite sports in school. It singles those out who may work well with others but not necessarily scoring goals or winning. Not making this team after trying so hard can harm their self esteem greatly. Any sports teams should be more about cooperating in order to do well AS A TEAM, even if you don't win.

     All together, cooperation is key in providing our children with a great future, not only for them but also for others. They will achieve higher grades in school, participate more in activities, be more social, and be happier on a day-to-day basis.  If we start out while they are young, they will mature with this concept and do very well throughout high school, university, in their career, and in life.

Try using these methods of cooperation today. 

It's never too late to start!