While the importance of having self-esteem is widely recognized, until recently, another key element of the self has been neglected—a sense of mattering to other people. It is argued in the current address that mattering is a unique and powerful psychological construct with great potential to improve the lives of people of various ages. The need to matter is a universal need and the feeling of being important and significant to others is central to subjective well-being. Mattering is discussed as double-edged in that mattering is highly protective as a source of growth and healing but the feeling of not mattering (i.e., anti-mattering) and the fear of not mattering are deleterious, especially among people who have been marginalized and mistreated. Evidence is summarized indicating that deficits in mattering are linked with key consequential outcomes at the individual level (i.e., depression, loneliness, social media addiction), relationship level, and societal level (i.e., delinquency, violence). The discussion concludes by considering mattering as a core source of strength or vulnerability in the lives of individuals and a vital component of the client-therapist relationship.
Gordon L. Flett, Ph.D., is a Professor Emeritus in the Department of Psychology at York University in Toronto, Canada, where he held a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Personality & Health for over two decades. He is also the former Associate Dean of Research and former Director of the LaMarsh Centre for Child and Youth Research in the Faculty of Health at York University. Currently, Dr. Flett is an Associate Editor of Canadian Psychology.
Dr. Flett is recognized globally for his seminal contributions to research and theory on the role of perfectionism in mental and physical health, and more recently, his contributions to the study and understanding of individual differences in mattering to others. Dr. Flett has published over 400 journal articles and chapters, as well as 14 books, including books in 2018 on the psychology of mattering and in 2022 on perfectionism in children and adolescents, and most recently, in 2025 on the need to matter among children and adolescents.
Dr. Flett is a member of the Canadian Psychological Association and a Fellow of the Association for Psychological Science, which has cited him earlier in his career as one of the top 25 most productive authors in psychology. Dr. Flett is also the co-creator of numerous self-report measures assessing perfectionism (e.g., the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale, the Child-Adolescent Perfectionism Scale), and mattering (e.g., Anti-Mattering Scale).
Dr. Flett has also served as a guest editor of multiple special issues on perfectionism and a recent special issue in 2022 on mattering. These special issues have appeared in the Journal of Rational-Emotive and Cognitive-Behavior Therapy, the Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment, and Psychology in the Schools.
Dr. Flett is extensively engaged in knowledge translation and exchange. His work has received widespread attention and has been the subject of numerous media stories, including coverage on CTV, CNN, and the BBC and in Maclean’s, the Globe and Mail, Scientific American, the Atlantic, the New York Times and the Washington Post. His engagement includes several podcast appearances and appearances on CBC Radio and National Public Radio.
Finally, reflecting his commitment to community issues. Dr. Flett has received the Community and Leadership Award, Toastmasters International, District 60. He has also received the City of Mississauga Certificate of Recognition for “Outstanding Commitment to the Community” and the Peel District School Board Award of Excellence for Community Service.
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