Within the specific field of confidence enhancement, many different schools of thought apply. Some therapists focus on specific triggers, and use techniques such as systematic desensitisation – also used for dealing with phobias – to assist clients in dealing with specific challenges.

Other therapists prefer a more open-ended approach, possibly using Eriksonian approaches or NLP to facilitate self-healing. Self esteem is acknowledged to be a particularly complex aspect of human psychology; accordingly, no single approach is guaranteed to work for every individual.

Cultural differences – for example, between different nationalities, or different social classes – are also significant factors although it must be acknowledged that these have barely been researched. Most of the present body of research relating to hypnosis is US-based, with much of the remainder being focused on the UK and Ireland. Outside the US and Europe, there is virtually no peer-reviewed research relating to hypnosis and hypnotherapy, which in turn means that comparative data across cultures is very thin on the ground.

Confidence training can bring benefits in many areas of human activity. For example, a self-confident individual is much more likely to be promoted early in his or her career, and to attain higher levels of pay and seniority. There has been much psychological research focused on the benefits accruing from high self esteem. Confident people report higher levels of happiness, more frequent and more satisfying sexual relations, and appear to live longer than matched individuals with lower levels of self confidence.

Why should this be? Arguments and opinions range from genetic factors through to variations in brain chemistry. For example, the well-documented ‘endorphin rush’ familiar to distance runners and some other athletes is one example of a positive feedback loop, in which a positive action leads to self-reinforcement. It may well be that similar control processes apply in the case of confidence development.