Affirmations are also referred to in Neurolinguistic Programming (NLP), Neuro Associative Conditioning "NAC" as popularized by Anthony Robbins, and hypnosis.
A related belief is that a certain critical mass of people with a highly spiritual consciousness will bring about a sudden change in the whole population.
[6] For example, the acknowledgement "I bought a good pair of sneakers and some gym clothes" could complement the affirmation "I can reach my goal of losing 20 pounds."
[7] Some studies have found that self-affirmations, which involve writing about one's core values rather than repeating a positive self-statement, can improve performance under stress.
[8] An fMRI study in 2016 demonstrated the role of two reward and valuation brain regions (ventral striatum and ventromedial prefrontal cortex) as primary pathways associated with self-affirmation.