'affirmation-seeking' originates from the combination of 'affirmation' and 'seeking', where 'affirmation' comes from Latin 'affirmatio', meaning 'assertion' or 'confirmation', and 'seeking' is derived from Old English 'sēcan', meaning 'to look for'.

'affirmation' evolved from the Latin 'affirmatio' through Old French 'affirmacion', and 'seeking' from Old English 'sēcan'. The modern term 'affirmation-seeking' combines these elements to describe a behavior.

Initially, 'affirmation' meant 'assertion' or 'confirmation', but in this context, it evolved to mean 'approval'.