“Self-help” has come to describe a genre of books that allow a reader to access knowledge that they can apply to their own lives without frequent interventions from some sort of expert, such as a doctor or therapist. The genre has existed in some form for thousands of years before the invention of books, often taking the form of religious texts designed to help the believer refine their daily practice of worship and morality. 

The modern term “self-help” comes from an 1859 book of that title by Samuel Smiles. The book embodied the Victorian attitude of self-reliance and dedication to constant improvement. Whereas the term now refers to the specific practice of helping oneself, Smiles turned it into a philosophical statement. Helping the self was the most genuine act. He recommended that it be applied at every level, from the individual to the community to the nation. 

The self-help genre as it’s generally understood today took root in the United States after World War II. There are many theories for why this occurred, including the growth of the publishing industry to meet a massive body of consumers, the popularization of psychological theories imported from prewar European thinkers, and an increasing sense of isolation in a rapidly expanding world that left the self as the only reliable source of help.