Self-balancing trees are a type of data structure that automatically maintains a balanced height as elements are added or removed. This balancing ensures that operations like search, insert, and delete can be performed efficiently, typically in O(log n) time. Common examples of self-balancing trees include AVL trees and Red-Black trees. These trees adjust their structure through rotations and color changes to keep the tree balanced. By doing so, they prevent scenarios where the tree becomes too skewed, which would lead to slower performance. Self-balancing trees are widely used in databases and memory management systems for efficient data retrieval.