duffy/atwater © 2005 prentice hall chapter 4 seeking selfhood

Duffy/Atwater © 2005 Prentice Hall

CHAPTER 4

Seeking Selfhood


CHAPTER SUMMARY

What Is the Self-Concept?

Self-Image

Ideal Self

Multiple Selves


Chapter Summary Cont’d

Core Characteristics of the Self-Concept

Self-Consistency

Self-Esteem

Self-Enhancement and Self Verification


Chapter Summary Cont’d

The Self-Concept and Personal Growth

The Self You’d Like to Be

Our Social Selves

Learning from Criticism

Greater Self-Direction


What Is the Self-Concept

Introduction

Self-concept is the overall image or awareness we have of ourselves. It includes all those perceptions of “I” and “me”, together with the feelings, beliefs, and values associated with them.

Self-concept provides you with a personal identity or sense of who you are.

Most people actively manage their self-concepts so as to maintain a positive view of themselves.

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Introduction Cont’d

Most people adopt self-serving biases. That is, they make positive attributions about themselves.

Attribution is the process of ascribing the cause of some event.

Self-serving attribution means glorifying the self or conceiving of the self as causing the good outcomes that come to us.

Self-concept is comprised of many component, such as

Body image Ideal selfSelf-image Social self


Self-Image

Self-image is the self “I see myself as”.

In other words, it is the self you think you are.

We acquire many self-perceptions over the years that combine to make up our self-image.

Self-image is shaped by significant others, such as parents.

People with a sturdy self-image cope better than those without one.

We continually revise our self-image because of experiences.


Ideal Self

Ideal self is the self you would like to be, including your aspirations, moral ideals, and personal values.

The ideal self is substantially derived from the “shoulds” and “oughts” we learned as children.

If our ideal self is different from the way we believe others see us, the result often is social anxiety or extreme shyness that interferes with daily life.

In those instances where our ideals seem unattainable, it is wise to revise the ideal self.


Multiple SelvesAs mentioned earlier, the self is made up of multiple components derived from our experiences, interactions with others, successes, failures etc.

Thus, people from different cultures possess different self-concepts; culture is a veryinfluential factor in personal development.

Some people possess more differentiated and complex self-concepts than others.

People with too fragmented or incoherent self-concepts have difficulty adjusting to changes in circumstances.

In extreme cases such people may develop mental disorders.

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Core Characteristics of The Self-Concept

Self-Consistency

Self-consistency is our tendency to perceive our experiences in a manner consistent with our self-concept.

Our self-concept, however, is not always consistent with all of our experiences, because, as Carl Rogers stated, we have had conditions of worth placed on us.

Conditions of worth are conditions placed on us such that we only feel loved IF we meet the conditions.


Self-Consistency Cont’dThus, we begin to selectively allow only certain experiences into our reality.

Experiences that do not mesh with our learned self-concept may be seen as too threatening or might be distorted to fit our current reality.

Such denial of experiences is roughly comparable to what Freud called denial.

Another tactic for coping with experiences that don’t fit our self-concept is self-immunization.

Self-immunization involves trivializing threatening information by making the behavior seem less important.


Self-EsteemSelf-esteem is our evaluation of ourselves and the resulting feelings of worth associated with self-concept.

Self-esteem may be the most important component of self in terms of its affect on our mental health, coping abilities, and personal growth.

Our achievements, rejection by others, estimations of our intelligence, personal appearance, and other attributes influence our level of self-esteem.

As such, our overall self-esteem is a complex combination of factors.


Self-Esteem Cont’d

Most people tend to enjoy moderately high levels of self-esteem.

This is fortunate, because self-esteem exerts a powerful influence on expectations we have for ourselves.

People with high self-esteem:

Like what they see in the mirror Feel comfortable with themselves Regard failures as opportunities Give credit to others when it is due Make realistic demands of themselves Accept compliments graciously


People with low self-esteem:

Feel discontented most of the timeBrag about or apologize for their achievementsMake excuses for failuresTry to convert others to their viewpointsEnvy others or “put them down” with sarcasmExpect too much or too little of themselvesReject compliments or “qualify” themWithhold affection out of fear of being hurt

Fortunately, self-esteem is an acquired trait, so it can be modified or improved no matter how little you have to start with!


Self-Enhancement and Self-VerificationThere are two competing theories regarding feedback about the self:

Self-enhancement theory states that people will try to get positive feedback that affirms their own ideas about their positive qualities.

Self-verification theory stipulates that people want to preserve their own images (positive and negative) and therefore elicit feedback from others that verifies or confirms their own self-perceptions.

In summary, people generally prefer to hear personal feedback that is positive but also confirms their own self-perceptions.


Self-Enhancement and Self-Verification Cont’d

WOMEN AND MEN:

Gender role is a social and cultural expectation about what is appropriate for males or females.

Neither masculinity nor femininity per se contributes more to self-esteem.

Instead, if the attribute being judged is associated with one’s sex role, it is more crucial to judgments of self-worth.


WOMEN AND MEN CONT’D:

Thus, because the feminine sex role promotes social relationships, feminine women with many friends probably have higher esteem

The masculine sex role is more task-oriented, so masculine men who accomplish many tasks may have higher esteem than men who don’t.

Men’s and women’s self-esteem levels, therefore, are similar, according to research.


MINORITIES

Minority groups are relatively small or have less power as compared to the majority group.

The fastest growing minority in the United States is Hispanics. Other minority groups include African-Americans, Asians such as the Chinese and Japanese, as well as other groups.

Minorities use some of the same self-protections for maintaining self-esteem as do Whites.

For example, minorities sometimes attribute their failures to prejudice or discrimination.

Or minorities compare themselves to each other rather than to the White majority.


The Self-Concept and Personal Growth

The Self You’d Like to BeAs mentioned earlier, self concept is ever-evolving, because our self-image changes based on our experiences.

New friends, a different job, changes in family circumstances or finances – all have an impact on our self-concept.

Despite spontaneous change, Americans spend billions of dollars trying to improve themselves.

One promising and “free” method for changing yourself is visualizing and practicing being the self you’d like to be.


Our Social Selves

Social self refers to the impressions we think others have of us.

We have as many social selves as there are groups of people we know.

The spotlight effect, though, creates errors in our judgments of what others think of us; because of thiseffect, we overestimate the salience of our behaviors and our effects on others.

Thus, others shape our self-perceptions and our own self-perceptions shape what others think of us!


Learning from CriticismOf course, most people don’t like to be criticized.

We waste precious energy and feel unwelcome anxiety when we worry about criticism.

Accepting and managing criticism may provide valuable opportunities for personal growth.

Criticism can also provide new and needed information.

Criticisms that are repeated may have some kernel of truth to them and merit our attention.

If you think the criticism is worthy of consideration, instead of defending yourself, take positive steps toward self-change.


Greater Self-Direction

We also need to listen to ourselves. Underneath it all, we maybe asking “Who am I, really?”

As we understand who we are and become more comfortablewith ourselves, we proceed from “other-directedness” (letting others guide us) to “self-directedness” (creating our own future).

For example, as other-directed children become self-directed adolescents, they search for a self-identity. This search, guided by self-direction,may be what many adults perceive as negativity on the part of adolescents.

The later stages of self-fulfillment or self-actualization, bywhich our search for self is inspired, are filled with self-directedness.


Greater Self-Direction Cont’d

Individuals who are actualizing or are self-directed are MORE:

Open to their own experiences

Characterized by trust in themselves

Accepting of others


Individuals who are NOT self-directed are MORE:

Dependent on others and feel more obligated to them

Likely to seek approval from others rather than seek self-satisfaction

Unlikely to self-correct harmful behaviors and attitudes

Apt to feel a sense of self-alienation


Conclusion

Personal growth may be unsettling at times.

It involves moving away from what is familiar and comfortable.

Growth means that you see yourself as a different and evolving person.

Personal growth is a never-ending journey.

duffy/atwater © 2005 prentice hall chapter 4 seeking selfhood

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