Self-concept

Examples of Self-concept in the following topics:

• Rogers' Humanistic Theory of Personality

  • Carl Rogers' humanistic personality theory emphasizes the importance of the self-actualizing tendency in forming a self-concept.
  • As a result of their interactions with the environment and others, an individual forms a structure of the self or self-concept—an organized, fluid, conceptual pattern of concepts and values related to the self.
  • If they have a negative self-concept, they may feel unhappy with who they are.
  • We experience congruence when our thoughts about our real self and ideal self are very similar—in other words, when our self-concept is accurate.
  • These people would allow personality and self-concept to emanate from experience.

• Socioemotional Development in Adolescence

  • Three general approaches to understanding identity development include self-concept, sense of identity, and self-esteem.
  • Early in adolescence, cognitive developments result in greater self-awareness.
  • The recognition of inconsistencies in the self-concept is a common source of distress during these years; however, this distress may benefit adolescents by encouraging further development and refinement of their self-concept.
  • Unlike the conflicting aspects of self-concept, identity represents a coherent sense of self that is stable across circumstances and includes past experiences and future goals.
  • Self-esteem consists of one's thoughts and feelings about one's self-concept and identity.

• Self-Knowledge and Evaluating the Personality Perspective

  • An example of an internal factor is the concept of traits, or distinguishing qualities or characteristics of a person.
  • Three basic areas that are examined to address these research goals are traits, self-concept/self-knowledge, and situational influences.
  • Some researchers use notions such as self-concept, the looking-glass self, and the ideal self to understand individual ideas of self-knowledge.
  • Self-concept is the idea a person has of himself or herself.
  • Self-knowledge is a key component in personality theory.

• Humanistic Psychology

  • Humanistic psychology adopts a holistic view of human existence through explorations of meaning, human potential, and self-actualization.
  • It adopts a holistic approach to human existence through investigations of concepts such as meaning, values, freedom, tragedy, personal responsibility, human potential, spirituality, and self-actualization.
  • Humanism's major theorists were Abraham Maslow, Carl Rogers, Rollo May, and Clark Moustakas; it was also influenced by psychoanalytic theorists, including Wilhelm Reich, who discussed an essentially good, healthy core self, and Carl Gustav Jung, who emphasized the concept of archetypes.
  • Self-actualized people, he believed, have more of these peak experiences throughout a given day than others.
  • Humanistic psychology allows for a personality concept that is dynamic and fluid and accounts for much of the change a person experiences over a lifetime.

• Humanistic Therapy

  • Humanistic therapy helps individuals access and understand their feelings, gain a sense of meaning in life, and reach self-actualization.
  • It encourages viewing ourselves as a "whole person" greater than the sum of our parts and encourages self exploration rather than the study of behavior in other people.
  • The aim of humanistic therapy is to help the client develop a stronger, healthier sense of self, as well as access and understand their feelings to help gain a sense of meaning in life.
  • In order to help the client reach what Rogers and Maslow referred to as self-actualization, humanistic therapists help clients remove and replace the attitudes, behaviors, and beliefs that do not produce a positive state of being, and integrate the various components of their unique personalities so that each individual is more self-aware, mature, and authentic.
  • The term "actualizing tendency" was also coined by Rogers and was a concept that eventually led Maslow to study self-actualization as one of the needs of humans.

• Maslow's Humanistic Theory of Personality

  • Maslow's humanistic theory of personality states that people achieve their full potential by moving from basic needs to self-actualization.
  • The highest need for self-actualization represents the achievement of our fullest potential, and those individuals who finally achieved self-actualization were said to represent optimal psychological health and functioning.
  • Maslow viewed self-actualizers as the supreme achievers in the human race.
  • Most self-actualizers had a great sense of awareness, maintaining a near-constant enjoyment and awe of life.
  • Critics argue that this concept is considered relative to each culture and society and cannot be universally applied.

• Positive Psychology

  • The concept of client-centered therapy and the term "actualizing tendency" were both created by Rogers and influenced the later work of Abraham Maslow.
  • The next level of needs are esteem needs, which are concerned with gaining recognition and respect from others and self.
  • Once these four levels of needs are met, Maslow believed people turn toward what he called self-actualization.
  • According to Maslow's hierarchy of needs, self-actualization is the highest state a person can reach after all lower needs are met.
  • Maslow's research on self-actualization was a central component of both humanistic and positive psychology.

• Social Perception

  • Psychologist Leon Festinger proposed social comparison theory, which states that there is a drive within individuals to gain accurate self-evaluations.
  • Social perceptions of others are compared to self perceptions to give an individual a better understanding of where he or she falls in society.
  • Social comparison research has suggested that comparisons with others who are better off or superior, or an upward comparison, can lower self-regard.
  • However, comparing one's self to those who are worse off or inferior, a downward comparison, can elevate self-regard.
  • This is crucial to concepts such as empathy.

• Evaluating the Humanistic Perspective on Personality

  • The humanistic perspective of personality theory is a holistic psychological perspective that attributes human characteristics and actions to free will and an innate drive for self-actualization .
  • This allows for a personality concept that is dynamic and fluid and accounts for much of the change a person experiences over a lifetime.
  • Human self-actualization becomes the most meaningful drive a life can acquire.
  • Some argue that focusing on the self to such an extent leads to a lack of social functioning.

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