Understanding the Self

LECTURE / FIRST SEMESTER

INTRODUCTION TO SELF Determinants of Personality

UNDERSTANDING • Environmental Factors of Personality
o The surroundings of an individual
Personality compose the environmental factors of
• The etymological derivative of personality personality. This includes the
comes from the word “persona”, the theatrical neighborhood a person lives in, his school,
masks worn by Romans in Greek and Latin college, university and workplace.
drama. Personality also comes from the two Moreover, it also counts the social circle
Latin words “per” and “sonare”, which literally the individual has. Friends, parents,
means “to sound through”. colleagues, co-workers and bosses,
• Personality have no single definition since everybody plays a role as the
different personality theories have different determinants of personality.
views on how to define it. However, the • Biological Factors of Personality
commonly accepted definition of personality is 1) hereditary factors or genetic make-up of
that it is a relatively permanent traits and the person that inherited from their
unique characteristics that give both parents. This describes the tendency of the
consistency and individuality to a person’s person to appear and behave the way
behavior (Roberts & Mroczek, 2008). their parents are;
• Personality plays a key role in affecting how 2) physical features include the overall
people shape their lives. It involves the physical structure of a person: height,
complex relationship of people with their weight, color, sex, beauty and body
environment, how they cope and adjust language, etc. Most of the physical
through life, and how they respond to structures change from time to time, and
demands of physical and social challenges. so does the personality. With exercises,
• Personality is the overall pattern or integration cosmetics and surgeries, many physical
of a person’s structure, modes of behavior, features are changed, and therefore, the
attitudes, aptitudes, interests, intellectual personality of the individual also evolves;
abilities, and many other distinguishable and
personality traits. 3) brain. The preliminary results from the
• Personality is the conglomeration of the electrical stimulation of the brain (ESB)
following components: physical self, research gives indication that better
intelligence, character traits, attitudes, habits, understanding of human personality and
interest, personal discipline, moral values, behavior might come from the study of the
principles and philosophies of life. brain.
• Situational Factors of Personality
Factors to be considered in Personality o Although these factors do not literally
• Childhood experiences create and shape up an individual’s
• Interpersonal relationship personality, situational factors do alter
• Different Philosophical Orientations a person’s behavior and response from
• Unique Ways of Looking at the World time to time. The situational factors
• Data Chosen to Observe is Different can be commonly observed when a
(DPCCBU) person behaves contrastingly and
exhibits different traits and
characteristics.
Understanding the Self
LECTURE / FIRST SEMESTER

• Cultural Factors sociable they are, how friendly they are, and
o Culture is traditionally considered as how gregarious they are. Instead, because
the major determinants of an sociable people tend to be friendly and
individual’s personality. The culture gregarious, we can summarize this personality
largely determinants what a person is dimension with a single term. Someone who is
and what a person will learn. The sociable, friendly, and gregarious would
culture within a person is brought up, is typically be described as an “Extravert.” Once
very important determinant of we know she is an extravert, we can assume
behavior of a person. that she is sociable, friendly, and gregarious.
o Culture is complex of these belief,
values, and techniques for dealing with Personality Traits
the environment which are shared • Specific Behaviors
among contemporaries and o Individual behaviors or thoughts that
transmitted by one generation to the may or may not be characteristic of
next. person
• Habits/ Habitual Acts or Cognition
Personality Traits o Responses that occur under similar
• Personality traits reflect people’s characteristic conditions
patterns of thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. • Traits
• Personality traits imply consistency and o Important semi-permanent personality
stability—someone who scores high on a dispositions
specific trait like Extraversion is expected to be • Types or Superfactors
sociable in different situations and over time. o Made up of several inter-related traits
Thus, trait psychology rests on the idea that (Hans Eysenck)
people differ from one another in terms of
where they stand on a set of basic trait The Five-Factor Model of Personality
dimensions that persist over time and across The most widely accepted system to emerge from
situations. this approach was “The Big Five” or “Five- Factor
• The most widely used system of traits is called Model” (Goldberg, 1990; McCrae & John, 1992;
the Five-Factor Model. This system includes McCrae & Costa, 1987). The Big Five comprises five
five broad traits that can be remembered with major traits shown in the Figure 2 below. A way to
the acronym OCEAN: Openness, remember these five is with the acronym OCEAN
Conscientiousness, Extraversion, (O is for Openness; C is for Conscientiousness; E is
Agreeableness, and Neuroticism. for Extraversion; A is for Agreeableness; N is for
Neuroticism). The table below provides
descriptions of people who would score high and
The Five-Factor Model of Personality low on each of these traits.
• Research that used the lexical approach
showed that many of the personality
descriptors found in the dictionary do indeed
overlap. In other words, many of the words
that we use to describe people are synonyms.
• Thus, if we want to know what a person is like,
we do not necessarily need to ask how
Understanding the Self
LECTURE / FIRST SEMESTER

Description of Personality Traits Agreeableness Quickly and Agrees with

confidently other about
Big 5 Trait Definition
asserts own political
Openness The tendency to appreciate rights; irritable ; opinions; good-
new art, ideas, values, feelings, manipulative; natured;
and behaviors. uncooperative; forgiving:
Conscientiousness The tendency to be careful, on- rude gullible; helpful
time for appointments, to Neurotism Not getting Constantly
follow rules, and to be hard irritated by sall worrying about
working. annoyances; little things;
Extraversion The tendency to be talkative, calm, insecure;
sociable, and to enjoy others; unemotional; hypochondrical;
the tendency to have a hardy; secure; feeling
dominant style. self-satisfied inadequate
Agreeableness The tendency to agree and go
along with others rather than Who Am I?
to assert one owns opinions • Have you ever ask yourself the question, “Who
and choices. am I?”? Answering the question 'Who am I?'
Neurotism The tendency to be frequently can lead to a solid self-concept and self-
experience negative emotions understanding. For many people, answering
such as anger, worry, and
this question isn't very easy. For others, a solid
sadness, as well as being
understanding of who they are is a big part of
interpersonally sensitive.
their lives. Understanding of who you are as a
person is called self-concept and
Example behaviors for those scoring low and high
understanding what your motives are when
for the big 5 traits
you act is called self-understanding.
Big 5 Trait Example Behavior Example
for LOW Scorers Behavior for • In definition, self-concept is generally thought
HIGH Scorers of as our individual perceptions of our
Openness Prefers not to be Enjoys seeing behavior, abilities, and unique characteristics—
exposed to people with new a mental picture of who you are as a person.
alternative moral types of haircuts For example, beliefs such as "I am a good
systems; narrow and body
friend" or "I am a kind person" are part of an
interest; inartistic; piercing;
not analystical; curious;
overall self-concept.
down-to-earth imaginative; • Self-concept tends to be more malleable when
untraditional people are younger and still going through the
Conscientiousness Prefers spur-of- Never late for a process of self-discovery and identity
the-moment date; organized; formation. As people age, self-perceptions
action to hardworking;
become much more detailed and organized as
planning: neat,
people form a better idea of who they are and
unrealiable; persevering;
hedonistic; punctual; self- what is important to them.
careless; lax disciplined • According to the book Essential Social
Extraversion Preferring a quiet Being the life of Psychology by Richard Crisp and Rhiannon
evening reading to the party' Turner:
a loud party; active;
sober; aloof; optimistic; fun-
unenthusiastic loving;
affectionate
Understanding the Self
LECTURE / FIRST SEMESTER

• The individual self consists of attributes and • “When the body and soul are together, nature
personality traits that differentiate us from assigns our body to be a slave and to be ruled
other individuals. Examples include and the soul to be a ruler and master.”
introversion or extroversion. o The body was a reluctant slave and the
• The relational self is defined by our soul gets dragged with what is always
relationships with significant others. Examples changing, thus leaving the soul
include siblings, friends, and spouses. confused (Organ, 1986).
• The collective self reflects our membership in • The goal of life is to be happy.
social groups. Examples include British, • The virtuous man is a happy man and that
Republican, African-American, or gay. virtue alone is the one and only supreme good
that will secure his/her happiness.
o Virtue
THE SELF FROM VARIOUS ▪ Moral excellence
PERSPECTIVES • An individual is considered virtuous if his/her
character is made up of the moral qualities
Socrates that are accepted as virtues.
“I Know That I Don’t Know”
• Classical Greek philosopher credited as one of Plato
the founders of Western philosophy Balance between mind and body
• Known for his method of inquiry in testing “Good actions give strength to ourselves and
ideas called Socratic Method inspire good actions in others”
• The idea is tested by asking a series of • Student of Socrates.
questions to determine underlying beliefs • Philosophical method is Collection and Division
and the extent of knowledge to guide the o A method done by collecting all generic
person toward better understanding. ideas that seemed to have common
• Socratic Ideas: characteristics and then divided them
• The soul is immortal into different kinds until the subdivision
• The care of the soul is the task of of ideas became specific. Plato
philosophy • Wrote “Theory of Forms”
• Virtue is necessary to obtain happiness o Asserted that the physical world is not
• “The unexamined life is not worth living.” really the “real” world because the
• Self-knowledge (the examination of one’s ultimate reality exists beyond it.
self) and question about how one ought to • Soul
live one’s life are very important concerns o The most divine aspect of the human
because only by knowing yourself can you being.
hope to improve your life (Rappe, 1995) o 3 parts:
• Two Kinds of existence: ▪ Appetitive (sensual) –the
• Visible element that enjoys sensual
o Changes; the body experiences
• Invisible ▪ Rational (reasoning) –the
o Remains constant; the kind that is element that forbids the person
invisible to humans yet sensed and to enjoy sensual experiences.
understood by the mind (soul)
Understanding the Self
LECTURE / FIRST SEMESTER

▪ Spirited (feeling) –the element • Philosophical method is Hyperbolical/

that is inclined toward reason metaphysical doubt or methodological
but understand the demand of skepticism
passion o A systematic process of being skeptical
about the truth of one’s beliefs in order
St. Augustine to determine which beliefs could be
All knowledge leads to God ascertained as true.
• One of the Latin Fathers of the Church, one of • Doubt was a principal tool of disciplined
the Doctors of the Church and one of the most inquiry.
significant Christian thinkers. • “Cogito ergo sum” translated as “I think,
• Deeply influenced by Plato’s ideas and therefore I am.”
adopted Plato’s concept of self as an • Everything perceived by the senses could not
immaterial (but rational) soul. be used as proof of existence because human
• Asserted that “forms” were concepts existing senses could be fooled.
within the perfect and eternal God where the • There was only one thing we could be sure of in
soul belonged. this world, and that was everything that could
• The soul held the Truth and was capable of be doubted.
scientific thinking. • Self
• Self o Constant; it is not prone to change, and
o An inner, immaterial “I” that had self- it is not affected by time.
knowledge and self-awareness. o Only the immaterial soul remains the
• The human being is both the soul and body same throughout time
(possesses senses such as imagination, o The immaterial soul is the source of our
memory, reason and mind through which the identity.
soul experiences the world). • Cartesian Dualism
• 3 aspects of the self/soul: o The immaterial substance(soul)
o Able to be aware of itself possesses a body and is so intimately
o Recognizes itself as a holistic one bound by the self and forms a union
o Aware of its unity. with the body but still distinct from
• “Everything related to the physical world each other.
belongs to the physical body, and if a person
concerns himself/herself with this physical Distinctions between the soul and body
world…he will not be different from animals.”
• Man is similar to God as regards to his mind The Soul The Body
and its ability…incorrect usage of it would lose Conscious thinking Material substance that
his/her possibility to reach real and lasting substance that is changes through time
happiness unaffected by time
Known only to itself Can be doubted
Not made up of parts Made up of physical,
Rene Descartes
quantifiable divisible
“I Think, Therefore I Am”
parts
• Philosopher, mathematician, and scientist who
is considered as the father of modern Western
philosophy.
Understanding the Self
LECTURE / FIRST SEMESTER

John Locke o Ideas

Human mind at birth is a tabula rosa, which ▪ Perceptions that are less
means that knowledge is derived from experience forcible and lively
• Philosopher and physician, widely regarded as • Self
one of the most influential of Enlightenment o Nothing but a series of incoherent
thinkers. impressions received by the senses.
• Expanded Descartes’ definition of the self to o Does not exist because man’s
include the memories of thinking thing. perception are only active for as long
• Self as he/she is conscious.
o Identified with consciousness and o A passive observer; whereby the total
consists of sameness of consciousness. annihilation of the self comes at
• A person’s memories provide a continuity of “death.”
experience that allows him/her to identify
himself/herself as the same person over time. Immanuel Kant
• Defense of accountability REASON is the final authority of morality. Morality
o Self is the same self in the passing of is achieved only when there is absence of war
time, thus held accountable for past because of the result of enlightenment
behaviors he/she can only remember. • Considered the most influential thinker of the
Enlightenment era and one of the greatest
David Hume Western philosophers of all times.
All knowledge is derived from human senses • His works are especially those on
• Philosopher, historian and economist who is epistemology, aesthetics and ethics.
best known for his philosophical empiricism, • Self
skepticism, and naturalism. o Transcendental
▪ Related to spiritual or
nonphysical realm.
• Opponent of Descartes’ Rationalism • 2 Kinds of consciousness of self:
o Reason, rather than experience, is the o Consciousness of oneself and one’s
foundation of all knowledge. psychological states; and
• Empiricism o Consciousness of oneself and one’s
o The origin of all knowledge is sense states by performing acts of
experience. apperception.
• Bundle theory ▪ Apperception
o Described the self or person as a ▪ The mental process by which a
bundle or a collection of different person makes sense of an idea
perceptions that are moving in a very by assimilating it to the body of
fast and successive manner ---”self as ideas he or she already
a perpetual flux” possesses.
• The self is merely made up of successive • 2 components of the self:
impressions. o Inner self
• 2 divisions of mind’s perceptions: ▪ The self by which you are aware
o Impressions of the alterations in your own
▪ Perceptions that are the most state.
strong
Understanding the Self
LECTURE / FIRST SEMESTER

o Outer self • Existence of the unconscious as:

▪ Includes your senses and the o A repository for traumatic repressed
physical world. memories, and
o The source of anxiety-provoking drives
Sigmund Freud that is socially unacceptable to the
“Wish fulfillment is the road to the unconscious” individual.
• A neurologist and the founder of • Psychoanalytic Theory
psychoanalysis. o A personality theory based on the
o A clinical method for treating notion that an individual get motivated
psychopathology through dialogue by unseen forces, controlled by the
between a patient and a conscious and the rational thought.
psychoanalyst. • 3 parts of the psyche/mind:
• Developed psychoanalysis which answered • Id
questions about the human psyche. o Operates on the pleasure principle
o The totality of the human mind, both o Pleasure
conscious and unconscious ▪ Achievement of demands
o Unpleasant feeling/feeling of tension
• 3 levels of consciousness ▪ Denial of the desires/demands
• Conscious • Ego
o Awareness of present perceptions, o Operates according to the reality
feelings, thoughts, memories and principle
fantasies at any particular moment o Defense mechanisms
• Pre-conscious/ subconscious ▪ Use to ward off unpleasant
o Data that can readily be brought to feelings of anxiety due to the
consciousness. failure to use reality principle.
• Unconscious • Superego
o Data retained but not easily available o Operates according to the moral
to the individual’s conscious awareness principle
or scrutiny o 2 systems:
o Conscience- Guilt feeling
o Ideal self- the imaginary picture of how
you ought to be.

Gilbert Ryle
“I Act, therefore I Am”
• 20th Century British philosopher, and
professor who produced a critique on
Descartes’ idea that the mind is distinct from
the body.
• Rejected the notion that mental states are
separable from physical states.
• Category-mistake
o Distinction between mind and matter
• His points against Descartes theory are:
Understanding the Self
LECTURE / FIRST SEMESTER

o The relation between mind and body • The body is not a mere “house” where the
are not isolated processes mind resides, rather, it is through the lived
o Mental processes are intelligent acts, experienced of the body that you perceive, are
and are not distinct from each other. informed, and interact with the world.
o The operation of the mind is itself an • The body acts what the mind perceives as a
intelligent act. unified one
• Distinct self is not real.
• One’s sense of self is obtained through his/her SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE
behaviors and actions ABOUT THE SELF

Paul Churchland Sociology

“The physical brain and NOT the imaginary mind • Is the study of human social relationships and
gives us our sense of self” institutions.
• Philosopher known for his studies in • Exciting and illuminating field of study that
neurophilosophy and the philosophy of mind. analyzes and explains important matters in
• Philosophy stands on a materialistic view our personal lives, our communities, and the
o Nothing but matter exists. world.
o Viewed the immaterial, unchanging • Sociology’s purpose is about understanding
soul/self not existing because it cannot how human action and consciousness both
be experienced by the senses. shape and are shaped by surrounding cultural
• “Eliminative materialism” and social structures.
o People’s common-sense understanding
of the mind is false and certain classes At the personal level
of mental states do not exist. • sociology investigates the social causes
• The “sense of self” originated from the brain and consequences of such things as
itself and that self is a product of
romantic love, racial and gender identity,
electrochemical signals produced by the brain.
family conflict, deviant behavior, aging,

Maurice Merleau-Ponty and religious faith.

“Physical body is an important part of the self”
• Phenomenological philosopher and author. At the societal level
• Self • sociology examines and explains matters
o An “embodied subjectivity” like crime and law, poverty and wealth,
o Embodied
prejudice and discrimination, schools and
▪ To give a body (to an
education, business firms, urban
immaterial substance)
o Subjectivity community, and social movements.
▪ The state of being a subject At the global level
o Subject • sociology studies such phenomena as
▪ An entity that possesses population growth and migration, war and
conscious experiences and peace, and economic development.
affects some other entities
called as “object”
Understanding the Self
LECTURE / FIRST SEMESTER

The individual in modern society The Self and the Development of the Social World
What is the self? Recent studies, indicate that men and women in
• self is subject as well as object. their growth and development engage actively in
• The self as a subject includes the person’s the shaping of the self. The unending terrain of
experience of self as thinker, feeler and actor. metamorphosis of the self is mediated by
Thus, when I feel anger or think about the idea language. “Language as both a publicly shared
of freedom, it is “I” – the self as subject. and privately utilized symbol system is the site
• On the other hand, the self as object is the where the individual and the social make and
other person’s view of the self or “me”. remake each other.”
Psychologically Unhealthy Individuals
• Often lead rather inflexible lives that are Comparisons of different societies on how people
marked by an inability to choose new ways viewed self:
of reacting to their environment. • Pre-modern Society
Psychologically Healthy Individuals o Centered on survival for people
• Behave in diverse and flexible ways with behaved according to social rules and
styles of life that are complex, enriched, traditions while the family and
and changing. Healthy people see many environment provided supervision.
ways of striving for success and continually o Choosing where to live, what line of
seek to create new options for themselves. work to do, and even who to marry
(Adler- Individual Psychology) was limited.
• Modern Period
In cultural perspective o Individualism is dominant:
o French Anthropologist Marcel Mauss, explain o Development of one’ self-identity is
that every self has two faces: personne and central:
moi. o A person is free to choose where to live,
o Personne is composed of the social concepts of what to do, whom to be with.
what it means to be who he is. It has
something to do with what it means to live in a Effects of Modernization
particular institution, a particular family, a • Affects how an individual builds and develops
particular religion, a particular nationality, and his/her self-identity.
how to behave given expectations and • Improved people’s living conditions.
influences from others. • Decreased stability in tradition and traditional
o Moi refers to a person’s sense of who he is, his support systems
body and his basic identity, his biological
givenness. It is a person’s basic identity. Key Characteristics of Modernity
• Social constructionists argue for a merged • Industrialism
view of “the person ” and their “social context” o A social or economic system built on
where the boundaries of one cannot easily be manufacturing industries.
separated from the boundaries of the other.” • Capitalism
(Stevens 1996) o A production system in which a
• The self is capable of morphing and fitting itself country’s trade and industry are
into any circumstances it finds itself in. controlled by private owners for profit,
rather than by the state.
Understanding the Self
LECTURE / FIRST SEMESTER

• Institutions of surveillance Looking-Glass self

o Functions, in part, because of the • The looking-glass self describes the process
extensive collection, recording, storage, wherein individuals base their sense of self on
analysis, and application of information how they believe others view them. According
on individuals and groups in those to Self, Symbols, & Society, Cooley's theory is
societies as they go about their lives. notable because it suggests that self-concept
• Dynamism is built not in solitude, but rather within social
o The quality of being characterized by settings.
vigorous activity and progress.
• Charles Horton Cooley's concept of the
George Simmel “looking-glass self” involves three steps that
• A sociologist, philosopher, and a critic. are beneficial to understand the self and
• “People create social networks by joining society today: (1) how we imagine we appear
social groups” to others, (2) how we imagine others' thoughts
o Social Networks- ties or connections or judgments on how we appear, and (3)
that link you to your social groups. whether or not we change our appearance or
o Social group- having 2 or more people behavior based on how we think others view
interacting with one another, sharing us.
similar characteristics, and whose
members identify themselves as part of George Herbert Mead
the group. • A philosopher, sociologist and psychologist.
• Organic Social Group • Well known for his “Theory of Social Self”
o Naturally occurring and highly • Self
influenced by the family. o A product of social interactions and
o Organic motivation internalizing the external views along
▪ Joining groups because your with one’s personal view about self
family is also part of it. o Not present from birth rather it is
o Rootedness developed over time through social
▪ A positive effect of organic experiences and activities.
group.
• Rational Social Group • American philosopher and social theorist.
o Occurs in modern societies formed as • He is considered by many to be the father of
a matter of shared interest. the school of Symbolic Interactionism in
o Rational motivation sociology and social psychology.
▪ Joining rational social groups • He is well-known for his theory of the social
out of their free will. self, which is based on the central argument
that the self is a social emergent.
Charles Horton Cooley
• A sociologist best known for his concept of Passionate Curiosity
looking-glass self o Mead is intensely interested in the social basis
o Self of meaning, self, and action.
▪ Grows out of society’s o What is the self?
interpersonal interactions and o Why are humans the only animal to have a
the perceptions of others. self?
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o Where is meaning and how is it created? How The individual is required to internalize the roles of
are people able to act rather than react? all others who are involved with him or her in the
game and must comprehend the rules of the
Mead's Theory of the Self game.
The self, according to Mead, is made of two
components: the “I” and the “me.” The “me” Self according to Mead…
represents the expectations and attitudes of “We divide ourselves up in all sorts of different
others (the "generalized other") organized into a selves with reference to our acquaintances. We
social self. discuss politics with one and religion with another.
The individual defines his or her own behavior with There are all sorts of different selves answering to
reference to the generalized attitude of the social all sorts of different social reactions. It is the social
group(s) they occupy. When the individual can process itself that is responsible for the
view himself or herself from the standpoint of the appearance of the self; it is not there as a self
generalized other, self-consciousness in the full apart from this type of experience. A multiple
sense of the term is attained. From this standpoint, personality is in a certain sense normal, as I have
the generalized other (internalized in the “me”) is just pointed out”
the major instrument of social control, for it is the
mechanism by which the community exercises According to Mead…
control over the conduct of its individual members. “The self is something which has a development; it
Mead's Theory of the Self cont…
is not initially there, at, birth, but arises in the
The “I” is the response to the “me,” or the person’s
process of social experience and activity, that is
individuality. It is the essence of agency in human
develops in the given individual as a result of his
action. So, in effect, the "me" is the self as object,
relations to' that process as a "It/hole and to other
while the "I" is the self as subject.
individuals within that process. “
Role-taking is the key mechanism through which
Within Mead's theory, there are three activities
people develop a self and the capacity to be
through which the self is developed:
social, and it has a very specific definition:
• Language
• Play
“Role-taking is the process through which we place
• Game
our self in the position (or role) of another in order
• Language to see our own self.”
Allows individuals to take on the “role of the other”
and allows people to respond to his or her own 3 stages in self development
gestures in terms of the symbolized attitudes of • Language
others.
o Gives the individual the capacity to
• Play
express himself/herself.
Individuals take on the roles of other people and
• Play
pretend to be those other people in order to
express the expectations of significant others. This o Enables the individual to internalize
process of role-playing is key to the generation of others’ perspectives
self-consciousness and to the general • Game
development of the self. o Enables then to take into account
• Game societal rules and adheres to it.
Understanding the Self
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Lev Vygotsky • Gender is one of those loci of the self that is

• A Russian psychologist, developed a theory of subject to alteration, change, and
development known as the Sociocultural development.
Theory of Cognitive Development in the early • Our gender partly determines how we see
twentieth century. ourselves in the world.
• Society forces a particular identity unto us
Mead and Vygotsky depending on our sex and/or gender. (ex.
• For Mead and Vygotsky, the way that human Father, Mother, LGBT)
persons develops is with the use of language • The gendered self is then shaped within a
acquisition and interaction with others. particular context of time and space.
• For both of them, they treat the human mind • The sense of self that is being taught makes
as something that is made, constituted sure that the individual fits in a particular
through language as experienced in the environment. This is dangerous and
external world and as encountered in dialogs detrimental in the goal of truly finding one’s
with others. self, self-determination, and growth of the self.
• As young child internalizes values, norms, • Gender has to be personally discovered and
practices, and social beliefs and more through asserted and not dictated by culture and the
exposure to these dialogs that will eventually society.
become part of his individual world.
• For Mead, this takes place as a child assumes SELF AS PERCEIVED BY
the “other” through language and role-play. ANTHROPOLOGY
• For Vygotsky, a child internalizes real-life
dialogs that he had with others, with his family, Etymological Definition
his primary caregiver, or his playmates. “anthropos” (Greek) = “man”
“logos” (Greek) = “study”
Self in families Essential Definition
• Branch of knowledge which deals with the
• The impact of one’s family is still deemed as a
scientific study of man, his works, body,
given in understanding the self.
behavior and values within a specific time
• The kind of family that we are born in, the
and space.
resources available to us, and the kind of
development that we will have will certainly
“scientific”
affect us as we go through life.
• physical, subject to time and space
• Human persons learn the ways of living and
• human evolution
therefore their selfhood by being in a family.
• fossils of man
• geographical population processes of change
Without a family, biologically and sociologically, a
archeological and prehistoric
person may not even survive or become a human
person.

Gender and the Self

• Another important aspect of the self is gender.
Understanding the Self
LECTURE / FIRST SEMESTER

“…man’s works, body, behavior and values” The study of anthropology is often divided into four
subdisciplines: archaeology, biological
• Discovers when, where and why humans
anthropology, cultural, and linguistic anthropology.
appeared on earth
• Why there are variations in physical features
• Ancient customs and practices Self in Modern Anthropology
Katherine Ewing
• Anthropologist and professor
“Man” • Self as a unit but unitary
• Focal point of anthropological investigation o Encompasses the “physical organism
and analysis which possesses psychological
• Regardless of color, affiliation, belief, functioning and social attributes.
technology
• Joseph LeDoux
“Man” • Neuroscientist who conceptualized the implicit
– works and achievements and explicit aspects of the self.
o Explicit self – The self that a person is
• Arts consciously aware of.
• Architecture o Implicit self – Self that is not available in
• Technology one’s consciousness.
• Sculpture • Self is not static.
• Literature • Self as representation
• Music o Illusory
o Self representation
▪ Culturally shaped “self”
concepts that one applies to
ANTHROPOLOGY
oneself.
• How and why man have changed • Self embedded in culture
o Self is culturally shaped and infinitely
• How and why societies across culture and time
variable
have different customary ideas and practices o Construal
• Belief, politics, religion, social life, aesthetics, ▪ An interpretation of the
meaning of something.
health
o Independent construct
Anthropology is the study of people, past and ▪ The characteristic of
present, with a focus on understanding the human individualistic culture
condition both culturally and biologically. o Interdependent construct
▪ Typical of the collectivist culture
This joint emphasis sets anthropology apart from stressing the essential
other humanities and natural sciences. In a connection between the
general sense, anthropology is concerned with individual to other people,
determining what humans are, how they evolved,
and how they differ from one another.
Understanding the Self
LECTURE / FIRST SEMESTER

Catherine Raeff • People experience their selves in two senses.

• A developmental psychologist who The first is as an active agent who acts on the
believed that culture can influence how world as well as being influenced by that
people view: world. This type of self is usually referred to as
o Relationship the I, and focuses on how people experience
o Personality traits
themselves as doers.
o Achievement
o Expressing Emotions • The second is as an object of reflection and
evaluation. In this type of self, people turn their
attention to their physical and psychological
SELF ACCORDING TO PSYCHOLOGY
attributes to contemplate the constellation of
• The word psychology was formed skills, traits, attitudes, opinions, and feelings
by combining the Greek psychē (meaning that they may have.
“breath, principle of life, life, soul,”) with –logia
• This type of self is referred to as the me, and
(which comes from the Greek logos, meaning
focuses on how people observe themselves
“speech, word, reason”).
from the outside looking in, much like people
• It is the study of the mind, how it works, and monitor and contemplate the competence and
how it affects behavior. character of other people.

• It “embraces all aspects of the human The Self as Cognitive Construction

experience, from the functions of the brain to
• The cognitive aspect of the self is known as
the actions of nations, from child development
self-concept. Self-concept is defined as self-
to care for the aged.”
knowledge, a cognitive structure that includes
• A psychologist treats a patient through beliefs about personality traits, physical
psychotherapy, helping to relieve symptoms characteristics, abilities, values, goals, and
through behavioral change. The role of the roles, as well as the knowledge that an
psychiatrist, who is a medical doctor, focuses individual exist as individuals. As humans grow
more on prescribing medication and other and develop, self-concept becomes abstract
interventions to manage mental health and more complex.
conditions.

Self Definition
Jean Piaget
• In psychology, the notion of the self refers to a
• Swiss Clinical Psychologist who pioneered
person’s experience as a single, unitary,
the “The theory of Cognitive Development”
autonomous being that is separate from
o A progressive re-organization of
others, experienced with continuity through
mental processes resulting from
time and place. The experience of the self
biological maturation and
includes consciousness of one’s physicality as
environmental experience,
well as one’s inner character and emotional
life.
Understanding the Self
LECTURE / FIRST SEMESTER

• 4 Stages of Cognitive Development Susan Harter

• Psychologists, author and professor who
Stage Age Characteristic proposed Self Development Theory
Sensorimotor 0-2 • with primitive understanding o Self Concept
of cause and effect ▪ Domain specific evaluations of
relationship
the self.
• mastery of object permanence
(9 months)
• less egocentric • Self-concept stages of development
Preoperational 2-7 • child uses language and o Early Childhood
symbols
The child describes the self in terms of
• egocentrism is evident
• do not master “Principle od
• Physical attributes
Conservation • Material possessions
Concrete 7-11 • engage themselves with logical • Behaviors
Operational thinking and reasoning • Preferences
• with mastery of “Principle of
o Middle to later Childhood
Conservation” and “Principle
of Classification” The self is described in terms of
• mature understanding of • Trait-like constructs
cause and effect relationship o Adolescence
• with concrete understanding
• Stage where emergence of abstract
as to existence of
self-definition occur leading to
things/objects and events
Formal 12- • individuals begin to develop usage of abstract words hence
Operational above the ability to think about and adolescents are able to construct
even solve abstracts problems higher-order abstraction and
in a logical and systematic
capacity for introspection
manner
• can also deal with hypothetical
o Emerging Adults
concepts, • Conception of the self leads to
having a vision of “Positive Self”
3 Basic Components of Cognitive Theory
• Schemas/schemes William James
o Building blocks of knowledge • Known as the father of American Psychology
• Adaptation who proposed the 2 elements of Self: I self and
o Involves child’s learning processes to the Me self
meet situational demands • I-Self
o 2 processes used by individuals to o The pure ego; subjective self that is
adapt: aware of its own actions
▪ Assimilation – the application of o 4 Features:
previous concepts to new ▪ A sense of being the
concepts. agent/initiator of behavior
▪ Accommodation- this happens ▪ A sense of being unique
when people encounter new ▪ A sense of continuity
information. ▪ A sense of awareness about
• Stage of Cognitive Development being aware.
o children reflect through their increasing
thought processes
Understanding the Self
LECTURE / FIRST SEMESTER

• ME-Self (Empirical Self) Other Perspectives…

o The self that is object which can be
described in terms of physical features, Roy Baumeister’s Multiple versus Unified Selves
social role, thoughts, and emotions. • “Man has many social selves because if man
o Dimensions: has multiple selves, the concept of the self
▪ Material (physical appearance) loses its meaning”
▪ Social (social and interpersonal
skills) Gordon Allport’s Personality Trait Theory
▪ Spiritual (personality, • Asserted that every person possesses “traits”
character, and values) o A person’s essential characteristics
that never ever changes and sticks
Carl Rogers with him/her all his/her life.
• Proposed personality Development and Self-
concept. Eric Berne
o “All behavior is motivated by self- • Psychiatrist who developed Transactional
actualizing tendencies that drive you to Analysis
reach your full potential” o a technique to help people better
o The world a person exists in, is the understand their own and other’s
center of constant changes, and the behavior, especially interpersonal
person reacts to these changes. relationships.
o An individual forms a structure of the • 2 Notions about Transactional Analysis:
self or self-concept. o Personality has 3 parts called “ego
• 2 Categories of Self states”:
o Ideal Self – the person you would like o Parent – voice of authority
yourself to be o Adult – rational person
o Real Self – is the person you actually o Child with 3 ego states
are; how you behave right at the ▪ Natural Child- loves to play but
moment of a situation; and what you sensitive and vulnerable
are in reality. ▪ Little Professor- curious child
• The Importance of Alignment who wants to try everything
o Rogers emphasized the need to ▪ Adaptive Child- child who
consistency between the ideal and the reacts to the world
real self. • People communicate with one another
• Congruence assuming roles of any these ego states.
o An experience of a person has if the
ideal and real selves are very similar.
• Incongruence
o An experience a person has if there is a
great inconsistency between ideal and
real selves
Understanding the Self
LECTURE / FIRST SEMESTER

Gregg Henriques 4 categories on how the term self is used in

• Professor and author who proposed 3 domains contemporary western discussion:
of the self: Analytical - tendency to see reality as an
o Experiential Self – theater of aggregate of parts.
consciousness for it experience first its Monotheistic - tendency toward unitary
beingness. explanations of phenomena and a closed-system
o Private Self conscious – describes as view of the self as modeled after a unitary,
the narrator or interpreter. omnipotent power.
o Public Self-conscious – image that you Individualism - self-expression and self-
project in the public. actualization are important ways of establishing
who one is as well as satisfaction in the world.
Donald Woods Winnicott Materialistic/ Rationalistic – tends to discredit
• Pediatrician and psychoanalyst who explanations using analytic-deductive modes of
introduced the concept of True versus False thinking.
Selves.
o False Self Eastern Concept of the Self
▪ a defensive entity formed by Hinduism
the infants due to inadequate • Vedas
mothering or failures in o Earliest religious writings in the East
empathy; “mask” or “persona” which formed the Hindu Philosophy
o True Self and dharma (the principle of cosmic
▪ flourished in infancy when the order).
mother is responsive to the o “Brahman” is described as the true
needs or spontaneous nature of human which is a divine
expressions of the infant. universal consciousness encompassing
▪ has sense of integrity and of the universe.
connected wholeness.
Buddhism
• Composed of the teachings of Buddha.
THE SELF IN WESTERN AND • “self” is not an entity, a substance, or essence.
ORIENTAL / EASTERN THOUGHT Rather, it is a dynamic process.
• “Anatta”
Western Concept of the Self o A doctrine defined as “no-self or no-
Ancient Greece soul” emphasizing that a sense of
• Philosophers view humans as bearers of being a permanent, autonomous “self”
irreplaceable values. is an illusion.
Medieval Times
• Philosophers and Saints like Thomas Aquinas Confucianism
believed that the body constitutes • Confucius concept of personality is not
individuality. something that exists inherently but formed
Renaissance Thought through upbringing and the environment.
• Individual was its focus with Rene Descartes “I
think Therefore I am” as the epitome of the
Western idea of self.
Understanding the Self
LECTURE / FIRST SEMESTER

• Every person is born with 4 beginnings of the INDIVIDUALISTIC SELF

“pre-self” or a “potential self” which are the • Encourage asserting one’s goals and desires
perfection of the virtues that at the start were • Highly value independence and self-reliance
mere potentials. • Insist that interest of the individual should take
precedence over the state or a social group
• Strongly oppose external interference by
4 beginnings of the “pre-self” or a “potential self” society or institutions upon one’s own interests.
• Oriented around the individual that a person
heart of compassion that heart of righteousness that should be independent instead of having the
leads to Jen leads to Yi
mentality of identifying with a group.
means goodwill, sympathy means rightness and the
• In interpersonal relationships, they see each
toward others, politeness, respect of duty (respecting other as loosely linked
and generosity. one’s position as guardian • Value personal goals over group interests.
toward nature and • Emphasize personal achievements
humanity)
• Assess rationally both the beneficial and
heart of propriety that leads heart of wisdom that leads
to Li to Chih detrimental aspects of relationships with
others.
mean having the right to means wisdom which is
practice propriety in all that expressed by putting jen, yi, COLLECTIVE SELF
a person does and li into practice
• Represents the self in a collective view. People
in a collectivist culture:
Taoism
• Emphasize the interdependence and
• Rejects the hierarchical view of the self, society
harmonious relatedness with one another.
or cosmos.
• Gives importance in maintaining social
• Self is one of the countless manifestations of
networks, good relationships and in fulfilling
the Tao and an extension of the cosmos (the
obligations
universe seen as a well-ordered whole).
• For Chuang-tzu ( Zhuang Zhou), “The perfect
man has no self, the spiritual man has no
Closing the Gap
achievement, the true sage has no name.”
• Roy Baumeister proposed that self-concept could
• His idea of selfhood entails conscious self- be could be organized into 3 aspects:
transformation leading to a balance life in o Private
harmony with the nature and society. ▪ Refers to mental processes that
perceives one’s own traits or
Islamic Tradition behaviors(e.g. I am kind)
o Public
• self in Arabic word is “Nafs” (Holy Qur’an) ▪ Refers to the generalized view of
which pertains to the psyche(totality of the self such as the perception of how
conscious and unconscious human mind) or others view you (People think I
the soul. am kind)
• The nafs/self is something that has to be o Collective
▪ Refers to the view of self in a
nurtured and selfregulated to become “good”
collective concept (My family
or “evil” through its thoughts and actions. expects me to be kind)
• Self is both used in the individualistic and
collective sense.