LESSON 3:

THE SELF AS A COGNITIVE CONSTRUCT

 LESSON OBJECTIVES

• At the end of the lesson, you should be able to:

1. enumerate the various psychological perspective and concepts about
the “self”
2. analyze the effects of various psychological factors in the formation of
the “self”; and
3. examine one “self” against the different perspective in this lesson and
various experiences of your classmates
 INTRODUCTION

- Psychology focuses on the individual, functions and processes

of the brain, the mind as well as the behaviors related to the
mental functions of a person
- using experimental and clinical observations and other
scientific techniques psychology have contributed to a lot of
perspectives about self
 ACTIVITY:
ANO AKO SA TINGIN KO AT TINGIN NG IBA?

• At the back of your paper, list down 5 qualities or things

around the human figures representing you that you think
defines who you are; (I AM __)
• Have 3 of your classmates write their first impression of you,
as well as how it changed.
 ANALYSIS

• Compare what you wrote about yourself to those written by your classmates;
• WHAT ASPECTS ARE SIMILAR (check) AND WHICH ARE NOT (x)?
• WHAT ASPECTS ARE SOMETIMES TRUE(//)?
• Count how many true, not true, and sometimes.
 THE SELF ACCORDING TO PSYCHOLOGISTS

• “the sense of personal identity and of who we are as individuals” -

(Jhaniani and Tarry, 2014)

• William James (1890) was one of the earliest psychologists to study the self
and he conceptualized the self as having two aspects– the “I” and the “me”

• “I” is the THINKING, ACTING, and FEELING self (Gleitman, Gross, and
Reisberg, 2011)

• “me” is the physical characteristics as well as psychological capabilities that

makes you who you are (Hogg, and Vaughan, 2010)
 THE SELF ACCORDING TO PSYCHOLOGISTS

• Carl Rogers (1959) theory of personality also used the same terms,
the “I” as the one who acts and decides while the “me” is what you
think or feel about yourself as an object (Gleitmann, Gross, and Reisberg, 2011)
• Identity is composed of one’s personal characteristics, social roles,
and responsibilities as well as affiliation that defines who one is.
(Elmore, Oyserman, and Smith, 2012)
• Self-concept is basically what comes to your mind when you are
asked about you are. (Elmore, Oyserman, and Smith, 2012)
 THE SELF ACCORDING TO PSYCHOLOGISTS

• Self, identity, and self-concept are NOT FIXED in one time frame.
• Your description in the past, present, and future about yourself
varies.
• They are ever changing at every moment;
• Think of malleable metal, strong and hard; think about water; but at
its core, it is still the same elements.
• Carl Rogers captured this idea in his concept of self-schema, or our own organized
system or collection of knowledge about who we are (Gleitman, Gross, and Reisberg, 2011)

HOBBIES

FAMILY SELF RELIGION

NATIONALITY
 THE SELF ACCORDING TO PSYCHOLOGISTS

• The schema is not limited to the example above. It may include your
interests, your work, your course, your age, your physical characteristics,
etc.
• As you grow and adapt to the changes around you, THEY ALSO
CHANGE;
• But they are not passive receivers, they actively shape and affect how you
see, think, and feel about things (Jhangians and Tarry, 2014)
 THE SELF ACCORDING TO PSYCHOLOGISTS

• when someone states your name, even he is not talking about you,
your attention is drawn to him;

• if you have a provincial language and you hear someone using it, it
catches your attention;

• if you consider yourself a book-lover, a bookstore may always entice

you out of other stores in a mall.
 THE SELF ACCORDING TO PSYCHOLOGISTS

• Theories generally see the self and identity as mental constructs

created and re-created in memory.

• Current researches point to the frontal lobe of the brain as the

specific area in the brain associated with processes concerning
the self

(Elmore, Oyserman, and Smith, 2012)

• The self, its mental processes, and one’s behavior as the results of the
interaction between the Id, the Ego, and Superego;

EGO
CONSCIOUS

PRECONSCIOUS
SUPEREGO
Id
UNCONSCIOUS

SIGMUND FREUD
 THREE PARTS OF THE MIND

• Id: Unconscious, instinctual drives, wants desire fulfilled, exist for pleasure not
realistic, not logical, pressure the mind to satisfy release, collection of urges,
sexuality and aggression
• Ego: Totally Id, think about things, experiences of the outside world, how
much urges are expressed, what is rational and realistic, will, balance the Id, and
Superego, use defense to avoid anxiety
• Superego: Conscience, collection of moral lessons we learn from the parents,
society and organized religion, moral perfection, too much freedom that can be
perfectionist, sense of guilt
 IMPORTANT EFFECTS OF THE ENVIRONMENT TO THE SELF

• The definitions of the self, social interaction always has a part to

play in who we are;
• This is not nature vs. nurture but instead a nature-and-nurture
perspective;
• Under the THEORY OF SYMBOLIC INTERACTIONISM, G.H.
Mead (1934) argued that the SELF is CREATED and DEVELOPED
through HUMAN INTERACTION.
 3 REASONS AS
SELF AND IDENTITY
AS SOCIAL PRODUCTS

- we do not create ourselves to out of nothing

- we need others (to affirm and reinforce who we think we are)

- what we think as important to us may also have been influenced

by what is important in our social or historical context
 SELF-AWARENESS

• Social interaction and group affiliation, therefore, are vital factors in creating our self-
concept especially in the aspect of providing us with our social identity or our
perception of who we are based on our membership to certain groups
(Think of studying with friends and studying on your own)

• Self-awareness: Carver and Scheier (1981) identified two types of self that we
can be aware of:
1. the private self or your internal standards and private thoughts and feelings
2. the public self or your public image commonly geared towards having a good
representation of yourself to others.
 SELF-AWARENESS AS SELF-SCHEMA

• The “actual” self is who you are at the moment

• The “ideal” self is who you like to be, and
• The “ought” self is who you think you should be.

(Higgins 1997 in Hogg and Vaughnn 2010)

• Self-awareness may be positive or negative depending on
the circumstances and your next course of action.

• Self-awareness can be too much that you are concerned

about being observed and criticized by others also known
as self-consciousness. (Jhangiani and Tarry 2014)
• Deindividuation or “the loss of individual self-awareness and
individual accountability in groups” (Jhangiani and Tarry, 2014)

• A lot of people will attune themselves with the emotions of

their group and because the large crowd also provides some
kind of anonymity, we may lessen our self-control and act in
ways that we will not do when we are alone.
• Our group identity and self-awareness also has a great
impact on our self-esteem, one of the common
concepts associated with the “self”

• It is defined as our own positive or negative

perception or evaluation of ourselves.
 SOCIAL COMPARISON THEORY

• We learn about ourselves, the appropriateness of our behaviors, as well as our social
status by comparing aspects of ourselves with other people. (Jhangani and Tarry 2014)
• The downward social comparison is the more common type of comparing ourselves
with others;
• We create a positive self-concept by comparing ourselves with those who are worse off
than us;
• By having the advantage, we are able to raise our self-esteem.
• Upward comparison is comparing ourselves with those who are better off than us.
• A lot of those who do this actually felt lower self-esteem as we highlight more of our
weakness or inequities.
 SELF-EVALUATION MAINTENANCE THEORY

• It states that we can feel threatened when someone outperforms us,

especially when a person is close to us, a friend or a family;
• In this case, we usually react in three ways:
1. We distance ourselves from that person or redefine our relationship with
them like resort to silent treatment, change of friends, while some may also
redefine by being closer with that person, hoping to give him/her
acknowledgment;
2. Reconsider the importance of the aspect or skill in which you were out-
performed like being told that drawing is not really for you and you will find
a hobby which you could excel, thus preserving your self-esteem.
 SELF-EVALUATION MAINTENANCE THEORY

• 3. Strengthen our resolve to improve that certain aspect of ourselves like after
quitting drawing, you might join seminars, practice more often, read books about
it, add some elements in your drawing that makes it unique.

• ACHIEVING YOUR GOAL THROUGH HARD WORK MAY

INCREASE YOUR SELF-ESTEEM TOO.
 NARCISSISM

• In attempt to increase or maintain self-esteem, some people become

narcissistic;
• “Trait characterized by characterized by overly high self-
esteem, self-admiration, and self-centeredness.” (Jhiangiani and
Tarry 2014)
• They are often charismatic because of how they take care of their
image;
• Taking care of that image includes their interpersonal relationships thus
they will try to look better partners, better acquaintances, as well as
people who will appreciate them a lot.
• Self-esteem is very important concept related to the self,
studies have shown that it only has correlation, not causality, to
positive outputs and outlook.
• It can be argued that high or healthy self-esteem may result to
an overall good personality but IT IS NOT, AND SHOULD
NOT BE, the ONLY SOURCE of a person’s HEALTHY
PERSPECTIVES OF HIMSELF OR HERSELF.
• People with self-esteem are commonly described as outgoing,
adventurous, and adaptable in a lot of situations.
• They also initiate activities and building relationship with
people;
• However, they may also dismiss other activities that do not
conform to their self-concept or boost their self-esteem;
• They may also be bullies and experiment on abusive behaviors
with drugs, alcohol, and sex (Jhiangani and Tarry 2014)
How to improve self-esteem
● Be kind to yourself.
● Try your best not to compare yourself to others.
● Exercise regularly to release endorphins and ‘happiness hormones’ like
dopamine and serotonin.
● Set realistic goals for yourself and check in with your progress regularly.
● Remember: everyone makes mistakes, so don’t beat yourself up when you do.
● Focus on what is within your control.
● Make time for your hobbies and the things you enjoy.
● Celebrate your victories, no matter how big or small.
● Be a good friend, and make time to spend with your loved ones.
● Surround yourself with supportive people.