Lesson 3: Self as Cognitive Construct

In confidence or in an attempt to avoid further analytical discussions, a lot of

people say, "I am who I am" yet, this statement still begs the question, "if you are who
you are, then who are you that makes you who you are?"

As mentioned earlier, there are various definitions of the "self" and other similar
or interchangeable concepts in psychology simply put, "self" is "the sense of personal
identity and of who we are as individuals (Jhangiani and Tarry 2014)."

William James (1890) was one of the earliest psychologists to study the self and
conceptualized the self as having two aspects the "I" and the "me".

The "I" is the thinking, acting, and feeling self (Gleitman, Gross, and Reisburg
2011; Hogg, and Vaughan 2010). The "me" on the other hand, is the physical
characteristics as well as psychological capabilities that makes who you are (Gleitman,
Gross, and Reisburg 2011; Hogg and Vaughan 2010). Carl Rogers's (1959) theory of
personality also used the same terms, the "I" as the one who acts and decides while tha
"me" is what you think or feel about yourself as an object (Gleitman,Gross and Reisburg
2011).

Other concept similar to self are IDENTITY is composed of personal

characteristics, social roles, and responsibilities, as well as affiliations that define who
one is (Oyserman, Elmore, and Smith 2012).

Self-concept is what basically comes to your mind when you are asked about
who you are (Oyserman, Elmore, and Smith 2012). Self-identity and self-concept are
not fixed in on-e time frame, and they are not fixed for life nor are they ever-changing at 3
every moment.
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Carl Rogers captured this idea in his concept of self-schema or our organized JA
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system or collection of knowledge about who we are (Gleitman, Gross, and Reisberg E
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2011; jhangaini and Tarry 2014). Imagine an organized list or diagram similar to the one .C
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 Hobbies

Family SELF Religion

Nationality

It may also include your interest, work, course, age, name, and physical
characteristics, among others. 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.

Theories generally see the self and identity as mental construct created and
recreated in memory (Oyserman, Elmore, and Smith 2012). Current researches point to
the frontal lobe of the brain as the specific area in the brain associated with the
processes concerning the self.

Several psychologist, especially during the fields earlier development, followed

this trend of thought, looking deeper into the mind of the person to theorize about the
self, identity, self-concept, and in turn, one's personality.

The most influential of them is SIGMUND FREUD. Basically, Freud saw the self
its mental processes and ones behavior as the result of the interaction between the I.D,
EGO and the SUPEREGO.
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As in the above mentioned definitions of the self, social interaction always has a 2eg
part to play in who we think we are. This is not nature vs. Nurture but instead a nature- aP
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and--nurture perspective. JA
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Three reasons why self and identity are social products: IC
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1. We do not create ourselves out of nothing. E
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2. Whether you like to admit it or not, we actually needs others to affirm and y
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reinforce who we think we are, we also need them as reference points about our d
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3. What we think is important in our social or historical context.

Two types of self that we can be aware: the private self or your internal
standards and private thoughts and feelings. The public self or your public image
commonly geared toward having a good presentation of yourself to others (Hogg and
Vaughan 2010)

Self-awareness there are times, however, when we are aware of our

selfconcepts also present us with at least three other self-schema the:

ACTUAL, IDEAL, and OUGHT SELF.

ACTUAL SELF is who you are at the moment
IDEAL SELF is who you like to be.
OUGHT SELF is who you think you should be
SELF- AWARENESS may be positive or negative depending on the
circumstances and our next course of action. It can keep you doing something
dangerous. It can be too much that we are concerned about being observed and
criticized by others. It is also known as self-consciousness (Jhangiani and Tarry
2014).
At other times, especially with large crowds, we may experience de individuation
or "the loss of individual self-awareness and individual accountability in groups. 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 define our
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own positive or negative perception or evaluation of ourselves (jhangiani, And 2eg
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Tarry 2014; Gleitman, Gross, and Reisberg 2011).
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One of the ways in which our social relationship affects our self-esteem is
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through social comparison. According to the social comparison theory, we learn E
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about ourselves, the appropriateness of our behaviors, as well as our social .C
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status by comparing aspects of ourselves with other people (Jhangiani, and U
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Tarry 2014; Hogg and Vaughan 2010).
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The DOWNWARD SOCIAL COMPARISON is the more common type of d
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comparing ourselves with others. As the name implies, we create a positive self- p a
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concept by comparing ourselves with those who are worse off than us.
(Jhangiani and Tarry 2014). By having the advantage, we can raise our self-
esteem.
The UPWARD SOCIAL COMPARISON which is comparing ourselves with those
who are better off than us (jhangiani, and Tarry 2014). While it can be a form of
motivation for some, a lot of those who do this actually felt lower self-esteem as
they highlight more of their weakness or inequities.
SOCIAL COMPARISON also entails what is called self-evaluation maintenance
theory, which states that we can feel threatened when someone out-performs us,
especially when that person is close to us (i.e., a friend or family).
Take note that this occurs not only between individuals but also among groups.
Thus, if a person‟s group is performing better and is acknowledged more than
the group, then his self-esteem may also be heightened.
Such social comparison also entails what is called self-evaluation maintenance
theory, which states that we can feel threatened when someone out-performs us,
especially when that person is close to us. In this case, we usually react in three
ways:
FIRST, we distance ourselves from that person or redefine our relationship with
them. Some will resort to the silent treatment, change of friends, while some may
also redefine by being closer to that person, hoping that some association may
give him a certain kind of acknowledgement also.
SECOND, we may also reconsider the importance of the aspect or skill in which
you were out performed.
LASTLY, we may also strengthen our resolve to improve that certain aspect of
ourselves. 6
However, in the attempt to increase or maintain self-esteem, some people
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become narcissistic. NARCISSISM is a "trait characterized by overly high self- R
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esteem, self-admiration, and self-centeredness. R
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