Republic of the Philippines
UNIVERSITY OF EASTERN PHILIPPINES
College of Arts and Communication
University Town, Catarman N. Samar
First Semester, SY 2022 - 2023
UNDERSTANDING THE SELF (GE 3)
MODULE 4: PSYCHOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE
Hanah Elizabeth Bugna-Sosa
CAC, Part-Time Lecturer
Name of Student:
Course & Section:
CHAPTER 1- THE SELF FROM VARIOUS PERSPECTIVES
TABLE OF CONTENTS
UNIT 1: THE SELF FROM VARIOUS PERSPECTIVES
Module 4: Psychological Perspective
Introduction 4
Objectives 4
1. The Self as a Cognitive Construction 5
1.1. William James and the Me-Sefl, I-Self 5
1.2. Global versus Differentiated Models 5
1.3. Real and Ideal Self Concepts 6
1.4. Multiple versus Unified Selves 7
1.5. True versus False Selves 8
2. The Self as Proactive and Agentic 9
Summary 10
Learning Task Assessment 10
References 11
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CHAPTER 1- THE SELF FROM VARIOUS PERSPECTIVES
UNIT 1:
THE SELF FROM VARIOUS PERSPECTIVES
“Who Am I?”
UNDERSTANDING THE SELF (GE3) | HANAH ELIZABETH BUGNA-SOSA 3
CHAPTER 1- THE SELF FROM VARIOUS PERSPECTIVES
4
PSYCHOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE
INTRODUCTION
Most people would say that they do not want to talk about themselves. But in
actuality, most people like hearing life stories of another person as a chance to talk
about themselves or relate self to others. The famous line of “Me, Myself and I” is often
used in movies, animation, and even in social media – as caption to pictures or as
shout-outs.
The psychology of self focuses on the representation of an individual based on
his/her experiences. These experiences are either from the home, school, and other
groups, organizations or affiliations he/she engaged in. Seemingly, the ‘self’ is one of
the most heavily researched areas in social and personality psychology, where
concepts are introduced beyond our physical attributes, lies our psychological
identity. Questions of ‘who am I’ or ‘what am I beyond my looks’ are thoughts of many
that continuously search for a deeper sense of self which can be traced back from
some time of human history.
“Drawing on caves suggests that sometime during the dawn of history, human
beings began to give serious thought to their nonphysical psychological selves. With
the advent of written history, writers would describe this awareness of self in terms of
spirit or soul”
OUTCOMES
At the end of this module, you are expected to:
A. Demonstrate critical and reflective thought in analyzing the different
psychological theories in the study of the “self”;
B. Expound the self as a cognitive construction; and
C. Examine the self as proactive and agentic.
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CHAPTER 1- THE SELF FROM VARIOUS PERSPECTIVES
Now, let us properly begin our discussion on Psychological Perspective!
1. THE SELF AS A COGNITIVE CONSTRUCTION
Cognitive Construction is a cognitive approach that focuses on the mental
processes rather than the observable behavior. This approach will assist individuals in
assimilating new information to their existing knowledge and make appropriate
modification to their existing intellectual framework to accommodate their new
information.
1.1. WILLIAM JAMES AND THE ME-SELF, I-SELF
William James Wundt is the father of Scientific Psychology
which studies the ‘phenomenon of the consciousness,’ which
urged interest in further studies of the self and its role in human
behavior. W. James suggested that “the total self of ‘Me,’ being
as it were duplex” which composed of partly object and partly
subject.
William James’ theory of self is divided into two main categories:
▪ ‘I’ self (self as knower) – classified as the thinking self.
▪ ‘Me’ self (self as known) – refers to the aspects of someone that came from that
person's experiences.
James broke the “Me-self” down into three components:
▪ Material self - consists of things that belong to us or that we belong to. Things
like family, clothes, our body, and money are some of what makes up our
material selves.
▪ Social self - are who we are in a given social situation. For James, people
change how they act depending on the social situation that they are in. James
believed that people had as many social selves as they did social situations
they participated in.
▪ Spiritual self – is who we are at our core. It is more concrete or permanent than
the other two selves. It is our subjective and most intimate self. Aspects of an
individual's spiritual self, include things like his/her personality, core values, and
conscience that do not typically change throughout their lifetime.
1.2 GLOBAL VERSUS DIFFERENTIATED MODELS
There had been postulation that one’s self may be fragmented into different
parts and different selves which may be in conflict or needs regulation from each
other. Although W. James gave a very interesting perspective on the self, and was
even among the first writers to coin the term ‘Self-Esteem,’ other theories emerged to
study on the selfhood as an integrated part of one’s psyche. In the past 30 years, self-
esteem has become deeply embedded in popular culture.
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CHAPTER 1- THE SELF FROM VARIOUS PERSPECTIVES
Self-esteem is a person’s overall self-evaluation or sense of self-worth.
Global Self-esteem
▪ a.k.a. Trait self-esteem
▪ Personality variable that represents the way people generally feel about
themselves.
▪ Relatively enduring across time and situations.
▪ It is a decision people make about their worth as a person.
State Self-esteem
▪ a.k.a. Feelings of self-worth
▪ Refers to temporary feelings or momentary emotional reactions to positive
and negative events where we feel good or bad about ourselves during
these situations or experiences.
Domain Specific Self-esteem
▪ a.k.a. Self-evaluation
▪ Focused on how people evaluate their various abilities and attributes.
▪ Making distinctions or differentiation on how good or bad people are in
specific physical attributes, abilities and characteristics.
1.3 REAL AND IDEAL SELF CONCEPTS
The self as the regulating center of an individual’s personality and self-
processes under the guise of id, ego and superego functioning rocked Psychology as
the biggest breakthrough in understanding the psychological self. From this milestone,
prominent psychologists followed with their own perspectives of the self to contest the
roles and functions of ego as the self. These perspectives assert the overall dignity and
worth of human beings and their capacity for self-realization.
Karen Horney with her Feminine Psychology, established that
a person has an ‘ideal self’, ‘actual self’ and the ‘real self’. She
believed that everyone experiences basic anxiety through
which we experience conflict and strive to cope and employ
tension reduction approaches. People develop a number of
strategies to cope with basic anxiety.
Idealized self-image
▪ Because people feel inferior, an idealized self-image - an imaginary picture
of the self as the processor of unlimited powers and superlative qualities is
developed.
Actual self
▪ The person one is in everyday life, is often despised because it fails to fulfill
the requirement of the idealized image.
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CHAPTER 1- THE SELF FROM VARIOUS PERSPECTIVES
Real self
▪ Underlying both the idealized self and actual self is the real self, which is
revealed only as person begins to shed the various techniques developed
to deal with basic anxiety and to find ways to resolving conflicts.
▪ Not an entity but a ‘force’ that drive towards growth and self-realization.
Carl Rogers with his Person-Centered Theory, established
a conception of self, involving the following:
Real self (the self-concept)
▪ It includes all those aspects of one's being and one's
experiences that are perceived in awareness by the
individual.
▪ It is the part of ourselves where we feel, think, look and
act involving our self-image.
Ideal self
▪ It revolves around goals and ambitions in life, is dynamic, the idealized
image that we have developed over time.
▪ This is what our parents have taught us considering: what we admire in
others, what our society promotes, what we think are in our best interest.
A wide gap between real self and ideal self can:
▪ Indicate incongruence and can cause unhealthy personality;
▪ If the way I am (real self) is aligned to the way I want to be (the ideal self),
then I will feel a sense of mental well-being or peace of mind.
▪ If the way I am is not aligned to the way I want to be, it will cause mental
distress or anxiety.
▪ The greater the level of incongruence between the ideal self and real self,
the greater the level of resulting distress.
1.4 MULTIPLE VERSUS UNIFIED SELVES
Postmodern psychology contends that man has an identity
that shifts and morphs in different social situations and in
response to different stimuli. Kenneth Gergen argues that
having a flexible sense of self in different context is more socially
adaptable than force oneself to stick to one self-concept.
Theorists believed that there is no one answer to the
question, “Who am I?” as one person can undergo several
transitions in his life and create multiple versios of himself.
However, there is still the contention of the importance of
mental well-being, of maintaining a unified, centralized,
coherent self.
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CHAPTER 1- THE SELF FROM VARIOUS PERSPECTIVES
Multiple Selves
▪ The capacities we carry within us from multiple relationships.
▪ These are not ‘discovered’ but ‘created’ in our relationships with other people.
Unified Selves
▪ According to Traditional Psychology, well-being comes when our personality
dynamics are congruent, cohesive and consistent
▪ A person is essentially connected with selfhood and identity
▪ In a healthy person the ego remains at the helm of the mind, coherent and
organized, staying at the center.
1.5 TRUE VERSUS FALSE SELVES
Donald W. Winnicott distinguished what he called the
“true self” from the “false self” in the human personality.
True self as based on a sense of being in the
experiencing body.
False self as a necessary defensive organization,
survival kit, and a care taker self, the means by which
a threatened person has managed to survive.
True self
▪ It has the sense of integrity, of connected wholeness
that harks to the early stage.
False self
▪ Used when the person has to comply with external rules, such as being polite
or otherwise following social codes.
▪ It constantly seeks to anticipate demands of others in order to maintain the
relationship.
Healthy false self
▪ Is functional, can be compliant but without the feeling that it has betrayed
its true self.
Unhealthy false self
▪ Fits in but through a feeling of forced compliance rather than loving
adaptation.
False Selves, as investigated by Heinz Kohut (1971), can lead towards narcissistic
personality, which identifies with external factors at the cost of one’s own autonomous
creativity.
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CHAPTER 1- THE SELF FROM VARIOUS PERSPECTIVES
2. SELF AS PROACTIVE AND AGENTIC
Social Cognitive Theory takes an agentic view of personality, meaning that
humans have the capacity to exercise control over their own lives. People are self-
regulating, proactive, self-reflective, and self-organizing and that they have the
power to influence their own actions to produce desired consequences. People
consciously act on their environment in a manner that permits growth towards
psychological health.
Agent self
▪ Known as the executive function that allows for actions.
▪ This is how we, as individuals, make choices and utilize our control in situations
and actions.
▪ Resides over everything that involves decision-making, self-control, taking
charge in situations, and actively responding.
Example: A person might desire to eat unhealthy foods, however, it is his/her
agent self that allows that person to choose to avoid eating them and make a
healthier food choice.
Human agency
▪ It is not a thing but an active process of exploring, manipulating and influencing
the environment in order to attain desired outcomes.
According to Albert Bandura core features of human agency are:
Intentionality - acts a person performs intentionally
Forethought - setting goals, anticipation of outcomes of actions, selection of
behaviors to produce desired outcomes and avoiding
undesirable ones.
Self-reactiveness - monitoring progress toward fulfilling choices.
Self-reflectiveness - examination of own functioning, evaluation of the effect
of other people’s action on them.
The four (4) core features of human agency leads to self-efficacy.
Self-efficacy
▪ The belief that they are capable of performing acting that will produce a
desired effect.
▪ Lies in the center of Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory.
▪ It is the measure of one’s ability to complete goal.
▪ People with high self-efficacy often are eager to accept challenges
because they believe they can overcome them.
▪ While, people with low self-efficacy may avoid challenges, or believe
experiences are more challenging than they actually are.
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CHAPTER 1- THE SELF FROM VARIOUS PERSPECTIVES
SUMMARY
In this module, we learned that the self has many psychological theories that
all of us must analyze and understand. William James Wundt, Karen Horney, and Carl
Roger’s theory of self helped us formulate knowledge cognitively which led to learning
something about ourselves. From me-self, global versus differentiated models, real
and ideal self, multiple and unified selves to true and false selves – we have come to
realized that the self is a broad notion and it takes time for someone to fully understand
the self and answer the question “Who am I?”
LEARNING TASK ASSESSMENT
On a separate sheet of paper, answer the questions below.
1. Essay. Which among the theories on “Self” as a Cognitive Construction explains best
your personality dynamics?
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2. Pick any song that you think is relevant. This can be pop, R&B, classic rock, country
music or whatever you like. Write the lyrics down and analyze how the Multiple Selves
were depicted in the song.
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________________________________________________________________________________.
UNDERSTANDING THE SELF (GE3) | HANAH ELIZABETH BUGNA-SOSA 10
CHAPTER 1- THE SELF FROM VARIOUS PERSPECTIVES
Below is the criteria for written requirements.
CRITERIA 4 3 2 1
Information is very Information is slightly Information is The information appears
organized in a well- organized in a well- organized but to be disorganized.
Organization
constructed paragraph or constructed paragraph or paragraph(s) are not
paragraphs. paragraphs. well-constructed.
Information relates to the Information relates to the Information partially Information has little or
topic. It provides a lot of topic. It provides few relates to the topic. No nothing to do with the
Content
supporting details and/or supporting details and/or details and/or examples topic.
examples. examples. are given.
Main points well developed Main points well developed Main points are present Main points lack detailed
with high quality and with quality supporting with limited detail and development. Ideas are
Development quantity support. Reveals details and quantity. Critical development. Some vague with little evidence
high degree of critical thinking is weaved into critical thinking is of critical thinking.
thinking. points. present.
Essay is free of distracting Essay has few punctuation Most spelling, Spelling, punctuation,
spelling, punctuation, and and grammatical errors punctuation, and and grammatical errors
grammatical errors; absent allowing reader to follow grammar correct create distraction,
Grammar
of fragments, comma ideas clearly. Very few allowing reader to making reading difficult;
& Mechanics
splices, and run-ons. fragments or run-ons. progress through essay. fragments, comma
Some errors remain. splices, run-ons evident.
Errors are frequent.
Meets all formal and Meets format and Meets format and Fails to follow format and
assignment requirements assignment requirements; assignment assignment requirement;
and evidences attention to margins, spacing, and requirements; generally cover format, incorrect
detail; all margins, spacing indentations are correct; correct margins, indentations; neatness of
Format
and indentations are correct; essay is neat and correctly spacing, and essay needs attention.
essay is neat and correctly assembled. indentations; essay is
assembled with professional neat but may have
look. some assembly errors.
REFERENCES
Aguirre. F. Monce, M. R., & Dy, G. (2011). Introduction of Media Exposure on Males’ Body Image. In Journal of Social
and Clinical Psychology – University of Central Florida. Retrieved on March 13, 2013 @
http://arapaho.nsuok.edu/~scottd/image
Baumester, R., & Bushman, B. (2011). “The Self.” Social Psychology and Human Nature, 2 nd Ed. Belmort, CA: Cengage
Learning.
Brown, J.D., & Marshall, M.A. (2006). The three faces of self-esteem. In M. Kernis (ed.), Self-esteem: Issues and Answers.
New York: Psychology Press. Changingminds.org. (2016). Retrieved May 23, 2017, from
http://changingminds.org/explanations/theories/trueself.htm
Crocker, J., & Park, L.E. (2004). Contingencies of self-worth. Psychological Bulletin, 130, 392-414.
Crocker, J., & Wolfe, C.T. (2001). Contingencies of self-worth. Psychological Review, 108, 593-623.ctisites.uga.edu,
danielcw (2016). Psychoanalysis vs. Postmodern Psychology. Retrieved JIne 19, 2017, from
http://ctisites.uga.edu/engl3820w-fall2016/psycholoanalysis -vs-postmodern-psychology.htm.
Feist, J., Feist, G., & Roberts, T., (2003). Theories of Personality, Eight Edition. McGraw-Hill Education, New York.
Hall, C., Lindzey, G., Loehlin, J., & MAnosevitz, M. (1997). Introduction to Theories of Personality. Canada: John Willey
&Sons, In.
Pajares, F., & Schunk, D. (2002). Uky.edu. Retrieved May 10, 2014, from
http://www.uky.edu/~eushe2/Pajares/PSHistoryOfSElf.PDF
Villafuerte, Salvacion L., et al., (2018). Understanding the Self. Nieme Publishing House Co. LTD. Cubao, Quezon City,
Philippines.
UNDERSTANDING THE SELF (GE3) | HANAH ELIZABETH BUGNA-SOSA 11
