Physical self

- refers to the body, this marvelous container and complex, finely tuned, machine with which we interface
with our environment and fellow beings.

Role of the Body in Conceptualization of self

• William James - regarded the body as the primary source of sensation and essential for the
formation and maintenance of personality. It is subordinate to the mind. physical health was integral
tospiritual well-being, with good physical health contributing to overall satisfaction and spiritual hygiene.
• Sigmund Freud - the body's role in driving psychological processes, with boding instincts shaping
human behavior and personaling development.
• Erik Erikson - emphasized the importance of physical and intellectual skills in fostering a sense of
competence and adaptability to societal roles.
• Carl Gustav Jung - focused primarily on the psyche, with less explicit attention to the role of the
body.
• Abraham Maslow - hierarchy of needs

Views on the Physical Beauty

1. What philosophers think about beauty? (Philosophical)
- beauty along with kindness, truth and justice, was one of the highest values.
a) Beauty is objective (before 18th century)
 St. Augustine - things gave delight because it was beautiful.
 Plato - beauty is a response of love and desire.
 Aristotle - The main forms of beauty are order, symmetry, and definiteness, which can be
demonstrated by mathematical science
b) Beauty is subjective (18th century)
 David Hume - beauty exists only in the mind. “Beauty is no quality in things themselves: it exists
merely in the mind which contemplates them; and each mind perceives a different beauty."
 Immanuel Kant - “The judgment of taste is therefore not a judgment of cognition, and is
consequently not logical but aesthetical, by which we understand and that whose determining
ground can be no other than subjective”
 Francis Hutcheson - The perception of beauty does depend on the external sense ofsight; however,
the internal sense of beauty operates as an internal or reflex sense.

2. Psychological discovery about beauty (Psychological)

The overall importance of physical attractiveness in dating is fairly large—especially when dates stem from
first impressions. However, once people have gotten to know each other over months or years through jobs
or friendships, they focus more on each person’s unique qualities rather than their physical attractiveness
and status.

Physical - Attractiveness Stereotype - The presumption that physically attractive people possess other
socially desirable traits as well: What is beautiful is good.
Carl Roger's Self -Theory - proposed a humanistic perspective on personality, emphasizing the
importance of self-concept and self-esteem in psychological well-being.

3. How cultural traditions shape body image (social)

Cultural traditions can either be a positive or a negative influence on body image and on self- esteem. Body
image is generally how one thinks and feels toward one’s own body.
• Alfred Adler's Individual Psychology - focuses on the individual’s unique subjective experiences
and their pursuit of significance and belongingness in society. Adler proposed that individuals are
motivated by the desire to overcome feelings of inferiority and strive for superiority or self-
improvement.

Who is attractive?
- to be attractive is, ironically, to be perfectly average.

Factors Affecting Perceptions on the Physical Self (Hewstone)

• Introspection and self - reflection - looking inward is one of the simplest ways to achieve self-
knowledge. The process is the process by which one observes and examines one’s internal state.
 • Self - perception Theory - explains that since one’s internal state is difficult to interpret, people can
infer their innerstates by observing their own behavior – as if they are an outside observer.
• Self- Concept - is a cognitive representation of self-knowledge which includes the sum total of all
beliefs that people have about themselves. It is a collection of all individual experience involving
one’s characteristics, social roles, values, goals and fears. Physical concept is the individual’s
perception or description of his physical self, including his physical appearance.
• Personal Identity - concept a person has about himself that develops over the years. This includes
aspects of his life that he was born into like family, nationality, gender, physical traits as well as the
choices he makes, such as what he does for living, who his friends are and what he believes in.

Social Factors
The Looking-glass self theory- Charles Horton Cooley stated that a person’s self grows out of society’s
interpersonal interactions and the perception of others. The self-image is shaped and reflected from the
social world.

Social Comparison - Leon Festinger in 1954 introduced another way of understanding oneself by
comparing one’s traits, abilities, or opinions to that of others.
- Social Comparison is a process of comparing oneself with others in order to evaluate one’s
ownabilities and opinions. There are two types of social comparison:
 Upward Social comparison - compares themselves to others who are better than them
 Downward Social comparison - compares themselves with someone with a worse
situation

Other Issues
1. The relationship between body-image and self - esteem
• Self - esteem - is about how you value yourself and how you treat people.
• Body image - how you look at your body, make you attractive, and make yourself look like some
other people.
2. The Attractiveness of those we Love
- love is blind
- love sees loveliness

Conclusion
- The degree to which a person or his physical characteristics are considered pleasant or beautiful

On Caring for the Physical Self

• Psychosomatic Theory - suggests that there is a strong interconnection between the mind and
body with psychological factors playing a significant role in physical health and illness.
• Self- Discrepancy Theory - proposes that individuals experience discomfort and negative emotions
when their perceived self (how they see themselves) differs from their ideal self (how they wish to
be) and their ought self (how they believe they should be).
• Carl Roger's Theory of Congruence - emphasizes the importance of congruence between an
individual’s self-concept and their lived experiences for psychological health and personal growth.
• Integration with Self- Discrepancy Theory - suggests that individuals may experience
incongruence when societal ideals conflict with their perceived self-concept. This incongruence can
manifest as feelings of inadequacy, self-doubt, and dissatisfaction with one’s physical appearance.

Roger's principles of Discripancy:

1. self - exploration
2. self - acceptance
3. self - expression
4. self-validation

The Debate on Beauty: Objective standards vs subjective perception

Arguments for Objective Beauty

• Innate Ability to Judge Attractiveness (humans may possess on inherent ability to assess
physical attractiveness)
• Universally Attractive Features - facial averageness (features closer to the population's average is
more attractive), symmetry (symmetrical features are beautiful), Skin Homogeneity (even-toned skin is
often seen a marker of health thus showing attractiveness), The Golden Ratio (mathematical ratio -1.618)

Arguments for Subjective Beauty

• Evolving Beauty standards
• Cultural and Ethnic variations - western beauty standards, asian beauty stan dards, black beauty
standards
• Perceptual Adaptation and sociocultural influences - perceptual adaptation, sociocultural
environment

The Role of Globalisation and Social Media in Beauty Standards

• Globalisation - attractiveness based on the influence of global media
• Social Media's Influence - beauty trends in social media