Republic of the Philippines

BICOL STATE COLLEGE OF APPLIED SCIENCES AND TECHNOLOGY

Naga City

College of Arts and Sciences

Lesson Module for

UNDERSTANDING THE SELF

Lesson No. 3: The Self as a Cognitive Construct

Schedule: October

Learning Outcome:

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

1. Identify the different ideas in psychology about the self

2. Create your own definition of the self based on the definitions from psychology
3. Analyze the effects of various factors identified in psychology in the formation of the
self.

Introduction/ Overview:

As discussed in the previous lessons, the trend of the lessons also seems to define the concept of
the “self’ from a larger context down to the individual. However, it must be pointed out that
modern researches acknowledge the contributions of each field and this is not some sort of a
nature vs. nurture, society/culture vs. individual brain, and other social sciences. Psychology may
focus on the individual and the cognitive functions, but it does not discount the context and other
possible factors that affect the individual. For students who take up psychology, discussions on
theories and development, among others actually take at least one semester and there are still
more to be learned about the concept of the self. This lesson provides an overview of the themes
of psychology regarding the concept.

Preliminary Activity

This activity has two parts that try to compare how we look at ourselves against how people
perceive us depending on how we present ourselves to them. For the first part, list ten to fifteen
(10-15) qualities or things that you think define who you are as a person and not who you are
towards others.

1. ____JOYFUL______________ 10. _SOCIABLE_____________

2. ____FRIENDLY____________ 11. _CARING FOR THE ENVIRONMENT
3. ____APPROACHABABLE___ 12. _AFFECTIONATE_______
 4. _CONFIDENT____________ __ 13. _OBEDIENT______________
5. _ARTISTIC / CREATIVE_____ 14. _RESILIENT______________
6. _SWEET PERSON___________ 15. _HONEST________________
7. _CAREFUL__ ___________ ___
8. _HARDWORKING___________
9. _PROACTIVE_______________

On the second part, message your classmates enrolled in this subject and let them answer the
question, “Who do you think I am based on your impression about me?, Be able to
message at least 5 and not more than 10 of your classmates, you may email them or ask for
their FB messenger account, (Please write only the characteristics that you observe about the
person. Please do not use any bad words and no bullying).

“What others think about me”

_1.__Funny w/ a good heart good person _5. Funny, smart, extrovert, kind, confident_ ____
_2.__Friendly, confident, funny, talkative _6. Funny in a way that you make people laugh _
_3.__Maldita, madaldal, funny ________ _ and smile, kind and pretty____ __ ______ ____
_4.__Good at academic, mataray, ______ _7. Approachable, funny, gentle, sensitive, proud_
_____have a sense of humor__________ _8. Funny and smart________________________

Question
1. Compare what you wrote about yourself to those written by our classmates. What aspects
are similar and which are not? What aspects are true to you? What aspects do you think
are not really part of your personality?
● My qualities that my friends think of me based to their impressions that similar to
who I define my self are joyful, friendly, confident, approachable and sociable.
● My qualities that are not similar to my friend impressions and to who I think I am
are artistic/ creative, sweet person, careful, hardworking, proactive, caring for the
environment, affectionate, obedient, resilient, honest, smart, mataray, gentle and
sensitive.
● The aspects that are truly am are smart, sweet person, joyful, funny, friendly,
confident, approachable, sociable, proactive, creative and hardworking.

Discussion

Lesson 3: The Self as Cognitive Construct

In confidence or in an attempt to avoid further analytical discussion, 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 thinking, acting,
and feeling self (Gleitman, Gross, and Reisberg 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 Reisberg 2011; Hogg and Vaughan 2010). Carl Roger’s
(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 (Gleitman, Gross, and
Reisberg 2011).

Other concepts similar to self are identity and self concept. 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 asked about who you are (Oyserman, Elmore, and Smith 2012).

Self, identity, and self-concept are not fixed in one time frame. For example, when you
are asked about who you are, you can say “I was a varsity player in 5 th Grade” which pertains to
the past, “a college student” which may be the present, and “a future politician” which is the
future. They are not also fixed for life nor are they ever-changing at every moment. Think of a
malleable metal, strong and hard but can be bent and molded in other shapes. Think about water.
It can take any shape of the container, but at its core, it is still the same element.

Carl Rogers captured this idea in his concept of self-schema or our organized system
of collection of knowledge about who we are (Gleitman, Gross, and Reisberg 2011; Jhangiani
and Tarry 2014). Imagine an organized list or a diagram similar to the one below:
Family Hobbies
SELF
National
Religion
ity
 The schema is not limited to the example above. 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 (Gleitman, Gross, and Reisberg 2011; Jhangiani and Tarry 2014).

For example, when someone states your first name even if they are not talking about you, your
attention is drawn to them. 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 all the
other stores in mall.

Several psychologists, especially during the field’s 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 one’s behavior as the results of the interaction between the Id, the Ego, and
the Superego.

However, as mentioned earlier, one cannot fully discount the effects of society and culture on the
formation of the self, identity, and self-concept, Even as Freud and other theories and researchers try to
understand the person by digging deeper into the mind, they cannot fully discount the huge and important
effects of the environment. As in the abovementioned definitions of the self, social interaction always has
a part to play in who we think 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 (Hogg and Vaughan 2010). Basically, there are three reasons
why self and identity are social products (Oyserman, Elmore, and Smith 2012):

1. We do not create ourselves out of nothing. Society helped in creating the foundations of
who we are and even if we make our choices, we will still operate in our social and historical
contexts in one way or the other. You may, of course, transfer from one culture to another,
but parts of who you were will still affect you and you will also have to adapt to the new
social context. Try looking at your definition of who you are and see where society had
affected you.
2. Whether we like to admit it or not, we actually need them as reference points about our
identity. One interesting example is the social media interactions we have. In the case of
Facebook, there are those who will consciously or unconsciously try to garner more “likes”
and/or positive “reactions” and that can and will reinforce their self-concept. It is almost like
a battle between who got more friends, more views, and trending topics. If one says he is a
good singer but his performance and the evaluation of his audience says otherwise, that will
have an effect on that person’s idea of himself, one way or another.
3. What we think is important to us may also have been influenced by what is important in
our social or historical context. Education might be an important thing to your self-concept
because you grow up in a family that valued education. Money might be important to some
because they may have grown in a low-income family and realized how important money is
in addressing certain needs like medical emergencies. Being a nurse or a lawyer can be
priority in your self-schema because it is the in-demand course during your time.
 Social interaction and group affiliation, therefore, are vital 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 (Jhangiani and Tarry 2014). It is also inevitable that we can have several
social as we interact with our groups. For example, you are a student who is also part of prefer to study
with your friends and your study pattern changes when you are with your friends than when you do it
alone.

There are times, however, when we are aware of our self-concepts; this is also called 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, and (2) the public self or your
public image commonly geared toward having a good presentation of yourself to others (Hogg and
Vaughan 2010).

Self-awareness also presents us with at least three other self-schema: the actual, ideal, and ought
self. 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 Vaughn 2010). An example is
that you are a student interested in basketball but is also academically challenged in most of your subject.
Your ideal self might be to practice more and play with the varsity team but ought to pass your subjects as
a responsible student. One has to find a solution to such discrepancies to avoid agitation, dejection, or
other negative emotions. In some instances, however, all three may be in line with one another.

Self-awareness may be positive or negative depending on the circumstances and our next course
of action. Self-awareness can keep you from doing something dangerous; it can help remind you that
there is an exam tomorrow in one of your subjects when you are about to spend time playing computer
games with your cousins, among others. In other instances, self-awareness van be too much that we are
concerned about being observed and criticized by others, also known as self-consciousness (Jhaniani
and Tarry 2014). At other times, especially with large crowds, we may experience deindividuation or
“the loss of individual self-awareness and individual accountability in groups” (Festinger, Pepitone, and
Newcomb 1952; Zimbardo 1969 in 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. A common example is
a mass demonstration erupting into a riot.

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 other group, then self-esteem may
also be highlighted.

Social comparison also entails 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) (Tesser1988 in Jhangiani and Tarry 2014). 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 which you were outperformed (Jhangiani and Tarry 2014). If you got
beaten in a drawing competition, you might think that drawing is not really for you and you will find a
hobby where you could excel, thus preserving your self-esteem. Lastly, we may also strengthen our
resolve to improve that certain aspect of ourselves (Jhangiani and Tarry 2104). Instead of quitting
drawing that makes it unique, among others. Achieving your goal through hard work may increase your
self-esteem, too.

However, in the attempt to increase or maintain self-esteem, some people become narcissistic.
Narcissism is a “trait characterized by overly high self-esteem, self-admiration, and self-centeredness”
(Jhangiani 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 for better
partners, better acquaintances, as well as people who will appreciate them a lot. This makes them a bad
romantic partner or friend since they engage in relationships only to serve themselves (Jhangiani and
Tarry 2014).

People with high 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 (Jhangiani
and Tarry 2014).

Application and Assessment

Do a research and list ten (10) things to boost your self esteem and improve yourself concept. Analyze
which of those tips are more likely to backfire and make someone conceited, negative or narcissistic and
be able to make a comment/suggestion that makes the statements both helpful to the individual as well as
society in general.

Here are 10 tips on how to build self-esteem, with comments on how to make them both helpful to
the individual and society:

1. Embrace Your Uniqueness:

People should remember that everyone is unique and beauty is to be found in every human being.

Comment: Absolutely\! Everyone has unique talents, skills, and experiences that contribute value to the
world. Focus on what makes you “YOU” and how you can use your strengths to make a positive impact.

2. Cultivate Self-Compassion:

Accepting oneself is different from appreciating oneself. Self-acceptance is a pre-requisite to self-

appreciation but the latter must always be present.

Comment: Self-compassion is key. Accept yourself, flaws and all, and treat yourself with kindness.
Celebrate your successes, big and small, and learn from your mistakes.
3. Avoid Comparisons:

Refrain from comparing yourself to other people. A general sense of self-worth should be built without
comparing oneself to other people.

Comment: Comparison is the thief of joy\! Focus on your own journey and goals, not someone else's
highlight reel. There will always be someone "better" at something, but that doesn't diminish your own
value.

4. Forgive Yourself for Mistakes:

Don’t Put Yourself Down. Nobody’s perfect. Making a mistake is definitely normal and people should
start accepting this fact.

Comment: We all make mistakes. Learn from them, forgive yourself, and move on. Dwelling on past
failures will only hold you back.

5. Surround Yourself with Positivity:

Befriend Positive People. Having friends who are positive towards dealing with life’s challenges can
influence someone into seeing life in the same light and eventually build his self-esteem.

Comment: The people you spend time with can significantly impact your mood and outlook. Choose
friends who uplift and support you, and be a positive influence on them as well.

6. Celebrate Your Achievements (Big & Small):

Remind Yourself of the Positive Things about You. Again, there is beauty in everyone. Remember all the
things that you like about yourself and the good things which you have done and make a list.

Comment: Take time to acknowledge your accomplishments, no matter how small they may seem. This
reinforces your strengths and boosts your confidence.

7. Invest in Self-Growth:

Use tools. Buying books, cd’s and other materials about building self-esteem wouldn’t hurt, would it?

Comment: There are many resources available to help you on your self-improvement journey. Explore
books, podcasts, workshops, or even therapy to learn new skills and develop your potential.

8. Make Time for Fun and Relaxation:

 Engage in Fun Activities. Having fun once in a while releases stress, takes the negative ideas out of
one’s head and leaves space for positive thoughts to fill in. Having fun makes one feel happy about
oneself.

Comment: Make time for activities you enjoy, whether it's hobbies, spending time in nature, or simply
relaxing. Taking care of your mental and emotional well-being is essential.

9. Develop Your Independence:

Hangout with Friends. Having fun can be done privately but nothing beats fun with friends. Friends are
usually a part of the primary support group of a person and can provide much needed conversations for a
down-and-out person.

Comment: Friendships are important, but it's also crucial to feel comfortable being alone. Develop your
own interests and activities, and learn to enjoy your own company.

10. Seek Professional Help When Needed:

Seek Help. When all else fails, seek professional help from a psychologist. There’s nothing wrong with
talking to a professional and taking care of you since low self-esteem can lead to more serious problems.

Comment: Don't be afraid to seek professional help from a therapist or counselor. They can provide
valuable tools and strategies to manage low self-esteem and improve your overall well-being.

Sources:

[National Alliance on Mental Illness](https://www.google.com/url?sa=E&source=gmail&q=nami.org)

[Mayo Clinic](mayoclinic.org)

[Mind](mind.org.uk

Your written works will be graded based on this rubric. Consequently, use this rubric as a guide when
writing and check it again before you submit your output.

Criteria 1 2 3 4

Focus/ Main Point The written work The written work is The written work is The written work is
poorly addresses focused on topic focused on the focused,
topic and includes and includes few topic and includes purposeful, and
irrelevant ideas loosely related relevant ideas reflects clear
ideas insight and ideas

Support Provides little or no Supports main Supports main Persuasively

support for the point with some point with supports main point
 main point underdeveloped developed reasons with well
reasons and/or and/or examples developed reasons
examples and/or examples

Organization and Little or no Some organization Organizes ideas to Effectively

Format organization of of ideas to build an build an argument organizes ideas to
ideas to build an argument build a logical,
argument coherent argument

(Paragraphs,
Transitions)

Language used, Little or no use of Some use of Appropriate use of Effective and
Style and elements of style elements of style elements of style creative use of
Grammar Many errors in Contains frequent Uses correct elements of style to
grammar, spelling, errors in grammar, grammar, spelling, enhance meaning
and punctuation, spelling, and and punctuation Uses correct
makes reader’s punctuation with few errors grammar, spelling,
(Sentence structure, comprehension punctuation
word choice, difficult throughout with
grammar, spelling, very few errors
punctuation)

Originality No experimentation Very little Sufficient Distinctive

nor enhancement of experimentation to experimentation experimentation
concepts , Evidence enhance concepts with language and with language and
of Copying or Does not exhibit usage to enhance usage to enhance
(Expression of the Plagiarizing creativity concepts Applies concepts Applies
theme in a creative basic creative skills higher order
way with no to relay ideas thinking and
plagiarism or creative skills to
copying of others relay complex ideas
answers)

Reference:

Alata, Eden Joy Et.Al., 2018. Understanding the Self. 1 st Edition. Rex Book Store, Manila,
Philippines.

Prepared by:

Ron Sedrick E. Reyes

Instructor, Humanities & Social Sciences
College of Arts and Sciences
Bicol State College of Applied Sciences and Technology
Penafrancia Avenue, Naga City
[email protected]