THE SELF AS A

COGNITIVE
CONSTRUCT
FIRST SEMESTER: GEC 1 MIDTERM

THE COGNITIVE SELF: THE SELF-CONCEPT

nonhuman animals and self-awareness

A animals like chimpanzees, orangutans, and dolphins have a

primitive sense of self
A in a study, red dots were placed on chimps' foreheads, and
they recognized the dot on their own faces in a mirror,
showing self-recognition
A most animals (e.g., cats and dogs) do not recognize
themselves in mirrors

human infants and self-recognition

A human babies, around 18 months old, begin to recognize

themselves in mirrors, similar to chimpanzees
A this reflects an early development of self-awareness

development of self in children

A at two years old, children start to understand their gender

A by four years old, self-descriptions are based on physical
traits
A by age six, they recognize basic emotions and can describe
their personality traits

self-awareness in school-aged children

A as children grow older, they learn that they are unique

individuals

A they also develop an awareness of social judgement,

understanding that others are also evaluating them
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THE SELF AS A
COGNITIVE
CONSTRUCT
FIRST SEMESTER: GEC 1 MIDTERM

YOU: THROUGH OTHER’S EYES

according to William James

A one of the earliest psychologists to study the self

A the “I” – thinking, acting, and feeling self
A the “Me” – set of physical characteristics and psychological
that makes who you are

according to Carl Rogers

A “I” – as the one who acts and decides

A “Me” – as what you think or feel about yourself as an object

two types of self that we can be aware of according to Carver and

Scheier

A the private self or your internal standards and private

thoughts and feeling
A the public self or public image that is commonly geared
toward having a good presentation of yourself to others

SYMBOLIC INTERACTIONALISM THEORY

three reasons explain why self and identity are social products

A we do not create ourselves out of anything;

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THE SELF AS A
COGNITIVE
CONSTRUCT
FIRST SEMESTER: GEC 1 MIDTERM
A whether we like to admit it or not, we need others to affirm
and reinforce whom we think we are; and

A what we values as important to us may also have been

influenced by what is important in our social or historical
context

THE SELF-CONCEPT
physical characteristics

A people often describe themselves based on physical traits,

such as “I am overweight” or “I am short”
A physical traits are crucial to the self-concept as others use
them for judgement
A these characteristics highlight what differentiates individuals
from other, either positivity or negativity

personality traits

A another component of self-concept includes stable personality

traits like “I am friendly,” “I am shy,” or “I am persistent”

A these traits are key to understanding individual behaviour and

vary from person to person

social identity and group memberships

A group affiliations, such as being a “writer,” “Jewish,” or

“mother,” from part of one’s identity
A social group memberships provide individuals with a sense of
identity and belonging

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THE SELF AS A
COGNITIVE
CONSTRUCT
FIRST SEMESTER: GEC 1 MIDTERM

cultural differences

A research on Facebook profiles showed cultural variations in

self-descriptions
A African-Americans tended to have more independent
(internal) self-descriptions
A Asian-Americans exhibited more interdependent (external)
self-descriptions
A European-Americans fell in the middle, reflecting a balance
between the two

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SELF-COMPLEXITY AND

SELF-CONCEPT
self-concept

A refers to our knowledge about ourselves, including personality

traits, physical characteristics, abilities, values, goals, roles,
and our awareness of our existence as individuals

self-schema

A a stable set of memories that summarize our beliefs,

experiences, and generalizations about ourselves in specific
behavioral domains

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THE SELF AS A
COGNITIVE
CONSTRUCT
FIRST SEMESTER: GEC 1 MIDTERM
A these schemas form around important aspects of our identity,
such as physical traits, personality, or interest

self-report measures

A self-concept can be explored through self-report exercises, like

filling in statements about ourselves (e.g., “I am _____”)

self-complexity

A describes how many different and independent ways we think

about ourselves
A people with high self-complexity have varied and distinct
identities (e.g., roles such as student, daughter, athlete)
A those with low self-complexity have fewer, less varies
identities (e.g., only thinking of oneself as a student or
athlete)

self-concept clarity

A refers to how clearly and consistently defined our self-concept

is
A a person can have either a complex or simple self-concept
that is well-defined and consistent or ill-defined and
inconsistent

impact of complexity and clarity

A while these two concepts are theoretically independent, both

have important relationships with psychological well-being

example of self-complexity

A a woman with multiple roles and diverse life experiences

would have high self-complexity
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THE SELF AS A
COGNITIVE
CONSTRUCT
FIRST SEMESTER: GEC 1 MIDTERM
A a man who identifies primarily with fewer roles would have
low self-complexity

SELF-AWARENESS
self-awareness

A involves perceiving one’s own personality, including

strengths, weaknesses, thoughts, beliefs, motivations, and
emotions
A it helps us understand how others perceive us and how we
respond to them in real-time

cognitive accessibility of self-concept

A self-awareness varies based on how much attention we focus

on our self-concept
A when we’re concerned about being observed or judged, we
experience self-consciousness or publicly induced self-
awareness

variability in accessible aspects of self-concept

A not all aspects of our self-concept are accessible at all times

A long-term differences in the accessibility of self-schemas
create individual differences in focus (e.g., some people may
be more focused on physical appearance, while others
emphasize social group memberships)

deindividuation

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THE SELF AS A
COGNITIVE
CONSTRUCT
FIRST SEMESTER: GEC 1 MIDTERM
A describes the loss of self-awareness and individual
accountability in group settings
A individuals become more aware of their role as group
members and adhere to social norms specific to that group or
situation

TWO KINDS OF SELF-AWARENESS

conceptual self-awareness

A involves thoughts, judgements, evaluations, and logical

conclusions about oneself

A this type of self-awareness is easy to describe and put into

words

embodied self-awareness

A refers to our awareness of inner states (e.g., hunger,

tiredness, emotions) and body schema (awareness of body
parts, movements, and coordination)
A it includes recognizing emotional and physical responses to
internal and external events
A sometimes hard to express in words when turning these
internal experiences

example to illustrate the difference

A conceptual awareness: thinking about an arm might involve

noticing its size, hairiness, or how it looks
A embodied awareness: feeling the arm evokes a more
emotional connection, such as a desire to embrace the world
and appreciating the arm for its capabilities

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THE SELF AS A
COGNITIVE
CONSTRUCT
FIRST SEMESTER: GEC 1 MIDTERM
THE BENEFITS OF SELF-AWARENESS
self-awareness benefits

A helps prevent dangerous actions by making us more

conscious of our behavior
A excessive self-awareness or self-consciousness can lead to
concerns about being observed or criticized by others

deindividuation

A in large groups, people may experience deindividuation, a

loss of self-awareness, although this idea is debated

impact on self-esteem

A both group identity and self-awareness play a key role in

shaping self-esteem
A social comparison is one way in which self-awareness affects
self-esteem, as people evaluate themselves relative to others

SOCIAL COMPARISON THEORY

A we learn about ourselves, our behaviors, and social status by
comparing ourselves to others

TWO MAJOR TYPES OF SOCIAL COMPARISON

downward social comparison

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THE SELF AS A
COGNITIVE
CONSTRUCT
FIRST SEMESTER: GEC 1 MIDTERM
A comparing ourselves to those who are worse off to boost self-
esteem and create a positive self-concept

upward social comparison

A comparing ourselves to those who are better of than us. while

it can motivate some, it may also lower self-esteem by
highlighting personal weaknesses

SELF-EVALUATION MAINTENANCE THEORY

A we feel threatened when someone outperformers us, leading
to three possible reactions:
A distancing ourselves from the person or redefining the
relationship
A reconsidering the importance of the skill or aspect in
which we were outperformed
A strengthening our resolve to improve in that area

narcissism

A some individuals maintain or increase self-esteem by

becoming narcissistic, characterized by overly high self-
esteem, self-admiration, and self-centeredness

THE BENEFITS OF SELF-KNOWLEDGE

A happiness: expressing who you are increases your happiness
and the likelihood of getting what you want

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THE SELF AS A
COGNITIVE
CONSTRUCT
FIRST SEMESTER: GEC 1 MIDTERM

A better decision-making: knowing yourself helps you make

better choices in various aspects of life, from everyday
decisions to major life choices
A self-control: understanding yourself improves your ability to
resist bad habits and develop good ones by aligning with your
values and goals
A resistance to social pressure: being firm in your values and
preferences helps you maintain integrity and say “no” when
needed
A tolerance and understanding of others: awareness of your
own weaknesses and struggles enhances empathy and
understanding toward others
A vitality and pleasure: being true to yourself enriches your life
experience, making it more vibrant and fulfilling

BUILDING BLOCKS OF SELF: YOUR VITALS

v = vitals

A core principles guiding decision-making and motivation (e.g.,

helping others, creativity, health, financial security)

i = interests

A passions and hobbies that capture your attention over time.

determine them by asking:

A what captures your attention?

A what are you curious about?

A what concerns you?

A identifying interests helps reveal your deepest passions

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THE SELF AS A
COGNITIVE
CONSTRUCT
FIRST SEMESTER: GEC 1 MIDTERM
t = temperament

A inherent preferences, such as:

A introversion vs. extroversion (energy from solitude vs.
social interacrion)
A planner vs. go-with-the-flow
A decision-making based on feeling vs. thoughts and
facts
A preference for details vs. big ideas
A understanding temperament helps align with situations where
you thrive

a = around-the-clock activities

A your biorhythm, including:

A are you a morning person or night person?
A when is your peak energy during the day?
A scheduling activities according to your natural rhythm
respects your innate biology

l = life mission and meaningful goals

A reflect on meaningful events in your life to uncover clues

about your identity, career, and satisfaction

s = strengths

A includes abilities, skills, talents, and character strengths (e.g.,

loyalty, respect, emotional intelligence)
A recognizing strengths is crucial for self-confidence and self-
esteem
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THE SELF AS A
COGNITIVE
CONSTRUCT
FIRST SEMESTER: GEC 1 MIDTERM

REFLECTION ON THE SELF AS PROACTIVE AND

AGENTIC
agency (Albert Bandura)

A agency involves being proactive agents in our experiences

through endowments, belief systems, self-regulation, and
distributed functions, rather than being a fixed entity

MAIN FEATURES OF HUMAN AGENCY

intentionality

A acting with intention, such as helping someone cross the

street safely with the specific goal of assisting them

forethought

A anticipating the consequences of actions to guide behavior.

For example, cleaning a room not only for cleanliness but to
create a conducive study environment

self-reactiveness

A making choices and regulating actions based on those

choices. For instance, committing to a course of study and
fulfilling obligations to succeed academically

self-reflectiveness

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THE SELF AS A
COGNITIVE
CONSTRUCT
FIRST SEMESTER: GEC 1 MIDTERM
A reflecting on the adequacy of thoughts and actions. For
example, learning from a failing grade by analyzing what went
wrong and improving future study habits

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