Lesson 2

Understanding the Self from Various Perspective

PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVE
Philosophy is often called the "mother of all disciplines" because
all fields of study began as philosophical questions. The ancient Greeks, in
particular, started to challenge myths and sought to understand reality,
including questions about the self.

The self is defined as a unified being connected to consciousness and

the ability to make choices. To understand different views on the self, we
can look back at the ideas of ancient philosophers.

One key idea comes from the Greek saying "Know Thyself," which
Socrates used as a guiding principle. He never wrote down his thoughts
but engaged his students in discussions. Socrates believed that our true
self is not our physical body, but our psyche or soul. This approach
laid the foundation for exploring the concept of the self throughout history.

Socrates believed the "self" has two parts: the physical body,
which is mortal and constantly changing, and the soul, which is
immortal and unchanging. When we die, our body stays in the physical
realm or land, while the soul moves to an ideal realm, making it eternal.

Plato, Socrates' student, expanded on this by saying the true self is

the intellect or reason within the soul, which has three components:
the rational soul (reason), the spirited soul (emotions), and the
appetitive soul (basic desires).

Aristotle took a different approach, arguing that body and soul are
the same; the soul is the form that enables us to perform life’s activities,
like thinking and growing.
Philosophical views on the self can be divided into two main ideas:
Empiricism, which says knowledge comes from experience and senses,
and Rationalism, which believes in innate knowledge based on reason
and ideals. These perspectives help us understand the varying definitions
of the self.

PHILOSOPHICAL VIEWS OF THE SELF

SOCRATES

➢ The first philosopher to engage in a systematic questioning about

the self. He emphasized that the true task of the philosopher is to
know "oneself"
➢ A life unexamined, is a life not worth living.
➢ During his trial, he believed that most men who indicted him "were
not fully aware of who they were and the virtues that they were
supposed to attain in order to preserve their souls for the afterlife".
➢ To live but die inside — worst that can happen to anyone.
➢ "Know yourself" — tells each man to bring his inner self to light
➢ A bad man is not virtuous through ignorance; the man who does not
follow the good, fails to do so because he does not recognize it.
➢ Core Socratic Ethic: Virtue and Knowledge.
➢ Virtue: the deepest and most basic propensity of man. It is necessary
and can be learned.
➢ Knowledge: source of all wisdom
➢ Since virtue is natural in the mind and self-knowledge is the source
of all wisdom, an individual may gain possession of oneself and be
one's own master through knowledge.
 PLATO

➢ The Ideal Self vs The Perfect Self

➢ Man was knowledgeable or all-knowing before he came to be born
into this world.
➢ Being on exile here on earth, he was separated from truth and
forgetting most of the knowledge he had.
➢ Through constant remembering, contemplation and doing good, he
can regain his former perfections.
➢ Man in exile on earth — has a guiding star, a model, or a divine
exemplar (must be followed to attain his destiny).
➢ Man in this life should imitate his former self; more specifically, live
a life of virtue in which true human perfection exists.
➢ Happiness, which is the fruit of virtue, is attained by the constant
imitation of the divine exemplar of virtue, embodied in man's perfect
self.
 IMMANUEL KANT

➢ Respect for self

➢ Man is the only creature who governs and directs himself and his
actions, who sets up ends for himself and his purpose, and who freely
orders mean for the attainment of his aims.
➢ Every man is an end in himself --- should never be treated merely as
a means.
➢ Respect others as you would respect yourself.
➢ A person should not be used as a tool, instrument, or device to
accomplish another's private ends.
➢ All men are persons gifted with the same basic human rights and
should be treated each other as equals.
 RENE DESCARTES

➢ Father of modern Philosophy

➢ Human person as having a body and mind - Dualism.
➢ The only thing that one cannot doubt is the existence of the self.
➢ A thing that thinks and therefore, that cannot be doubted.
➢ The fact that one thinks should lead one to conclude without a trace
of doubt that he exists.
➢ "I think, therefore I am" or Cogito Ergo Sum.
➢ 2 distinct entities of the Self: Cogito – which means thing that thinks
(the mind); Extenza – which means extension of the mind (the body).
➢ Although mind and body are independent from each other and serve
their own function, man must use his own mind and thinking
abilities to investigate, analyze, experiment, and develop himself.
 JOHN LOCKE

➢ Personal Identity
➢ Personal identity (the self) is a matter of psychological continuity.
➢ Personality is found in the consciousness (memory), and not on the
soul or body.
➢ Personal Identity is the concept about oneself that evolves over the
course of an individual's life.
➢ It may include aspects of life that man has no control over, such as
where he grew up or the color of his skin, as well as choices he makes,
like how he spends his time, and what he believes in.
➢ The self is the bundle theory of mind.
➢ Hume was skeptical about the existence of the self, specifically, on
whether there is a simple, unified self that exists over time.
➢ Man has no "clear and intelligible" idea of self
➢ No single expression of the self exists, rather the self id just the thing
to which all perceptions of a man is ascribed. Impressions of the self
would\d have to remain constant over time to constitute identity.
➢ What we call the "self" is really just "a bundle or collection of different
perceptions which succeed each other with an inconceivable rapidity".

PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES

Psychologists today recognize that there isn't just one "right" way to
study human thought and behavior. Instead, various schools of thought
have developed over time, influencing how psychologists investigate these
topics. For example, some focus on biological factors like genetics, while
others emphasize early childhood experiences. These different viewpoints
are known as approaches or perspectives in psychology, reflecting the
diversity of methods used to understand behavior.

The Psychodynamic Perspective

Psychodynamic theory is a psychological approach that explores the

underlying forces behind human behavior, feelings, and emotions,
particularly how they relate to early childhood experiences. It focuses
on the relationship between conscious and unconscious motivations,
suggesting that much of our behavior stems from conflicts we may not be
aware of.
This theory began in 1874 with Ernst Von Brucke, who proposed that all
living organisms conserve energy. Sigmund Freud, a medical student at
the time, built on this idea to develop concepts like psychosexual energy
(libido) and coined the term "psychoanalysis." Other psychologists,
including Carl Jung and Alfred Adler, later expanded these theories.

Freud's model of personality divides it into three parts:

✓ Id: The unconscious part that drives basic urges like sex and
aggression.
✓ Ego: The rational part that mediates between the id and the
superego, balancing desires with reality.
✓ Superego: The conscience formed from societal influences, learned
from parents and others.

A healthy mind is achieved when these parts are in balance. If the ego can't
mediate effectively, psychological distress may occur.
Freud also proposed a psychosexual theory of development, which includes
five stages (oral, anal, phallic, latency, and genital). Each stage focuses
on different bodily areas known as erogenous zones. Although many
psychologists today question the validity of Freud's stages, they agree that
childhood experiences play a significant role in shaping personality.
 FREUD’S PSYCHOSEXUAL STAGES OF DEVELOPMENT

Psychodynamics is an evolving field that examines human thought

processes, response patterns, and influences. Psychodynamic therapy
helps patients become aware of the underlying conflicts and tensions that
manifest as symptoms or challenges in their lives. This approach is still
commonly used today to address psychological issues

The Behavioral Perspective

Behaviorism is a psychological approach that emerged in the early 20th

century as a response to psychoanalytic theory, which often struggled with
testable predictions. Behaviorism focuses on observable behaviors
rather than internal thoughts or feelings. It suggests that behaviors
are learned from the environment and can be studied scientifically.
In therapy, behaviorism is used for behavior modification, which aims to
change problematic behaviors through techniques like classical and operant
conditioning. Key figures in behaviorism include Ivan Pavlov, John B.
Watson, Edward Lee Thorndike, and B. F. Skinner.
 ✓ Ivan Pavlov and Classical Conditioning

Ivan Pavlov, a Russian physiologist, is famous for

discovering classical conditioning. In his experiments in the
1890s, he trained dogs to salivate at the sound of a bell by
associating the bell with food. His work influenced John B.
Watson and helped establish conditioning as a key concept in
behaviorism, showing that learning can be an automatic
response to stimuli.

✓ Watson's "Little Albert" Experiment

John B. Watson was an American psychologist famous

for his "Little Albert" experiment. In this study, he used classical
conditioning to teach a nine-month-old boy to fear a white toy
rat by pairing the rat with a loud noise. This experiment showed
that emotions can be learned responses to certain stimuli.

✓ Thorndike's Law of Effect

Edward Lee Thorndike was an American psychologist

known for his work on animal behavior and learning. He
developed the "law of effect," which states that behaviors that
lead to satisfying outcomes are more likely to be repeated,
while those that result in discomfort are less likely to happen
again.

✓ Skinner's Operant Conditioning

"Operant conditioning," a term created by psychologist

B. F. Skinner, is a type of learning where voluntary behaviors
are strengthened or weakened based on their consequences.
Skinner identified two types of reinforcement:

1. Positive reinforcement: Adding a pleasant outcome, like food or

praise.
2. Negative reinforcement: Removing an unpleasant outcome, like
pain or noise.

Skinner believed behavior is shaped by trial and error through

reinforcement and punishment, without focusing on inner
conflicts. He thought mental disorders were learned behaviors
that could be unlearned through behavior modification.
 Today, some therapies use Skinner's operant conditioning
principles to reduce unwanted behaviors by not reinforcing
them. His work also led to applied behavior analysis (ABA),
which uses these techniques to encourage positive behaviors,
particularly in children on the autism spectrum. However, this
approach is controversial, as some believe it tries to change or
"normalize" autistic behaviors.

The Cognitive Perspective

Cognitive psychology is the branch of psychology that

studies internal mental processes like problem solving, memory,
and language. "Cognition" refers to thinking and memory, while
"cognitive development" involves long-term changes in these
processes. Research from cognitive psychology has influenced
various fields, including social, personality, abnormal,
developmental, educational psychology, and behavioral
economics.

Cognitive psychology differs from earlier approaches in two key ways:

1. It uses the scientific method and rejects introspection as a valid

investigation tool, unlike methods such as Freudian psychoanalysis.

2. It recognizes internal mental states (like beliefs and desires), which

behaviorism does not.

Cognitive theory suggests that problem-solving can involve

algorithms or heuristics. Major research areas in cognitive psychology
include perception, memory, categorization, knowledge
representation, numerical cognition, language, and thinking.

✓ Early Roots

In 1958, Donald Broadbent combined ideas from human-

performance research and information theory in his book
Perception and Communication, which helped develop the
information-processing model of cognition. Ulric Neisser
officially coined the term "cognitive psychology" in his 1967
book. This perspective is based on Gestalt psychology, as
developed by Max Wertheimer, Wolfgang Köhler, and Kurt
Koffka, as well as the work of Jean Piaget, who studied
children's intellectual development.
 While no single person started the cognitive revolution, Noam
Chomsky played a crucial role. A linguist, Chomsky was critical
of behaviorism's dominance in psychology and argued that the
field needed to focus on mental processes to truly understand
behavior.

✓ Jean Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development

Jean Piaget focused on children's cognitive growth rather

than psychoanalytic or psychosocial perspectives. He is best
known for his stage theory of cognitive development, which
explains how children gradually learn to think logically and
scientifically. Each stage represents a significant shift in their
thinking and reasoning abilities.

The Humanistic Perspective

Humanistic psychology is a perspective that gained popularity

in the mid-20th century, influenced by existentialism,
phenomenology, and Eastern philosophy. It takes a holistic view of
human existence, exploring concepts like meaning, values, freedom,
personal responsibility, human potential, spirituality, and self-
actualization.

✓ Basic Principles of the Humanistic Perspective

The humanistic perspective is a holistic approach in

psychology that emphasizes free will and the drive for self-
actualization. It focuses on maximizing human potential and
achievements, rather than just on mental disorders. This
perspective views people as inherently good and values
personal experiences and creativity. It has contributed to
advances in positive, educational, and industrial psychology,
and has been effective in therapy and addressing social issues.
However, it has faced criticism for being subjective and lacking
empirical evidence.

✓ Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

Abraham Maslow (1908-1970) is known as the founder of

humanistic psychology and for creating the hierarchy of human
needs. He believed everyone has a strong desire to reach their
full potential, a concept he called "self-actualization." Unlike
many earlier psychologists, Maslow focused on mentally
 healthy individuals instead of those with serious issues. He
introduced the term “peak experiences,” describing moments
when people feel a deep sense of harmony with themselves and
their surroundings. Maslow thought self-actualized individuals
have more of these peak experiences than others.

✓ Rogers' Person-centered Therapy

Carl Rogers (1902-1987) was a therapist known for his

person-centered approach, where the therapist-client
relationship helps the client achieve self-realization. His non-
directive method focuses on the present and emphasizes the
client’s ability for self-direction and personal growth. Instead of
suggesting changes, the therapist encourages clients to
express their feelings and uses active listening to help them
explore their emotions.
Rogers also practiced "unconditional positive regard," which
means accepting a person completely without judgment. He
believed that those raised in an environment of unconditional
positive regard can fully realize their potential, while those in
conditional environments feel worthy only if they meet others'
expectations.

✓ May's Existentialism

Rollo May (1909-1994) was a prominent American

existential psychologist who stood out from other humanistic
psychologists by highlighting the tragic aspects of human
existence. Influenced by American humanism, he emphasized
the significance of human choice in shaping our lives.

The Biological Perspective

Biopsychology, also known as biological psychology or

psychobiology, applies biological principles to understand mental
processes and behavior. It includes subfields such as behavioral
neuroscience, cognitive neuroscience, and neuropsychology.

OVERVIEW OF BIOPSYCHOLOGY

Biopsychologists study biological, physiological, and genetic factors

and how they relate to psychological and behavioral variables. Since
all behavior is controlled by the central nervous system, they focus
on understanding brain function to explain behavior. Key areas of
study include sensation and perception, motivated behaviors (like
hunger and thirst), movement control, learning and memory, sleep,
biological rhythms, and emotions. As research methods improve,
biopsychologists are also exploring more complex topics such as
language, reasoning, decision-making, and consciousness.

HISTORY
Biopsychology emerged as a scientific discipline in the 18th and
19th centuries, influenced by various scientific and philosophical
traditions. Philosophers like René Descartes suggested physical
models to explain behavior, proposing that the pineal gland connects
the mind and body. In his book The Principles of Psychology (1890),
William James emphasized the importance of biology in studying
psychology. The development of psychology and behavioral
neuroscience as legitimate sciences began with advances in
physiology. The term "psychobiology" was first used in its modern
sense in 1914 by Knight Dunlap in An Outline of Psychobiology.