July 15, 2013
As quoted by Dr. Joyce Brothers (born 1928), “An
individual's self-concept is the core of his [or her] personality. It affects
every aspect of human behavior: the ability to learn, the capacity to grow and
change” (para. 3). It is this
self-concept that defines how a person thinks about and believes who and what he
or she is; regardless of what is in reality.
Many people have several selves; a work self, a home self, an at play
self, etc. To discover a true reflection
of the self, it is important to look at the self in the social world and how
self-concept, self-esteem, and self-efficacy impact how people develop.
The Self in the Social
World
There are several ways in which people define themselves;
one such method is through his or her developmental tasks (e.g., work, home, and
social). According to Myers (2010), as a
person moves between the different tasks within his or her life there is an
accommodation that takes place as he or she adapts to the varied
situations. The association between these
situational roles plays a large part in the identification of one’s
self-perception and identification (Diehl, Hastings, & Stanton, 2001). Although social information processing is
automatic or intuitive, it primes how a person perceives and interprets events
and the self. But one should not rely
fully on intuition alone when making judgments about the self and others
because overconfidence can create processing errors.
Self-Concept, Self-Esteem,
and Self-Efficacy
People begin to develop his or her self-concept early in
development. Thus the nature and organization of how someone views themselves is
multi-dimensional, in that people develop self-concept through reflecting on
their actions and how they perceive others responding as well. Such perceptions are categorized into schemas
for easy identification and interpretation (e.g., good, bad, pleasurable,
acceptable, unacceptable, etc.). This
concept process also has several components; a physical aspect (how one looks),
an academic aspect (how well one learns), and a social aspect (how does one
relate to other people), and others (Huitt, 2011). Thus it has been “shown that a more complex or
compartmentalized self-concept” provides for a healthier self-esteem but a high
level of self-concept was associated with poorer self-esteem (Linville, 1987;
Block, 1961; & Donahue et. al., 1993, as restated by Diehl, et.al., 2001).
Clearly a good self-esteem, that feeling on self-pride, is
developed through a measure of positive attributes and perceived social
acceptance. As for the author, maturity
has provided many opportunities to identify multiple components, which have aided
in the development of a healthy self-esteem.
By keeping company with like mined individuals, building a positive
self-regard is achieved through good hygiene, appropriate clothing, healthy
diet, regular exercise, adequate sleep, and managing stress. The ability for internal and external
acceptance and criticism validates the level of self-esteem and provides the
opportunity for growth and acceptance.
As an individual develops a level of competency in the activities
he or she engage in, a belief in one’s capabilities is developed; known as self-efficacy. Self-efficacy helps one to think, feel, and
believe in his or her abilities. Because
the author has developed a strong sense of self-efficacy in the different
aspects of her life, she looks positively at and accepts challenging problems
and tasks with eagerness. Although
self-efficacy begins to develop in childhood as one deals with a wide variety
of experiences and situations, it evolves throughout life as people acquire new
skills and thought processes. It is
through both successes and failures that one master’s skills and gives his or
her best effort to tasks; furthermore, seeing others succeed develops a strong
sense of self-efficacy. Encouragement is
another area that one can develop a strong sense of self-efficacy. Imagine a time when a few positive words
dispelled doubt and encouraged success.
The Impact of Social Experiences
on Development
Having not had the
best adolescence, the author gives much credit to the development of her identity
of “the self” to the influences of her
mother’s encouragement to stand up to injustice and inappropriate
behavior. Taking charge of and directing
one’s life rather than allowing counterfactual thinking to prevail; thus
providing the positive step that was needed to draw strength to change the
direction and circumstances that a lower socioeconomic status provides. Building positive self-esteem by removing the
stressors in life that continually diminish how one looks at themselves takes
strength and character but builds a more positive self-image. The encouragement of a respected and loved
individual can be one of life’s most precious experiences.
Another experience that affected the personal development of
the author was the birth of her only child.
Determined to ensure that the child would have a better childhood than
herself, she was able to be more self-aware and explore core values and beliefs
when making decisions on childhood developmental issues such as love,
attention, and care. Finding other like
mined parents was beneficial; however, there were also those who promoted
additional challenges and helped to expand personal development. Armed with such social influences and beliefs
it became a self-fulfilling prophecy to raise a more fulfilled child. With love and compassion, motherhood was a
joy and a privilege that was beyond no other and perhaps the greatest
experience of this author’s life.
As can be seen developing the self takes on many aspects of
personal beliefs and social exposure.
How one perceives his or her physical aspects (e.g., height, weight,
looks, etc.), academic abilities, and social skills as compared to that of his
or her peers determines the level of self-concept, self-esteem, and self-efficacy
developed. Personal experiences
challenge and influence ones sense of self.
Furthermore, they can provide fulfillment and create a happier and
healthier self. However, as people
mature and become more self-aware a more holistic approach to viewing the many
selves can provide a more diverse self too.
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