Chapter 6 Dimensions of the Self Self Concept A person s conscious cognitive perception and evaluation of himself or herself one s thoughts and opinions about oneself It is often described as a global identity o Self concept and later identity forms the basis for self esteem a related term that refers to how one feels about oneself Dimensions 4 of the Self First there is the overall basic self concept which is the adolescent s view of his or her personality and perceptions of his abilities and his status and roles in the outer world Next are the individual s transitory self concepts which are ideas of the self that are influenced by the mood of the moment or by a recent or continuing experience i e a low exam grade may leave a person with a temporary feeling of being stupid Third there are the adolescent s social selves the selves he or she thinks others see which in turn influence how the individual sees himself or herself i e if youths have the perception that their peers find them to be boring they tend to think of themselves in these negative ways The fourth dimension is the ideal self which is the kind of person an adolescent would like to be o An ideal self that is too low impedes accomplishment o One that is too high may lead to frustration and self deprecation o Having a realistic concept of one s ideal self leads to self acceptance mental health and the attainment of realistic goals Possible Selves The different selves we envision ourselves becoming Hoped for Selves The people we hope to be in the future Expected Selves The people we think we will likely be in the future Feared Selves The people we are afraid of becoming in the future What contributes to a positive self concept High self esteem positively influential significant others greater intimacy with their parents favorable socioeconomic status Erikson s View on Identity Development Erikson described the task of identity formation as one of making choices by exploring alternatives and committing to roles Identity is an ongoing process of self reflection and change as one moves through life Identity Statuses Identity Diffused This applies to adolescents who have not experienced a crisis and explored meaningful alternatives or made any commitments in finding an acceptable identity o Example Where do you want to live when you grow up I don t know I never thought about it Foreclosure Subjects in foreclosure have not experienced a crisis but they have made commitments to occupations and ideologies that are not the result of their own searching but are ready made and handed down to them frequently by parents o Foreclosures often have identified closely with their same sex parent o Example a youth who wants to be a doctor because his or her parent is a doctor Moratorium A period of time in the life of adolescents who are involved in a continual crisis who continue to search for an identity and who have not made any commitments o As a consequence of this identity status these adolescents seem confused unstable and discontented Identity Achieved Subjects whose status is identity achieved have experienced a psychological moratorium have resolved their identity crises by carefully evaluating various alternatives and choices and have come to conclusions and decisions on their own o Once an identity has been achieved there is self acceptance a stable self definition and a commitment to a vocation religion and political ideology Identity Control System A construct that describes the process of developing an identity It consists of two interpersonal and three intrapersonal components o The interpersonal components include one s social behavior and the interpersonal feedback one gets from others o The intrapersonal factors are self concept one s identity standards or beliefs about how one should behave and a comparator which assesses the similarity between the two The comparator matches one s self perceptions against the standards one has about who one wants to be Styles 3 of Identity Searching Informational Style Seeks out diagnostic information and modify their plans and behaviors if necessary to match it o This style characterizes moratorium and identity achieved individuals Normative Style They are resistant to change and block out discrepant information o This style is characteristic of foreclosured adolescents Avoidant Style This style of identity searching is characterized by putting off making decisions and evading feedback when they do make changes these changes are superficial and short lived Patterns 4 of Acculturation Acculturation is the adjustment of minority groups to the culture of the dominant group o Separation involves exclusive focus on the cultural values and practices of the ethnic focus on the cultural values and practices of the ethnic group and little or no interaction with the dominant society o Assimilation is the opposite it occurs when an ethnic group member chooses to identify solely with the culture of the dominant society and to relinquish all ties to his or her ethnic heritage o Integration is characterized by strong identification and involvement with both the dominant society s culture and the traditional ethnic culture o Marginality is defined by the absence or loss of one s culture of origin and the lack of involvement with the dominant society Gender Identity Gender Schema Theory A revised cognitive developmental approach to gender that emphasizes the effects of labeling attention and interest in developing gender beliefs Social Learning Theory Suggests that a child learns sex typed behavior the same way he or she learns any other type of behavior through a combination of reward punishment direct instruction and modeling Androgyny A blending of male and female characteristics and roles o Some theorists believe androgyny should be replaced with gender role transcendence the belief that when an individual s competence is at issue it should not be conceptualized on the basis of masculinity femininity or androgyny but rather on a personal basis Gender Intensification Hypothesis The proposal that adolescents feel more pressure than children to behave in gender stereotypical ways Kohlberg s Level of Moral Development Preconventional moral reasoning is characterized by selfishness it is premoral rather than moral People acting at this level of moral reasoning are motivated by self interest In stage 1 the punishment orientation people act so as to avoid negative consequences When in the higher of
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