Part I Chapter 4: Psychological Perspective of the Self - According to Rogers, human beings are always striving for self-
- Adolescents construct their own understandings of themselves well by
integrating the information into their lives.
- Understanding the self is highest when the different parts of the self
become integrative.
- According Carl Roger’s theory of self, an important aspect of
understanding the self is self-awareness (how much an adolescent is
aware of his own psychological make-up, what makes him/her unique
as a person, as well as his/her strengths and weaknesses).
 William James’ concept of the self: The Me-Self and the I-Self
- The self is divided into two categories: I-Self and Me-Self
a) I-Self
- It refers to the self that knows who he/she is which is also called the
“thinking self”.
- It reflects on the soul of a person or he mind which is also called the
“pure ego”.
b) Me-Self
- It is the empirical self that refers to the person’s personal experiences.
- It is divided into 3 subcategories: Material Self, Social Self, and Spiritual
Self
- The Material Self is attributed to an individual’s physical attributes and
material possessions that contribute to one’s self-image.
- The Social Self refers to who a person is and how he/she acts in social
situations. William James believed that the people have different social
selves depending on the context of the social situation. (ex. A student
may act differently in school and home with his/her family)
- The Spiritual Self refers to the most intimate and important part of the
self that includes the person’s purpose, core values, conscience, and
moral behavior. William James believed that the path to understanding
the spiritual self requires “introspection” or “Socratic Method”.
 Carl Rogers’ self theory: Real and Ideal Self
- Another aspect of self-understanding that is important in adolescent
years focuses on self-concept.
- It refers to the image of one’s self.
- Carl Rogers, who is a psychologist, defines the self as a flexible and
changing perception of personal identity.
- The self is the center of experience.
- The self develops from interactions with significant people and
awareness of one’s own characteristics and level functioning.
fulfillment or self-actualization.
- It states that when the needs of the self are denied, severe anxiety may
arise.
- Central to achieving self-actualization is the development of self-
concept.
- Rogers suggests that there are 2 components of self: Real Self and Ideal
Self
 The real self consists of all the ideas, including the awareness of
what one is and what one can do.
 The ideal self is the person’s conception of what one should be or
what one aspires to be which includes one’s goals and ambitions in
life.
 The closer the ideal self to the real self, the more fulfilled and happy
the individual becomes. When the ideal self is far from the real self,
the person becomes unhappy and dissatisfied.
 Carl Rogers’ Multiple vs. Unified Self and True vs. False Self
- The construction of multiple selves varies across different interpersonal
and intrapersonal roles and relationships.
- Coping with different selves constitutes a formidable task among
adolescents.
- The said challenges contribute heavily to the young person’s struggle for
a unified self.
- The task of integrating one’s multiple selves naturally causes concern.
- Given the enormous challenges of self-integration, it is important that
adolescents are supported in their effort to create a consistent,
coherent, or unified theory of the self.
- Donald Winnicott has found that the self is composed of the True Self
and False Self. (The function of the false self is to hide and protect the
true self)
- According to researchers, adolescent’ perception of themselves can
change depending on the situation.
- For instance, adolescents are more likely to show their false self during
dating situations and are likely to show their true self when they are
with their family and close friends.
- Basically, adolescents display a false self to impress others.
- They develop different selves in various relational contexts.
 Albert Bandura’s “The Self as a Proactive and Agentic”
- Albert Bandura (2001) assumes that humans are perceived as proactive
agents of experiences.
- Agency embodies the endowments, belief systems, self-regulatory
capabilities, and distributed structures and functions whereas personal
influence is exercised, rather than reside as a discrete entity.
- The core features of agency allow people to play a part in their self-
development, adaptation, and self-renewal. (the main features of
human agency are Intentionality, Forethought, Self-reactiveness, Self-
reflectiveness)
a) Intentionality- refers to acts done intentionally. The intentions
center on plans of action with the anticipation of possible
outcomes.
b) Forethought- enables the person to anticipate the likely
consequences of prospective actions. Through the exercise of
forethought, people are guided in their actions in the anticipation of
future events.
c) Self-reactiveness- involves making choices and choosing appropriate
course of action as well as motivating and regulating them.
d) Self-reflectiveness- it gives the person the ability to reflect upon and
the adequacy of his/her thoughts and actions.
- Self-efficacy refers to an individual’s belief that he/she is capable to
perform a task which influences whether he/she will think
pessimistically or optimistically and in ways that are self-enhancing or
self-hindering.
- Efficacy beliefs also play a central role in self-regulation which is the
ability of an individual to control his/her behavior without having to rely
on others for help.
 Carl Jung’s theory of the self: The Self as the Central Archetype
- Archetypes are the universal models after which roles are patterned. It
also represents the hidden potentialities of the psyche, or total
personality.
- The psyche continues to develop throughout the life, but the psyche
starts to show a definite form and content during adolescence.
- Archetypes reside in the personal unconscious or unforgotten
experiences that are common to all human beings, known as the
collective unconscious.
- There are 4 major archetypes:
a) Persona- it refers to the social roles that individuals present to
others.
b) Shadow- it refers to the repressed thoughts that are socially
unacceptable and often considered as the dark side of the psyche.
c) Animus/Anima- the anima refers to the feminine side of the male
psyche while the animus is the masculine side of the female psyche.
d) Self- it is the central archetype that unites all parts of the psyche.
Note: The ego is the individual’s conscious perception of the self.
 Sigmund Freud’s Construction of Self and Personality
- Freud believes that the dynamic forces within the self are many and in
inevitable conflict.
- The mind is composed of 3 structures through which personality is
formed: Id, Ego, Superego
a) Id- it refers to the component of the personality characterized by its
need to satisfy basic urges and desires. Freud believes that it is the
pleasure-seeking side, impulsive, child-like, and demands instant
gratification.
b) Ego- it refers to the “I” and operates on the reality principle and
controls the id. The ego can conform to existing societal
consideration.
c) Superego- it refers to the “conscience” and “moral judge” of one’s
conduct. The violation of rules leads to feelings of guilt. It strives for
perfection rather than pleasure.
- It appears that the Id is the devil within the self, the superego is the
angel, and ego is the person in the middle.
- The id, ego, and superego are often in conflict with each other.
- Freud uses the term “ego strength” to refer to the ego’s ability to
resolve the conflict between the three structures. If this constant state
of conflict is unresolved, personality problems may arise.
- In Freud’s view, the id, ego, and superego develop in a series of stages
and he calls this stages as the psychosexual stages of development that
progress through 5 stages.
- Each stage is associated with conflicts that the individual must resolve
so that he/she can successfully move on to the next stage.
- Each stage has needs and that the dissatisfaction of needs may result in
fixation which could have lasting negative effects on one’s personality
a) Oral Stage
- It is the first stage that lasts from birth up to the first year of life.
- During this stage, babies derive pleasure from oral activities like
sucking and biting.
-Overindulgence of oral needs may lead to oral incorporative
personality disorder such as overeating, smoking, and alcoholism
while dissatisfaction may lead to oral aggressive personality
disorder such as sarcasm and tactlessness.
 b) Anal Stage
- It is the second stage that occurs around the second year of life.
-During this stage, the child derives pleasure from the elimination of
body wastes.
-Through toilet training, the child learns the basic rules of society.
Anal fixations can lead to anal retentive personality disorder such as
having obsession with cleanliness or anal expulsion personality
disorder such as clumsiness.
c) Phallic Stage
- It is the third stage that usually occurs around ages 3 and 6.
-Children during this stage derive pleasure from examining,
touching, fondling, or displaying their genitals.
-These behaviors are likely motivated by curiosity about the
differences between the anatomy of man and woman.
-Sex curiosity will remain high during the elementary years and
children will tend to ask questions regarding anatomical structures,
sex, and how babies are made.
-Parents and teachers need to properly educate children about
sexuality. Fixations at this stage may lead to abnormal sex behaviors
in later life.
d) Latency Stage
- It is the fourth stage that lasts from 7 to 12 years of age.
- At this stage, sexual energy is repressed because children become
occupied with school.
e) Genital Stage
- It is the last stage that starts from adolescence to adulthood.
- During this stage, pleasure is again derived from the genital area
and individuals seek to satisfy their sexual drives from sexual
relationships.
- Sexual problems may result as a consequence of inappropriate sex
behaviors.
 The Role of Erik Erikson’s Theory in Understanding the Self
- In Erikson’s theory, adolescence is a period of identity development.
- Identity formation is a process that requires adolescents to distance
themselves from the strong expectations and definitions by their
parents and family members.
- To achieve an individual identity, one must create a vision of the self
that is authentic which is anchored on the meaning of his goals.
- Adolescents try to establish their identity through status symbols like
having “state-of-the-art” mobile phones, designer bags and clothes, and
other material possessions.
- This theory proposes that individuals go through 8 psychological stages
of development.
- It gives particular emphasis to the ego which is the positive force that
contributes to identity formation and lays the foundation for certain
strengths and virtues in life such as hope, will, purpose, competence,
fidelity, love, care, and wisdom.
- During each stage, a person also experiences life crises which could
have negative consequences if not properly resolved.
a) Trust vs. Mistrust (infant)
- The first psychological stage that occurs in the first year of life.
- The child will develop trust if he/she is properly cared for and if the child
is not well-cared for, mistrust is likely to develop.
b) Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt (toddler)
- The second stage of development that occurs during first three years of
life.
- Autonomy means independence of thought and confidence to think and
act for oneself.
- Children begin to assert their independence during this stage.
- If parents allow their children to explore, they will become more
confident and secure in their own abilities but if children are overly
protected, they may become overly dependent and feel a sense of
shame or doubt in their own abilities.
- This stage has important implications in the development of
independence and identity during adolescence.
c) Initiative vs. Guilt (pre-schooler)
- It is the third stage of development that occurs 3 to 5 years of age.
- During this period, developing a sense of responsibility among children
lead to the development of initiative.
- A child who is made to feel irresponsible might develop feelings of guilt.
d) Industry vs. Inferiority (school-ager)
- It is the fourth stage of development that occurs around elementary
school years.
- During this stage, children face the task of developing knowledge and
skills usually taught in schools.
- When hey encouraged in their efforts, they will develop a sense of
industry, however, those who receive little or no encouragement from
 parents and teachers will doubt their own abilities and are likely to
develop inferiority.
e) Identity Formation vs. Identity Confusion (adolescent)
- It is the fifth psychological stage that takes place during adolescence.
- At this stage, adolescents face the task of finding out who they are,
what they are, and what they want in life.
- If parents provide proper support, adolescents will develop positive
identity but if not, they will feel insecure and identity confusion will take
place.
f) Intimacy vs. Isolation (young adult)
- It is the sixth stage that occurs during early adulthood when people
explore personal relationships.
- It is vital that people develop intimate relationships with others.
- Those who are successful in this stage will form relationships that are
stable and successful. Inability to develop intimate relationships during
this stage will lead to mistrust and isolation.
g) Generativity vs. Stagnation (middle age)
- It is the seventh stage that occurs during middle adulthood.
- Generativity involves a person’s desire to contribute to the world by
teaching, leading, and guiding the next generation and doing activities
that will benefit the community.
- Those who fail to attain generativity will feel worthless.
h) Integrity vs. Despair (older adult)
- It is the eighth and final stage that occurs during the old stage and is
focused on self-reflection in one’s life.
- At this stage, individuals reflect on the important events of their lives
and if they are satisfied and proud of their accomplishments, they will
feel a sense of integrity.
- Those who are unsuccessful in this stage will feel that their life has been
wasted and will experience regrets and despair.