Rizal Technological University
College of Education
Social Studies Department
GE01 Understanding the Self
Lesson 1
Objectives:
At the end of the lesson the students
are able to:
*Discuss the different theories about
self;
*Differentiate “I” and “Me”;
*Ignite interest in discovering the
innermost self as foundation
understanding the self; and
*Introspects and recite on their
understanding about themselves.
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Topic: Self Concept: A Theory of
Self
Who are you? What makes you “you?”
You might answer with “I’m a mother,” or,
“I’m a therapist,” or maybe, “I’m a believer,”
“I’m a good friend,” “I’m a brother.”
Maybe you answer with, “I am excellent at
my job,” “I’m an accomplished musician,” or
“I’m a successful athlete.”
Other responses might fall into the category
of traits: “I’m a kind-hearted person,” “I’m
intelligent and hard-working,” or “I’m laid-
back and easy-going.”
The above responses come from
your internal sense of who you are. This
sense is developed early in life, but it goes
through constant evaluation and adjustment
throughout the lifespan.
In psychology, this sense of self has
a specific term: self-concept.
GEO1 Understanding the Self
Defining Self-Concept
Self-concept is an overarching idea
we have about who we are—physically,
emotionally, socially, spiritually, and in terms
of any other aspects that make up who we
are (Neill, 2005). We form and regulate our
self-concept as we grow, based on the
knowledge we have about ourselves. It is
multidimensional, and can be broken down
into these individual aspects.
For example, you may have a very
different idea of who you are in terms of your
physical body, and who you are in terms of
your spirit or soul.
of
The individual’s belief about himself
or herself, including the person’s attributes
and who and what the self is.”
A similar definition comes from
Rosenberg’s 1979 book on the topic; he says
self-concept is:
“…the totality of an individual’s thoughts
and feelings having reference to himself
as an object.”
Self-concept is related to several
other “self” constructs, such as self-esteem,
self-image, self-efficacy, and self-
awareness.
The influential self-efficacy
researcher Roy Baumeister (1999) defines
self-concept as follows:
Social psychologist Roy Baumeister
says that self-concept should be understood
as a knowledge structure. People pay
attention to themselves, noticing both
their internal states and responses and
their external behavior. Through such self-
awareness, people collect information about
themselves. Self-concept is built from this
information and continues to develop as
people expand their ideas about who they
are.
Early research on self-concept
suffered from the idea that self-concept is a
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single, stable, unitary conception of the self.
More recently, however, scholars have
recognized it as a dynamic, active
structure that is impacted by both the
individual’s motivations and the social
situation.
Furthermore:
Self-concept is our personal
knowledge of who we are, encompassing all
of our thoughts and feelings about ourselves
physically, personally, and socially.
Self-concept also includes our
knowledge of how we behave, our
capabilities, and our individual
characteristics.
Our self-concept develops most
rapidly during early childhood and
adolescence, but self-concept continues to
form and change over time as we learn more
about ourselves.
There are many theories about what
exactly self-concept is and how it develops
(Cherry, 2018B; Gecas, 1982).
Generally, theorists agree on the following
points:
 On the broadest level, self-concept is
the overall idea we have about who
we are and includes cognitive and
affective judgments about ourselves;
 Self-concept is multi-dimensional,
incorporating our views of ourselves
in terms of several different aspects
(e.g., social, religious, spiritual,
physical, emotional);
 It is learned, not inherent;
 It is influenced by biological and
environmental factors, but social
interaction plays a big role as well;
GEO1 Understanding the Self
 Self-concept develops through
childhood and early adulthood when
it is more easily changed or updated;
 It can be changed in later years, but
it is more of an uphill battle since
people have established ideas about
who they are;
 Self-concept does not always align
with reality. When it does, our self-
concept is “congruent.” When it
doesn’t, our self-concept is
“incongruent.”
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Carl Rogers’ Components of Self-
Concept
Carl Rogers, one of the founders of
humanistic psychology, suggested that self-
concept includes three components:
Self-Image
Self image is the way we see
ourselves. Self-image includes what we
know about ourselves physically (e.g. brown
hair, blue eyes, tall), our social roles (e.g.
wife, brother, gardener), and our personality
traits (e.g. outgoing, serious, kind).
Self-image doesn’t always match
reality. Some individuals hold an inflated
perception of one or more of their
characteristics. These inflated perceptions
may be positive or negative, and an
individual may have a more positive view of
certain aspects of the self and a more
negative view of others.
Self-Esteem
Self-esteem is the value we place
upon ourselves. Individual levels of self-
esteem are dependent on the way we
evaluate ourselves. Those evaluations
incorporate our personal comparisons to
others as well as others’ responses to us.
When we compare ourselves to
others and find that we are better at
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something than others and/or that people
respond favorably to what we do, our self-
esteem in that area grows.
On the other hand, when we
compare ourselves to others and find
we’re not as successful in a given area
and/or people respond negatively to what
we do, our self-esteem decreases. We can
have high self-esteem in some areas ("I am
a good student") while simultaneously having
negative self-esteem in others ("I am not
well-liked").
Ideal Self
The ideal self is the self we would
like to be. There’s often a difference
between one’s self-image and one's ideal
self. This incongruity can negatively impact
one’s self-esteem.
According to Carl Rogers, self-image
and ideal self can be congruent or
incongruent. Congruence between the self-
image and ideal self means that there is a fair
amount of overlap between the two. While it
is difficult, if not impossible, to achieve
perfect congruence, greater congruence will
enable self-actualization. Incongruence
between the self-image and ideal self means
there’s a discrepancy between one’s self and
one’s experiences, leading to internal
confusion (or cognitive dissonance) that
prevents self-actualization.
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Self-concept is related to several
other “self” constructs, such as self-esteem,
self-image, self-efficacy, and
awareness. In the following section, we will
explain these slight—yet important—
differences.
Self-Concept vs. Self-Esteem
Self-concept is not self-esteem,
although self-esteem may be a part of self-
concept. Self-concept is the perception that
we have of ourselves, our answer when we
ask ourselves the question “Who am I?”
GEO1 Understanding the Self
It is knowing about one’s own
tendencies, thoughts, preferences and
habits, hobbies, skills, and areas of
weakness. According to Carl Rogers,
founder of client-centered therapy, self-
concept is an overarching construct that self-
esteem is one of the components of it
(McLeod, 2008).
Self-Concept vs. Self-Image
Self-image is related to self-concept
but is less broad. Self-image is how an
individual sees themselves, and it does not
have to align with reality.
A person’s self-image is based on
how they see themselves, while self-concept
is a more comprehensive evaluation of the
self, largely based on how a person sees
themselves, values themselves, thinks about
themselves, and feels about themselves.
Carl Rogers posited that self-image is
a component of self-concept, along with self-
esteem or self-worth and one’s “ideal self”
(McLeod, 2008).
Self-Concept vs. Self-Efficacy
Self-concept is a more complex
construct than self-efficacy. While self-
efficacy refers to an individual’s judgments of
their own abilities, self-concept is more
general and includes both cognitive
(thoughts about) and affective (feelings
about) judgments about oneself (Bong &
Clark, 1999).
self-
Self-Concept vs. Self-Awareness
Self-awareness also influences self-
concept. It is the quality or trait that involves
conscious awareness of one’s own thoughts,
feelings, behaviors, and traits (Cherry,
2018A). To have a fully developed self-
concept (and one that is based in reality), a
person must have at least some level of self-
awareness.
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The “I” and the “Me”
One of Herbert Mead's most
significant contributions to social psychology
is his distinction between the “I” and the “Me.”
It's worth emphasizing that while this
distinction is utilized in sociological circles, it
is grounded philosophically for Mead. His
target, in part, is no less than the idea of the
transcendental ego, especially in its Kantian
incarnation. It is also important to note that
the “I” and “Me” are functional distinctions for
Mead, not metaphysical ones. He refers to
them as phases of the self, although he more
typically uses the word self to refer to the
“Me”.
The self that arises in relationship to
a specific generalized other is referred to as
the “Me.”
The “Me” is a cognitive object, which
is only known retrospectively, that is, on
reflection. When we act in habitual ways we
are not typically self-conscious. We are
engaged in actions at a non-reflective level.
However, when we take the perspective of
the generalized other, we are both
“watching” and forming a self in relationship
to the system of behaviors that constitute this
generalized other. So, for example, if I am
playing second base, I may reflect on my
position as a second baseman, but to do so
I have to be able to think of “myself” in
relationship to the whole game, namely, the
other actors and the rules of the game. We
might refer to this cognitive object as my
(second baseman) baseball self or “Me.”
Perhaps a better example might be to think
of the self in relationship to one's family of
origin. In this situation, one views oneself
from the perspective of the various sets of
behaviors that constitute the family system.
The responses of the “I” are non-
reflective. How the “I” reacts is known only on
reflection, that is, after we retrospect.
If you ask, then, where directly in your
own experience the “I” comes in, the answer
GEO1 Understanding the Self
is that it comes in as a historical figure. It is
what you were a second ago that is the “I” of
the “me.” It is another “me” that has to take
that rôle. You cannot get the immediate
response of the “I” in the process.
In other words, once the actions of
the “I” have become objectified and known,
by definition they have become a “Me.” The
status of the “I” is interesting in Mead. In
trying to differentiate it from the empirical,
knowable, “Me,” he states, “The ‘I’ is the
transcendental self of Kant, the soul that
James conceived behind the scene holding
on to the skirts of an idea to give it an added
increment of emphasis”. However, this
statement should not to be interpreted as
endorsing the notion of a transcendental
ego. Mead is seeking to emphasize that the
“I” is not available to us in our acts, that is, it
is only knowable in its objectified form as a
“Me.” This point is clarified by a remark that
directly follows the statement just cited.
Therefore:
According to Mead's theory, the self
has two sides or phases: 'me' and 'I.'
The 'me' is considered the
socialized aspect of the individual. The
'me' represents learned behaviors, attitudes,
and expectations of others and of society.
This is sometimes referred to as the
generalized other. The 'me' is considered a
phase of the self that is in the past. The
'me' has been developed by the knowledge
of society and social interactions that the
individual has gained.
The 'I', therefore, can be
considered the present and future phase
of the self. The 'I' represents the individual's
identity based on response to the 'me.' The
'I' says, 'Okay. Society says I should behave
and socially interact one way, and I think I
should act the same (or perhaps different),'
and that notion becomes self.
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 The 'me' and the 'I' have a didactic
relationship, like a system of checks and
balances.
The 'me' exercises societal control
over one's self. The 'me' is what prevents
someone from breaking the rules or
boundaries of societal expectations.
The 'I' allows the individual to still
express creativity and individualism and
understand when to possibly bend and
stretch the rules that govern social
interactions. The 'I' and the 'me' make up the
self.
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“I Self” and “Me Self”
Philosopher and psychologist
William James (1842–1910) was one of the
first to postulate a theory of the self in The
Principles of Psychology. James described
two aspects of the self that he termed the “I
Self” and “Me Self.”
The I Self reflects what people see
or perceive themselves doing in the
physical world (e.g., recognizing that one is
walking, eating, writing), whereas the Me
Self is a more subjective and
psychological phenomenon, referring to
individuals’ reflections about themselves
(e.g. characterizing oneself as athletic,
smart, cooperative).
Other terms such as self-view, self-
image, self-schema, and self-concept are
also used to describe the self-referent
thoughts characteristic of the Me Self. James
further distinguished three components of
the Me Self. These include:
(1) the material self (e.g., tangible
objects or possessions we collect for
ourselves);
(2) the social self (e.g., how we
interact and portray ourselves within different
groups, situations, or persons); and
GEO1 Understanding the Self
(3) the spiritual self (e.g., internal
dispositions).
James (1890) distinguished two
understandings of the self, the self as “Me”
and the self as “I”. This distinction has
recently regained popularity in cognitive
science, especially in the context of
experimental studies on the underpinnings of
the phenomenal self.
This distinction was originally based
on the idea that the former (“Me”)
corresponds to the self as an object of
experience (self as object), while the
latter (“I”) reflects the self as a subject of
experience (self as subject).
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Six Types of Self-Care
There are six types of self-care:
emotional, physical, social, practical, mental,
and spiritual.
1) Emotional Self-Care
Activities that help you connect,
process, and reflect on a full range of
emotions.
Examples: Seeing a therapist, writing
in a journal, creating art, playing music etc.
2) Practical Self-Care
Tasks you complete that fulfill core
aspects of your life in order to prevent future
stressful situations.
Examples: Creating a budget, taking
professional development classes,
organizing your closet, etc.
3) Physical Self-Care
Activities you do that improve the
well-being of your physical health.
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 Examples: Taking a walk during
lunch breaks, sleeping eight hours a day,
staying hydrated, etc.
4) Mental Self-Care
Any activity the stimulates your mind
or your intellect.
Examples: Reading a book, solving a
puzzle, playing chess, going to a museum,
etc.
5) Social Self-Care
Activities that nurtures and deepens
the relationships with people in your life.
Examples: Brunch with friends, going
on a date, making time to call your mom
regularly, etc.
6) Spiritual Self Care
Activities that nurtures your spirit and
allows you to think bigger than yourself.
Spiritual self-care does not have to be
religious, although for some it is.
Examples: Meditation, yoga, going to
a place of worship, be in nature, dedicate
time for self-reflection, etc.
GEO1 Understanding the Self
Electronic References:
 https://secure.everyaction.com/p/Pg
5bqblugE6-NGId09RIcQ2
 https://www.thoughtco.com/self-
concept-psychology-4176368
 https://web.cortland.edu/andersmd/r
ogers/self.html
 https://positivepsychology.com/self-
concept/
 https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/me
ad/
 https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/1
0.3389/fpsyg.2018.01656/full
 https://www.encyclopedia.com/medi
cine/psychology/psychology-and-
psychiatry/self-representation
 https://study.com/academy/lesson/g
eorge-herbert-mead-the-self-me-
i.html
Prepared by
Asst. Prof. Niňo P. Maliban
Subject Instructor
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