UNIT 1: THE SELF FROM VARIOUS - Strive for wisdom and perfection

PERSPECTIVES - Soul is exposed to communicating

with God (socrates)
PART 1 - There is something Devine
with us. Your body is the
The ideas of Socrates temple of God. God is in you
- Reason is the soul’s tool to achieve
1) One must strive to care for their soul such state
which is their true self - A unified, indissoluble, important

2) Knowledge is important Same content lang sinabi sa ancient

-Knowledge is power triumvirates
-If you have the right information,
you can choose wisely The ideas of plato
1. Think more
3) To become virtuous, and virtue is a. Doxa - popular opinion
necessary in attaining true b. Examine by asking questions
happiness i. Ask yourself first
Virtue- is an act of doing ii. Socrates - use the
Every action will always lead to platonic theory. Think
certain happiness about the PAST on
Good- is a consequence that will how it could be
lead to happiness applied on the
Evil- is a consequence that will lead PRESENT and what
to pain and suffering would be the possible
effects in the
4) All evil acts are committed out of FUTURE.
ignorance hence doing evil acts are
involuntary 2. Let your lover change you
- Person you admire
5) It is better to suffer an injustice - Bandura modeling process
instead of committing injustice acts - We tend to imitate the
model which we look
Physical world up to
- Changeable, transient, imperfect - We liked their action
- World of senses/matter = do action
- Change will always happen - They did something
- Always expect the unexpected that you didn't like =
(changes) didn’t do the action
- Let it happen - Choose the person you
Spiritual World admire
- Unchanging, eternal, perfect a. True love is admiration
- Reason (thinking) to achieve
perfection
 b. Your lover might have
qualities that you lack which
he could fill in
c. Educate each other to have
better version of oneself
3. Decode the message of beauty
a. Peace
b. Balance
c. Harmony
d. Strength
4. Reform society, end democracy, to
help people to think rationally
The ideas of Aristotle
1) What makes people happy?
-Virtues
2) What is art for?
-realization in the external form of a
true idea, and is traced back to that
natural love of imitation that
characterizes humans, and to the
pleasure which we feel in
recognizing likenesses.
3) What are friends for?
● Philosopher Aristotle identified three
types of friendships: Ones based on
utility or pleasure, and one on
mutual appreciation of each other's
values.
● The first two — 'accidental'
friendships — are limited in depth
and don't last a long time.
● But friendships based on virtues
build the strongest connections and
last.
● While many of Aristotle's theories
have been disproved, the idea that
good friendship is crucial to a
well-lived life is relevant today.
● The best friendships should be
based on appreciation of character
— not on a transactional value —
and shape our lives for the better.
4) How can ideas cut through in a
busy world?
PART 2
The Ancient Triumvirates
❖ Socrates- teacher of Plato
- Know thyself- to answer
“Who am I”
- Man must live and stand
according to his nature- we
must understand ourselves
- “An unexamined life is not
worth living”
- How can we determine this?
For socrates we must ask
this 2 fundamental questions:
- To find what?- use the
platonic theory of
reminiscence (go back or
remember) or
INTROSPECTION- look
inside yourself; wisdom is
learning to reflect
- By what means?
- For Socrates there are 2
worlds we are exposed to:
- Physical World- the world
of the senses or the world of
matter; changeable,
transient, imperfect
- Spiritual World- something
abstract; World of
Ideas/Form; Unchanging; We
are all in the block universe
and all ideas can be access if
we ONLY ASK QUESTIONS;
look inside yourself and ask
questions and you’ll get the
possible answers, WHY:
bcos inside ourselves is the
spiritual world; always strive
for wisdom and perfection;
 THE DIVINE BEING IS
WITHIN YOURSELF; THAT
IS YOUR SOUL
❖ Plato- teacher of Aristotle
- What you can find inside
yourself is your soul and
represented in three ways
(functions of the soul)
- Reason: the divine essence
that lets us think deeply
(wisdom), make wise choices
and achieve a true
understanding of eternal
truths
- Physical Appetite: the soul
that represents the bodily
conditions; basic biological
needs such as hunger, thirst
and sexual desire
- Passion/Spirit:
representatives of our
emotions; basic emotions
such as love, anger,
ambition, aggressiveness,
empathy
- This three are in a dynamic
relation: they interact with
each other, some might
dominate and others might
submit- BALANCE; if there’s
a conflict- find balance with
the use of reason
❖ Aristotle
- When the child is born, the
mind is in its blank slate -
TABULA RASA
- Something can be written in
a blank slate through
EXPERIENCES; once we
have experience, it now
becomes a part of our past, a
part of our memories
- The process of
Completion- through our
own experiences; Knowledge
is acquired through the
senses; can only happen if it
passes through the senses
(Sensation)
- Heraclitus: Sometimes we
hear something but we don’t
understand what we hear
- The goal of the human self is
reached in happiness
through moderation or
balance of things
- How do we develop a sense
of balance in one self:
YOU MUST HAVE VIRTUE-
the way wherein you must
find a middle ground
between two vices in the
opposite direction; virtue and
vices can come together
- Where can we find virtue: It
is in the middle of 2
extreme vices
Example: Rash
(Recklessness) - Courage-
Coward
For you to have the virtue of
courage you must have little
Rash and a little bit of
Cowardice; REFERRED TO
AS THE GOLDEN MEAN
- How can we develop virtues:
➔ First: The ability to
regulate our desires
is not instinctive, but
learned and is the
outcome of both
teaching and
practice- Find a
model, surround
yourself with models
 ➔ Second: He notes should be based on behavior,
that if we regulate our rather than words. That we
desires either too don’t control and cannot rely
much or too little, on external events, only
then we create ourselves and our responses
problems. “Excess or - Most ideas from Marcus
deficiency of Aurelius- “If you can properly
gymnastic exercise is turn a problem upside down,
fatal to strength” every “bad” becomes a new
➔ Third: He argues that source of good” , “The
desire-regulating impediment to action
virtues are character advances action. What
traits, and are not to stands in the way becomes
be understood as the way.”
either emotions or - There is no good or bad to
mental faculties; If the practicing Stoic. There is
you want to develop only perception. You control
virtues, practice it, perception.
train yourself (Model),
it will be difficult but PART 3
later on it will become
a natural part of STOICISM
yourself, it is a BY: MARCUS AURELIUS
character trait- not
longer influence by ● If you can properly turn a problem
emotions or mental upside down, every “bad” becomes
faculties; always a new source of good.
maintain a MIDDLE ● Marcus Aurelius described it like
GROUND this:
○ “The impediment to action
The Post-Aristotelians advances action. What
❖ Stoicism- we cannot avoid adversity stands in the way becomes
(difficulties/obstacles); EMBRACING the way”.
ADVERSITY- don’t run away from ○ Sometimes what you think is
your problem, face it. the problem becomes an
- It's a philosophy designed to opportunity. It will lead you to
make us more resilient, another direction which is
happier, more virtuous and much better than what you
more wise- and as a result, have thought
better people, better parents ● There is no good or bad to the
and better professionals practicing Stoic. There is only
- The philosophy asserts that perception. You control the
virtue (such as wisdom) is perception.
happiness and judgement
 ● Sometimes when you talk about the
problem, it’s not actually a problem,
it’s a learning process. We can only
look at this as a learning process so
we will be able to do something
which might be outside our box but it
is much better than what we think.
● Look outside the box and look at it in
a different way and you might find a
solution that you think is different
than what you are actually thinking.
STOICISM
● Another stoic, Epictetus, who as a
crippled slave has faced adversity
after adversity, echoed the same:
“Do not seek for things to happen
the way you want them to; rather,
wish that what happens happen the
way it happens: then you will be
happy.”
○ “Kung ano ang gusto mong
mangyari, pwedeng hindi
mangyari dahil meron
talagang nakalaan na
mangyari.”
○ What we can wish here is to
give us the wisdom to
understand why it happened.
○ Whatever happened is
because of what the universe
would like us to have, but
then what we might not know
is what you think you want
might not be the right one for
you. The universe is
providing you with something
better. If you will only look at
it in a positive manner.
● It is why amor fati is the Stoic
exercise and mindset that you take
on for making the best out of
anything that happens.
○ You cannot control the future
but you can control your
reaction towards the future.
○ You can only react when it
becomes present.
○ A future can never come
because everytime you think
of the future, it will always be
in the present moment. So if
you plan something, you are
planning it in the present.
What you see is the future in
relation to your imagination.
Once you reach that time in
your imagination, it is no
longer a future, it is already a
present moment. Once you
encounter the present, it now
becomes the past. So
everything that you do, it will
always be in the process of
continuously moving time
dimension. Just like in the
river, you cannot step in the
same water twice, water
keeps on flowing.
○ Do the best of what you can
in the present so whatever
you have done in the
present, the outcome might
come later on. Whatever the
outcome is, you don’t know
because it still would be
coming to us, but what is
important is you have done
the best of what you can so
that whatever the outcome
would be you don't have any
regrets because of the effort
you exerted in the present
moment.
● Treating each and every moment -
no matter how challenging - as
something to be embraced, not
 avoided. To not only be okay with it,
but love it and be better for it.
○ You cannot do anything
about the past and the future,
you are only responsible for
the present moment.
○ Love what is happening to
you at this moment. So if you
love what is happening right
now to you, your perspective
and perception will become
more positive.
○ Aristotle: “Anything even
though how ugly it is, if you
just look at it there is
something beautiful that you
can discover. Just take a look
and you will discover
something else aside from
what you have seen before.
How can you discover? Just
by changing your
perception.”
● So that like oxygen to a fire,
obstacles and adversity become fuel
for your potential.
○ What makes your life
meaningful is when you are
able to overcome problems.
○ Problems are a source of
happiness because after the
pain and difficulty, you will
begin to realize what
happiness is.
HEDONISM
● “Eat, drink, the philosophical
doctrine that:
● (1) All pleasure is intrinsically good,
and
● (2) Nothing but pleasure is
intrinsically good.
● Similar theories might involve
enjoyment, satisfaction, happiness,
as concepts substituted for pleasure
and be happy. For tomorrow, you will
die.
○ Be happy now because you
don’t know what will happen
tomorrow, you might die, so
the opportunity might be lost.
● They believe that pleasure is the
only good in life, and pain is the only
evil, and our life’s goal should be to
maximize pleasure and minimize
pain.
● The Paradox of Hedonism (also
called the Pleasure Paradox), points
out that pleasure and happiness are
strange phenomena that do not obey
normal principles, in that they cannot
be acquired directly, only indirectly
and we often fail to attain pleasures
if we deliberately seek them.
○ The more you seek for
pleasure, the more it
becomes painful.
○ The more you seek for
pleasure, the more it will run
away from you. Pleasure
comes unexpectedly.
○ The more you search for
happiness, the more it will
escape you.
○ Sense of achievement will
give you happiness that
cannot be bought by money
or any material things.
EPICUREANISM
● That the greatest good is to seek
modest pleasures in order to attain a
state of tranquility, freedom from fear
(“ataraxia”) and absence from bodily
pain (“aponia”).
● Modest pleasure
○ You will have happiness, if
you are free from fear
(ataraxia) and if you are free
from bodily pain (aponia).
Epicurus’ techniques for obtaining
happiness even in the most miserable
situation:
● Instead of dwelling on the pain,
recollect one of those moments in
the past when you were most happy.
Through enough training of the
mind, you will be able to achieve
such vividness of imagination that
you can relive these experiences
and that happiness.
○ Use your happy memories to
help you forget the pain.
○ Choose the memories that
make you happy so that it will
enlighten you in the present.
○ When you go inside yourself,
you are also knocking in the
universe, you are also
knocking in the black
universe that we all share.
And this black universe can
provide you with knowledge
and information that you
need to deal with the present
moment.
● “Pleasure is our first and kindred
good. It is the starting point of every
choice and of every aversion, and to
it we always come back… to judge
every good thing.”
○ What makes a person happy
and feel good should be
important. Because it is
related to what will make us
happy.
○ Every good thing that you
consider as good gives us
pleasant experiences.
○ Happiness is a choice.
Whether you react to it in a
positive or negative manner.
● Only when we are in pain do we feel
the need to seek pleasure, a need
which inevitably only produces
greater pain. In order to get rid of
this pain-pleasure-pain-cycle, we
need to cultivate a mindset in which
there is no pain.
○ Sometimes, you are always
happy so there is no need to
do something because you
are happy but the problem is,
when you encounter pain, it
becomes a conscious matter
to you to seek for pleasure.
○ Paradox of Hedonism: The
more you seek for
happiness, the more it leaves
you.
○ Do not seek for pleasure
when you are in pain. The
more you seek for it the more
it will give you pain.
○ It can be considered as a
learning process, another
way of directing you to
another path.
● We need wisdom to see which
pleasures are really pleasurable,
and which pains are necessary to
produce pleasure. Some pleasures
lead to greater pain, like imbibing
copious amounts of alcohol, and so
the wise person will shun them.
○ Problems are stepping
stones for
achievements/success.
○ Problem is a platform for
success.
○ Some pleasure can lead to
greater pain (amount of
alcohol). Sadness can lead
to an appreciation for life or
compassion which are highly
pleasurable things.
 ○ You gain experiences and
overcome obstacles =
success
○ Struggles are made in order
to experience real happiness.
● On the other hand, certain pains, like
sadness, can lead to an appreciation
for life or compassion, which are
highly pleasurable states.
● We should not therefore get rid of all
negative emotions but only those
that lead to unnecessary pains.
● Epicurus anticipates this with his
claim that the greatest secret to
happiness is to be as independent of
external things as possible.
○ External things like car,
house, material possessions,
but if it is internal it is within
yourself, nobody can take it
away from you.
● Being content with the simple things
in life ensures that you will never be
disappointed. If you put your stock in
unnecessary pleasures like costly
luxuries and food, you will be:
○ (1) upset when you lose
these things
○ (2) anxious to obtain them
○ (3) continually pushed
onwards towards greater
luxuries and hence greater
anxiety and disappointment
“Happiness is a choice. Yeah, things in life
make it difficult, but at the end of the day
you control your own happiness.”
PART 4
THE POST-ARISTOTELIANS
STOICISM
● Embracing Adversity
● It’s a philosophy designed to make
us more resilient, happier, more
virtuous, and more wise-and as a
result, better people, better parents
and better professionals.
● The more you run away from
adversity, the more it will run after
you.
● When you look at adversity in a
different perspective, that adversity
is not a difficulty but an opportunity
for you to discover your strengths.
● The philosophy asserts that virtue
(such as wisdom) is happiness and
judgement should be based on
behavior, rather than words. That we
don’t control and cannot rely on
external events, only ourselves and
our responses.
○ We cannot control and
cannot rely on external
events, only on ourselves
and our responses.
■ Behavior and
thoughts.
HEDONISM
● What is good is something that will
give you happiness or pleasure, and
what is bad is something that
involves pain.
● For hedonistic people, it is their
belief that pleasure is the only good
in life and pain is the only evil. Our
goal should be to maximize pleasure
and minimize pain.
● In Hedonism, you have to be happy,
for tomorrow, you will die.
● The problem in Hedonism is the
more you search for pleasure the
more it will be difficult for you to
achieve it.
 ● Pleasure and happiness are strange
phenomena that do not obey normal
principles, in that they cannot be
acquired directly, only indirectly and
we often fail to attain pleasure if we
deliberately seek them.
● Sometimes, we don’t need to plan
how to be happy because it will
come to you when the right time
comes.
EPICUREANISM
● How to be happy, how to have
pleasure?
● Provide certain conditions for a
person to be happy.
○ Ataraxia
■ Freedom from fear
○ Aponia
■ Absence from bodily
pain
● A simplified way of life can make a
person happy already for as long as
the person doesn’t fear anything
(ataraxia) and is absent from any
kinds of pain (aponia). - greatest
pleasure that a person can have.
“Happiness is a choice. Yeah, things in life
make it difficult, but at the end of the day
you control your own happiness.”
Is the self related to a supreme
being/god?
Who am I in relation to a supreme
being/god?
● According to Socrates, man is made
up of body and soul. For the soul, it
is represented by the divine being in
us. So if you want to encounter the
divine being, look inside yourself.
(introspection).
● It is also stated that God is within us
that is why our body is the temple of
God.
MEDIEVAL PHILOSOPHY
(500 AD TO 1350 AD)
Theo-centric
● From the scientific investigation on
nature and search for happiness to
the question of life and salvation in
another realm, in a better world (i.e.,
the afterlife)
● There was an aim to merge
philosophy and religion
○ Christian, Jewish, Muslim
● If a person dies, is there a life after
our life here on earth?
St. Augustine
● Integrates platonic ideas with the
tenets of Christianity
● The self strives to achieve union with
God through faith and reason.
○ Related to what Plato said
that within our self, we have
3 kinds of souls:
■ Rational (reason)
■ Appetition (appetite)
■ Passion
○ For us to be united with God,
we have to use reason in
order to deal with other
aspects of ourselves such as
appetition and passion.
St. Thomas Aquinas
● Self-knowledge is dependent on our
experience of the world around us
(objects in our environment)
○ How you see the world
around us is dependent on
what surrounds you.
○ Example: you are
surrounded with activities
related to water, your
experiences are dependent
on water activities.
● The labels we attribute to ourselves
are taken from the things we
encounter in our environment.
 ● “The things that we love tell us what
we are.”
○ Example: If you love books,
you are a book lover and you
surround yourself with books
because you like to read
books.
○ You describe yourself
according to what you do and
what makes you happy.
These are based on your
environment which makes
you who you are.
● “Our knowledge is based on our
encounter of things.”
Does this mean that we get to know
everything by simply experiencing it?
● An experience is something that we
have done in the past and how you
are able to encounter it is based on
your senses. (what you have see,
heard, smell)
St. Thomas Aquinas
● Experiencing something exists
doesn’t tell us what it is
● Knowing and learning about a thing
requires a long process of
understanding; same with the mind
and the self - with experience and
reason.
How can I be sure that the self exists?
What are the proofs that the self exists?
MODERN PHILOSOPHY
(14th century to the early 20th century)
Anthropocentric
● Thinkers began to reject the
scholastics’ (medieval thinkers)
excessive reliance on authority
● Period of radical social, political and
intellectual developments
● Anthro means man (study of man)
rather than religion.
● Believe if there is evidence rather
than what other people will tell them.
● Rene Descartes
○ The self is a thinking thing,
distinct from the body.
○ He believed that the thinking
(soul) can be separated from
the body.
○ For example, our thinking
can bring us to the future in
terms of our imagination. Or
it can bring us back to the
past in relation to our
memories. So as a result,
going to the future by use of
our thinking means that you
cannot bring our body with it.
In the same manner as when
you think of going to other
places, your imagination is
there but your body is not.
○ Self (thinking)
■ What, how, and why
you think makes you
who you are. It can
influence your
emotions
● David Hume
○ There is no “self,” only a
bundle of constantly
changing perceptions
passing through the theater
of our minds.
○ Ourselves is based on what
happened to you in the past
until the present moment.
○ Yourself is not the same
when you are 5 years old
compared to what you are
right now.
○ Your impression of yourself
will constantly change.
 ○ Human nature is more
influenced by feelings rather
than reason.
○ When you are in love,
sometimes you can't think
anymore.
● Gilbert Ryle
○ The self is the way people
behave.
○ A person's action is reflective
of one’s thinking and feelings
○ When relating the philosophy
of Immanuel Kant and Gilbert
Ryle. The outcome of
consciousness that is being
described by Kant will be
manifested by the person in
terms of how that person
would behave in a certain
situation.
● John Locke
○ Personal identity is made
possible by
self-consciousness.
○ When you speak of self
consciousness, it pertains to
your effort to choose what
you want to think.
○ Related to air (lead you
where you are meant to be.)
○ Thinking and acting is
connected in relation to being
conscious.
○ If you are conscious of your
action, it is because you think
about this action before you
go for it.
○ Consciousness is made
possible in relation to how
our thinking and body is
connected with each other.
● Immanuel Kant
○ The self is a unifying subject,
an organizing consciousness
that makes intelligible
experience possible.
○ 2 kinds of consciousness:
■ Inner
● Pertains to a
person’s
intelligence,
understanding
, belief, and
principles
■ Outer
● Pertains to our
senses and or
experiences.
■ “Seeing is not
believing, listening is”
■ “What you see
sometimes you will
not believe because
you will believe more
what you think about
what you see.”
● Paul and Patricia Churchlan
○ The self is the brain. Mental
states will be superseded by
brain states.
○ What we feel, what we do
and what we think is based
on the condition of our Brain.
● Sigmund Freud
○ The self is multi-layered:
■ Conscious - refers to
those thoughts and
feelings that we are
aware of.
■ Preconscious -
experiences that are
unconscious but
could become
conscious with little
effort.
■ Unconscious -
contains all drives,
urges, or instincts that
 are beyond our ○ I and the Me
awareness but ○ Me - socialized aspect of a
motivate our feelings, person
thoughts and ■ It is our relation on
behavior. how we act and react
to other people in
terms of the things we
PART 5 possess in our lives.
This can be related to
THE SELF AS A COGNITIVE our family, friends and
CONSTRUCTION material things that
● It is a person's ability to think or a we own.
person’s mental capacity ○ I - Active aspect of a person
● Based from our previous lessons in ■ I is how we respond
Understand The Self how we think or react to the people
as a person reflect the way how we around us. It is how
act in different situations we describe
● According to Heraclitus we can ourselves
choose what we think and it reflects ■ Examples of this are
on how we are perceived by others “I am a caring person”
and it defines who we truly are. “I am an intelligent
student”. “I am a
SYMBOLIC INTERACTIONISM hardworking and
● George Herbert Mead introduced industrious person”.
this perspective in the 1920s ○ Self - When the interactions
● The self is created and developed of I, me, and generalized
through human interaction. Without other are combined together
human interaction we may not be it creates the self
able to understand who we truly are. ■ Generalized other is
“no man is an island” also known as the
● In this perspective it analyzes person who is
society in a subjective way and puts important to us and
importance to the meaning that has an impact in our
people put on objects, behaviors, lives. It can be the
and events. opinions, viewpoint,
● It is believed that the way people personality, or
behave and act is based on what expectations of
they truly believe and not what is others.
objectively true. ● Parents, Mass
● Social bonds are formed in a way media,
that every single person in a society Government,
or community understands or Friends.
interprets each other's behavior.
● 2 aspects of self awareness ● IMAGINARY AUDIENCE
 ○ Teenagers or Adolescents
are taught to believe that
there is someone always
watching them or judging and
evaluating every single one
of their actions. It is also
taught that each and every
person is unique from one
another and is special.
○ We are self conscious of
what other people, especially
people who are close to us
are thinking regarding our
appearance, performance,
personality, or one of our
actions.
● SELF CONCEPT
○ Results from the imaginary
audience
○ Mental Representation of
who we truly are.
■ What we look like
■ How we feel in
different situations
■ How we behave
towards other people
■ What we do at work
■ What are the roles we
have in the family or
society
○ It is what we think of
ourselves or how we see
ourselves and can be true or
false. If we think positively of
ourselves our self concept is
enhanced and if we think
negatively about ourselves
our self concept is
diminished.
● REAL AND IDEAL SELF
○ Carl Rogers
○ Real self entails to what we
are right now
○ Ideal Self entails to what we
want to be and what we see
ourselves in the future
○ A person’s ideal self may not
be consistent with what
actually happens in their life.
○ Which entails that there may
be a difference in a person’s
ideal self and actual
experiences which can lead
to disappointment or
sadness.
○ Carl Rogers said that in order
for a person to achieve
self-actualization a person
must be in the state of
congruence or a state where
in the ideal self and actual
experiences of a person are
similar.
○ A person is happy when
his/her real self and ideal self
is in a state of congruence.
● SELF AS DEFINED BY SOCIAL
COMPARISON
○ Leon Festinger
○ Temporal Comparison
■ Relating our present
condition to our
condition or
experiences in the
past
■ An example of this is
when we relate our
height when we were
in elementary to our
height now that we
are in college. Our
height obviously
changed and we have
grown taller because
of puberty.
○ Social Comparison
 ■ Evaluating our
attributes by
comparing ourselves
to other people
around us
■ An example of this is
when you watch your
classmate play
basketball and you
were so impressed
with his skills that you
thought that your
skills were really
lacking compared to
his.
○ The process in which social
comparison works depends
on the motivation level of a
person. Which entails that a ○ 2 MODES OF DOWNWARD
person may compare
himself/herself to others in an ○ PASSIVE DOWNWARD
upward or downward
manner.
○ 2 MODES OF SOCIAL
COMPARISON
○ UPWARD
■ We compare
ourselves to others
who we believe in our
minds are better than ○ ACTIVE DOWNWARD
us and we look up to
them as a role model.
■ Can be a way to
motivate ourselves to
improve to be able to
reach the person we
look up to.
■ Several studies have
shown that people
often make upward
comparisons than
downward
comparisons.
○ DOWNWARD
■ We compare
ourselves to others
who we believe are
better than them or
they are worse than
ourselves.
■ This kind of
comparison is often
done to make us think
and feel better about
ourselves
■ People who engage
or do this kind of
comparison are often
the people who are
disappointed,
unhappy, or
unmotivated.
SOCIAL COMPARISON
COMPARISON
■ Often takes place
when a person
remembers or takes
in consideration the
previous condition
when making the
comparison.
COMPARISON
■ This kind of
comparison takes
place when a person
compares
himself/herself to
other people that
causes harm to that
specific person.
■ By causing harm to
that specific person
the person who
caused the harm
feels that he/she is
 better than the person
who was harmed.
● SELF-EVALUATION AND SELF
ENHANCEMENT
● Motivation is the primary key or
takes on the primary role as it is
manifested by self-evaluation and
self-enhancement
○ SELF- EVALUATION
■ A person looks for a
positive trait in
himself/herself based
on what he/she
observed from
another person or the
person he/she looks
up to.
■ We asked ourselves if
we got what we
wanted or did we do
what we needed to
do.
○ SELF-ENHANCEMENT
■ Often occurs when a
person questions or
thoroughly looks at
himself/herself to find
out what trait needs
to be improved or
focused on to be able
to reach the person
we look up to.
● SELF ESTEEM
○ Self esteem describes or
defines the overall self-worth
or personal value a person
has.
○ Basically it entails to how
much a person loves or
appreciate himself/herself
○ Often seen as a personality
trait, which means that it
tends to be stable and
enduring
○ It's based on our opinions
and beliefs about ourselves,
which can sometimes feel
really difficult to change.
○ A low Self-esteem affects our
overall way of thinking
because we can never love
other people especially our
loved ones if we don't love
ourselves.
○ Having healthy self-esteem
can influence your
motivation, your mental
well-being, and your overall
quality of life. However,
having self-esteem that is
either too high or too low can
be problematic.
● REFERENCE GROUP
○ A reference group is a group
in which an individual or
another group is compared to
○ According to sociologists a
reference group is a group in
which individuals or other
groups use as a standard
when they are evaluating
their own personality, and
behavior.
○ This definition points clearly
to the importance of defining
the groups with which an
individual identifies, whether
or not he belongs to them.
○ These are the groups whose
values, standards and beliefs
guide the person in carrying
out his actions and in
evaluating himself.
○ A reference group may be
related to self-evaluation in a
way that you want to be part
of a specific group and now
you want to find a certain trait
 of yours that fits within the
group you want to join.
● THE CREATION OF IDENTITIES
○ A person’s identity that is
similar to the reference
group must be balanced to
the need to be a unique
individual.
■ Children are often
afraid to act differently
or uniquely because
of the identity of the
group they are apart
of.
■ Teenagers are often
torn between
choosing to go with
their individual
identity or comply
with the identity of
their reference group.
■ Adults build new
identities in
connection with their
work, parenthood,
economic status, and
ageing.
● ANTHROPOLOGY
○ The self and person in
contemporary anthropology
and the self being embedded
in culture; You can be
influenced by your culture
● WESTERN SELF VS NON
WESTERN SELF
○ WESTERN SELF
■ Autonomous and
egocentric
■ Known for being
independent and self
centered
■ Any kind of action a
person does it is a
reflected action or
opinion of his/herself
only
○ NON WESTERN SELF
■ Identity shared with
others and derived
from a culture
■ Any kind of action a
person does it is a
reflected action or
opinion of the “group”
he/she is part of.
● INDIVIDUALISM VS
COLLECTIVISM
○ INDIVIDUALISM
■ A person has an
individualistic nature
and is an
independent part of a
society.
■ An action of a person
reflects only his/her
thinking or what he
truly believes or
wants.
■ Individual rights take
center stage
■ Independence is
highly valued
■ Being dependent to
other people is often
considered shameful
■ Tend to be self-reliant
■ The rights of
individuals tend to
take a higher
precedence
■ People often place
greater emphasis on
standing out and
being unique
○ COLLECTIVISM
■ A person is a key or
integral part of the
universe and society.
 ■ Every single person is
connected
fundamentally
■ Social rules focuses
on promoting
selflessness and
putting the community
needs ahead of
individual needs
■ Working as a group
and supporting others
is essential
■ People are
encouraged to do
what's best for society
■ Families and
communities have a
central role
● THE SELF IN
ORIENTAL/EASTERN THOUGHT
○ The self is embedded in
relationships though the
spiritual development in
confucian thought.
● BUDDHISM
○ Siddhartha Gautama
○ The self is the source of all
sufferings. It is our quest to
forget about the cravings of
the self, break the
attachments you have with
the world, and to renounce
the self in order to attain the
state of Nirvana
○ Emphasizes personal
experience, a pragmatic
attitude, and the use of
critical thinking toward all
types of knowledge.
○ Nirvana is not primarily an
absolute reality beyond or
behind the universe but
rather a special state of mind
in which all the causes and
conditions responsible for
rebirth and suffering have
been eliminated.
● HINDUISM
○ Fusion of various Indian
cultures and traditions
○ Hindus believe that an
individual's action also known
as (Karma) - the bad or good
actions that the individual
performed in a previous life
determines his/her caste
○ Hinduism embraces many
religious ideas. For this
reason, it’s sometimes
referred to as a “way of life”
or a “family of religions,” as
opposed to a single,
organized religion.
○
● TAOISM
○ Lao-Tzu
○ Self does not exist without
the existence of the other.
○ Self as a separate identity is
supported by the equal and
opposite sensation of
otherness.
○ Focuses on genuineness,
longevity, health, immortality,
vitality, and wu wei.
○ Nothing in the Universe is
fixed, static or non moving.
everything is transforming
all the time.
○ Taoist belief is based on the
idea that there is central or
organizing principle of the
Universe, a natural order or a
"way of heaven"
● CONFUCIANISM
○ Confucius
○ Filial piety is a foundational
concept in the thought of
Confucius.
○ main idea of Confucianism
is the importance of having
a good moral character,
○ It teaches how one should
act properly according to
their relationship with other
people; how you relate with
people, how you respect
people around you
○ Rituals in Confucianism
were designed to bring
about this respectful
attitude and create a
sense of community within
a group.