Oriental/Eastern Self - Meditation and enlightenment.

There is no issue
in duality, it is only one self (Atman).
Confucian Philosophy from China - Emphasized the relational self and
social understanding of the self. Individual self subsumed the social
interest. The self is the ideal of a selfless person. The individual self and
social self are related.

Individual self and the social self are not mutually exclusive but are
metaphysically and profoundly related. The individual character of the
ideal self cannot be separated from social character of the self.
Example: In a poor family, someone from the siblings will be asked to stop
going to school.
Features of Individualism
 ‘’I’’ identity
 Promotes individual goals, initiative and achievements.
 Individual rights are seen as being the most important. Rules attempt
to ensure self-importance and individualism.
 Independence is valued; there is much less of a drive to help other
citizens or communities than collectivism.
 Relying or being dependent on other is frequently seen as shameful.
 People are encouraged to do things on their own; to rely on
themselves.
 People strive for their own successes

Features of Collectivism
 Each person is encouraged to be an active player in society, to do
what is best for society as a whole rather than themselves.
 The rights of families, communities, and the collective supersede
those of the individual.
 Rules promote unity, brotherhood, and selflessness.
 Working with others and cooperating is norm; everyone supports each
other.
 As a community, family or nation more than as an individual.

LESSON PROPER: Self as Cognitive Construct

In confidence or in an attempt to avoid further analytical discussions, a lot
of people say, "I am who I am" yet, this statement still begs the question,
"if you are who you are, then who are you that makes you who you are?"

As mentioned earlier, there are various definitions of the "self" and other
similar or interchangeable concepts in psychology simply put, "self" is "the
sense of personal identity and of who we are as individuals (Jhangiani and
Tarry 2014)."
William James (1890) was one of the earliest psychologists to study the
self and conceptualized the self as having two aspects the "I" and the
"me".

The "I" is the thinking, acting, and feeling self (Gleitman, Gross, and
Reisburg 2011; Hogg, and Vaughan 2010). The "me" on the other hand, is
the physical characteristics as well as psychological capabilities that
makes who you are (Gleitman, Gross, and Reisburg 2011; Hogg and
Vaughan 2010). Carl Rogers's (1959) theory of personality also used the
same terms, the "I" as the one who acts and decides while the "me" is
what you think or feel about yourself as an object (Gleitman,Gross and
Reisburg 2011).

Other concept similar to self are IDENTITY is composed of personal

characteristics, social roles, and responsibilities, as well as affiliations that
define who one is (Oyserman, Elmore, and Smith 2012).

Self-concept is what basically comes to your mind when you are asked
about who you are (Oyserman, Elmore, and Smith 2012). Self-identity and
self-concept are not fixed in on-e time frame, and they are not fixed for life
nor are they ever-changing at every moment.

Carl Rogers captured this idea in his concept of self-schema or our

organized system or collection of knowledge about who we are (Gleitman,
Gross, and Reisberg 2011; jhangaini and Tarry 2014). Imagine an
organized list or diagram similar to the one below.
It may also include your interest, work, course, age, name, and physical
characteristics, among others. As you grow and adapt to the changes
around you, they also change, but they are not passive receivers, they
actively shape and affect how you see, think and feel about things.

Theories generally see the self and identity as mental construct created
and recreated in memory (Oyserman, Elmore, and Smith 2012). Current
researches point to the frontal lobe of the brain as the specific area in the
brain associated with the processes concerning the self.

Several psychologists, especially during the fields earlier development,

followed this trend of thought, looking deeper into the mind of the person
to theorize about the self, identity, self-concept, and in turn, one's
personality.

The most influential of them is SIGMUND FREUD. Basically, Freud saw the
self its mental processes and one’s behavior as the result of the
interaction between the I.D, EGO and the SUPEREGO.
As in the above mentioned definitions of the self, social interaction always
has a part to play in who we think we are. This is not nature vs. Nurture
but instead a nature-and--nurture perspective.
Three reasons why self and identity are social products:
1. We do not create ourselves out of nothing.
2. Whether you like to admit it or not, we actually needs others to affirm
and reinforce who we think we are, we also need them as reference points
about our identity.
3. What we think is important in our social or historical context.

Two types of self that we can be aware: the private self or your internal
standards and private thoughts and feelings. The public self or your public
image commonly geared toward having a good presentation of yourself to
others (Hogg and Vaughan 2010).

Self-awareness there are times, however, when we are aware of our self-
concept also present us with at least three other self-schema the:
ACTUAL, IDEAL, and OUGHT SELF.
ACTUAL SELF is who you are at the moment
IDEAL SELF is who you like to be.
OUGHT SELF is who you think you should be.

SELF- AWARENESS may be positive or negative depending on the

circumstances and our next course of action. It can keep you doing
something dangerous. It can be too much that we are concerned about
being observed and criticized by others. It is also known as self-
consciousness (Jhangiani and Tarry 2014).

At other times, especially with large crowds, we may experience de

individuation or "the loss of individual self-awareness and individual
accountability in groups. A lot of people will attune themselves with the
emotions of their group and because the large crowd also provides some
kind of anonymity. We may lessen our self-control and act in ways that we
will not do when we are alone.

Our group identity and self-awareness also has a great impact on our self-
esteem, one of the common concepts associated with the "self". It is
define our own positive or negative perception or evaluation of ourselves
(jhangiani, And Tarry 2014; Gleitman, Gross, and Reisberg 2011).

One of the ways in which our social relationship affects our self-esteem is
through social comparison. According to the social comparison theory, we
learn about ourselves, the appropriateness of our behaviors, as well as our
social status by comparing aspects of ourselves with other people
(Jhangiani, and Tarry 2014; Hogg and Vaughan 2010).

DOWNWARD SOCIAL COMPARISON is the more common type of comparing

ourselves with others. As the name implies, we create a positive self-
concept by comparing ourselves with those who are worse off than us.
(Jhangiani and Tarry 2014). By having the advantage, we can raise our self-
esteem.
UPWARD SOCIAL COMPARISON which is comparing ourselves with those
who are better off than us (jhangiani, and Tarry 2014). While it can be a
form of motivation for some, a lot of those who do this actually felt lower
self-esteem as they highlight more of their weakness or inequities.
SOCIAL COMPARISON also entails what is called self-evaluation
maintenance theory, which states that we can feel threatened when
someone out-performs us, especially when that person is close to us (i.e.,
a friend or family).

Take note that this occurs not only between individuals but also among
groups. Thus, if a person’s group is performing better and is acknowledged
more than the group, then his self-esteem may also be heightened.

Such social comparison also entails what is called self-evaluation

maintenance theory, which states that we can feel threatened when
someone out-performs us, especially when that person is close to us. In
this case, we usually react in three ways:
FIRST, we distance ourselves from that person or redefine our relationship
with them. Some will resort to the silent treatment, change of friends,
while some may also redefine by being closer to that person, hoping that
some association may give him a certain kind of acknowledgement also.
SECOND, we may also reconsider the importance of the aspect or skill in
which you were out performed.
LASTLY, we may also strengthen our resolve to improve that certain
aspect of ourselves.

However, in the attempt to increase or maintain self-esteem, some people

become narcissistic. NARCISSISM is a "trait characterized by overly high
self-esteem, self-admiration, and self-centeredness.
Sometimes, there is a thin line between high self-esteem and narcissism
and