REAL AND IDEAL SELF CONCEPT

CARL ROGERS
Carl Ransom Rogers

■ American psychologists
■ Humanistic approach to psychology - highlighted the individual’s innate drive toward
self-actualization and the process of realizing and expressing one’s own capabilities
and creativity
■ He coined the term “actualizing tendency” which refers to a person’s basic instinct
to succeed at his or her highest possible capacity.
■ Theory of Personality Development which highlighted free will and the great
reservoir of human potential for goodness.
Ideal Self Real Self
• the person • the person
that you you actually
would like to are
be
Personality Development and the Self-
Concept
■ Based on humanistic psychology
■ All behavior is motivated by Self-actualizing tendencies = reach your full potential
■ Constant changes and person reacts to these changes
■ Environment + others = structure of self / self-concept --- organized, fluid,
conceptual pattern of concepts and values related to self
■ Person holds negative concept = unhappy with who he/she is
 CARL
ROGERS
(1959)
SELF

REAL
SELF IDEAL SELF

The closer our real self and ideal self are to each other, the more congruent we are and the
higher our sense of self worth
What is the importance of alignment?

• Leads to a greater sense of self-

worth and a health productive
Congruence life

• Leads to maladjustment or the

inability to reat successfully and
Incongruence satisfactorily to the demands of
one’s environment