The Physical Self

THE SELF AS IMPACTED

BY THE BODY
• The physical self refers to the body. Both physical extremities and
internal organs work together for the body to perform many of its
functions such as breathing, walking, eating, and sleeping, among
others.
• The body’s ability to perform its functions gradually changes
through an individual’s aging. In general, the body performs least
during infancy and old age.
 THE SELF AS IMPACTED
BY THE BODY
• Physical efficiency generally peaks in early adulthood
between the ages of twenty and thirty, and then slowly
declines into the middle age. Physical development and
growth during childhood continue at a slow rate
compared to the rapid rate of growth in babyhood.
 THE SELF AS IMPACTED
BY THE BODY
• Adolescence begins with the onset of puberty. The stage
is characterized by rapid physical changes that include
the maturation of the reproductive system. Each
individual goes through a succession of developmental
stages throughout his or her life span.
 Life span refers to the development from
conception to death.
• Elizabeth B. Hurlock outlines the stages in the life span:
• 1. Prenatal - fertilization to birth 6. Puberty - 10 or 12 to 14 years old
• 2. Infancy - birth to 2 weeks of life 7. Adolescence - 14 to 18 years old
• 3. Infancy - birth to 2 weeks of life 8. Early adulthood - 18 to 40 years old
• 4. Early childhood - 2 to 6 years old 9. Middle adulthood - 40 to 60 years old
• 5. Late childhood - 6 to 10 or 12 years old 10. Late adulthood or senescence - 60
years old to death
 FACTORS AFFECTING PHYSICAL
GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT
• Physical growth and development is the product of heredity
and environment.
• Heredity is the biological process of the inheritance of traits from
parents to offspring.
• Environment refers to the factors an individual is exposed to
throughout life, which includes learning and experiences.
 FACTORS AFFECTING PHYSICAL
GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT

• Environmental factors such as diet, nutrition

and diseases play an important role in an
individual’s physical development.
 FACTORS AFFECTING PHYSICAL
GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT
• Sex and other physical traits are determined by the combination of
chromosomes and genes during fertilization when the egg and
sperm cells unite.
• Chromosomes are thread-like tissues that carry the genes, and are
usually found in pairs.
• Genes are the primary carrier of hereditary traits and are classified
as dominant (strong genes) and recessive (weak genes).
The Impact of Culture on Body Image and
Self-esteem
• Body image can affect both the adolescent’s
physical and social well-being. Adolescents
worry about different parts of their bodies.
Adolescent boys and girls tend to experience
negative self-image because they are in a stage of
development that is probably confusing to them.
 The Impact of Culture on Body Image and
Self-esteem
• Body image refers to how individuals perceive, think and feel
about their body and physical appearance.
• Appearance refers to everything about a person that others can
observe, such as height, weight, skin color, clothes and hairstyle.
• Through appearances, an individual can show others the kind of
person he or she is.
 The Impact of Culture on Body Image and
Self-esteem
• The age at which puberty begins has implications for
the way adolescents feel about themselves and the way
others treat them.
• Body image is related to self-esteem, which is a
person’s overall evaluation of his or her own worth.
 The Impact of Culture on Body Image and
Self-esteem
• The way adolescents react to their
physical appearance depends in part
on sociocultural factors. The
emphasis that peers, parents, or the
media put on ideal body types,
which is slim or thin, leads girls to
experience body dissatisfaction.
 The Impact of Culture on Body Image and
Self-esteem

• For both boys and girls,

bullying and peer pressure
are associated with greater
body dissatisfaction.
 The Impact of Culture on Body Image and
Self-esteem
• Society shapes us in many ways, possibly more than we realize –
from our interactions to our personal development through
others’ perception of our bodies as a reflection of self-worth. We
are social beings. Genetically we rely on one another for the
survival of humanity. That primal connection makes our
interactions physiologically and psychologically important. So
it’s not surprising that how society perceives us affects us on
many levels.
 The Impact of Culture on Body Image and
Self-esteem
• Body image is both internal (personal) and external
(society). This includes:
• How we perceive our bodies visually
• How we feel about our physical appearance
• How we think and talk to ourselves about our bodies
• Our sense of how other people view our bodies
 The Impact of Culture on Body Image and
Self-esteem
• The media, in particular, has increasingly become
a platform that reinforces cultural beliefs and
projects strong views on how we should look, that
we as individuals often unknowingly or
knowingly validate and perpetuate.
 The Impact of Culture on Body Image and
Self-esteem
• The more we look at perfect images of others and then
look to find those same idealized characteristics in
ourselves and don’t find them, the worse we feel about
ourselves.
• It’s a cycle that breeds discontent.
 The Impact of Culture on Body Image and
Self-esteem
• The greater our discontent with how we measure
up when compared to the societal or media
supported norms, the more negative our body
image. The greater the risk for extreme weight or
body control behaviors occurs.
 The Impact of Culture on Body Image and
Self-esteem
• We’re talking about:
• Extreme dieting
• Extreme exercise compulsion
• Eating disorders
• Extreme or unnecessary plastic surgery
• Using steroids for muscle building
 So how can we build a healthy and positive
body image?
• Positive body image involves understanding that healthy
attractive bodies come in many shapes and sizes, and that
physical appearance says very little about our character or
value as a person.
• How we get to this point of acceptance often depends on our
individual development and self-acceptance.
 So how can we build a healthy and positive
body image?
• To get to that all-important point of balance, there are a few
steps we can take:
• Talkback to the media. All media and messages are
developed or constructed and are not reflections of reality.
So shout back. Speak our dissatisfaction with the focus on
appearance and lack of size acceptance
 So how can we build a healthy and positive
body image?
• To get to that all-important point of balance, there are a few
steps we can take:
• De-emphasize numbers. Kilograms on a scale don’t tell us
anything meaningful about the body as a whole or our
health. Eating habits and activity patterns are much more
important
 So how can we build a healthy and positive
body image?
• To get to that all-important point of balance, there are a few
steps we can take:
• Realize that we cannot change our body type: thin, large,
short or tall, we need to appreciate the uniqueness of what
we have – and work with it
 So how can we build a healthy and positive
body image?
• To get to that all-important point of balance, there are a few
steps we can take:
• Stop comparing ourselves to others. We are unique, and we
can’t get a sense of our own body’s needs and abilities by
comparing it to someone else
 So how can we build a healthy and positive
body image?
• To get to that all-important point of balance, there are a few steps
we can take:
• We need to move and enjoy our bodies not because we
have to, but because it makes us feel good. Walking,
swimming, biking, dancing – there is something for
everyone
 So how can we build a healthy and positive
body image?
• To get to that all-important point of balance, there are a few
steps we can take:
• Spend time with people who have a healthy
relationship with food, activity, and their bodies
 So how can we build a healthy and positive
body image?
• To get to that all-important point of balance, there are a few steps
we can take:
• Question the degree to which self-esteem depends on
our appearance. If we base our happiness on how we
look, it is likely to lead to failure and frustration and
may prevent us from finding true happiness
 So how can we build a healthy and positive
body image?
• To get to that all-important point of balance, there are a few steps we can
take:
• Broaden our perspective about health and beauty by reading
about body image, cultural variances, or media influence.
Check out a local art gallery paying particular attention to fine art
collections that show a variety of body types throughout the ages
and in different cultures
 So how can we build a healthy and positive
body image?
• To get to that all-important point of balance, there are a few steps
we can take:
• ● Recognize that size prejudice is a form of
discrimination similar to other forms of
discrimination. Shape and size are not indicators of
character, morality, intelligence, or success
 So how can we build a healthy and positive
body image?
• Each of us will have a positive body image when
we have a realistic perception of our bodies when
we enjoy, accept, and celebrate how we are and let
go of negative societal or media perpetuated
conditioning.
 The Importance of Beauty

• Whether beauty is biologically programmed or

culturally constructed, it remains important in all
societies. Admittedly, attractive people have a lot of
advantages in life. For one, people who are
perceived to be attractive favor those who are not in
many social situations.
 The Importance of Beauty

• Different cultures have different definitions and

perceptions of beauty. People often say that beauty is in
the eye of the beholder. The fact that many Filipinas
have won international beauty contests shows that
Filipinas are among the women who are perceived to be
the most beautiful in the world.
 The Importance of Beauty

• People tend to judge others based on physical

appearance. However, physical appearance alone is not
enough to know a person’s true character. It is important
to see into a person’s inner thoughts and feelings - one’s
inner self. Above all things physical, it is more
important to be beautiful on the inside.
 The Importance of Beauty

• Let’s look at the definition of beauty:

• the quality or aggregate of qualities in a person or thing that
gives pleasure to the senses
• or pleasurably exalts the mind or spirit: loveliness
• a beautiful person or thing; especially: a beautiful woman
• a particularly graceful, ornamental, or excellent quality
 What are the different forms of beauty?

• We immediately recognize true beauty because it uplifts and

inspires us. We know instinctively that this is a
manifestation of God.
• Physical beauty always begins with non-physical beauty
first. Non-physical beauty is that which can’t be measured,
but it can certainly be felt. It emanates from within.
 What are the different forms of beauty?

• Non-physical beauty manifests through things like

kindness, love, appreciation, harmony, joy, and peace.
These things are all evidence that creative, divine love is
being received and manifesting within that individual.
 What are the different forms of beauty?

• Once the inner beauty is felt, it will always seek to

manifest outwardly in the physical. Maybe it is as
simple as a smile. Or maybe it manifests as an act of
kindness. Perhaps it demonstrates itself through some
artistic creation. Or perhaps it is as simple as saying,
“I love you.”
When we stop resisting our creator’s ever-
present love, we will naturally seek to express
that love by creating beauty all around us in
the physical world.