ANTHROPOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE

OF THE SELF
ANTHROPOLOGY
• The study of human societies and cultures
• It is concerned with how cultural and biological
processes interact to shape human experiences.
 Self as Embedded in Culture

CULTURE
• Set of unwritten norms of conduct that guide the behaviour
of a group.
• It is complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art,
morals, law, customs, and any other capabilities and habits
acquired by man.
• Culture influences or shape the self – concept of
an individual that includes psychological, physical
and social attitudes, ideas and beliefs and other
more.
• Culture great influence an individual negatively or
positively depending on the type of culture that
one has been brought up in.
 Material and non – Material Culture

• Material culture refers to the physical objects, resources,

and spaces that people use to define their culture. These
include homes, neighborhoods, cities, schools, churches,
synagogues, temples, mosques, offices, factories and
plants, tools, means of production, goods and products,
stores, and so forth. All of these physical aspects of a
culture help to define its members' behaviors and
perceptions.
•Non‐material culture refers to the
nonphysical ideas that people have
about their culture, including beliefs,
values, rules, norms, morals, language,
organizations, and institutions.
 Two Anthropological Perspectives of the Self

• Egocentric- a concept of the self where the self is

seen as an autonomous and distinct individual.

• Socio-centric- according to this view, there is no

intrinsic self that can possess enduring qualities.
 3 – Phased Rite of Passage in a Person’s Social
Status

• Separation Phase- in this phase, people detach

from their former identity to another
• Liminality Phase- in this phase, a person
transitions from one identity to another
• Incorporation Phase- in this phase, the change
in one's status is officially incorporated
 Anthony Wallace & Raymond Fogelson
“Identity Struggles”

• Identity Struggles- It is characterized interaction in

which there is a discrepancy between the identity a
person claims to possess and the identity attributed to
that person by other.
• 
• Self-identification- in order to attain this, individuals
have to overcome many obstacles
Katherine Ewing “Illusion of Wholeness”
• Illusion of Wholeness- implies that the
cohesiveness and continuity of self are only illusory
• 
• Cultural Differences- exists when groups of people
assign different meanings to different life events
and things
Quiz and Activity
PSYCHOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE OF THE
SELF
 The self as a cognitive construction:
by: William James
• THE “I” AND THE “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).
• The Me Self is a more subjective and psychological
phenomenon, referring to individuals’ reflections
about themselves (e.g. Characterizing oneself as
athletic, smart, and cooperative).
 3 Components of the “ME” Self

• 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)
• 3. The spiritual self (e.g., internal dispositions).
 Psychoanalytic Theory by Sigmund Freud

• Posit that there are three elements of

personality that works together to create a
complex human behaviour.
 3 Elements of Personality
The id is driven by the pleasure principle, which strives for
immediate gratification of all desires, wants, and needs.
The ego operates based on the reality principle, which strives
to satisfy the id's desires in realistic and socially appropriate
ways. 
The superego is the aspect of personality that holds all of our
internalized moral standards and ideals that we acquire from
both parents and society—our sense of right and wrong.
 The 3 Levels of Awareness

• The conscious: The conscious consists of what someone is aware of at any

particular point in time. It includes what you are thinking about right now,
whether it is in the front of you mind or the back
• The Preconscious: The preconscious contains information that is just below
the surface of awareness. It can be retrieved with relative ease and usually
can be thought of as memory or recollection
• The Unconscious: The unconscious contains thoughts, memories, and
desires that are buried deep in ourselves, well below our conscious
awareness. Even though we are not aware of their existence, they exert
great influence on our behavior.
 The “TRUE “ and the “FALSE” Self
by D.W. Winnicot
• THE FALSE SELF
• Refers to the outer layer of the self.
• Product of early experience.
• It is the mask or the persona of the self
• The result of complying to external or social rules in
order to maintain good relationship.
 Two Kinds of False Self
Healthy false self
• When the false self is functional both for
the person and for society then it is
considered healthy. The healthy false self
feels that that it is still being true to the
true self. It can be compliant but without
feeling that it has betrayed its true self.
• When the situation becomes difficult, the
true self can still override the true self
and so acts as an effective conscience or 
super-ego.
Unhealthy false self
• A self that fits in but through a feeling
of forced compliance rather than
loving adaptation is unhealthy.
• When the false self-wins debates
against the true self, the person finds
that they are unable to be guided by
their true self and so has to adapt to
the social situation rather than assert
its self.
 THE TRUE SELF

• The self that is based on spontaneous authentic

experience.
• Shows a sense of being alive and real in one’s mind
and body having feelings that are unforced.
• This is the self that view other people realistically and
accept both the positive and negative side of every
person including himself/herself.
 The Real and Ideal Self
by: Carl Rogers
REAL SELF
• It refers to how we feel, look and act. This can be seen by others
but since we have no way of knowing how other view us this is also
referred to as our self – image.
IDEAL SELF
• The person we want to be. It consist of our goals and ambitions in
life. This is created out of what we have learned from our life
experiences, demands from society and what we admire in our role
models.
•Carl Rogers believe that maladjustment
happens when there is incongruence between
our real and ideal self.
 Unified and Multiple Self

• THE UNIFIED SELF

• believes that the self is the integration of the body, the spirit, thoughts etc.
as one
• The self is of unified consciousness and not composed of merger fragments.
THE MULTIPLE SELF
• People believe to actively construct their perceptions of the world in
accordance with personal context and culture.
• Believe that the every human have multiple and varied selves which are
need to carry our many and diverse activities of our lives.
 The Agentic and Proactive Self

• Agentic is an active process of exploring, manipulating and

influencing the environment in order to attain desired
outcomes.
• Agentic self means that human have the capacity to
exercise control over their own lives.
• People who are agentic are self regulating, self – reflective
and self organizing.
• Proactive is more of being aggressive and assertive.
• People who have proactive self accepts responsibility for
their own actions, don’t blame or accuse others, they accept
challenges.
• Their behaviour is a product of their conscious choice based
on values.
 THE SELF IN WESTERN AND
ORIENTAL/EASTERN THOUGHTS
 MAIN PRINCIPLES
EASTERN
• Cosmological unity
• Life is a journey towards eternal realities that
are beyond the realities that surround us
• Circular   view of the universe, based on the
perception of eternal recurrence
• Inner-world dependent
• Self-liberation from the false "Me" and finding
the true "Me". The highest state is believed to
be a state of 'no-self', where neither self-worth
nor self-importance have any real meaning.
• Strong behavioral ethics
WESTERN
• Feeling oneself as an element of the Divine
• Life is a service (to the God, money,
business, etc.)
• Linear view of the universe and life, based
on the Christian philosophy where
everything has its beginning and the end.
• Outer-world dependent
• Self-dedication to the goal (life vision, 
success,happiness, etc.)
THE “ME” CONCEPT

WESTERN
• Eternal reality of the • “Me” is here and now. The
universal truth: self- true “Me” in every human
liberation through being is a part of the Divine
that need to become
getting rid of the false
apparent. True “Me” is given
"Me" and discovering and doesn’t have to be
the true "Me" cognizable.
 SEARCH FOR ABSOLUTE TRUTH
• HOLISTIC approach – all events in the
universe are interconnected
• Searching INSIDE YOURSELF – by
becoming a part of the universe
through meditation and right living
• "Though he should live a hundred years,
not seeing the Truth Sublime; yet better,
indeed, is the single day's life of one who
sees the Truth Sublime." ~ Buddha
• More focused on INDIVIDUAL
EVENTS and the role of the
person
• Searching outside yourself -
through research andanalysis
• "The truth that survives is
simply the lie that is
pleasantest to believe."
~ H.L.Mencken
 INDIVIDUALISM/COLLECTIVISM

• A human being is an • A human being has an

integral part of the universe individualistic nature and
and the society. People are is an independent part of
fundamentally connected. the universe and the
Duty towards all others is a society. INDIVIDUALISM
very important matter.  is stronger.
COLLECTIVISM is stronger.
 ACHIEVEMENT & WINNING
• Winning is INSIDE yourself.  • Winning is OUTSIDE yourself.
• "Though he should conquer a thousand • "You're not a star until they can spell your
men in the battlefield a thousand times, name in Karachi." 
yet he, indeed, who would conquer ~ Roger Moore
himself is the noblest victor." ~ Buddha • "Life affords no higher pleasure than that
• "He who conquers others is strong; he of surmounting difficulties, passing from
who conquers himself is mighty." ~ Lao one stop of success to another, forming
Tzu new wishes and seeing them gratified." 
~ Samuel Johnson
• "The most excellent Jihad is that for the
conquest of self."  • "It is not because things are difficult that
– Mohammad we do not dare; it is because we do not
dare that they are difficult."
 LEADERSHIP
• SPIRITUAL; walking behind
people; silence is golden.
• "In order to guide people,
the leader must put himself
behind them. Thus when he
is ahead they feel no hurt." ~
Lao Tzu
• HANDS-ON; walking ahead
of people; speech is golden.
• "Leadership is done from in
front. Never ask others to
do what you, if challenged,
would not be willing to do
yourself." 
~ Xenophon
 THE CONCEPT OF SELF IN THE
CONFUCIAN THOUGHT: Self or No-Self
• according to Confucianism, if one has no selfish
motives, but only the supreme virtues, there is no
self… If he serves selflessly, he does not know what
services is.
• If he knows what services is, he has a self…
• The above concept is identical or the same with the
spirit of service – above – self.
Quiz and Activity