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Brief Description on "Self Concept "


APSARA KATUWAL DANGOL

Self Concept deals with describing own self and believing own self. Both Eastern and Western cultures have different views regarding Self Concept. According to Baumeister (1999), Self Concept is the individual's belief in himself or herself, including the person's attributes and who and what the self is.

Within the development of Self Concept, there are different views and categories. According to Michael Lewis (1990), there are two categories of self-concept.
i. The Existential Self: When a child is two to three months, he starts to have an existential self. He feels that he is a separate entity. He starts responding to other objects.

ii.The Categorical Self: It is the sense of feeling of being an object to the world. Slowly child starts to connect himself to the world. And development related to internal traits start to develop.

Carl Roger (1959) has claimed that self-concept has three component which includes self-image, self-esteem, and ideal self. Self-image is about how one looks. Self-esteem deals with a value that person has on own. Ideal self means to wish what one wants or assumes to look.

The self - diversity in concept is the basic assumption made in contemporary issues in Clinical Psychology which fundamentally describes each of us has a separate identity which we call SELF according to Western culture and psychotherapy. Healthy self-includes characters like being separate, autonomous and having a private universe of own values, beliefs, goals, and desires. It includes nature like having control, command over emotions, being intellectual, solving problem, setting a goal and giving direction to life, stopping to blame others for problems, an external force has no role, being responsible.






Western culture and psychotherapy say those people are pathological who are not self-sufficient, who depend on others, who lack a stable sense of self, who have difficulty in separating their own wishes, values, and desires. These characters denote western self and masculine self. To find development in own means to be independent.

According to culture, "The Self" has a different value. It is culture-specific as self also extends with one's family. It also involves social groups. Separate belief is not involved. These cultures include self as self in relation.Interdependence is given more value.Group goals are given priority. The relationship bond is made stronger to sustain life.


The diverse views help in psychotherapy as therapist needs to respect client's individual differences. And therapist also needs to be empathetic, give value to an egalitarian relationship than a hierarchical relationship, discourage generalized model. Both client and therapist must be comfortable to proceed psychotherapy.

About Writer

Apsara Katuwal Dangol, is writer, educator, and psychosocial counselor. She writes articles which covers topics related to general and developmental psychology. She teaches to MA Clinical Psychology students as Developmental Psychology Mentor at Tri-Chandra College, and General Psychology at Shubhashree College of Management.




References:

The Self

http://aqabpsychology.co.uk/2010/07/the-self/


Self-Concept

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-concept


Self Concept

https://psychcentral.com/encyclopedia/self-concept/


Self Concept

https://www.simplypsychology.org/self-concept.html

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