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• "Understanding the Self" explores identity, factors influencing it, and aims for better self-understanding.

Philosophical Perspectives

• Socrates believed that the goal of philosophy was to Know thyself.
• Knowledge of oneself is achieved through the Socratic Method
• Plato was a dualist believing in both immaterial mind (soul) and material body.
• Also believing the soul attain knowledge of the forms, is present before birth and after death.
• Advocated prioritizing the soul over the body.
• Aristotle saw the soul as an essence of a living being, but didn't think it exists separately.
• St. Augustine thought Identity can be achieve through self-presentation and self-realization.
• Happiness happens only when you have the presence of the Omnipotent and the Omniscient.
• Descartes thought the self is a thinking thing distinct from the body using "Cogito, ergo sum" or “I think, therefore I am."

Sociological Perspectives

• The Self is a relatively stable set of self-perceptions in relation to others and social systems.
• The self is shaped through social interaction
• Charles Cooley's "looking glass self" states people's ideas of themselves have three elements
• Imagining our appearance to others, imagining their judgment of that appearance, resulting in self-feeling (pride, mortification).
• Cooley believed society and individuals do not exist separately
• Rather an individuals is an attribute of society, and a society is an attribute of the indviduals.
• George Mead's theory of the social self is an outcome of social interactions
• This happens such as observing and interacting with others, and internalizing opinions and feelings.
• Three activities by Mead that develop the self:
• Language by using symbols
• Play by taking roles, pretend and express expectation
• Games by adhering to the rules.
• Mead distinguished "I" (individual impulses) from "me" (understanding of the generalized other).

Anthropological Perspectives

• Anthropology scientifically studies humanity, its origins
• Cultural anthropology brings us into contact with different ways of life
• Challenges our awareness of the arbitrariness our own understanding of the world is
• Culture and personality theorists argue that socialization shapes personality patterns.
• The study of culture and personality looked at how socialization practices influenced the development of personality traits.
• Impact of Culture on Man
• Culture helps define human nature.

Psychological Perspectives

• William James termed two aspects of the self being I Self and Me Self
• The I Self reflects what people see/perceive in the physical world
• The Me Self is subjective and psychological, and refers to individuals' reflections (self-view, self-image, self-schema, self-concept).
• Three components of the Me Self are
• the material self
• the social self
• the spiritual self
• William James said thoughts have 5 characteristics
• thought is owned by a personal self
• thoughts constantly change
• thoughts move focus from one object to another
• thoughs differ independent from consciousness
• consciousness focuses on particular objects.
• William James theorized duality of Self which are Me-Self vs I-Self
• The Me-Self is the object of knowledge
• The I-self is the knower and actor
• Real Self vs. Ideal Self describes that the real self is a true image whereas ideal self is aspirations.
• Bandura saw the Self as proactive and Agentic
• Describing human agency as the capability to influence functioning and life events through actions.
• Four core properties of human agency:
• Intentionality (action plans)
• Forethought (goal setting)
• Self-reactiveness (self-management)
• Self-reflection (self-awareness)

Western Thought of the Self

• Individualist Self puts individuals primarily with Self
• Independence, self-reliance, and guarantees the well-being of the group being valued
• People tend to distance themselves psychologically and emotionally from each other.
• Group membership isn't essential
• Ulric Neisser's Ecological self is connections of oneself to experiences in the physical environment.
• Also the Interpersonal self is connections of oneself to others through verbal or nonverbal communication,

Social Construction Arguments

• The self is a result of perceptions, thoughts, and interactions that the environment molds.
• Identities are defined by culture and society which we are raised in.
• A social construct results in what we perceive from social practices and cultural paradigms.

Eastern Thought of the Self

• Collectivist Self is the opposite of individualist self
• One's identity is, in large part, a function of one's membership and role in a group, e.g., the family or work team.
• The survival and success of the group ensures the well-being or the individual, so that by considering the needs and feelings of others, one protects oneself.
• Harmony and the interdependence of group members are stressed and valued.
• Group members are relatively close psychologically and emotionally, but distant toward non group members.
• Confucius stated personality (self) isn't seen as inherently existing
• Instead upbringing and environment is who we are.
• Every person is born with four beginnings, which do not encapsulate a concept of self as yet
• But which together may be called „pre self."
• Heart of compassion – leads to Jen
• Heart of righteousness - leads to Yi
• Heart of propriety - leads to Li
• Heart of wisdom - leads to Chih
• Confucian perception thought The concept of self also is deeply embedded within the family and society

Other Factors

• Biological, Psychological, and Socio-economic factors influence the Physical Self
• Biological such as genetics, internal psychology, and temperament
• Psychological such as motives, interests, attitudes, intelligence, and willpower
• Socio-economic such as education, income, social status, and socialization
• Body Image and Self-Esteem
• Physical self-concept is an overview of physical ability and appearance.
• Body image is how you view your physical self
• Self-esteem affects how you take care of yourself emotionally, physically and spiritually
• Material/Economic Self.
• Economic self-sufficiency is the ability of individuals and families to maintain sufficient income to consistently meeting basic needs
• Material self includes Physical elements, possessions, car, home, body, clothes. of who you are
• Social self refers to the self as reflected through interactions with others,

Consumer Behavior

• Self-concept explains simply as how one perceives himself and his behavior in the market place.
• Actual self
• Ideal self
• Social self
• Ideal social self
• Expected self
• Situational self

Spiritual Self

• Addresses ultimate questions about life's meaning, resonating with core values involving internal thoughts and values, physical disposition, and beliefs.
• Role of the Spiritual Self is to connect the mind-body-emotion and to focus on creativity.
• Some Religious Views on Self
• Christian View the self is negatively, distorted through sin.
• Buddhist View sees self as an illusion.
• Islam View the nafs (self) in its unrefined state is "the ego" that needs to attain for its pure self.

Sexual Self

• Sexual Self definition has three aspects
• Gender identity
• Gender role
• Gender orientation.
• Defining characteristics that males have is penis
• Defining characteristics that females have are vagina
• Defining characteristics that puberty later becomes equally as prominent
• Erogenous Zone helps when stimulated such as relaxation, thoughts of sexual fantasies, sexual arousal and orgasm.
• Freud stated that psychological development in childhood has a series of fixed psychosexual stages: oral, anal, phallic, latency, and genital.
• Biology of Sexual Behavior includes the reproductive system and the sexual response cycle

Sexual Response

• Sexual behavior can be attributed by Females external/internal genitalia
• Sexual behavior can be attributed by males externals internal genitalia
• The hypothalamus is the most important part of the brain for sexual functioning
• It produces important sexual hormones that are then secreted by the pituitary gland.
• The sexual response cycle has four phases: excitement, plateau, orgasm, and resolution.
• There is Lust, Attraction and Attachment
• Lust
• Attraction
• Love

Psychological Aspects

• Sexual Diversity refers to different understandings of what sexuality means to them.
• Possible Reasons for Homosexuality and Bisexuality:
• Researcher Kinsey believed that those behaviors depends on a person's sexual feelings and behaviors
• Some researchers explains this by reason of genetics,drugs, brain structure
• Parent child relationship with the child might influenced the child.
• Social interactions.
• Healthy interactions:
• friendship
• relationships
• Family
• Online persona is curated in second space where we are forging our identities, one where no generation before us has set the rules.

Social Aspects

• Community helps people with their social life by provides people with security and sense of belonging but also use these feelings to trap its inhabitants with a comfort zone.
• Develop Filipino can be done by following rules
• traffic
• not procrastinating
• pay your taxes etc.
• The government exercise/control by military authorities over the civilian population of designated territory by using martial law

The Digital Self

• People consider things and other people to be possessions, almost like tools to help define their identity
• People express themself online in order to
• Meet the expectation of others
• Boost their self steem boost
• Feel a sense of belonging
• Cybercrimes involving identity theft, like true-name and account-takeover, and require safety measures.
• Personal Freedom is the power of a person to make your own decision
• Responsibility is some assigned tasks which you have a duty to perform.
• Standards refers to knowledge of one's own particular mental states.

Self Knowledge and Self-Mastery

• Requires understanding self goals, characteristics, beliefs, helps limits.
• The 4 steps to actively attaining more self-knowledge: -Character Inventory.
• Understand What You Can Do.
• Source of self-knowledge, especially involves causal attributions.

Mastering Self

• 7 effective strategies involves:
• Talk to Yourself
• Make Peace with Your Past
• Play Devil's Advocate
• Keep A Journal.
• Break the Bystander Effect Cognitive Reappraisal
• Audit Yourself

Self-Efficacy

• Albert Bandura's self-efficacy in 4 things:
• Mastery experiences
• Vicarious experiences
• Verbal persuasion
• Emotional and physiological states.
• Mindset Theory mentions the growth can change basic
• psychological attributes, such as their intelligence or personality.

Principles

• There is no growth, only mindset
• There is freedom and attitude that can literally change the course of a person's life.
• Four sources of achieving self and society are
  • performance
• experience
• persuasion
• and states .
• To achieve The 7 Mindsets through
  • big dreams
• passions
• relationships
• being accountable Mindset that is fixated is a belief that skills cant transcend while mindset that involves growing is constant.