CHAPTER ONE
Introduction
1.1 Background to the Study
Many of the successes and failures that people experience in many areas of life are closely related to the way they have learned to view themselves and their relationships with others. Self-concept is learned, it is organized and it is dynamic. Self-concept is learned: No human being is born with a self-concept as far as we know. It gradually emerge in the early months of life and is shaped and reshaped through repeated perceived experiences, particularly with significant others. The fact that self-concept is learned, it has some important implications.
– Self-concept is not instinctive, rather it is a social product that takes its root through experience and possesses relatively boundless potential for development and actualization.
– Due to previous experiences and present perceptions, individuals may see themselves as different from the way others see them.
– Individuals perceive different aspects of themselves at different times with varying degree of clarity.
– Any experience which is inconsistent with one’s self-concept may be perceived as a threat. The more the experiences, the more rigidly self-concept is organized to maintain and protect itself. An emotional problem thus arises when a person is unable to get rid of perceived experiences.
– Faulty thinking patterns, create negative interpretations of oneself.
Self- Concept is organized
Most researchers are of the opinion that self- concept has a generally stable quality that is characterized by orderliness and harmony, individuals maintains countless perceptions regarding one’s personal existence and each perception is orchestrated with all the others. It is this generally stable and organized quality of self-concept that gives consistency to the personality. This organized quality of self-concept is explained as follows.
– Self concept requires consistency, stability and tends to resist change. If self-concept changed readily, the individual would lack a consistent and dependable personality.
– The more central a particular belief is to one’s self-concept, the more resistant one is to changing that belief.
– Rome, they say, was not built in a day, neither is self-concept. That is to say, basic perception of oneself is quite stable, so change takes time.
– Perceived success and failure impact on self-concept. Failure in a highly regarded area lowers evaluation in all other areas. In like manner, success in a prized area arises evaluations in other seemingly unrelated areas.