Self and Identity Youth Development Ondřej Bouša C:\Users\Hynek\Downloads\soc-lg-cze-rgb.png Who am I? nTry to answer three times to this simple (?) question. Self, selfsystem n„It is much easier feel the self than define what is the self“ (Allport, 1961). n n Two Sides of Self: Me & I nself as an acting and experiencing subject nknower nI, Ich nawareness of psychological presence nconnected with memory nagency, continuity, distinctness n nself as a known object ncontent of self-reflection n„object of realizing“ nknown nMe, Self, Selbst Self-system nThe cognitive aspect - self-concept nincludes all self-relevant cognitions, i.e., knowledge and imaginations of the self nself-cognitions are organized into a particular whole (structure) and this is so at various levels of generality nThe executive aspect nconnected with behavior, self-presentation strategies Affective aspect nevery piece of knowledge related to the self is alwaysin connected with some feelings nin adolescence it is predominantly a result of interpersonal comparison with peers, parents, other adult authorities, or group and social standards (Higgins, 1987) nself-concept comprises various self-representations including also some self-assessment and self-evaluation n Self-esteem nindividuals' more general self-evaluation, empirically distinguishable from self-concept noverall feeling from oneself or as global self-evaluation nadolescent's self-esteem cannot be always simply derived from his/her partial self-evaluation; it implies being aware of one’s value and overall self-satisfaction. It is related to individual’s general feelings of worth and competence. Self-esteem during adolescence nself-esteem declines in early adolescence and again increases in the period of late adolescence and during the period of emerging adulthood (Arnett, 2010) nself-esteem remains nearly constant during adolescence (Baldwin & Hoffman, 2002). nself-esteem increases moderately during adolescence and continues to increase more slowly during young adulthood (Erol & Orth, 2011). n Two approaches nself-esteem as a static construct nself-esteem as a dynamic construct nin cross-sectional research, sufficient attention cannot be paid to intra-individual changes nresults are usually based on comparing the mean scores for a particular age cohort nIf self-esteem increases in some adolescents and declines in others, then the differences cancel out due to the approach focused on mean scores and hence self-esteem makes an impression of being static (Hirsch & DuBois, 1991). Cluster analysis approach Trajectory A: Permanently high self-esteem na low degree of neuroticism and higher emotional stability. nin comparison with other respondents, they have stable and positive relationships with parents — they do not have many problems with them and they trust each other. nless dependent on the evaluation and opinions of their peers. nlittle self-doubt and are more oriented on their future perspective than a majority of others (they exhibit a higher degree of commitments). n Trajectory B: Growing self-esteem na higher degree of neuroticism, self-blame and alienation at 15 years of age nlower degree of commitments in relation to their parents at 17 years of age. nat 17 years of age, they also showed an overall higher degree of general commitment (which can be also interpreted as a clear vision of their own future). nIn peer relationships, this subgroup does not significantly differ from other respondents. n Trajectory C: Stable moderate self-esteem nthe most numerous subgroup nStability of self-esteem over time can be expected to be based especially on relevant personality traits — in particular on a higher degree of extraversion and lower degree of neuroticism. nOtherwise, these respondents are in many ways similar with the profile of their psychosocial characteristics to the subgroup with permanently high self-esteem (trajectory A). nWhat makes them different are more problems and a lower degree of trust in relationships with parents. Trajectory D: Decreasing self-esteem nLower trust and higher alienation in relationships with parents, a higher frequency of problems with parents and self-blame for an interparental conflict. nMore complicated relationship also with peers: firstly, they often give evidence of problems in relationships; secondly, they show higher dependence on peer opinion and emotional response. nU-shape trajectory? n Trajectory E: Permanently low self-esteem nThe permanently low level of self-esteem is related to the constellation of personality traits: these respondents have a higher neuroticism score and a lower extraversion score. Strong impact of emotional stability/instability (i.e. neuroticism) and extraversion/introversion on the level of the self-esteem trajectory highlighted by Erol & Orth (2011). nThey report a higher degree of problems in relationships with parents and their peer relationships are problematical as well. Self and/or Identity? nSelf and identity are often used interchangeably. nSome clarity can be attained by considering them as a series of nested constructs, with self as the most encompassing term, self-concepts being embedded within the self, and identities being embedded within self-concepts ( Leary & Tangney, 2012). nIdentity refers to the traits and characteristics, social relations, roles, and social group memberships that define who one is (Leary & Tangney, 2012). n Identity Conceptualization nThe process of identity formation involves the exploration and testing of alternative ideas, beliefs, and behaviours, marking this period as one of both dramatic change and uncertainty for adolescent development. nIdentity refers to the identification with roles, values, beliefs, and life styles that mark a person’s individuality. nSocial identity refers to a person’s self-definition in terms of group belongingness and embedding in social and cultural systems Identity Conceptualization nIdentity can be defined as the concept of self that continues throughout the lifecycle and correlates strongly with the perception of what others have of them. nIdentity is thus the continued perception of self that is made up of the following components: physical, sexual, social, occupational, moral, ideology. n Example of different work with identity (adolescents) Coat-of-arms (pictures intentionally removed) nCoat-of-arms no. 1 nJohnny 007 – an example of personal identity nCoat-of-arms no. 2 nVlasta (aka Emo) – an example of social identity What is different? (picture intentionally removed) nT-shirt picture – an example of work on identity in the field of substitute family care Identity within Youth development nExamples of your own work J Hero John (school age) Tavace (adolescence) Lawewnce (emerging adulthood)