Development of Self

Development of Self

The development of self starts at a very young age. When a preschooler is asked how are they different from other children, they usually look at their self concept. Self concept is their identity, of their set of beliefs about what they are like as individuals. Most preschoolers give inaccurate statements about their self concept. They usually overestimate their skills and knowledge. Preschool-age children also begin to develop a view of self that reflects their particular culture considers the self. An example of this would be to look at the different views as self between the Western culture and the Asian culture. Western cultures believe that an individual should seek attention of others by standing out and making one's needs known. The Asian perspective suggest that individuals should attempt to blend in with everyone else. The varying views lead to differences in how children begin to view the self during the preschool years. Asian societies tend to have a collective orientation, promoting the notion of interdependence. Western societies develop an independent view of the self, reflecting an individualistic orientation that emphasizes personal identity and uniqueness of the individual. Preschoolers' self concepts are a result not only of how their parents treat them, but also of their society and their exposure to the philosophy of the culture in which they are being reared.

During middle childhood, children continue their efforts to answer the question "Who I am" as they seek to understand the nature of the self. Several changes in children's views of themselves during middle childhood illustrate the quest for self-understanding. Children begin to view themselves less in terms of e...

... middle of paper ...

...e view of self becomes more organized and coherent, and they can see various aspects of the self simultaneously. Although adolescents become increasingly accurate in understanding who they are this knowledge does not guarantee that they like themselves. Gender makes a difference in self-esteem. Particularly during adolescence, girls' self-esteem tends to be lower and more vulnerable than boys'. One reason is that, compared to boys, girls are highly concerned about physical appearance and social success in addition to academic achievement. Although boys are also concerned about these things, their attitudes are often more casual. Other factors that influence self-esteem is socio-economic status, race, and ethnicity. During adolescence children go through identity versus identity crisis. Adolescents face dangers such as depression and psychological disorders.