1 Module 1| CONCEPT AND NATURE OF SELF: WHO AM I?

2 Module 1| CONCEPT AND NATURE OF SELF: WHO AM I?

PROGRAM OUTCOMES
In pursuance of the above-stated mission, the objectives of the College of Teacher Education are as follows:
1. explain the English language system, history and development comprehensively;
2. communicate effectively, fluently and creatively using the English language in any cultural and social
setting;
3. facilitate learning of the English language;
4. work efficiently in any setting across the globe;
5. display proficiency in job placement interviews;
6. participate in discussion with various language systems; and
7. produce well-written texts for research, academic and professional purposes.

COURSE TITLE UNDERSTANDING THE SELF!

COURSE DESCRIPTION
The course deals with the nature of identity, as well as the factors and forces that affect the development
and maintenance of personal identity.

This course is intended to facilitate the exploration of the issues and concerns regarding self and identity
to arrive at a better understanding of one’s self. It strives to meet this goal by stressing the integration of the
personal with the academic-contextualizing matters discussed in the classroom and in the everyday
experiences of students-making for better learning, generating a new appreciation for the learning process, and
developing a more critical and reflective attitude while enabling them to manage and improve their selves to
attain a better quality of life.

The course is divided into three major parts: The first part seeks to understand the construct of the self
from various disciplinal perspectives: philosophy, sociology, anthropology, and psychology-as well as the more
traditional division between the East and West-each seeking to provide answers to the difficult but essential
question of “What is the self?” And raising, among others, the question: “Is there even such a construct as the
self”.

The second part explores some of the various aspects that make up the self, such as the biological and
material up to and including the more recent Digital Self. The third and final part identifies three areas of concern
for young students: learning, goal setting, and managing stress. It also provides for the more practical
application of the concepts discussed in this course and enables them the hands-on experience of developing
self-help plans for self-regulated learning, goal setting, and self-care.

COURSE OUTCOMES
In this course, you should be able to:
1. discuss the different representations and conceptualizations of the self from various disciplinal
perspectives;
2. compare and contrast how the self has been represented across different disciplines and perspectives;
3. examine the different influences, factors, and forces that shape the self;
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4. demonstrate critical and reflective thought in analyzing the development of one’s self and identity by
developing a theory of the self;
5. explore the different aspects of self and identity;
6. demonstrate critical, reflective thought in integrating the various aspects of self and identity;
7. identify the different forces and institutions that impact the development of various aspects of self and
identity;
8. examine one’s self against the different aspects of self-discussed in class;
9. understand the theoretical underpinnings for how to manage and care for different aspects of the self;
10. acquire and hone new skills and learning for better managing of one’s self and behaviors;
11. apply these new skills to one’s self and functioning for a better quality of life.

INTRODUCTION
This module will explain the nature, concept, and meaning of the self from different perspectives:
philosophical, biblical, psychological, sociological, anthropological, western and eastern thought. The nature of
self is a topic of interest among philosophers. Thus, the philosophical explanations of known philosophers were
used to discuss this topic. As a Christian dwelling country, we will also be comparing the Biblical view of the self
while considering the psychological factors in the psychosexual and psychosocial stages of self-development.
We will also consider other areas of discipline like the field of sociology, anthropology and the thoughts of people
in the western and eastern countries that have greatly influenced the self over the course of time in the post-
modern society. The lessons presented in this module will assist you as a student to identify one’s own self- to
gain self-knowledge. It intends to give a wider perspective in understanding the self.

MODULE LEARNING OUTCOMES

In this module, you should be able to:
1. differentiate the various concepts of the self and identify their similarities;
2. discuss the conceptualization and representation of the self from various disciplines and perspectives;
and
3. develop a pleasant and wholesome attitude towards oneself.

LESSON 2 - SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE

SPECIFIC LEARNING OUTCOMES

At the end of this lesson, you should be able to:
1. recognize what sociology talks about understanding the self and others;
2. discuss how individuals view the self as a product of socialization; and
3. differentiate the various theories that support the sociological perspective of the self.

PRE-ASSESSMENT
Instruction: Choose the letter of your choice.

1. He introduced the concept "looking-glass self”.

a. George Herbert Mead
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b. Charles Horton Cooley

c. Gerry Lanuza
d. Jean Baudrillard

2. He proposed the theory of social self.

a. George Herbert Mead
b. Charles Horton Cooley
c. Gerry Lanuza
d. Jean Baudrillard

3. During this stage, there is no self.

a. game stage
b. play stage
c. preparatory stage
d. role playing

4. During this stage, the self is developing.

a. game stage
b. play stage
c. preparatory stage
d. role playing

5. The attitudes, viewpoints, demands, and expectations of others and the society.
a. role taking
b. role playing
c. generalized others
d. looking-glass self
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LESSON MAP

Charles Horton
Gerry Lanuza: Cooley: Theory
Constitution of Looking
Glass Self
of the Self

Sociological
View of the
Self
Jean Baudrillard:
George Herbert
Theory of the
Mead: Theory
postmodern
of Social Self
person (Self)

The map shows the different sociological views of the self.

CORE CONTENTS

ENGAGE: LET’S TRY!

Activity 1: Social Units
A. Form yourselves into groups of five members. Then,

1. Bring a digital or printed photo(s) of your family and share with your classmates’ certain details about your
family:
a. name and age of your parents
b. activities that occupy your parents' time
c. number of siblings, and if they are male or female
d. your ordinal position in the family
e. if there are other relatives living with your family
f. language/s spoken at home
g. if there are situations or opportunities to talk and
exchange ideas among family members
h. activities done together (like games, trips, outings, picnics, parties, and movies)
i. volunteer work, community involvement, or church activities
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j. interests, hobbies, talents, skills, or special abilities of your family members

2. Recollect your childhood experiences at home and answer the following:

a. Whom did you first play with?
b. Outside of the home, who were your first playmates?
c. Did you enjoy playing with your siblings, neighbors, friends, or relatives?
d. Were their times when you were involved in fights with your playmates? How did you feel about
these instances?

EXPLORE: WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW!

Sociological perspective of the self is based on the assumption that human behavior is influenced by a
group of life. A particular view of oneself is formed through interactions with other people, groups, or social
institutions. This lesson draws on the principles and concepts of well-known sociologists to foster student
understanding of sociology and how it impacts students’ everyday lives, and provide a pathway to self-
understanding of “who you are” and “what you are” in modern-day society. Sociology as a scientific study of
social groups and human relationships generates new insights into the interconnectedness between the self
and other people. Hence, sociologists offer theories to explain how the self emerges as a product of social
experience.

THE SELF AS PRODUCT OF SOCIETY

The following are the different sociologists who have formulated their theories on how the self-came to be a
product of society or a certain social experience:

1. Charles Horton Cooley: Looking-Glass Self Theory

➢ Individuals develop their concept of self by
observing how others see them.
➢ The looking-glass self describes the process
wherein individuals base their sense of self on how
they believe others view them. Using social
interaction as a type of “mirror,” people use the
judgments they receive from others to measure their
own worth, values, and behavior.

According to Society in Focus, the process of discovering the looking -glass self occurs in three
steps:
a. An individual in a social situation imagines how they appear to others .
b. Those individual imagines others’ judgment of that appearance .
c. The individual develops feelings about and responds to those perceived judgments.

2. George Herbert Mead: Theory of Social Self

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➢ Explained that the self has two divisions:

a. I- subjective element and active side of the self that represents the spontaneous and unique traits of an
individual.
b. Me- objective element of the self that represents the internalized attitudes and demands of other people
and the individual’s awareness of those demands.
➢ According to Mead, three activities develop the self:
i. Language develops self by allowing individuals to respond to each other through symbols, gestures,
words, and sounds. Language conveys others' attitudes and opinions toward a subject or the person.
Emotions, such as anger, happiness, and confusion, are conveyed through language.
ii. Play develops self by allowing individuals to take on different roles, pretend, and express expectation
of others. Play develops one's self-consciousness through role-playing. During role-play, a person is
able to internalize the perspective of others and develop an understanding of how others feel about
themselves and others in a variety of social situations.
iii. Games develop self by allowing individuals to understand and adhere to the rules of the activity.
Understanding that there are rules in which one must abide in order to win the game or be successful
at an activity support in the development of the Self.

3. Gerry Lanuza: (Article) Constitution of the Self

➢ Discuss the relationship between society and the individual.
➢ The attainment and stability of self-identity are freely chosen in modern societies. It is no longer
restricted by customs and traditions.
➢ Postmodern individual welcomes all possibilities for self-improvement.
➢ Self-identity continuously changes due to the demands of multitude of social contexts, new
information technologies and globalization.

4. Jean Baudrillard: Theory of Postmodern Person

➢ Consumption or buying of material possession structures the postmodern society.
➢ The postmodern individuals achieve self-identity through prestige symbols that they consume or
use.
➢ The postmodern person has become a greedy consumer they are usually persuaded by the
postmodern culture of advertisement and mass media, which suggest false needs.
8 Module 1| CONCEPT AND NATURE OF SELF: WHO AM I?

➢ The self maybe in a never-ending search for prestige in the postmodern society.

EXPLAIN: WHAT YOU HAVE LEARNED!

Activity 2: What you See might not always what you Get
Instruction: Complete the table below by writing at least two (2) traits or characteristics that you think they
judge about you based on how they see you. (15 minutes)

People/Groups/Society Traits/Characteristics
Family (parents, siblings)

Close Friends (BFFs)

Classmates/Schoolmates

Relatives (Cousins, Uncle, Aunties,

Grandparents)
Neighbors

Social Media Friends (FB, IG, Twitter, Etc)

Processing: Based from what you have written in the table, answer the following questions:
1. Are there negative traits in your list? Why do you think they judge you that way?
2. Which of those characteristics listed are true to you? Why do you think they are right about what they
think of you?
3. Do you feel bad about the negative traits they thought of you (which you think is not true)? What do you
think you can do to change the way they judge you?

Activity 3: Let’s explain

Instruction: In your own words differentiate the sociologists’ theories that support the sociological view of the
self and cite a personal experience in each theory.
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Sociologist Explain his Theory Relate a Personal Experience

Charles Horton Cooley

George Herbert Mead

Jean Baulliard

Gerry Lanuza

TOPIC SUMMARY
In this lesson, you have learned that:
▪ The self does not live in isolation.
▪ The self is a product of social interaction with our environment that is our society.
▪ The people we come to interact with every day will have an influence in the development of our individual
self.
▪ As we go through these our self-identity continuously changed either negatively or positively.
▪ This also means that our individuality is not pre-determined, the self is not destined to become someone
that might have been programmed ahead but instead it is the product of our individual decision while
we go through the different phases our society dictates.

REFERENCES
Books:

▪ Go-Monilla, M.J.A., Ramirez, N.C. (2018). Understanding the Self. C&E Publishing. Quezon City.
▪ Brawner, D.G., Arcega, A.F. (2018). Understanding the Self. C&E Publishing, Inc. 839 EDSA, South
Triangle, Quezon City.
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From the Web:

▪ Perception is Reality: The Looking-Glass Self. Lesley University. Retrieved from

https://lesley.edu/article/perception-is-reality-the-looking-glass-self. Retrieved on 18 August 2020.
▪ Hurst, M. (2020) George Herbert Mead: The Self, Me and I. Socology 101: Intro to Sociology.
Retrieved at https://study.com/academy/lesson/george-herbert-mead-the-self-me-i.html. Retrieved on
18 August 2020.
▪ How to Make Infographics with Students. Retrieved from
https://www.google.com/search?q=infographic+for+students&sxsrf=ALeKk015NbN2EJWha9sTjox8xU
QRYuBLHw:1598974930630&tbm=isch&source=iu&ictx=1&fir=VqiqgbZcGztQTM%252C50vbRcry0S
om1M%252C_&vet=1&usg=AI4_-kQcGmWHdSXG3gM99VLe0AhIRuvA-
Q&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjfufrlpcjrAhWRGKYKHWnsBYEQ9QF6BAgMEC0&biw=1280&bih=598#imgrc
=VqiqgbZcGztQTM. Retrieved on 1 September 2020.