Aim: This study was carried out in order to determine professional self-concept and professional values in the students, who were studying in the final year of the nursing department in schools providing undergraduate education in the Inner Anatolia Region. Method: This cross-sectional study was conducted on a total of 619 senior students of nursing departments in the Inner Anatolia Region. Data were collected using a Student Information Form, Professional Self-Concept Scale for the Student Nurses, and The Nurses’ Professional (...) Values Scale. Descriptive statistics, the Shapiro–Wilk test, the t-test, analysis of variance, and the Bonferroni tests were used for data analysis. Ethical Considerations: A written consent was obtained from Ethics Board of Erciyes University Faculty of Medicine and from nursing schools participating in the study. Prior to data collection, students were informed about the purpose of the study and gave written and verbal consents. Participation in the study was on voluntary basis. Findings: In the study, students’ total and sub-dimension scores from the Professional Self-Concept Scale for the Student Nurses and total scores from the Nurses’ Professional Values Scale were moderately high. It was detected that women received higher scores than men from the sub-dimension of professional attributes; the students who had positive perception of the nursing image and voluntarily selected their department received high scores from professional satisfaction, professional competence, and professional attributes sub-dimensions of the Professional Self-Concept Scale for the Student Nurses ( p < 0.001). Implication: In order to improve students’ perceptions of professional self-concept and professional values, it is thought that students’ awareness should be increased on these topics. (shrink)

Self-concept and self-esteem: How the content of the self-concept reveals sources and functions of self-esteem The relations of content of self-concept to self-esteem may reflect the role of different factors in developing self-esteem. On the basis of theories describing sources of self-esteem, we distinguished four domains of self-beliefs: agency, morality, strength and energy to act, and acceptance by others, which we hypothesized to be related to self-esteem. In two studies, involving (...) 411 university students, the relationship between self-esteem and self-concept was examined. The results confirmed relative independence of these four domains. Self-evaluation of agency was the strongest predictor of self-esteem, followed by self-evaluation of strength and energy to act, and self-evaluation of acceptance by others. Self-evaluation regarding morality turned out to have either no or negative relationship with self-esteem. The results supported the theories assuming that either perception of one's own agency or acceptance by others are sources of self-esteem. (shrink)

BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic has changed the healthcare landscape drastically. Stricken by sharp surges in morbidity and mortality with resource and manpower shortages confounding their efforts, the medical community has witnessed high rates of burnout and post-traumatic stress amongst themselves. Whilst the prevailing literature has offered glimpses into their professional war, no review thus far has collated the deeply personal reflections of physicians and ascertained how their self-concept, self-esteem and perceived self-worth has altered during this crisis. Without adequate (...) intervention, this may have profound effects on their mental and physical health, personal relationships and professional efficacy.MethodsWith mentions of the coronavirus pervading social media by the millions, this paper set out to collate and thematically analyse social media posts containing first-person physician reflections on how COVID-19 affected their lives and their coping mechanisms. A consistent search strategy was employed and a PRISMA flowchart was used to map out the inclusion/exclusion criteria.ResultsA total of 590 social media posts were screened, 511 evaluated, and 108 included for analysis. Salient themes identified include Disruptions to Personal Psycho-Emotional State, Disruptions to Professional Care Delivery, Concern for Family, Response from Institution, Response from Society and Coping Mechanisms.ConclusionIt is evident that the distress experienced by physicians during this time has been manifold, multi-faceted and dominantly negative. Self-concepts were distorted with weakened self-esteem and perceived self-worth observed. The Ring Theory of Personhood (RToP) was adopted to explain COVID-19’s impact on physician personhood as it considers existential, individual, relational and social concepts of the self. These entwined self-concepts serve as ‘compensatory’ to one another, with coping mechanisms buffering and fortifying the physician’s overall personhood. With healthcare institutions playing a vital role in providing timely and targeted support, it was further proposed that a comprehensive assessment tool based on the RToP could be developed to detect at-risk physicians and evaluate the presence and effectiveness of established support structures. (shrink)

This paper provides a critical comment on Philip Kitcher’s as yet unpublished book “The Ethical Project”. In the first part it explains why Kitcher’s position is naturalist as well as pragmatist. In the second part it is argued that the role ethics plays in human history is richer than Kitcher conceives it: Building on his view, this paper suggests that ethics not only provides a mechanism to diminish the risk of social conflict and social instability, but it also enables the (...) emergence of self-conceptions. This reveals according to what processes certain particular changes occurred in the evolution of ethics. (shrink)

It is only for persons that the question, “How shall I live?” arises, and it arises inevitably, even if in an inarticulate and unreflective manner. Persons must deliberate, decide, plan, and schedule their actions. Openness with respect to ends confronts them, and they must structure and direct their lives by determining what sort of career to trace out, even if it proves to be a career of routine or unambitious undertakings. Circumstances can constrain and compel, and the openness persons confront (...) can be closed off by external factors. But it is intrinsic to the nature of persons that the exercise of capacities for thought and action may be directed this way or that. There are perhaps nonpersons whose activity is to be explained with reference to beliefs and desires. But even if they act in an end-directed way, they do not experience openness with respect to ends and do not order and orient their life histories by deliberative considerations. (shrink)

Self-concept differentiation is a sign of fragmentation of the self rather than specialization of role identities for its robust relationship with psychological adjustment. However, little is known about the mechanisms underlying the relationship between SCD and psychological adjustment. The aim of this study was to examine the mediating role of self-consistency and congruence in the association between SCD and psychological adjustment, and the moderating role of age in the relationship between SCD and SCC. This moderated mediation model (...) was examined among 158 Chinese retirees, who completed measurements regarding SCD, SCC, psychological well-being, anxiety, and depression. The results showed that SCC partially mediated the links between SCD and the indices of psychological adjustment. Furthermore, age moderated this mediation effect, which was found in mean and high-age participants, but not in low-age ones. Our findings indicate that, at different age stages, the internal mechanisms of SCD affecting psychological adaptation are not the same, and a low differentiated or highly integrated self can serve as an adaptive resource to maintain high subjective well-being of the elderly and protect them from anxiety and depression. (shrink)

Many studies examine student self-concept during compulsory schooling but few have explored the self-concept of students in higher educational settings. The current study examined self-concept by faculty and gender among higher education students in New Zealand. Participants were 929 undergraduate students from a large New Zealand university. The results showed some differences in verbal and maths self-concept by faculty. Generally, students in faculties teaching subjects more reliant on maths skills had higher maths self-concept than those (...) in faculties where facility in verbal skills was important. The opposite results were found for verbal self-concept. No overall gender differences were found for general, academic, verbal and maths self-concept although a statistically significant difference was found for problem-solving self-concept. This finding suggests students? choice of faculty may be based on perceptions of their skills and capabilities in the various fields, irrespective of gender. (shrink)

The contribution of this research lies in its dual approach to the question of physical activity (PA) among adolescents, combining objective measurement of PA by teenagers and a comparison of psychological satisfaction through physical activities involving differing degrees of autonomy (i.e., organized or unstructured). Using the conceptual framework of Self-Determination Theory, the analysis also examines the relationship between levels of PA among adolescents and physical self-concept and satisfaction of basic psychological needs during exercise. The study surveyed 129 first-year (...) higher secondary education students from schools in the city of A Coruña. Satisfaction of basic psychological needs during organized and unstructured physical activities was measured using the Basic Psychological Needs in Exercise Scale. PA levels were assessed based on step count per day for a week as measured by an accelerometer. The results show that the daily step average recorded by students (7,400) is below the minimum recommended levels of PA for this age group, that students are more active on weekdays than at the weekend, and that there is no significant difference in PA levels between male and female subjects ( T = 0.23, p d = 0.04). Findings from the comparative analysis of the three basic psychological needs show greater satisfaction of the need for autonomy during unstructured activities ( T = 6.15, p d = 0.68), and greater satisfaction of the need for competence during organized activities ( T = −2.50, p d = 0.27). No variation in terms of sex was found in relation to satisfaction of the need for autonomy or relatedness from unstructured activities; however, girls showed notably lower satisfaction than boys in relation to the need for competence ( T = −2.62, p d = 0.49). Self-esteem was found to play an important mediating role and observed to be strongly related to sex ( T = −5.16, p d = 0.90). Organized PA was found to provide greater need satisfaction among boys than girls across all categories. The study showed no relationship between psychological variables and objectively measured PA (Pillai’s trace: F = 0.86, p > 0.05, η 2 = 0.08, observed power = 0.66). Basic psychological needs show significant positive interrelation between them and a significant positive relationship between them and physical self-concept, as expected based on previous literature. (shrink)

This paper explores how the diagnosis of mental disorder may affect the diagnosed subject’s self-concept by supplying an account that emphasizes the influence of autobiographical and social narratives on self-understanding. It focuses primarily on the diagnoses made according to the criteria provided by the Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), and suggests that the DSM diagnosis may function as a source of narrative that affects the subject’s self-concept. Engaging in this analysis by appealing to autobiographies and (...) memoirs written by people diagnosed with mental disorder, the paper concludes that a DSM diagnosis is a double-edged sword for self- concept. On the one hand, it sets the subject’s experience in an established classificatory system which can facilitate self-understanding by providing insight into subject’s condition and guiding her personal growth, as well as treatment and recovery. In this sense, the DSM diagnosis may have positive repercussions on self-development. On the other hand, however, given the DSM’s symptom-based approach and its adoption of the Biomedical Disease model, a diagnosis may force the subject to make sense of her condition divorced from other elements in her life that may be affecting her mental- health. It may lead her frame her experience only as an irreversible imbalance. This form of self-understanding may set limits on the subject’s hopes of recovery and may create impediments to her flourishing. (shrink)

This is an observational exploratory study assessing self-concept and its association with depression, anxiety, satisfaction with life, and quality of life 6 months after experiencing a traumatic brain injury. Participants were 33 patients who suffered a traumatic brain injury 6 months before the assessment. The measures used in this study were the Repertory Grid Technique, Patient Health Questionnaire-9, Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7, Satisfaction With Life Scale, and the Quality of Life after Brain Injury. We calculated Euclidean distances to assess differences (...) in pre-and post-injury self-perception, as well as the proportion of opposed pole construct rating and polarization to understand how they are associated with the scores of the other offered measures. We found that the distance between the present and ideal self, as well as the distance between the present self and the self before the lesion showed moderate positive correlations with depression, and negative correlations with satisfaction with life and quality of life. Also, for the present and self before the lesion, the proportion of opposed pole ratings was correlated with depression symptoms, quality, and satisfaction with life, while for the present self and the ideal self this proportion was correlated with all the measures. The proportion of polarization of the present self and the total polarization was negatively correlated with symptom measures. The repertory grid might facilitate a greater understanding of self-concept after traumatic brain injury. This information could be used to guide treatments that address the emotions related to distances observed in the perception of the self. (shrink)

Our self-concept is how we see ourselves in our minds. The goal of this research was to discover any significant differences in the dimensions of self-concept between clinical nurses employed in an intensive care unit in Slovenia and Slovenian women from the general population, who represented the control group. The research included 603 women aged 20—40 years (mean 29.94; standard deviation ±6.0) who had a high-school education. To determine the differences between the groups statistically we used one-way analysis (...) of variance. The results revealed that clinical nurses had a more positive self-concept than members of the control group. Self-concept is very important in nursing because it is closely connected to the existing value system of individuals and their behaviour. Self-concept gives nurses a sense of how they use their abilities and how they perform in relation to patients. (shrink)

This paper addresses an important yet neglected existential issue sometimes faced by persons with bipolar disorder (BD): confusion about the extent to which what one is like is influenced by BD. Although such confusion is common in psychiatric illnesses, BD raises idiosyncratic difficulties due to its intricate interactions with personality, cognition and behavior. The fluctuating mood phases of BD can generate inconsistency in one's self-experience and sense of self. One way to resolve this confusion would be to coherently (...) account for BD within one's overall self-concept. To facilitate this task, this paper introduces a heuristic taxonomy of different relationships wherein BD can be viewed in light of self-related beliefs. The relationships are as follows: (1) BD contributes to the self, (2) BD scaffolds the self, (3) BD gradually becomes part of the self and (4) BD is not part of the ‘real self’. As the individual presentation of BD varies extensively, the type of relationship one feels holds true depends on one's personal experience of managing and living with the disorder. These relationships act as an organizing framework for one's self-related beliefs about how to account for the effects of BD on personality, behavior, cognitive patterns and other self-expressions. (shrink)

This book aims to understand why women are the targets of online hate speech and how we can stop this from occurring. -/- Why are women so frequently targeted with hate speech online and what can we do about it? Psychological explanations for the problem of woman-hating overlook important features of our social world that encourage latent feelings of hostility toward women, even despite our consciously-held ideals of equality. Louise Richardson-Self investigates the woman-hostile norms of the English-speaking internet, the (...) ‘rules’ of engagement in these social spaces, and the narratives we tell ourselves about who gets to inhabit such spaces. It examines the dominant imaginings (images, impressions, stereotypes, and ideas) of women that are shared in acts of hate speech, highlighting their ‘emotional stickiness’. But offering strategies through which we may reimagine our norms of online engagement, the stories that justify those norms, and the logic that makes sense of it all, this book shows how we can create alternative visions of what it means to take up online space as a woman and to ensure that women are seen as entitled to be there. By exploring aspects of ‘social imaginaries’ theory and applying it to the problem of hate speech against women online, this book illuminates why woman-hating has become such a prominent feature of this environment and how we can make these spaces safer for women. (shrink)

The moral self-concept has been proposed as a central predictor of prosocial behaviour. In two experiments (one preregistered), we explored the nature of the relation between the moral self-concept (explicit and implicit) and prosocial behaviour. Specifically, we investigated the role of emotions associated with prosocial behaviour (consequential or anticipated) and preference for consistency. The results revealed a relation between the explicit moral self-concept and sharing behaviour. The explicit moral self-concept was linked to anticipated and consequential emotions (...) regarding not-sharing. Importantly, anticipated and consequential emotions about not-sharing mediated the relation between self-concept and behaviour. Yet, the relation was independent of preference for consistency. The implicit moral self-concept was neither related to prosocial behaviour nor to emotions associated with behaviour. Overall, our study demonstrates the interplay between cognitive and emotional processes in explaining prosocial behaviour. More specific, it underlines the link between the moral self-concept and prosocial behaviour and highlights the role of emotions about the omission of prosocial behaviour. (shrink)

The underrepresentation of females in mathematics-related fields may be explained by gender differences in mathematics self-concept (rather than ability) favoring males. Mathematics self-concept typically declines with student age, differs with student ethnicity, and is sensitive to teacher influence in early schooling. We investigated whether change in mathematics self-concept occurred within the context of a longitudinal intervention to raise and sustain teacher expectations of student achievement. This experimental study was conducted with a large sample of New Zealand primary (...) school students and their teachers. Data were analyzed using longitudinal multilevel modeling with mathematics self-concept as the dependent variable and time (which represents students’ increasing age each year), gender, and ethnicity entered as predictors and achievement in mathematics included as a control variable. Interaction terms were also explored to investigate changes over time for different groups. All students demonstrated a small increase in mathematics self-concept over the 3-year period of the current study but mathematics self-concept was consistently greater for boys than girls. Māori, Asian, and Other students’ initial mathematics self-concept was higher than that of New Zealand European and Pacific Islanders’ (after controlling for achievement differences). However, a statistically significant decline in mathematics self-concept occurred for Māori students alone by the end of the study. The expected age-related reduction over time in student mathematics self-concept appeared to be mitigated in association with the longitudinal study. Nevertheless, the demonstration of a comparatively lower mathematics self-concept remained for girls overall and declined for Māori. Our results reinforce implications for future research into mathematics self-concept as a possible determinant of female student career choices. (shrink)

The purpose of the present study was to explore the direct influence of self-concept and self-imagination on English language learning outcomes. Furthermore, this study examined the mediating role of self-efficacy in the relationship between self-concept, self-imagination, and ELLO. A survey questionnaire of 21 items was used in this study. We distributed the questionnaire through QR code and collected the data from 2,517 participants who enrolled in blended learning courses at the undergraduate level in Chinese universities. (...) The relationship among the variables was measured through SmartPLS-SEM 3.3.3. The outcomes of the present study indicated a direct, positive, and significant connection of self-concept, self-imagination, and self-efficacy with ELLO. Looking at indirect influences, self-concept and self-imagination, positive and significant, influence ELLO through self-efficacy. Thus, self-efficacy was indicated to play a mediating role between self-concept, self-imagination and ELLO. We can conclude that self-concept, self-imagination, and self-efficacy are the main predictors of ELLO in blended learning courses during the pandemic. Additionally, self-concept and self-imagination along with the intervening role of self-efficacy, play a more effective role in improving ELLO. Moreover, this study provided some useful, practical implications, and future research directions. (shrink)

The present study aimed to examine the relations between physical self-concept, intrinsic and extrinsic motivation as well as physical performance of 1,082 children aged 7–8 years. The central objective of this study was to contrast a mediation model assuming physical self-concept as a mediator of the relations between both types of motivation and physical performance to a mediation model assuming both types of motivation as mediators of the relations between physical self-concept and physical performance. Physical self-concept (...) and both types of motivation were measured by using self-reported questionnaires, while physical performance was measured with 10 motor skill tests. All tests were carried out during regular school hours (8–12 A.M.) by qualified test personnel. Beyond correlation analyses, structural equation modeling (SEM) was performed to find evidence for the predictive relations between the variables under study. Results showed that physical self-concept was significantly positively related to both types of motivation and physical performance (allp< 0.001). In contrast, results of SEM revealed that only physical self-concept (p< 0.001) and intrinsic motivation (p< 0.05) were significantly positively linked to physical performance. Furthermore, physical self-concept proved to significantly mediate the relations of both types of motivation to physical performance (p< 0.001), while only intrinsic motivation, but not extrinsic motivation, proved to significantly mediate the relation between physical self-concept and physical performance (p< 0.05). These results suggest that school-based or extracurricular interventions targeted at improving younger children's physical performance only by means of an increased level of physical activity or by external factors without supporting children's physical self-concept and intrinsic motivation may have less or no effects on their physical performance. (shrink)

Individuals with high self-concept will likely have high life satisfaction, they easily get adjusted to life, and they communicate their feeling more appropriately. However, it was not certain whether self-concept would decline or improve as individuals age, or whether self-concept would vary between genders and ethnic groups. To prove, a study was carried out to compare the self-concept of college students in an Asian context. The inquiry utilized the cross-sectional design in finding out significant differences in (...) the self-concept of participants in terms of age, gender, and ethnicity. A 22-item questionnaire was adapted and administered to 222 Bachelor of Public Administration and Bachelor of Science in Business Administration students from the satellite campus of Bukidnon State University in the Philippines. Initially, a sample was randomly drawn from the population. During the actual data collection, the researchers had difficulty getting the responses from the randomly selected individuals due to internet connection and it was done amidst a pandemic. Instead, it took all responses from those who were available, have access to the internet, and could accomplish the google forms. The data were analyzed using Mean, Standard Deviation, T-test for independent sample, ANOVA and Post Hoc test. The results revealed that college students at the locale have a high level of self-concept in self-fulfilment, emotional adjustment, and honesty. Yet, they only had a moderate level of self-concept in autonomy. Further, there were significant differences in college students’ autonomy and honesty in terms of age and gender. Furthermore, there were significant differences in their emotional adjustment and self-fulfilment as to their ethnicity. The results have implications for instruction, administration, guidance services, and future research. (shrink)

A volume in International Advances in Self Research Series Editors Rhonda G. Craven, University of Western Sydney; Herbert Marsh, University of Western Sydney; and Dennis M. McInerney, Hong Kong Institute of Education The concept of the Self has a long history that dates back from the ancient Greeks such as Aristotle to more contemporary thinkers such as Wundt, James, Mead, Cooley, Freud, Rogers, and Erikson (Tesser & Felson, 2000). Research on the Self relates to a range of (...) phenomena including self-esteem, self-concept, self-protection, self-verification, self-awareness, identity, self-efficacy, self-determination etc. that could be sharply different or very similar. Despite this long tradition of thinkers and the numerous studies conducted on the Self, this concept is still not very well defined. More precisely, it is not a precise object of study, but rather a collection of loosely related subtopics (Baumesiter, 1998). Also, in the philosophical literature, the legitimacy of the concept of "self" has been brought into question. Some authors have argued that the self is not a psychological entity per se, but rather an illusion created by the complex interplay between cognitive and neurological subsystems (Zahavi, 2005). Although no definitive consensus has been reached regarding the Self, we emphasis in this volume that the Self and its related phenomena including self-concept, motivation, and identity are crucial for understanding consciousness and therefore important to understand human behavior. Self-concept, motivation and identity: Underpinning success with research and practice provides thus a unique insight into self-concept and its relationship to motivation and identity from varied theoretical and empirical perspectives. This volume is intended to develop both theoretical and methodological ideas and to present empirical evidence demonstrating the importance of theory and research to effective practice. (shrink)

An increase in narcissism has been reported by experts over the years. Narcissists bring a lot of negative consequences to themselves and to the people around them. This study investigates that perceived parenting leads to the development of inflated, unstable self-concept. The inflated self-concept lays the framework for the development of narcissistic traits among individuals; perceived parenting affects this relationship. A sample of 628 adults was taken from North Cyprus through purposive sampling. Scales for perceived parenting, self-concept, (...) and narcissism were administered. Results showed that the statistically significant variance in the self-concept is explained by perceived parenting. Both mothers and fathers contributed significantly to the development of inflated self-concept. Moreover, multiple linear regression results showed a higher significant variance in narcissistic traits due to self-concept compared with perceived parenting. Mediational tests also showed that high levels of narcissistic traits were indirectly related to self-concept through perceived parenting. The study findings have challenged the notion of only mothers being responsible for narcissistic traits among their children. The study results also suggest that targeting self-concept in individuals with narcissistic traits may be a good directive for therapeutic interventions. (shrink)

루이 라벨은 『자아(la conscience de soi)』에서 ‘인간의 의식’과 ‘자아’에 대해 다양하게 규정한 이후에, 『나르시스의 오류(L’erreur de Narcisse)』에서는 고대 희랍의 신화에 나오는 ‘나르시스’가 범한 오류를 실존주의자의 관점에서 분석하고 있다. 이 책에서 말하고 있는 나르시스의 오류는 다양한 관점에서 분석 가능하겠지만, 본 논문에서는 크게 4가지로 개념화 하여 분석하고 있다. 1) 정신으로서의 인간적 자아를 왜곡하는 오류, 2) 도덕을 부정하는 오류, 3) 존재론적 성실성을 외면하는 오류 그리고 4) 인간실존의 양면성에 대한 부정과 영적(정신적) 세계를 부정하는 오류가 그것이다. 이 같은 분석은 인간이란 본래 정신적인 존재로서 타자와의 관계성 (...) 중에 있으며 이 관계성을 통해 진정한 자아를 형성하는 존재임을 말해주고 있지만, 나르시스는 이 같은 인간 존재의 근본적인 조건과 본질에 대해 무지하였거나, 혹은 정신적인 게으름으로 인해 이를 부정하였다. 이 첫 오류가 그 이후 자신의 삶을 불가능하게 한 나머지 오류들도 순차적으로 발생하게 한 것이다. 따라서 나르시스의 오류는 현대사회가 보다 기계, 기술 문명과 물질만능주의에 접근해 있다는 차원에서 자아에 관한 현대인들의 오류를 은유적으로 보여주고 있다고 할 수 있다. (shrink)

Objective: The aim of this research was to study the mediation of body dissatisfaction, physical self-concept, and body mass index (BMI) on the relationship between physical activity and self-concept in adolescents. Materials and Methods: A sample of 652 Spanish students between 12 and 17 years participated in a cross-sectional study. Physical self-concept and general self-concept were assessed with the Physical Self-Concept Questionnaire (CAF), body dissatisfaction with the Body Shape Questionnaire (BSQ), and physical activity was estimated (...) with the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ-SF). BMI was utilized as a measurement of body composition. Structural equation modeling was used to assess the results. Results: The resulting models showed good fit indexes. Physical activity had a positive and indirect effect on self-concept (β = 0.29, p < 0.01) and direct effects on dissatisfaction (β = -0.26, p < 0.01) and physical self-concept (β = 0.20, p < 0.01). BMI had a direct effect on dissatisfaction (β = 0.31, p < 0.01) and on physical self-concept (β = -0.10, p < 0.01) and an indirect effect on general self-concept (β = -0.24, p < 0.01). However, it was only associated with physical activity in males, playing a mediating role between physical activity and body dissatisfaction. Conclusion: Physical activity can help individuals to achieve a positive self-concept and promote psychological well-being in adolescents through the improvement of physical perceptions and body satisfaction. The importance of BMI, body dissatisfaction, and physical self-concept on the configuration of the self-concept are also emphasized. Educational policymakers and Physical Education teachers should implement strategies to promote physical activity in the schools and provide a Quality Physical Education programs to increase physical activity during adolescence. (shrink)

This article describes research on the associations between self-concept structure and sense of personal identity. Particular emphasis was given to the feature of self-concept differentiation. Notably, it was examined whether the effects of SCD on such aspects of self-experience as sense of having inner contents, sense of uniqueness, sense of one’s own boundaries, sense of coherence, sense of continuity in time, and sense of self-worth depend on individuals’ epistemic motivation, and more specifically their joint need for (...) cognition, reflection, and integrative self-knowledge scores. Cluster analysis revealed three distinct profiles of epistemic motivation: disengaged, engaged and struggling, and engaged and integrating group. Subsequent analysis showed, first, that the three groups differed in SCD and sense of identity, with the epistemically disengaged group having the highest levels of SCD, and the epistemically engaged and integrating group having consistently the strongest sense of identity. Second, and more importantly, it showed that SCD was negatively related to overall sense of identity, and, in particular, senses of having inner contents, coherence and continuity in time, but only among individuals in the epistemically engaged and struggling group. (shrink)

Children’s math self-concepts—their beliefs about themselves and math—are important for teachers, parents, and students, because they are linked to academic motivation, choices, and outcomes. There have been several attempts at improving math achievement based on the training of math skills. Here we took a complementary approach and conducted an intervention study to boost children’s math self-concepts. Our primary objective was to assess the feasibility of whether a novel multicomponent intervention—one that combines explicit and implicit approaches to (...) help children form more positive beliefs linking themselves and math—can be administered in an authentic school setting. The intervention was conducted in Spain, a country in which math achievement is below the average of other OECD countries. We tested third grade students (N= 180;Mage= 8.79 years; 96 girls), using treatment and comparison groups and pre- and posttest assessments. A novelty of this study is that we used both implicit and explicit measures of children’s math self-concepts. For a subsample of students, we also obtained an assessment of year-end math achievement. Math self-concepts in the treatment and comparison groups did not significantly differ at pretest. Students in the treatment group demonstrated a significant increase in math self-concepts from pretest to posttest; students in the comparison group did not. In the treatment group, implicit math self-concepts at posttest were associated with higher year-end math achievement, assessed approximately 3 months after the completion of the intervention. Taken together, the results suggest that math self-concepts are malleable and that social–cognitive interventions can boost children’s beliefs about themselves and math. Based on the favorable results of this feasibility study, it is appropriate to formally test this novel multicomponent approach for improving math self-concepts using randomized controlled trial (RCT) design. (shrink)

Academic achievement is a factor of interest in both psychology and education. Determining which factors have a negative or positive influence on academic performance has produced different investigations. The present study focuses on analyzing the relationship between resilience, emotional intelligence, self-concept and the academic achievement of university students. For this purpose, different self-report tools were administered to a sample of 1,020 university students from Southern Spain. The Structural Equation-based mediational analysis suggests that there is no direct relationship between (...) resilience and academic achievement, nor between emotional intelligence and academic achievement. Likewise, self-concept is positioned as a mediating factor in the relationship between resilience and academic achievement. The findings indicate that university students who exhibit high levels of resilience tend to cope better with difficult moments and understand and value the effort required and invested in study time. This study supports positive beliefs and behaviors for better academic achievement. (shrink)

Derek Parfit's “reductionist” account of personal identity (including the rejection of anything like a soul) is coupled with the rejection of a commonsensical intuition of essential self-unity, as in his defense of the counter-intuitive claim that “identity does not matter.” His argument for this claim is based on reflection on the possibility of personal fission. To the contrary, Simon Blackburn claims that the “unity reaction” to fission has an absolute grip on practical reasoning. Now David Lewis denied Parfit's claim (...) that reductionism contravenes common sense, so I revisit the debate between Parfit and Lewis, showing why Parfit wins it. Is reductionism about persons then inherently at odds with the unity reaction? Not necessarily; David Velleman presents a reductionist theory according to which fission does not conflict with the unity reaction. Nonetheless, relying on the distinction between person level descriptions of first-person states and the first-person perspective itself, I argue that Velleman's theory does not eliminate fission-based conflict with the unity reaction. Footnotesa * Earlier versions of this paper were presented at the philosophy departments at Rutgers University and Bowling Green State University. I am indebted to many members of these audiences, and to the other contributors to this volume, for their comments—especially Frank Arntzenius, Michael Bradie, David Copp, John Finnis, Jerry Fodor, Brian Loar, Barry Loewer, Colin McGinn, Fred Miller, Mark Moyer, David Oderberg, Marya Schechtman, David Schmidtz, David Sobel, and Sara Worley. Special thanks to David Sanford. I am also grateful to graduate students in my seminar at Bowling Green during the spring of 2003, for urging me to take seriously the grip of the unity reaction; I am especially grateful for the comments of Nico Maloberti, Jonathan Miller, John Milliken, Robyn Peabody, Jennifer Sproul, Jessica Teaman, and Sherisse Webb. (shrink)

Since its inception as a topic of inquiry, mirror-self-recognition has usually been explained by two models: one, initiated by Guillaume, proposes that mirror-self-recognition depends upon kinesthetic-visual matching, and the other, initiated by Gallup, that self-recognition depends upon a self-concept. These two models are examined historically and conceptually. This examination suggests that the kinesthetic-visual matching model is conceptually coherent and makes reasonable and accurate predictions; and that the self-concept model is conceptually incoherent and makes inaccurate predictions (...) from premises which are themselves inaccurate. From a theoretical standpoint, the kinesthetic-visual matching model is the better explanation of self-recognition. (shrink)

Castañeda, Perry and Lewis argued in the 1960’s and 1970’s that thoughts about oneself “as oneself” – de se thoughts – require special treatment, and advanced different accounts. In this paper I discuss Ernest Sosa’s approach to these matters. I first present his approach to singular or de re thought in general in the first section. In the second, I introduce the data that need to be explained, Perry’s and Lewis’s proposals, and Sosa’s own account, in relation to Perry’s, Lewis’s, (...) and his own views on de re thought. In the third section I present the account I prefer – a “token-reflexive” version of Perry’s original account that Perry himself came to adopt in reaction to Stalnaker’s criticisms. In the final section I take up Recanati’s recent arguments, from a viewpoint on de se thought very similar to Sosa’s, to the effect that such an account is in a good position to explain the phenomenon of immunity to error through misidentification. I argue there that that is not the case, and I conclude by suggesting that the token-reflexive account fits better both with the data and with Sosa’s Fregean take on de re thought in general. (shrink)

This chapter explores the notion of some philosophers that the self is a mysterious thing. It has been associated with a number of concepts, such as the souls of Christian theology, the essential natures that are passed along in reincarnation, or as noumenal objects that exist beyond normal space and time, outside of the causal realm, and join, in some Kantian way, with the primordial structure of reality to create the world as we know it. Hume, on the (...) other hand, believes that a bundle of perceptions serves as the self. This leads to two thoughts regarding the self: Hume’s bundle theory and the self as a person, thought of under the relation of identity. This chapter will delve into these two thoughts. (shrink)

The predictive processing framework posits that people continuously use predictive principles when interacting with, learning from, and interpreting their surroundings. Here, we suggest that the same framework may help explain how people process self-relevant knowledge and maintain a stable and positive self-concept. Specifically, we recast two prominent self-relevant motivations, self-verification and self-enhancement, in predictive processing (PP) terms. We suggest that these self-relevant motivations interact with the self-concept (i.e., priors) to create strong predictions. These (...) predictions, in turn, influence how people interpret information about themselves. In particular, we argue that these strong self-relevant predictions dictate how prediction error, the deviation from the original prediction, is processed. In contrast to many implementations of the PP framework, we suggest that predictions and priors emanating from stable constructs (such as the self-concept) cultivate belief-maintaining, rather than belief-updating, dynamics. Based on recent findings, we also postulate that evidence supporting a predicted model of the self (or interpreted as such) triggers subjective reward responses, potentially reinforcing existing beliefs. Characterizing the role of rewards in self-belief maintenance and reframing self-relevant motivations and rewards in predictive processing terms offers novel insights into how the self is maintained in neurotypical adults, as well as in pathological populations, potentially pointing to therapeutic implications. (shrink)

Awe has been defined as an emotional response to perceptually vast stimuli that overwhelm current mental structures, yet facilitate attempts at accommodation. Four studies are presented showing the information-focused nature of awe elicitors, documenting the self-diminishing effects of awe experience, and exploring the effects of awe on the content of the self-concept. Study 1 documented the information-focused, asocial nature of awe elicitors in participant narratives. Study 2 contrasted the stimulus-focused, self-diminishing nature of appraisals and feelings associated with (...) a prototypical awe experience with the self-focused appraisals and feelings associated with pride. Study 3 found that dispositional awe-proneness, but not dispositional joy or pride, was associated with low Need for Cognitive Closure, and also documented a relationship between dispositional awe and increased emphasis on membership in “universal” categories in participants’ self-concepts. Study 4 replicated the self-concept finding from Study 3 using experimentally elicited awe. Implications for future work on awe are discussed. (shrink)

Studies suggested that emotion dysregulation and identity processes are involved in social media (SM) misuse, even if their proximal role has not been investigated. Previous studies rarely discriminated between specific activities or between types of SM. We recruited 50 young adults and implemented a momentary ecological assessment measurement. Four times by day, during seven days, we measured SM use, frequency of several activities on SM, emotion dysregulation, distress and clarity of self-concept. Daily time spent on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok (...) were retrieved from devices. Intradaily changes in emotion dysregulation and clarity of self-concept predict changes in SM addiction symptoms and frequency of use according to the type of activity. Daily changes in time spent on SM were not predicted by emotion dysregulation, distress and self-concept clarity. Findings suggest that emotion dysregulation and poor self-concept clarity are proximal risk factors for SM misuse. (shrink)

One of the great achievements of Pierre Hadot has been to chart how philosophy's self‐conception has shifted over time, first as the culture of the classical world gave way to that of medieval Christianity, and then again through the long and gradual emergence of the modern age. Hadot himself suggests that the crucial shift came in the middle ages, as a result of the growing dominance of Christianity. The chapter argues that philosophy in both its classical and medieval incarnations (...) has consistently involved systematic logical inquiry of an abstract. Descartes’ philosophy is Janus‐faced, affording us frequent glances back to the tradition he grew out of, but also allowing glimpses forward to the modern age that his ideas helped to launch. (shrink)

This paper is a contribution to a symposium on John Fischer's MY WAY. In much of that work, Fischer says, he aims to show the "resiliency of our fundamental conception of ourselves as possessing control and being morally responsible agents," and particularly the compatibility of that conception with determinism. I argue that his conclusions leave several important aspects of our ordinary conception of our agency hostage to determinism. Further, there is significant tension between certain of his views. I’ll suggest that (...) our self-conception might be resilient in some ways that receive little emphasis from Fischer, and that it might need alteration in some unacknowledged respects. (shrink)

Youth materialism excites adolescents’ unethical consumer beliefs (UCB-dishonesty). We develop a second-stage moderated mediation model, investigate the relationships between materialism and Generation Z teenagers’ consumer ethics (UCB-dishonesty), and treat two self-concept mechanisms (power and self-esteem) as dual mediators and culture as a moderator (China vs. France). We theorize that materialism enhances power (public self) and reduces self-esteem (private self). French adolescents’ sense of power increases UCB more than their Chinese counterparts. Chinese teenagers’ self-esteem reduces (...) UCB more than their French counterparts. We challenge the assumption that the interaction effects between consumers’ self-concepts and UCB are the same across cultures. We offer the following discoveries based on 1,005 (409 Chinese and 596 French) adolescents. First, the measurement model of consumer ethics with four subconstructs is superior to the model with one overall construct. Second, a sense of power and self-esteem mediate the relationships between youth materialism and consumer ethics, creating two positive and negative paths for power and self-esteem, respectively. Third, French adolescents display a higher magnitude and positive intensity between adolescents’ power (public self) and UCB-dishonesty than their Chinese counterparts across all four subconstructs. Chinese teenagers illustrate a lower magnitude but a higher negative intensity between self-esteem and UCB than their French counterparts across three subconstructs, with one exception: Adolescents’ self-esteem has no impact on “no harm, no foul” across cultures. Neither buyers nor sellers experience substantial financial gains or losses. Finally, cultures moderate the second-stage mediation effects. Scholars must enhance adolescents’ self-esteem and curb their power to promote honesty. We offer implications for materialism, consumer ethics, self-concepts, and culture for consumers and retailers. (shrink)

RÉSUMÉ: J'examine ici trois façons de défendre l'idée que les personnes ont individuellement une valeur. Je pars de la thèse selon laquelle la valeur des individus tient à la valeur de leurs qualités particulières. Je m'arrête alors sur l'objection que pour comprendre ce qui fait la valeur individuelle des personnes, il nous faut accorder une place distinctive à leurs conceptions d'elles-mêmes. L'approche par la conception de soi qui résulte de ces considérations se révèle problématique à l'examen, mais elle nous oriente (...) vers une façon «kantienne», plus satisfaisante, de rendre compte de la valeur des individus. L'explication en question développe la doctrine des «deux points de vue» avancée par Christine Korsgaard et fait reposer ma valeur en tant qu'individu sur la dignité qui est la mienne en tant que maître d'œuvre de ma propre vie, un titre que personne d'autre ne peut avoir. (shrink)