Self-Concept in Childhood and Adolescence and Peers Harrassment

Bullying by definition is a form of aggressive behavior in which someone intentionally and repeatedly causes another person injury or discomfort. Bullying can take the form of physical contact, words or more subtle actions. [Why] Bullying has grown new outlets over the last decade. With social media outlets and text messaging added to the game, bullying is not just about getting tormented face to face anymore. Cyber bullying can include sending out mean or threatening emails and instant messages about a person, spreading rumors about someone and also include photos that a person would consider to be humiliating. [Chamberlin] Bullying can have many outlets. The most common form of bullying is still face to face confrontation. But

Adolescence is moving from childhood to adult. This adolescent year brings many changes, not only physically but also mentally, emotionally and socially (Feldman, 2006). My adolescence was a period in which I gained maturity due to the biological changes associated with puberty. I became independent from my family and developed more perspective since then. I started thinking more about my future goals. I was also trying to understand more of who I was as an adult. In Piaget’s cognitive developmental theory young people start to think abstractly and hypothetically in the formal operation stage (Berk, 2007). Therefore, this major cognitive development may have contributed to the exploration or search for my individual identity.

Adolescence is defined as the transition between childhood and adulthood. Many changes happen at this stage. Adolescence involves things such as puberty, greater independence, and a time when someone begins to construct their identity. Identity means their life value and goals including a secure sense of who they are in terms of sexual, vocational, and moral ethics. In the next few paragraphs I will be discussing my Virtual Child, Maeve as she went through adolescence (ages 11- 16). I am going to delve into the different changes I saw in her and how they relate to theories proposed by Piaget, Erikson, Marcia, and Gardner. Each

In the article, “Changes in Self Esteem During Middle School Year”, it gives information about self esteem, and what effects it, which insinuates that self esteem is a recurring problem in middle schools. “...ethnicity, social class, gender, and social contexts can lead to changes in self esteem,” says the author. This quote shows that many factors influence changes in self esteem. These factors include dating, although it isn’t mentioned. Dating violence can strongly influence a person’s self esteem. “Gender can also effect changes in self esteem during the adolescent years. Girls consistently experience sharper declines than boys in self esteem.” This quote goes into greater detail about how gender can influence self esteem. Sometimes this

Unwanted physical bulling does not only come from peers but from anyone that makes you

As a human race, in most circumstances we all go through similar stages of development. What most also be taken into account when assessing development is our ranging variations of individualism. Our individual development is subject to a never ending list on influences. Some influences we are born with and some are due to our own life experiences. Our personality comes from all that we are; we feel; we do, either on a conscious or subconscious level.

Compared to concrete thinking in childhood, adolescents’ thinking becomes much more abstract. This enables them to partake in self-conception; differentiating between who they are and who they may become in the future (Arnett, 2013). This developmental milestone is presented in The Breakfast Club when the five teens are sitting on the floor, discussing their insecurities. Andrew asks the group, with a horrified expression, if they are going to be like their parents. Claire answers with certainty that she will not (Hughes, et al., 1985). As they imagine their future selves like their parents, they are conceptualizing their feared selves (Arnett, 2013). Andrew also speaks of the false self he presents to make his father proud. This is shown as he admits that the physical pain and humiliation he caused a peer was not something he wanted to do, though he knew it was an action for which his father would praise him (Hughes et al., 1985). According to Arnett (2013), it is during the period of adolescence that teenagers recognize the false selves they present and that their false selves are contrary to their actual feelings and thoughts.

Since the moment one is born, until one’s life comes to a halting end, he or she is always in a quest to find his or her self. Clearly, the concept of self is rather complex. Humans are different entities, with varied views on the world, which is what makes the universe such an interesting place. Of course, people are born with certain characteristics that become the bases for who he or she is. Yet, the components that fall under the self, such as, self concept, self knowledge, self esteem continue to change. Interestingly enough, the self falls under a specific spectrum. When he or she is young, he or she can merely recognize him or herself. Therefore the self is lost. However when he or she begins school the self he or she fall under one of the two

Lindsey Ames, a soon to be high school freshman, views her new school as an opportunity to start over. With the help of her new established friends, Teeny and Grouper, she believes that a change in her wardrobe will eliminate her image that was so haunting and discomforting in the past. Lindsey is successful for a while until her worst possible nightmare appears, her long-time adversary, Avery. The same spoiled bully that ruined her whole middle school life, now reminds Lindsey of her place. As the book continues, the main character’s coping strategies begin to be visible to the reader. Lindsey and her friends, without including the adults, struggle to manage the bullying. Despite this immutable problem, there are other things on Lindsey’s mind. She wants to join the National Honor Society, she wants to take Italian, she wants a cute boy to ask her out, but most of all she wants to change her reputation. However, this does not happen so quickly. As tensions rise, Lindsey faces the complex nature of bullying, and experiences the ups and downs of life as a high school teen.

Developed by Eric Berne in the late 1950’s, one of the key elements intrinsic within T.A. is the ‘Ego States’. Comprising the Parent, Adult and Child ego states, they can assist in explaining how humans are made up and how they relate to others. They incorporate the ways we think, feel and behave. The Parent Ego state consists of behaviours, thoughts and feelings copied from parents of parental figures. The Adult Ego state comprises behaviours, thoughts and feelings in direct response to the present, whereas those of the Child Ego state are replayed from childhood.

Day1: Today’s goal is to get students thinking about how other people interact with the world and focusing on the idea that not everyone leads lives similar to their own. Remember these students are seven and eight and likely are not asked to reason in this way frequently. To begin students will write on a piece of paper something someone might think about them, this could range from a physical to a personal characteristic.

Most girls bullied as young kids, remember it for the rest of their life. However, Rachel Simmons not only remembered it, she decided to find out why it happened. Simmons found that not many people study the way girls bully each other, so she did just that. She wrote a book that discusses how girls bully, why they bully, and how to help. The goal of her writing this book seems not to be able to end bullying, but to be able to spread information. Before reading this book, most people would have had no idea about the different types of aggression, and how girls use these aggressions to bully one another. However, after reading the book, any reader would have much more knowledge on the topic of bullying.

Schemas are detailed cognitive networks stored in long term memory. They organise and relate information from past experiences to represent an individual’s construal of different objects and events (Eysenck & Keane, 2015). Similar cognitive networks about oneself are self-schemas. According to Markus (1977) these guide self-related actions and behaviour, and form self-concept. This knowledge is important for improving oneself, building self-esteem, and striving for success (Suls & Wheeler, 2011). The initial development of schemas and self-awareness is thought to occur in childhood; detailed in Piaget’s Stage Theory (Piaget, 1976). Rather than exploring child cognitive development, this essay will discuss some of the theories of individual self-schema development and some ways they are maintained under threat.

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

From birth, people begin having experiences with the world through social, cultural, and environmental exchange. How one perceives their social world and the culmination of their internal and external experiences is unique to each individual and shapes his future outlook and behaviors. One contributing factor is parenting style and early interpersonal relationships (Kohut, 1971; Rogers, 1951). As children develop an awareness of themselves, their need for positive regard from those around them develops. When they grow older, children manage their own physical needs more effectively, and the need for positive regard from others also increases. Such needs include receiving love from others, being emotionally and/or physically touched, and being valued or cared for (Sharf, 2012). The Person-Centered Theory of Personality suggests that conditions of worth predicated on the beliefs and values of others impairs one’s development and resiliency capacity (Rogers, 1951). Both Rogers (1951) and Kohut (1971) recognized the importance of differentiation, although they used the terms differently. According to Rogers, if parents interfere with a child’s ability to distinguish between the spectrum of bodily sensations and emotions, they may later experience difficulty in trusting their reactions to environment. Kohut, observed the need for children to learn to recognize themselves as separate entities apart from their parents. Initially a child uses self-objects (e.g. parents) to acquire