DEFINING THE SELF, ORIGIN OF PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT, PSYCHOLOGY DEVELOPMENT AND ADOLESCENCE

*Adolescence is the time when young people start to ask questions about themselves, about their future, and even about their religious and political beliefs.

*It is believed that the words “Know Thyself,” which were written at the entry of the oracle at Delphi by six Greek philosophers, statesmen, and lawgivers, became the cornerstone of Western philosophy.

"KNOW THYSELF"

*The most important thing to pursue was self-knowledge, and admitting one’s ignorance is the beginning of true knowledge. - Socrates

*The beginning of knowledge is self-knowledge.  - Plato

*The wisdom in knowing oneself. - Other Ancient Philosophers

*Who am I in the midst of all this thought traffic?- Persian Poet, Rumi

*Enquiry into the truth of the “Self” is knowledge. - Ancient Hindu writings Upanishads 

*Celebrated his “Self”as “a simple, separate person.”-  American poet Walt Whitman 


DEFINING THE "SELF"

• The “Self” is identified in various contexts, such as in psychology, sociology, or religion. 

• The “Self” is the essence of a person: his thoughts, feelings and actions, experiences, beliefs, values, principles, and relationships. 

• The “Self” includes a person’s life purpose, meaning, and aspirations.

• Since our approach to Personal Development is holistic, we will integrate the various definitions of “Self” from the philosophical, spiritual, and psychological realms, but we will focus and give more emphasis on its psychological definition. 

• The “Self” is defined as the cognitive and affective representation of one’s identity, it is then defined in terms of human characteristics such as behaviour and thought.

• In Psychology, the term personality is referred to as the set of behaviors, feelings, thoughts, and motives that identifies an individual. Personality is the essence who we are and is the embodiment of one’s physical, psychological, cognitive, affective, and spiritual self. Therefore, when we speak of the “Self”, we will describe it in personality terms.

• Two key components of personality are highlighted in this definition the uniqueness  of an individual’s thoughts, feelings, and behaviour ; and their being relatively enduring, or being consistent, over different situations and over time.

ORIGIN OF PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT 

• The evolution of understanding of human development may have started eons ago when the first Homo Sapiens walked the faced of the earth.

• The cavemen who drew figures on their cave walls attempted to narrate their experiences such as hunting.

• It was during the time of the Western Philosophers, particularly Greek thinkers, when questions about the self and about human were started to be asked.

IN REPUBLIC...

• Some consider to be the greatest work on the philosophy of education

• Plato argued that building character, as much as intelligence, is what education is all about

IN WESTERN...

• Eventually evolved into Human Potential Movement in the 1960s influenced by the popular philosophies at that time: Existentialism and Human Psychology

IN RELIGION...

• Influenced personal development through their adherence to many rituals in self-discipline, meditation, prayer, physical exercises such as:

                    > YOGA 

                    >FASTING

                    > DANCING

                    >SINGING 


PSYCHOLOGY AND PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT 

*Psychology-  being the study of human thinking and behavior, serves as  a foundation for personal development. Psychology is the scientific study of how and why human beings change over the course of their life. Originally concerned with infants and children, the field has expanded to include adolescence, adult development, aging, and the entire lifespan.

*Two Proponents of Humanistic Psychology*

• Abraham Maslow- Theorized the five stages of human development based on a hierarchy of needs, peaking in what he termed as a “self-actualization,”

• Carl Rogers- Theorized that “the individual has within himself the capacity and the tendency, latent if not evident, to move forward toward maturity”

Humanistic Psychology

• Waned in the late 1970s and eventually revived decades later

Martin Seligman

• Put more emphasis in diagnosing, treating and preventing psychological disorders and therefore focusing on a model of human nature.

Positive Psychology

•  Created a balance between what humanistic psychology emphasized that human nature is basically good, while adding that human nature includes both positive  and negative aspects.
• Scientific study of the strengths and virtues that enable individuals and communities to thrive

ADOLESCENCE 

• adolescere' Latin= "to grow, to mature"

• "A period between childhood and adulthood" (Oxford's Dictionary)

• starts with the biological changes called Puberty.

THREE STAGES OF PSYCHOLOGY

1. Early Adolescence

- is at this point that puberty becomes evident
-  they start to feel being shy and conscious at the mere presence of the  opposite sex
- They also demand for privacy.

  2. Middle Adolescence 

- Teens developmental stage become extremely concious of their physical looks and how others see them.
- become absord in their relationship outside of the home.

  3. Late Adolescence 

- A higher degree of independence is felt at this stage.
- They become “grown-ups ” expected to do things done by a “grown-up” and behaving like one.

Erick Erickson's Theory

• Developed the 8 STAGES OF PERSONALITY DEVELOPMENT  that define each stage of human development with a crisis or a conflict.