You may be familiar with terms like self-esteem, self-belief and self-worth, but have you heard of the term self-concept before?

Our self-concept is not just the perception we hold of who we are (i.e. our behaviours, abilities, and unique characteristics etc.), but it is our perception of what we believe we can handle.

Our quality of self-concept is an incredibly important part of our identity and it can hugely affect our outlook on life, and – as a result – how life unfolds around us, because – if we believe we cannot cope, it is more likely that we will be unable to cope.

“Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t, you’re right”

Henry Ford

How our self-concept is formed

Psychologist Carl Rogers, believed that our self-concept is formed from three key elements:

• Ideal self: This is the person you want to be. It’s the person you imagine yourself to be if you possessed all your ideal qualities and characteristics.
• Self-image: This is your current perception of self. It’s the image we have formed of ourselves in relation to our physical attributes, psychological traits, and the roles we play within society.
• Self-esteem: This is how much we like ourselves. Carl Rogers believed our self-esteem plays a key role in developing our self-concept. Our level of self-acceptance and perceived value is influenced by how we think others see us, how we believe we compare to others, and our position within society.

Factors that influence self-concept

There is no one size fits all when it comes to self-concept**, however, some factors have been found to influence a persons development of self-concept:

• Age: We are more likely to have a more favourable self-concept when we are younger, while we are still forming our sense of identity. Our outlook on life changes as we get older, as we begin to see ourselves from a more ‘fixed’ perspective.
• Gender: Men have been thought to have a more favourable self-image than women. Many factors could contribute towards this, including the role men have historically played within the workforce, along with the gender differences in pay.
• Race: Self-esteem has been found to be lower in the BAME community. This could be because minorities face greater discrimination and prejudice when it comes to race (and other factors), which can seriously erode a person’s self-esteem.
• Education: Those with less education tend to have lower self-esteem than those with more education. This could be due to the persuasive belief that they aren’t knowledgeable or talented enough for specific jobs or careers.

**The above categories are factors that have been found to influence self-concept as a general rule of thumb, but they are not absolute. There are many exceptions to this and you cannot say that every young, uneducated, Asian woman will have lower levels of self-concept than her white, older male counterpart.

How does our self-concept contribute to our wellbeing?

Self-concept affects different aspects of our lives including our wellbeing; be it physical, mental, or even social.

Studies have shown that there’s a direct relationship between our self-concept and how we view life and the challenges that we experience.

Let’s look at a few of the different ways that self-concept affects our wellbeing:

Relationships

If we believe we are deserving of love, we are far more likely to attract and maintain loving relationships. As the saying goes, we cannot love another if we do not know how to love ourselves.

Studies have found that those have more caring and supportive connections with others, as well as a higher self-concept, are thought to be more successful and capable of adapting to new situations and environments more efficiently.

Unfortunately, toxic relationships act as a feedback loop. We don’t believe we deserve love, so we seek out unhealthy relationships and then that only seeks to reinforce our low levels of self-worth.

Mental health

A positive self-concept is related to happiness and the ability to retain a positive attitude about yourself during difficult times. If we believe we can handle life’s challenges, we are far more likely to be able to handle them – without it negatively impacting our mental health.

A negative self-concept, on the other hand, can lead to mental illness, such as depression and anxiety disorders, as well as eating disorders and many others.

Dealing with stress

Following on from above, it therefore makes a lot of sense that our self-concept has a significant impact on how we manage stress.

Alongside this, people with a positive self-concept are more likely to engage in pro-social behaviours (activities that benefit others, such as practicing empathy and charity work), which lessens the detrimental impact of stress.

Performance

People who have a positive self-concept are more likely to take advantage of opportunities for growth, which can then lead to far greater outcomes of success.

In line with that, those with higher quality of self-concept are more willing to risk failure, as they are confident that they will bounce back. Those who question themselves, on the other hand, are rarely willing to try something new for fear of failing, and hence are content with doing only what is needed of them.

So, how can we boost our self-concept?

Thankfully, there is a lot we can do to improve our self-concept… it just takes a little effort and persistence.

One of the most important places to start is by looking at our own belief systems, so we can understand if they are helping or hindering our happiness.

Reflect

Take a moment to reflect on Carl Roger’s ‘3 elements of self-concept’ laid out above.

• How do you currently view yourself (i.e. what’s your current self-image)? When considering how you feel about your qualities and capabilities, consider whether you feel confident that you can handle anything that comes your way? When faced with challenges, do you trust in your ability to find some way to work it out?
• What does the ‘ideal self’ look like for you? What would your ideal self look like and how do you feel you match up to that?
• How much do you like yourself? Do you value and appreciate yourself? Do you often compare yourself favourably to others or see yourself as lacking.

Unravel unhelpful belief systems

Once you have identified these three elements, you can look to unravel any unhelpful belief systems that you are holding about ourselves.

If you find that you don’t have unwavering faith in yourself that you’ll find a way to make “it” work, it might be worth focusing on how you can build this self-trust.It may be that the story you are telling yourself is a little outdated, and therefore searching for examples that disprove your current belief system may be really powerful in helping to dismantle outdated and unhelpful beliefs.

Scenario example

Unhelpful Belief: “I’m rubbish when I’m under stress. I just crumble.”

Activity: Think through past examples of where you’ve managed to hold your own during a stressful situation. Identify as many examples as possible that contradict your unhelpful belief – this can show you that your self-narrative has become out-dated.

Worst case scenario: if you have a mental block to examples that counteract an unhelpful belief, then consider what you have learnt from your previous ‘unhelpful’ experiences and how might you react in the future in a more preferential way that will allow you to boost your sense of self-esteem and live more in-line with your ideal self.

Re-write your narrative

Finally, our lives are simply the result of multiple stories that we tell ourselves. Therefore, this step is about re-writing our own narrative, re-designing our self-image and behaving in a way that is more inline with your ideal self.

If you could create a life that you were proud of, a life where you felt in control and happy – what would this look like and what type of person would you need to be to achieve this?

Get clear, get specific and then start putting this into action.

It’s time to choose to be the hero of your own movie!!

Your wellbeing is in your own two hands

At Siendo, we strongly believe that our own wellbeing is far more under our own control than we often realise. As a result, everything we do revolves around taking action to improve our physical and mental health. one step at a time.

Understanding your self-concept and how this plays into your life and sense of wellbeing is essential.

If you only do one thing today, let it be this: reflect upon your own self-concept. Consider if you have faith in your ability to overcome almost anything. If you have faith in yourself and your ability to cope, you will be far more able to cope.

As we move through these incredibly difficult times, we must prioritise our wellbeing.

A strong sense of wellbeing will help us to rise from the ashes and move forward with strength.

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The healthier we are as a society, the healthier we will be as individuals.