Self-Concept and Perception

My self-concept is that I am a good friend and a good person. I try to set a good example for my friends and family on how a person should conduct oneself. I believe that civic duties are important and I believe that faith is also important, so I try to communicate both in my life. I also believe that it is important to be honest no matter what, even if it makes a person uncomfortable. Lies distort reality and lead to confusion and mistakes down the road.

So it is better to be honest and forthright at all times. I also believe in dressing well and expressing my self-confidence in the manner in which I clothe myself. How we present ourselves publicly also reveals something about our self-concept (Baumeister, 1999; McLeod, 2008). The role that self-concept plays in ethical communication is that I am able to be open and direct with people and to never mislead people my own thoughts or feelings. What I communicate to others is always meant to be the truth.

If a choice must be made between pleasing someone and telling the truth, I tell the truth because I know that while the short-term impact may be unpleasant, the long-term impact will be positive. However, I always try to tell the truth in a way that can be taken as positive by the other person. In other words, even if I perceive that it is not what the other person wants to hear, I will try to frame it as positively as I can. My self-concept is very positive.

I have an upbeat image of myself and I do not project anything negative or depressing in my outward appearance and manner. I always try to reflect positive vibes and set a good mood in the environment I am in so that others can feel positive and supported as well.

If I am around a negative person, I try extra hard to be positive and supportive because I feel that self-concepts can be contagious, so the more I am positive, the more I believe my positivity will rub off on others.

I believe that I can ethically influence the self-concept of others this way: simply by being true to myself and making sure my own self-concept is always positive, I can lead by example and influence the self-concept of others by making reinforcing comments, supportive remarks, and positive communications to them that show that I support the good things in my perception of their self-concept. The difference between self-concept and perception is self-concept is how we see ourselves and perception is how we see everything and everyone around us (Argyle, 2008).

So while I cannot totally ever know another person’s self-concept, I can perceive it to the best of my ability by the clues that are being given by that person. An example of when my self-concept influenced my perception of someone was when my self-concept was much more depressed and self-pitying: I saw one of my co-workers as out to get me. This affected my communication with that person and I always tried to avoid talking to him.

When I began to change my self-concept to be more positive, I began to see how silly I was being for perceiving my co-worker in such a negative light. Two guidelines I have for improving perception and communication are: 1) always.