Understanding the concept of self, understanding oneself and finding our identity is an everchanging process that every individual will go through at different times in their lives. our reading in the textbook this week was chapter 3, and it focused on the idea of self-concept and identity.

Erik Erikson developed a theory of stages of development. He described these stages as a developmental crisis. At each stage, there is a conflict between a positive and negative option. For example, in the 3rd stage which correlates to ages 3-6 years old, there is a conflict between initiative versus guilt. In this conflict, the child is taking initiative to make choices in activities but may be too assertive in their actions which can lead to the feeling of guilt. While reading about all these different stages I made a connection to which stage I am in currently being a young adult. It got me thinking about the actions and interactions I am struggling with or the ones I am exceeding at. This section provoked a lot of self reflection and applying some of the stages to where I am in my social development.

A concept highlighted in this chapter that I had a tough time understanding was the idea that difference between self-concept and self-esteem. I always thought that self-esteem was what I thought of myself and it was the same as this new term I learned reading this textbook, self-concept. However it is explained that they are in fact have meaning in the same realm but are two distinct things onto their own. Self-concept is a belief of who you are. It relates more to identity than to the belief of one’s self-worth. While self-esteem is the overall thought or feeling about one’s self and their worth as an individual. Self-esteem is affected by the outward environment while self-concept is more a internal idea of ones identity. The two terms seem to be interchangeable but they are different concepts of the self, one overarching the other.

Another theory that was introduced to me in this chapter was that of parenting styles and their affect on the child. I knew parents all had different ways of parenting their children, and there is no “right way” to parent. Even between my two parents there are different methods and ideologies of what works and what doesn’t, what is correct and what is wrong. The 4 types of parenting styles that were derived are authoritative, authoritarian, permissive, and rejecting/neglecting. The parameters of these types came from measuring the amount of affection and control given to the child. There are speculations and generalizations made about these parenting styles saying one causes higher grades, better adjustment, and more positive self-esteem, however these do not seem to be grounded with experimental evidence.

A topic of this chapter that interested me the most was the different classifications of children in the section on cliques and friendships. There are 4 classifications of children, popular children, rejected children, controversial children, and neglected children. In reading these different classifications I made a connection to my personal experiences when I was a child and in adolescence. From elementary school to graduating high school I had issues with bullies as well as being isolated from my peers. Remembering these experiences I had I was able to put my past self into 2 of these categories. Understanding these different categories children can fall into helped in my reflection on myself, and that understanding will aid my future career as a teacher to be able to see where students are in their social interactions. With this knowledge I may be able to counteract the negative impacts these categories can bring to students who are in them.

Even with this knowledge there are still holes in the concept of social development, and this poses the question that with the interplay of development and peers and parental relationships, what is the teachers role in creating a positive experience for the child?