Theory of Self & Self concept

Karen Horney formulated a theory of neurotic needs which is central to the understanding of the development of personality (Paris , 1994 Horney developed her assumptions from experience as a psychotherapist and falls under the psychoanalytic tradition in the sense that she emphasized childhood experiences influenced how adults develop their own personal constructs . She said that basic anxiety as perceived by the child in relation to its feelings of alienation and helplessness with his /her relationship with his /her parents motivates the child to develop various strategies to cope with these feelings of

isolation and helplessness (Horney , 1950 . When the child has to resort to these strategies in a regular manner , then these strategies may become more or less permanent fixtures of personality . In her early writings Horney identified ten neurotic needs that a person utilizes to find solutions to its problems and anxiety , these were then categorized as falling under moving towards people , moving away from people and moving against from people (Paris , 1994

Furthermore , Horney believed that any of these three orientations can be assumed by the person as a way of life and hence influence his /her relationships with other people . These orientations are the source of inner conflict in the sense that the person develops an unrealistic conception of the self and tries to live up to that idealized self . The normal person could resolve these neurotic needs easily because they have a stronger sense of self . Horney also developed a theory of self wherein the self defined the person 's ability to become well integrated or to become neurotic (Quinn , 1987 . For Horney , the self is the core of a persons being , it is seen as the driving force behind the persons ability to transcend its existence in relation to other people . If a person has an accurate concept of the self then he /she does not need to resort to neurotic needs and he /she is more attuned to the realization of personal potentials . On the other hand , the

neurotic is handicapped by the conflicting despised self and idealized self . To the neurotic , the self is divided into two opposing forces the despised personal characteristics that we believe we have based on other people 's perception of us and the personal traits that we lack and strive to live up to . The neurotic self is pulled by these two forces at the same time and is referred to as the tyranny of the shoulds and neurotic striving for glory . While the person fluctuates between hating themselves and pretending they are perfect , they become estranged from their true core and thus fail to realize their potentials

Carl Rogers (1959 ) of the humanistic tradition is well known for his person-centered theory that has become one of the most influential methods of psychotherapy . Rogers emphasized that the key to a person 's development of personality is how he /she forms his /her self-concept . The self-concept refers to the ideas and perceptions that the individual has about his /her...