Shooting From The Hip - 29 - Consciousness, Identity, Ego, Personality

Consciousness: the state of being awake & aware of one's surroundings - the quality or state of being aware

Consciousness is notoriously difficult to define. There are (at least) 3 primary & different basic meanings 1st is functional awareness & response 2nd meaning is subjective experience & is only available as personal experience 3rd meaning is explicit self-conscious awareness & is only present in human persons

What is consciousness in psychology? Consciousness describes our awareness of internal & external stimuli. Awareness of internal stimuli includes feeling pain, hunger, thirst, sleepiness & being aware of our thoughts & emotion

Can consciousness exist without a brain? Neuroscience says consciousness is generated & localized to the brain - it emerges from brain activity - Alternatively consciousness may not originate in the brain, although some aspects of human perception of consciousness may be dependent on the brain, It could be seen as a receiver of consciousness

Identity: the fact of being: who or what - a person or thing - refers to our sense of who we are as individuals & as members of social groups - It also refers to how others may perceive & label us

Identity is simply defined as the characteristics determining who or what a person or thing is. Elements or characteristics of identity would include race, ethnicity, gender, age, sexual orientation, physical attributes, personality, political affiliations, religious beliefs, professional identities

Identity has 2 important features: continuity & contrast: Continuity means that people can count on you to be the same person tomorrow as you are today - people change but many important aspects of social identity remain relatively stable such as surname, language & ethnicity - Contrast means that your social identity differentiates you from other people - identity is what makes you unique in the eyes of others & yourself

Ego: a person's sense of self-esteem or self-importance - ego is the conscious mind, the part of your identity that you consider your "self." – when it is said that someone has "a big ego" – a reference they are too full of themselves, conceit

Ego is comparing yourself to others - judgements as a superiority to others

Literally meaning “I” in Latin - ego is the internal sense of self-esteem & pride: which makes you feel good about you - Its presence & strength are determined by Internal factors: thoughts, emotions, needs, wants External factors: environment, reactions & interactions with others as they relate to you, social influences

The person who suffers from a huge ego sees their opinion as the only one that matters. They are driven by what they believe & facts have little importance, meaning

Is ego an arrogance? -leads to a lack of openness to feedback, poor collaboration & an inability to adapt - can hinder ability to learn from mistakes & limit potential growth

-arrogance goes beyond ego & is characterized by an exaggerated sense of superiority & entitlement

Why is ego problematic? -where ego is particularly problematic, it instead of learning from mistakes, it seeks to blame others or descends into hatred & resentment of others – assigns blame

Alter Ego (Latin for "other I") means alternate self, which is believed to be distinct from a person's normal or true original personality - Is alter ego good or bad? - allows for feelings like anxiety & impatience to be kept in check - it can increase levels of self-control & determination - persona we choose, the practice creates psychological space for our feelings, while promoting attitudes we want to emulate, exemplify - alter ego is just a different way of acting around different people - that the person is in complete control of should they decide they want to stop - Dissociative identity disorder is entirely different thing & can't be easily controlled

Personality: the combination of characteristics or qualities that form an individual's distinctive character - Personality refers to the enduring characteristics & behavior that comprise a person's unique adjustment to life: includes major traits, interests, drives, values, self-concept, abilities & emotional patterns