Who Do You Think You Are?

At adulthood, a human has already spent decades defining and characterizing attributes, beliefs and preferences of the individual they call “ME”. Where do I get the ideas I have about “who I am”? Am I more nature or nurture? Is the self malleable or fixed? The concept of self can be beneficial as an ally, or a confounding negative force—but how can we know which it is to be?

In this one-quarter program, we will examine the psychological research over the last 60 years, that helps describe, explain, predict and modify aspects of the self. We will examine topics such as theory of mind, self-concept, self-esteem, self-awareness, self-efficacy, identity, social comparison and impression management, self-deception, self-serving biases, escaping the self, self-control, and the contemporary dilemma of “self as a value base”. We will also discover implications for essential functions of the self in the domains of work, love, play, and service to others, as well as Eastern and Western perspectives on the self. Finally, we will Skype with many prominent researchers who have examined “the self” over the last 50 years, after reading their work.