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Abstract
The purpose of this discussion is to look at identity and self in counselling psychology. It will look at how the contemporary issues of identity, diversity, and self impact the couselling. This is because society has been going through many changes in its practices from the traditional, modern, and now post-modern era. According to many studies done various people have been noticed to use counselling services differently. The study will use journals, books, articles to collect information on how self and identity influence people when it comes to seeking psychological help. The study will look at contemporary society and how the issues therein relate to counselling practice.
Theory and historical background
The history of psychological counselling goes as back as the times of ancient civilizations. Psychological knowledge is used in many spheres of life to solve issues related to everyday living. This could be in a family setup, at the workplace, or even in school. Psychological knowledge is used to treat mental health.
There are four men considered the founders of psychology i.e. Charles Darwin, Wilhelm Wundt, William James, and Sigmund Freud. They came up with different methods in psychology. For instance, Darwin used observation, Wilhelm Wundt used scientific methods to collect the information he asked people to give an account of their feelings and experiences. Moreover, William James used observation as well as observation. Lastly, Freud came up with the method of listening to people relating their emotions, symptoms, and life generally. He would ask questions by attending to language and unconscious phenomena.
He is credited with developing psychoanalysis. He sought to resolve unconscious conflict and mental distress. His theories tackled many aspects like sexuality, the unconscious mind, and repression. The aspects were not discussed openly as they were considered taboo. Thus Freud enabled such subjects to be discussed openly and interest in dreams in dreams developed. (Gendlin 1996).
There are a number of theories in psychology. For instance, we have theories such as reality theory, behaviorism, structured therapy, transactional analysis, gestalt therapy, Assertion-Structured, Human Potential and many more.
The above methods formed a basis for modern-day psychology practices. Some of the methods are still very influential and in use today while others were abandoned or modified to serve the present needs. On the other hand, debates have been ranging about what and how to study psychology. Thus different methods and theories developed over the different times in history (Holzman & Morss 2000).
Many psychologists have attempted to understand how the mental faculties of individuals relate with their social behaviour while at the same time looking at the physiological as well as the neurological processes. Psychology has many branches that deal with areas like: industry, health, media, law, sports and human development. It also incorporates research done in the field of natural sciences. A person who practices psychology is called a psychologist.
Several theories have been put forward in psychology
Identity in the traditional approach is defined as the attributes that are shared by a group of people thus they belong. This attributes are cultural, ethnic, political, and linguistic (Hall 1994, 1996). There is familiarity and sharing in the concept of identity and this can be called a cultural identity which can be said to be imposed on individuals by the society. However an individual can be born with an identity that is intrinsic thus identity brings about a unique individual who is a whole entity (Gross berg 1996).
On the contrary Hall (1996) sees identity as a process that is never completed. He agrees that identity has a begin point. That it is always in the process of becoming rather than being (Mustafa). Identity is keeps on changing with the historical, political, cultural and social developments as well as with modernity, technology, post colonization and post modernism. Identity is not biologically acquired rather it is occupied by a person and it changes according to time and the different settings individuals find themselves in (Gergen 1991, Hall, Held & Mcgrew 1992).
Identity may be defined as self image in psychology. The self image refers to how an individual views him or herself in a mental model. This includes self esteem which determines whether one places a value on self. The identity also includes a very important part in psychology called gender identity which determines how an individual views him or herself as well as in relation to how other people view him. The term means how much an individual has self reflection and awareness (Leary & Tangney 2003). Moreover, the psychologists equate identity with idiosyncrasies which are exhibited by an individual making him or her unique.
Diversity and difference are two terms that are interesting. Diversity means having different cultures, norms values, art, food etc it means having cultural variation. It may be taken to mean the neutral expressions that are found in different cultures. On the other hand difference refers to practices of the minority which bring about a conflict with the practices of the majority. Thus diversity has a positive connotation while difference has a negative connotation ( Goodhart 2004).
Post modern shift has brought some challenges to counselling psychologists. This is because the self has moved from the modern world where the concern was knowledge to a new perspective of critiquing the psychological science. This has led to misconception that the individuals with disorders are as a result of loss of reality contact (Neimeyer 1998). Consequently this has led to loss of authoritative footholds in psychotherapy theories. A social constructionist view has undermined the foundations of traditional perspectives without offering secure replacements (Holman & Morss 2000).
As a result many counsellors faith in tools that were once reliable has been eroded but the alternatives available to them are vaguely envisioned or lacking all together. Thus the counsellors have been forced to adapt to these changes.
Identity is very important in todays society. With the diversity that is increasing every day it is important that the challenges of identity are addressed well. This is because how an individual perceives them selves has a major impact on what kind of lives they live. For instance in case of an international student studying in a foreign country they have to deal with the issue of change in the new culture. Their identity will change as they try to fit in the new culture. How well they cope with the change will determine if they finish education. Identity comes in because they will be a minority in their new community and they might be discriminated against. If they choose to look at their different identity as a negative then they would end up achieving very little (Hall 1994).
Self is a difficult term to define. This is because it is an unconscious experience primarily and conscious secondarily (Hall 1996). In a nut shell self means human. Self is not got from social experience rather it is a central function of the human brain and no one can be called a man without it.
Self can be sad to be an agent that enables man to experience him or herself and more importantly it makes one aware of their identity (Hartman 1939). It helps individuals to have awareness in terms of time continuity for instance one is able to recognize they are the same person they were yesterday, a month ago or even years ago today. This is important as it enables individuals to develop identity through attachments and separations in a family (Molnos 1998). The self has identity, individuality that means very human being is unique; it is fundamental to its experiences and has a relationship with the social, physical and environment aspects.
The individuality distinguishes one human being from another. This is because each human being has unique character traits e.g. feelings (Green).
Identity in post modernism has changed from the identity in the traditional and modern times. This is because it has been said that the source of human dissatisfaction and unhappiness is the void inside. The human race strives to fill the void which the philosophers and religious leaders say is caused by alienation that separates the human beings from fulfillment. The post modernists have also considered alienation as the cause of human dissatisfaction.
The human being is alienated from different things according to different people. For instance Karl Marx says man has been alienated from creativity and the capacity to work by capitalism. According to Taoist masters the self centered ego separates the human beings from the unity found in creation. Jesus Christ and Hebrew leaders the human beings have been alienated from God by sin. As a result different answers have been put forward to overcome alienation. The nationalists advocate overcoming it through identification with ethnic groups. While others say modern atheism has freed human beings by separating them from traditional values (Harvey 1989)
The post modernists are extreme in their thinking. They say human beings live a life that is unbearable where each individual lives in isolation that requires him or her to create meaning from happenings surrounding him or her. They also look at the contemporary life issues. This is where people are caught in modern day problems for example broken families, loss of employment, and immigrants challenges of coping with two identities and fragmentation that has become a reality.
Post modernism tells the human beings to look at their situation and stop following traditional values and beliefs blindly. Thus people have to criticize what is called the developed world. The art being produced in the post modernists world has themes that have fragmented glimpses. It is aimed to shake then form their fundamental beliefs and assumptions. The art is supposed to make people say that they are the only one who can judge what is good or bad for them. Post modernism advocates for a non theory society such that no one beliefs in the traditional theories. It encourages individualism and non- conformity (Harvey1989).
This affects identity of the human beings as they have to change to fit in the changing environment. This is because post modernism has brought about disillusionment. The people are angry because they no longer know what to believe. They have illusions that they try to use to help them avoid facing their alienation but the challenge is that we should deal with the alienation without compromising our beliefs. (Tomlinson 1999).
In post modernism there is lack of any perceived meaning. Instead we have several truths and also meanings and an individual is expected to combine them how he or she deems fit. This means that nothing is fundamental and there is no particular direction. This has some merits as individuals are freed from looking at things from a fixed perspective. However, an individual is at liberty to do what they see right as they lack a fundamental meaning. This means that for the post modernist is free to make decisions that are moral as it suits.
The identity is affected because the post modernist is Jean Paul Sarte noted a human being is free to make their choices. That no morality rules should shoe one what to do this is because man is the maker of himself. The human being discards belief in God and thus they are the one to give meaning to life and value only what they choose to.
The individuals were born they were brought up in families and formed they identities from association with the members of the family. On the contrary post modernism says that is an individual who has the responsibility of forming themselves through life. Foucalt says From the idea that the self is not given to us (Boobbyer 2000). Thus the human beings are faced with the problem of picking an identity from the ranges available. This may eventually lead to confusion.
The individuals have a burden to bear but it is very heavy for them to carry. This is because when they try to live in the world as if they are the creators with the responsibility to create the world they break down as mortals cannot carry such a heavy burden (Boobbyer 2000).
Multiple identity is now called Dissociative Identity Disorder. It is a disorder that is caused by severe trauma especially during childhood. This could be caused if a child was exposed to extreme sexual, physical or emotional abuse. The dissociative disorder is exhibited in from of severe dissociation in an individual. It involves mental processes that cause a disconnect between thoughts, feelings, memories, action etc with identity. The disorder stems from a trauma experienced by an individual and as a coping mechanism they use disassociation. The individual literally blocks out or disassociates him or herself from an experience or situation that is painful for the conscious self to assimilate (Dual personality 1996).
When there is a chronic exhibition of dissociative disorders it results to multiple personalities. There are also other types of dissociative disorders like dissociative fugue, dissociative amnesia lastly depersonalization disorder.
The symptoms of dissociative are the presence of distinct personalities that dominate the behaviour of a person. Forgetfulness is also another symptom an individual exhibits. One is unable to recall personal information. The memory varies according to the personalities. Each personality or alter may have experiences that are different from the other as if the alter has a different personal history, identity, self image and may even have a different name (Dual personality 1996).
There is usually a primary personality that bears the individuals name that was given. This personality is usually dependent, miserable and carries guilt from the trauma experienced when younger. On the other hand the split personalities normally have different or separate names and traits that are opposite of the primary personality i.e. they are domineering, hostile, aggressive and at most times self destructive.
The multiple identities may emerge in different circumstances and may also be different in the age, general knowledge, gender, language and even the predominant effect. The split identities take control in a sequence and one dominates the other at a particular time. At times the multiple identities may deny the knowledge of the existence of the other, they may aware of each other yet critical or may show open hostility towards each other. The aggressive identities make time for the dependent personalities. On the contrary they may interrupt the dormant personalities and make them very uncomfortable (Dual personality 1996).
People suffering from multiple disorders have frequent memory gaps in their personal history. This is the memory of things that happened a long time ago in their lives or the recent happenings. The amnesia is asymmetrical. The passive personalities usually have gaps in their memories whereas the dominant personalities complete memories. The passive identity may surface to the conscious through hallucinations that may be visual or auditory.
The amnesia is evidenced by people around the individual who may have seen the individual doing something that they later deny for instance they may buy items and later cannot remember having done so. The memory loss could be for recurrent periods or could be loss of biographical memory extended to childhood. The individuals take seconds to move from one personality to another. Most of the individuals reported have fewer than ten personalities (Woodward 1997).
Identity is going through a crisis in the changing world characterized by globalization. Identity construction is increasingly complicated, this because the technological advancement through the information and communication technology has made it possible to form virtual relationships. With the virtual relationships have come new identities enabled by the instantaneous communication across the globe. This kind of communication has brought about opportunities to exchange cultural, political and social ideas globally. Castells (1996) suggest that we should look at the modern society created by the Communication network dynamically.
Identity is created where there is struggle of power where some people may feel marginalized or excluded or celebrated. The process of identity formation involves differentiating identities using discourse as a sign that leads to its formation. Many identities arise based on gender, class, ethnicity, and sexual orientation. Theses identities arise out of the members feeling different, excluded or for subordination.
Identity is looked at according to the notions created by the society. Castells (1997) talks of three ways to look at identity. The first one is legitimizing identity which is brought about by dominant institutions found in the society. This institutions exercise dominion over people creating civil societies that are organized. The second notion is the resistance identity. There are individuals who are excluded from domination and this result in communities that arise to respond to oppression and to strengthen the divide between dominant institutions from those that are new. Lastly there is the project identity that is generated by people who are not satisfied by the position they hold in the society.
They do so to redefine positions occupied in their society. The social actors use cultural materials that are at their disposal. Castells provides the feminist movement that came up to challenge the male dominated society. They managed to emancipate the women from the oppression and give them a new independent identity (Mustafa)
The self and identity are distinct but related closely. On the one hand the self impacts on the society thorough how the individuals act. The individuals create institutions in the society through interaction. The individuals in the society view themselves differently. This is called self evaluation. There are individuals that view themselves highly rather they have a high self esteem (.Grossberg 1996). The society influences self thorough the shared language that make it possible for interaction. On the other hand we have identity that is the self image. An individual who has a high self esteem has a positive image of themselves. This means that they have an identity that enables them to regard themselves in high esteem.
Foucault identity and power adaptations. Foucault says that they is no universal code of ethics and values (Ruppart 2008). He states that values have no origins and so cannot be said to be universal. He urges that they are as a result of historical processes. He also adds that the values do not progress with time they are simply structures of knowledge established by power and violence (Ruppart 2008). Thus the values historys is similar to the history of power struggles exhibited by ruling forces of a particular time. What is more the human lacks power to create or choose the direction the values take. He goes on to say that the human beings have no choice of what history subjects them to. They cannot create history or from values rather but history creates and controls the human (Ruppart 2008).
Due to the crisis in identity counseling is a major challenge. Most of the people facing identity crisis are unwilling to seek counseling. This is because we have the minority facing the identity crisis and may not be comfortable seeking counseling services from people of a different race.
They feel the counselors would not understand them. This could also be heightened where the language barrier is a big hindrance. They may be unable to express themselves well and thus shy away. On the other hand the counsellors may not understand their patients and may rely on their own perceptions. The counsellors may label people depending on racial stereotypes. The stereotypes are based on characteristics generalized on ethnic groups (Rosenthal 2004)
People may have different notions about counseling. In some cultures disclosing personal problems to strangers is forbidden. It is taken as a sign of weakness, immaturity and disgracefulness (Uba, 1994). If anyone were to visit a counselor this would be associated with mental illness. To avoid the scorn of the society any psychological problems are concealed as this would probably mean the child was not raised properly. (Jones & Marcus 1997).
the United kingdom policy on couselling is that the practitioners should follow ethical principles when dealing with their clients. These principles are: fidelity which requires the counsellor to keep what they discuss with the client confidential. This will ensure that there is trust between the client and the practitioner (Ethical principles n. d).
The other one is autonomy. The clients should only participate in counselling out of their own volition. Thus it is important that the practitioners tell them about the terms of contract they may be about to enter. This means that the clients should not be manipulated by the counsellors. They should be given all the necessary information so that they can make sound judgments (Ethical principles n.d).
The counsellors should always put the interests of their clients before their own. This is called beneficence. Which calls for the counsellors to work within their areas of expertise when dealing with clients. On the other hand the practitioners should never exploit their clients in any form for instance emotionally or financially. They should also avoid malpractices to ensure that their clients do not encounter harm that could have been avoided(Ethical principles n.d).
Conclusion
Identity plays a major role in counseling. The individuals face many challenges in the modern day. This makes counseling necessary to enable people cope with life. With the changes taking place in the world today we have issues like post modernism and globalization. They have brought about changes in the way our society operates. Many challenges have come and these challenges have proved to be very difficult for individuals to deal with. Thus counseling should play a major role in helping people cope
Post modernism has come with new ideas that are threatening to change society. The people trying to adapt to these changes find themselves lost when they are unable to make moral judgments. This is because they do not have moral rules on which to base their decisions. The individuals need to find ways of dealing with the issues that surround the in a realistic manner. They should not struggle to recreate the world and them selves as this will be too heavy a burden for them to bear.
Rather they should acknowledge that they cannot do all that by themselves and that they need guidance from the norms and beliefs of the society. This is because by attempting to create new order of things they will only create more problems. This is because one will be free to do as they will as long as they choose to without considering how this affects their fellow human beings.
Individualism as advocated by post modernism is destructive because the individuals only think about themselves and what is good for them. This means we have people trying to live the best they now how. They do this as post modernism has shown them that the world is fragmented and thus nothing works anymore. Hence we have a generation that lives today and does not care about tomorrow. That means that they will destroy the environment as long as they benefit without consideration for the future generations. These are the politicians who will embezzle funds instead of developing their countries because they do not care about tomorrow. They only care about themselves and today.
It is very important to address the issue of identity crisis that has been brought about by advancement in technology. With improved means of transport more people are able to travel from one country to another either as visitors, students or for business. This means that people encounter a culture that is new to them. They face new behaviours, etiquettes, norms, dressing etc. This means they have to adapt to the changes so as to fit in the new society. Adapting may not be easy and some may find themselves lost in confusion. They need to seek counseling services to enable them acculturate in the new culture.
One the other hand identity crisis may be as a result of being exposed to many cultures especially thorough the Internet. People are bombarded with foreign cultures that they may not even understand. People are able to interact over very large geographical distances. A new culture is formed and some scholars have called it the cyber culture. People are able to interact with people from all over the world thus the local cultures and identities are transformed. Some will try to ape what they see on the media. This may lead to conflicts especially where the individual may try to copy the new culture at the expense of their own culture.
The individual should not be left to lose their identity and self in a maze of cultures. Guidance should be offered to ensure that the individuals in society develop to be holistic human beings who find a purpose while on this earth. More importantly children should be guided on how to use technology so that they benefit without being corrupted by evil behaviours that they may see over the internet or the media. It is important to let them know that they are different from other people but the diversity is important so they should not try to be like others. On the other hand it is necessary to train counselors well so that they are able to offer quality services.
They should be taught how to avoid stereotyping their patients based on their nationalities. They should take each person as a unique individual because that is what they are. They should know that what may be true about a certain group is not necessarily true about an individual from that group. Each human being has their on self and identity that makes them autonomous. The challenge is left with the counselors to ensure that they give the best care to each individual.
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