3 Main factors that affect self-persective are a sense of belongingness, a sense of value, and a sense of competent confidence. Breaking It Down Belongingness- This is a sense of being loved, wanted, and part of some family, group, etc. Some psychologists think that this can be traced back to before birth. Regardless of how far back in our history these thoughts and feelings go, most of us seek this sense of belongingness from some other source(s) if we do not get this at home growing up. Value- This is a sense of being worthwhile and having something to offer others. This can go together with the sense of identity we all develop. Competent Confidence- This is similar to value,
but deals with the abilities to cope with specific tasks that come our way in life. How Can I Grow in These Areas? We need to be looking for individuals who have a healthy mind and heart to help us grow in our own mental and spiritual health. Finding healthy groups also can help us grow in our sense of being loved, wanted, and belonging. Also, as we grow in our awareness of our own unique combination of gifts, talents, experiences, vision, etc.; start contributing to individuals, groups, and society as a whole, we begin to discover what we have to offer and what we are good at doing. As time goes on and we persevere along a positive and fruitful path, our sense of these 3 factors will grow stronger in a positive way.
Bringing It Together The 3 Factors that affect self-perspective are a sense of belongingness, value, and competent confidence. We can grow in these three areas by seeking out healthy people and groups and
growing in our awareness of our own unique combination of gifts, talents, experiences, vision, etc through practice and learning as we go. Your Application So where does your sense of belonging and value come from? Do you have healthy friends and groups you are connected with that help you feel valued and loved? Do you know what your unique contribution(s) to others and society is? If no, do you have a beginning plan on discovering this? Which of the 3 factors that affect self-perspective are you strong on and which need growth?