Free Psychology and Self-Knowledge in Counselling Essay Sample
Psychology research has been defined as a scientifically conducted experiment or study that looks into the matter of thinking, human behaviours and/or how people's brains do work. On the other hand, self-knowledge is a terminology that has been placed in psychology to describe the information that individuals draw upon when finding answers to the questions like 'what are they like.' In search for these answers, then self knowledge has incorporated phrases like self-awareness and self-consciousness. As a result, self-knowledge can be termed as an element of the self, or more precisely the self-concept. Self-concept on its part is just the knowledge of individual's self as well as individual's properties along with the desire of seeking such skills and knowledge that are much helpful in guiding self-concept development. In general, self-knowledge informs individuals of their mental representations themselves (Brown, 1998).
It has been shown that, psychology research gets to highlight the strength and contributions of psychology in counselling practices. It also identifiers either new or different methods of looking at the issues psychology covers in counselling as well as proposing future research directions in counselling fields. This field of psychology tries to bring out findings as well as theoretical assertions of some specific special issues that reflect counselling field, as it tries to move it above complacency to commitment in matters concerning new counselling knowledge advancements.
It informs the counselling process that, the counsellor is the most researched upon, this is based on the fact that, one of the major domains of counselling practices concentrates more on the counsellor. Lots of these efforts have been guided by the desire of understanding the methods and ways of training successful counsellors. Nevertheless, from the methods provided in psychological research is yet to come up with prototypic effective counsellors. From history, the most discovered part is that the most historic believes concerning the significance of counsellors in the counselling practices seem not to have research support (Carter, & Dunning, 2008).
It continue informing the counselling practice that, it is much significant that counsellor need to have the knowledge as well as the capability of assessing the client presented problems, to ensure the identification of proper evidence-based programs in a competently apply such like procedures, with the aim of increasing the chances of successful interventions. It has been shown that, the implications of this research trends in dramatic when it comes to matters concerning counsellor education.
The theory on self and self-knowledge in the past failed to distinguish between different sources that are being used in informing self-knowledge. However, it informs counselling practices that, the need of accuracy affects the manner in which individuals keeps on searching for self-knowledge as well as self realization. In most cases, individuals tent to know the reality about themselves without considering if they are learning something positive or negative. As a matter of fact, counselling practice has to know that, sometimes individuals simply want to keep any uncertainties as low as possible. As a result, they might want to be familiar with sheer intrinsic pleasures of realizing that they are. In addition, there are individuals who beliefs that they do have moral responsibility of realizing their real identity. This law of self and self knowledge adds that, point of view strongly holds theology and philosophy (Klein et al, 1999).
The theory informs counselling practices that; self-knowledge is far much significant particularly in the maximization of feelings of self-worth. Being successful is among other factors that enhance individuals to feel good about them themselves. The issue of identifying one's self can make individuals achieve their goals. Basically, the fundamental objective of any goal that every living thing strive to attain is survival, hence counselling practice should state clearly that accurate self knowledge can be adaptive to survival. This is based on the fact that, self enhancement requirements can be attained self realization, particularly one's weaknesses. This in one way or the enable enables individuals to avoid meeting dead ends that in most cases ends in failure.
The counselling practice is informed that, individuals in most cases have motives of protecting self concept. "These motives of having consistency lead individuals to look for and welcome information that is consistent with what they believe to be true about themselves; likewise, they will avoid and reject any information which presents inconsistencies with their beliefs. Not everyone has been shown to pursue a self-consistency motive; but it has played an important role in various other influential theories, such as cognitive dissonance theory" (Gallup, 1979). This is a very significant lesson that counselling practice has to learn from self and self-knowledge theory.
In most cases, counsellors have to know that, people strongly believe don social world when looking for information that concerns them. The theory shows that, individuals make comparisons their attributes with others when drawing inferences what they are themselves. However, when drawing conclusions, individuals ultimately depends on whom in particular they are comparing themselves with. The self-knowledge accuracy in the past used to guide counselling practices, and counsellors assumed that, comparing others who seem to be similar to their clients in the most important ways was more informative. However, it should be noted that, the practice should not compare a client with individuals who are slightly higher than their clients, as well as these who are slightly lower than them or disadvantaged.
Psychological Perspectives
There have been some areas that have been presenting more ideal chances for dialogue between counselling and social psychologists which have significantly contributed to the development of self and self-knowledge theories, as well as the development of methodologies which have been applied in counselling practice. Psychological perspectives finds it more necessary to value and as well as actively initiating interdisciplinary discussions along with eth collaboration with the aim of preventing cognitive blind spots in self understanding (Sedikides, & Strube,1997).
Psychological perspectives have introduced the aspect of introspection fin self and self-knowledge. This has enabled inward inspection into self attitudes, feelings as well as thoughts for meaning. The process of consulting self feelings and thoughts has resulted into a meaningful [self knowledge which is significant during counselling practices. Psychology perception assumes that individuals are not always aware of why they end up feeling the way they are feeling. Self perception theory concurs with such assumptions. Psychology perception is a theory that has been brought forward to explain human behaviours. It has explained that individuals in most cases do not know the reasons as to why they engage in some activities.
When such actions happen, they usually infer the causes of their behaviours through self behavioural analysis in the context under which such an incidence happened. Those who tend to be outside such behavioural actions would reach similar conclusion as the one reached by the actor. As a result, counsellors can draw conclusions as to why individuals behaved in such like manner. The theory has been applied a very wide range of occurrence. Under certain circumstances, counsellors have been shown how to infer such like attitude, emotions, as well as motives (Wilson, & Dunn, 2003).
Casual attributions which have been explained by psychology perspectives are far much important sources of self and self-knowledge. This is so particularly when individuals make attributions for both positive and negative events. The main components of self perception theory are just explanations that individuals give for their practices; such like occasions are casual attribution. Casual attributions have been of much help to counselling practices as they provide answers as to 'why' by attributing an individual's behaviour to a certain cause.