You have read guidelines to help improve your self-concept in the text. Now it is
time to apply these to your own life! To do that, you need to set a goal for
yourself and then apply the guidelines from the text to help you reach your
For this Assignment, please reflect on improving your self-concept by recording
your responses to the following six questions in a separate Word document.
Responses are intended to be in a Q&A format, and the total Assignment
should be 500–600 words, incorporating relevant course concepts and terms from
the text and citing in APA format.
Define one change you would like to make to your self-perception (Not being so outspoken). It might be a behavior, a self-fulfilling prophecy,
or anything about yourself you would like to alter related to how you think
about the person you are.
Where did you place your statement so you could see it every day? What
statement did you use? Clearly write the change you want to make. Use
strong, affirmative language to motivate yourself, such as “I will start
speaking up in class,” or “I will share my opinions in meetings.”
Refine your general goal by making sure it is realistic and fair. Write out
your refined goal using specific language from the text: “I want to show my
two best friends that I am paying attention when they talk to me,” or “I
want to make one comment in each meeting of one class this week,” for
example, and format in APA.
It is important to place this statement in a place you can see it every day
so that you can repeat the message out loud to yourself and use it to
encourage the change you desire. Where can you best place this
Observe others who are models for what you want to be. Write down what they
do. Use specific language to describe how they communicate: “Tracy nods a
lot and repeats back what others say so they know she is listening,” or
“James provides examples of concepts in class so that the ideas are more
concrete,” for example.
Select contexts that assist you in reaching your goal: “I will talk with my
friends in private settings where there are no distractions that interfere
with listening well,” or “I will begin speaking up in my Communication
course, both because it is the most discussion-oriented and because other
students make a lot of comments there. Later, I will speak up in my
sociology course, which combines lecture and discussion.”