Question

Why is it important to understand one's self-concept in order to learn about communication?

Answer 1

Self-concept is nothing but a person's self-identity, so it refers to one's thoughts about himself or herself. These ideas can differ from a person's academic mind, cultural identity, temperament, and physical characteristics. The self-concept influences our communication with others. While using our vocabulary and voice tone shows how we feel about ourselves. The interpretation we make of our everyday experiences and connection with others are the markers of our self-concept. There is a definite connection between self-concept and communication. The speech habits and voice inflection play a significant role in portraying the self-image. People with little self-esteem have always used negativity, whereas others with a good self-conception say a positive thing to others. Their voice is enthusiastic, and the manners in which they communicate to others show that they are confident. When a person has a low self-concept, his voice would indicate his self-image as he can not interact properly with others. We can not however ignore the importance of self-concept in our communication. Since we know that self-concept plays a significant role in our communication, with the higher the self-concept there is chance to leave a positive impression to others At the other hand, the lower a person's self-concept is a possibility to leave negative impression or negative image to others. when a person has a low self-concept, he does not want to give or receive help from others, does not expect help (or does not know that it is needed) from others, and therefore is frustrated and hostile to help. When a person with a high self-concept has expectations of help and he is cooperative and has high levels of a positive self- image. It is of course possible that a person with high self-esteem makes others want to help him. But the person with low self-esteem often does not have strong beliefs on how to deal with help and this can lead to conflict. Social scientists think that the majority of our self-concept is a reflection of our relationships and the people around us.