Problems with the Self Dr. Louise McHugh University College Dublin

1. Problems with the SelfDr. Louise McHughUniversity College Dublin

2. Know thyself!

3. Where is your ‘self’?

4. YOU ARE HERE! Ferrari et al 2008

5. Then who were you? I was so stressed yesterday, I wasn’t myself!

6. Social animals…

7. Charles Cooley • ‘Looking Glass Self’ • We notice how people act towards us and derive what others opinion must be

8. George Herbert Mead • Symbolic interactionism • Humans act toward things on the basis of the meanings they ascribe to those things • Meaning is derived fromsocial interaction with others and society

9. My ‘self’ changes with context • Imagine you had 30 seconds to describe your ‘self’  • An interview for a marketing position • To serve jury duty • On a first date

10. What does contextual behavioural science say?

11. A sense of self? • Only humans have a sense of self • Why?

12. Symbolic relationships between things… • Is what allows us to make sounds that other people understand rather than simply pointing and grunting at things ‘HAT’ ‘Kelly’

13. Physical Relationships Relationships based on cues = ??? CONTEXTUAL CUE

14. = CONTEXTUAL CUE Nic Nic IS SAME AS BAD ??? BAD OK GOOD CONTEXTUAL CUE

15. GENERATIVITY in human language THE JUMJAW EXERCISE BEFORE AFTER A jumjaw is a dog Is a jumjaw the same as a cat? Is a jumjaw the same as a cat? Is a jumjaw bigger than a tractor? Is a jumjaw bigger than a tractor? Does a jumjaw have ears? Does a jumjaw have ears? ETC. CONTEXTUAL CUE Little or no reaction Readily answer questions

16. When children are taught to name objects, they are provided with masses of explicit bi-directional training CUE Clue for ‘Name-Object / Object-Name’ responding

17. After thousands of such interactions, the child no longer requires explicit bi-directional training

18. Same as (‘Jumjaw is the same as dog’) Opposite (‘Day is opposite to Night’) Different (‘Boys are different from Girls’) Comparison (‘£1 is more than 10p’) Causal (‘If anxious then I will mess up’) Temporal (‘Bad now worse later’) Perspective (‘I am here and you are there’) We can relate in many ways

19. Relating is great it can help me solve problems!

20. Especially important problems!

21. And we can relate everything! • Think of three single digit numbers (you can repeat numbers) and write them down in random order • Now answer the following question, using the first number to pick the word in the first column, the second number to pick the word in the second column, etc.

22. How is a. . . • (e.g., banana) (e.g., the cause of) (e.g., candle) • 1. Banana 1. like 1. prostitute? • 2. Race car 2. unlike 2. war? • 3. Kangaroo 3. better than 3. chair? • 4. Foreman 4. different from 4. candle? • 5. Priest 5. worse than 5. house plant? • 6. Football 6. the father of 6. book? • 7. Hat 7. the cause of 7. mud hole? • 8. Computer 8. the partner of 8. baby? • 9. TV 9. the opposite of 9. toilet?

23. Causal Relations can be tricky! Emotions … the cause of… Problems That problem with the government, your neighbors, your boss, etc. That problem with you

24. Technical Term Alert! Function  basically means the ‘effects something has’

25. Transformation of Functions Psychological Function

26. ‘DOG’ is a

27. Psychological Function ‘Dog’

28. ‘DOG’ is a ‘Jumjaw’

29. Psychological Function ‘Jumjaw’

30. produces produces produces

31. “Small Dog” produces “Average Sized Dog” produces “Enormous Dog” produces

32. “Tall Jumjaw” produces “Grande Sized Jumjaw” produces “VentiJumjaw” produces

33. Relating and the Transformation of Functions • 15 normal subjects • Establish this relational network in half of them using arbitrary stimuli: • A < B < C • Give B a CS shock function and then present a single ½ strength shockin the presence of A • Test the C stimulus . . . Dougher, Hamilton, Fink, & Harrington (2007)

34. Derived Relations of Comparison Panic attack in one’s own living room results in increased arousal and avoidance of corner store and university class MORE THAN MORE THAN university class corner store living room

35. And deriving explodes… Try this exercise: Learn four relations and see what happens. . . RELATION 1: OLDER THAN HOMER LISA

36. RELATION 2: OLDER THAN MAGGIE LISA

37. RELATION 3: YOUNGER THAN HOMER ABE

38. RELATION 4: YOUNGER THAN ABE MONTY BURNS

39. From 4 Trained Relations. . . YOUNGER OLDER YOUNGER OLDER OLDER YOUNGER OLDER OLDER OLDER YOUNGER YOUNGER OLDER OLDER YOUNGER YOUNGER OLDER OLDER YOUNGER

40. With age comes… • Wisdom • Beauty • Regret • Freedom • Responsibility • Strength • Weakness

41. Language Just as we learn to manipulate the environment with our body and hands We also learn to manipulate it through sound and symbols Milk Please!

42. So language is responding to abstract relations • So what does that have to do with the ‘self’? ‘I think therefore I am’ No Rene – you learn to verbally discriminate your own behaviourfrom others behaviour- therefore you are

43. What did YOU have for breakfast? I had a banana for breakfast No silly I had a banana for breakfast

44. I feel happy I feel sad As a child begins to relate more and more of their own behavior… I am happier than you! …and to compare it with that of others… I am not as happy as you I am a happy person! I am a depressed person! …they begin to have a concept of self

45. The emergence of self I am a husband I am bad I am good I am a doctor I think of my father I think of lunchtime I think of your pain I think of my work I go back to school I go into the dark I go home I go to my office I touch my face I touch the screen I touch into the water I touch the hot pan I see and hear a dog I see a bright future I see you coming I see a desk I hear my mother calling I hear birds singing I hear a driving car I hear music I eat chocolate I eat ice cream I eat bread I eat a steak

46. The emergence of self I am a husband I am bad I am good I am a doctor I think of my father I think of lunchtime I think of your pain I think of my work I go back to school I go into the dark I go home I go to my office I touch my face I touch the screen I touch into the water I touch the hot pan I see and hear a dog I see a bright future I see you coming I see a desk I hear my mother calling I hear birds singing I hear a driving car I hear music I eat chocolate I eat a steak I eat ice cream I eat bread

47. The emergence of self I am a husband I am bad I am good I am a doctor I think of my father I think of lunchtime I think of your pain I think of my work I go back to school I go into the dark I go home I go to my office I touch my face I touch the screen I touch into the water I touch the hot pan I see and hear a dog I see a bright future I see you coming I see a desk I hear my mother calling I hear birds singing I hear a driving car I hear music I eat chocolate I eat a steak I eat ice cream I eat bread

48. The emergence of self I am a husband I am bad I am good I am a doctor I think of my father I think of lunchtime I think of your pain I think of my work I go to my office I go home I go back to school I go into the dark I hear birds singing I eat ice cream I eat a steak I eat chocolate I hear music I hear a driving car I hear my mother calling I touch into the water I see you coming I see a bright future I see and hear a dog I touch the screen I touch my face I touch the hot pan I see a desk I eat bread

49. The emergence of self I think of my father I think of lunchtime I think of your pain I think of my work I go home I go to my office I go back to school I go into the dark I see a desk I eat ice cream I eat a steak I eat chocolate I hear music I hear a driving car I hear birds singing I hear my mother calling I see you coming I touch into the water I see and hear a dog I touch the screen I touch my face I am a doctor I touch the hot pan I am good I am bad I am a husband I see a bright future I eat bread

50. The training of perspective I go back to school I go into the dark I go home I go to my office I am a doctor I think of your pain I think of my work I think of my father I think of lunchtime I hear my mother calling I eat ice cream I eat a steak I eat chocolate I hear music I hear a driving car I hear birds singing I see a desk I touch into the water I see a bright future I see and hear a dog I touch the screen I touch my face I touch the hot pan I am good I am bad I am a husband I see you coming I eat bread