What it is
Self-concept includes self-image (how you see yourself), self-esteem (how you value yourself) and the ideal self (who you want to be). Together they shape attention, motivation and behaviour.
When it gets stuck
After a major role change, the old self-concept can persist long after the role has ended. Updating it is uncomfortable, but it is the heart of identity reconstruction.
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About the author
Gemma Gardner
Founder and Research Lead, AURIS Institute
Gemma Gardner leads the AURIS research programme on identity and occupational transition. Her work builds the evidence base behind the AURIS Framework and the Identity System, drawing on interviews with service leavers, families and the organisations that support them.
- Lead author, Identity Performance Psychology white paper series
- Principal investigator, AURIS identity adaptation interview programme
- Author of AURIS submissions on identity in occupational transition
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