Topic: Self and Relationships

Presented by:
Mansi Tilwankar
M.Phil. Clinical Psychology (Batch 2023-25)

Dr. Ajay Sharma

Dr. Renu Pandey
H.O.D and Associate professor
Assistant professor
(course coordinator) Department
of clinical psychology
Department of clinical psychology Sri Aurobindo
INDEX
1. Self-Concept
2. Self-Image
3. Self-Perception
4. Self- Regulations In Mental Health And Illness
5. Learned Helplessness
6. Attribution Theories
7. Social Skill Model
8. Interpersonal And Communication Models Of Mental Illness
9. Stress Diathesis Model
10. Resilience

11. Coping And Social Support.

Self-Concept In Psychology:
• Self-concept is an overarching idea we have about who we are—
physically, emotionally, socially, spiritually, and in terms of any
other aspects that make up who we are (Neill, 2005).
• Baumeister (1999) provided the following definition of self concept:
• The individual’s belief about himself or herself, including the
person’s attributes and who and what the self is.
Aspects of self- concept:
Lewis (1990) suggests that the development of a concept of self has
two aspects:
(1) The Existential Self
• This is “the most basic part of the self-schema or self-concept; the
sense of being separate and distinct from others and the
awareness of the constancy of the self” (Bee, 1992).
• The child realizes that they exist as a separate entity from others
and that they continue to exist over time and space.
(2) The Categorical Self
• Having realized that one exists as a separate experiencing
being, the child next becomes aware that he or she is also
an object in the world.
• Just as other objects, including people, have properties
that can be experienced (big, small, red, smooth, and so
on), so the child is becoming aware of himself or herself as
an object which can be experienced and which has
properties.
 Carl Rogers (1959)
mentioned that the self-
concept has three different
components:
 The view you have of yourself
(self-image)
 How much value you place on
yourself (self-esteem or self-
worth)
 What you wish you were really
like (ideal-self)
Some examples of self-concept include:
• How you view your personality traits, such as whether you are
an extrovert or introvert
• How you see your roles in life, such as whether you feel that
being a parent, sibling, friend, and partner are important
parts of your identity
• The hobbies or passions that are important to your sense of
identity, such as being a sports enthusiast or belonging to a
certain political party
• How you feel about your interactions with the world, such as
whether you feel that you are contributing to society
• Beliefs such as "I am a good friend" or "I am a kind person"
are part of an overall self-concept.
Development of Self-Concept
• Self-concept begins to develop in early childhood. This process
continues throughout life.
• By age two, children begin to differentiate themselves from
others.
• By the ages of three and four, children understand that they
are separate and unique selves. At this stage, a child's self-image
is largely descriptive, based mostly on physical characteristics or
concrete details.
• By about six years old, children can communicate what they
want and need. They are also starting to define themselves in
terms of social groups.
• Between the ages of seven and 11, children begin to make
social comparisons and consider how they’re perceived by others.
They begin to describe themselves in terms of abilities and not
just concrete details, and they realize that their characteristics
exist on a continuum.
• Adolescence is a key period for self-concept. The self-concept
established during adolescence is usually the basis for the self-
Can Self-Concept Be Changed?
• Self-concept is not static, meaning that it can change.
• Our environment plays a role in this process. Places that hold a
lot of meaning to us actively contribute to our future self-
concept through both the way we relate these environments to
ourselves and how society relates to them.
• Self-concept can also change based on the people with whom
we interact. This is particularly true with regard to individuals
in our lives who are in leadership roles. They can impact the
collective self (the self in social groups) and the relational self
(the self in relationships).
• In some cases, a medical diagnosis can change self-concept by
helping people understand why they feel the way they do—
such as someone receiving an ADHD diagnosis later in life,
finally providing clarity as to why they feel different.
Self-Image
• Self-image, first mentioned by Morris Rosenberg in 1965, defined
self image as the view that one has of oneself (the sort of person we
think we are). This also includes body image and gender.

• Self-image consists of what a person perceives to be or thinks of

themselves, what they perceive others think of them, and the way
someone would like to be — their ideal self. These thoughts can
relate to someone’s perceived physical appearance, personality,
skills, values and principles, and perception of how they fit into
society’s norms around masculinity and femininity.

• Self-image can be defined as a person's perception of themselves,

including their physical appearance, personality, and characteristics
(Morin & Racy, 2021). It is the way in which an individual views and
evaluates themselves, and it can be influenced by various factors
such as culture, family, friends, and personal experiences (Taylor &
Brown, 1988).
• Suzaan Oltman, given three elements of self-image that are :(Oltman,
2014):
1. The way a person perceives or thinks of themself;
2. What a person thinks others think about themselves;
3. and the way a person would like to be or their ideal self.
• There are some proposed types and dimensions of the concept.(Morris
Rosenberg)
1. The Physical Dimension: how someone evaluates their appearance.
2. The Psychological Dimension: how someone evaluates their
personality.
3. The Intellectual Dimension: how someone evaluates their intelligence.
4. The Skills Dimension: how someone evaluates their social and
technical skills.
5. The Moral Dimension: how someone evaluates their values and
principles.
6. The Sexual Dimension: how someone feels they fit into society’s
masculine and/or feminine norms.
Self-Image Issues
• Self-image issues refer to negative or distorted perceptions that an
individual has of themselves, including their physical appearance,
personality, and characteristics. These issues can manifest in a variety
of ways, such as low self-esteem, lack of self-confidence, and negative
body image (Baumeister et al., 1989).

• Self-image disorder, also known as body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), is

a mental health disorder characterized by a preoccupation with
perceived defects or flaws in one's appearance that are not observable
to others, or that are significantly exaggerated (American Psychiatric
Association, 2013).

• Individuals with body dysmorphic disorder may spend excessive

amounts of time examining their appearance in mirrors or other
reflective surfaces, or may engage in repetitive behaviors such as skin
picking or hair pulling.

• Self image does not necessarily have to reflect reality. Example: a

person with anorexia nervosa who is thin may have a self-image in
which the person believes they are fat.
Causes of poor self-image​
Self-image issues can be caused by a variety of factors,
such as
• Past traumas: Physical, emotional, or sexual abuse.
Experiences of bullying or social rejection.
• Negative Feedback: Constant criticism or negative
remarks from parents, teachers, or peers.
• Media and Societal Influences: Unrealistic standards
and comparison
• Personal Relationships: Lack of support and toxic
relationships
• Cultural and Societal Expectations: Cultural norms
and discrimination
• Personality traits: Perfectionism or self criticism
Creating a positive self-image
• With a positive self-image, we recognize and own our assets
and potentials while being realistic about our liabilities and
limitations.

• According to a review published in the Journal of Personality

and Social Psychology (Baumeister et al., 1989), people with a
positive self-image tend to have higher levels of self-confidence
and self-esteem, and they are generally more successful in life.

• A positive self-image can boost our physical, mental, social,

emotional, and spiritual well-being.

• We can learn to develop a healthier and more accurate view of

ourselves, thus challenging the distortions in the mirror. A
healthy self-image starts with learning to accept and love
ourselves. It also means being accepted and loved by others
Ways to create a positive self-
image:
Surround Yourself
Practice self- Positive Self-Talk: with Positive
compassion: Set Realistic Goals: Influences:
Breaking down goals Using positive
Being kind to yourself, and focusing on affirmations and Having supportive
acknowledging your personal growth challenging negative relationships and
efforts thoughts limiting negative
interactions

Focus on Your Take Care of Your Practice Gratitude:

Practice
Strengths and Physical Health: Mindfulness and Being grateful for
Achievements:
Having a healthy Meditation: positive aspects of life
Identifying strengths
lifestyle and self care Mindfulness exercises and appreciating the
and reflection on your
routine. and meditation present
achievements

Seek Professional
Develop New Skills Avoid Comparisons: Help if Needed:
and Hobbies: Limiting social media
and focusing on your Therapy and
leaning new things journey. Counselling and
support groups
Self-Perception
• Self-perception, as defined by the American Psychological
Association, is a psychological concept that involves a person’s
view of their or of any of the mental or physical attributes that
constitute the self. How do you view yourself? What do you think
about yourself, your values, your beliefs, and your image?
Whatever you may feel about yourself, it is your self-perception
at work. Self-perception is the best mirror one can own to have a
deep understanding of oneself. We derive a great sense of self
from our self-perception.
• Self-perception is the process of observing and interpreting
one’s own behaviors, thoughts, and feelings, and using those
observations and interpretations to define oneself (Robak,
2001). It is thought that since we cannot know certain things
about ourselves for certain, we look to our own behaviors to tell
us what our beliefs and attitudes are (Bem, 1972).
Self perception theory
• Self-perception theory was created by the psychologist Daryl
Bem (1967) and describes the patterns: that we draw
conclusions about what we’re thinking and feeling by
observing and reflecting on our own behaviors.

Bem (1972) observed that our self-perception changes from

one circumstance or experience to another. Self-perception
theory suggests that people determine their attitudes and
emotions by observing their own behavior and the context in
which this behavior occurs, especially when their internal
states are ambiguous. This is similar to how an outside
observer might infer someone's feelings or attitudes by
watching their actions
Self-Perception Experiment
• Daryl Bem, conducted an original experiment that involved
subjects who listened to a recording of a man describing a
boring task enthusiastically.
• One group was told that the man was paid $1 for his
testimonial, while the other group was told he was paid $20
for it. The $1 group believed that he enjoyed the task more
than how much the $20 group believed he enjoyed it.
• The two groups’ conclusions correlated to the feelings that
the actors themselves expressed. Because the participants
were able to correctly guess how the actors felt, it was
concluded that the actors must have arrived at the way
they felt from observing their own behavior as well.
Self-Esteem
• Self-esteem is your subjective sense of overall
personal worth or value. Similar to self-respect, it
describes your level of confidence in your abilities and
attributes.
• Self-esteem impacts your decision-making process, your
relationships, your emotional health, and your overall
well-being. It also influences motivation, as people with
a healthy, positive view of themselves understand their
potential and may feel inspired to take on new
challenges.
• Self-esteem tends to be lowest in childhood and
increases during adolescence, as well as adulthood,
eventually reaching a fairly stable and enduring level.
This makes self-esteem similar to the stability of
personality traits over time
Theories of Self-Esteem
Self Esteem in Maslow’s Hierarchy
of Needs (Abraham Maslow, 1943):
• The concept of self-esteem plays an
important role in psychologist
Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs,
which depicts esteem as one of the
basic human motivations.
• Maslow suggested that individuals
need both appreciation from other
people and inner self-respect to build
esteem. Both of these needs must be
fulfilled in order for an individual to
grow as a person and reach self-
actualization.
Erik Erikson’s Stage
Theory of Psychosocial
Development (1963):
• Erikson proposed a stage
theory of psychosocial
development, where
individuals navigate eight
stages throughout their
lives. Each stage presents a
crisis, a conflict that needs
resolution for healthy
development. During
adolescence (identity vs.
identity confusion),
individuals grapple with
questions of self, forging
their identities. Successfully
resolving this crisis lays the
foundation for future
commitments in career and
relationships.
The Sociometer Theory and Self Esteem (Mark Leary,
1999):
• Sociometer theory, developed by Mark Leary, argued that
self-esteem isn’t an inherent desire for positive self
evaluation, but rather a social barometer.
• We have a deep need for belonging, and this theory
proposes we have an internal “sociometer” constantly
measuring our standing in social groups.
• Positive interactions and acceptance raise our internal
gauge, leading to high self-esteem. Conversely, rejection
lowers it, impacting our sense of self-worth.
• This explains why social cues affect self esteem so
strongly. It goes a step further, suggesting our pursuit of
self esteem stems from this need for social connection.
• This theory helps us understand the link between social
experiences and self-perception, highlighting the
importance of social connection for well-being.
Terror Management Theory and Self-Esteem (Ernest
Becker, 1971):
• Terror management theory stands out as the first theory to
explore the psychological purpose of self esteem through a
scientific lens. The theory sees self esteem as a psychological
shield against this existential fear.
• The theory highlights two fundamental human motivations:
maintaining a positive self-image (high self-esteem)
and upholding the values and beliefs of our culture.
• This theory suggests that self esteem serves a protective
function by reducing anxiety about death. By maintaining a
positive self-image and feeling valued by others, we buffer
ourselves from the existential fear of mortality.
Self-Determination Theory and Psychological Needs (Deci & Ryan,
2000):
Self-determination theory (SDT), developed by Deci and Ryan in 2000,
sheds light on the power of psychological needs in shaping our motivations
and well-being. The theory identifies three core needs that act as essential
nutrients for our psychological health: competence, autonomy, and
relatedness.
• Competence is the belief in our ability to learn and achieve, fueled by a
sense of accomplishment that motivates us to keep growing.
• Autonomy is the feeling of control, where we initiate actions and
understand the reasons behind expectations. It fosters motivation and
ownership
• Relatedness is the need for connection and belonging with others. It’s
about feeling seen, valued, and supported by those around us. It
highlights our need for connection, making us more open to new
experiences and fostering overall well-being.
• These fundamental needs foster self-determined behavior which makes
us more likely to be intrinsically motivated, leading to deeper
engagement, creativity, and a sense of purpose in life.
Humanistic Psychology and the Self (Carl Rogers,
1951):
• Humanistic psychology emphasizes the importance of self-
concept. Rogers believed that many people struggle with
self esteem due to a lack of unconditional positive
regard (acceptance and love) during their development.
• His therapeutic approach aimed to create a safe space for
individuals to develop a positive sense of self-worth through
acceptance and empathy. When this is missing in childhood,
it can lead to a distorted sense of self.
• Rogers believed that a therapist could create a safe and
supportive environment filled with acceptance and
empathy. This allows individuals to explore their true selves
and develop a more positive self-concept and sense of self-
worth and move towards a more fulfilling life.
• High self-esteem ( a positive view of
oneself). This tends to lead to
• Confidence in own abilities
• Self-acceptance
• Not worrying about what others think
• Optimism
• Low self-esteem tends to lead to
• Lack of confidence
• Want to be/look like someone else
• Always worrying about what others might think
• Pessimism
Argyle (2008) believes there are 4 major factors that influence self-esteem.
1. The Reaction of Others
• If people admire us, flatter us, seek out our company, listen attentively and
agree with us, we tend to develop a positive self-image.
• If they avoid us, neglect us, and tell us things about ourselves that we don’t
want to hear, we develop a negative self-image.
2. Comparison with Others
• If the people we compare ourselves with (our reference group) appear to be
more successful, happier, richer, and better looking than ourselves, we tend
to develop a negative self-image, but if they are less successful than us, our
image will be positive.
3. Social Roles
• Some social roles carry prestige, e.g., doctor, airline pilot, actors, and
footballer, and this promotes self-esteem. Other roles carry a stigma. E.g., a
prisoner, mental hospital patient, refuse collector, or unemployed person.
4. Identification
• Roles aren’t just “out there.” They also become part of our personality, i.e.,
we identify with the positions we occupy, the roles we play, and the groups
we belong to.
But just as important as all these factors are the influence of our parents.
Influence of Parents on Self-
Esteem
The role of parents is particularly crucial in shaping an individual's self-
esteem.

• Attachment and Early Relationships: children who form secure

attachments with their parents typically feel loved, valued, and
supported.

• Parental Behaviour and Attitudes: Positive reinforcement, criticism

and neglect

• Modelling Behaviour: parents serve as primary role models for their

children.

• Expectations and Achievement: Supportive expectations or high or

unrealistic expectations

• Emotional Support and Availability: emotional support and emotional

absence

• Communication Style: open and poor communication style

• Discipline and Boundaries: constructive and harsh or inconsistent

Self esteem:
Self concept:
(How much do I like myself?)
(Who am I?)
Refers to one’s overall evaluation
Self concept is a broader term or appraisal of their own worth. It
encompasses all the beliefs, is the degree to which person feel
perceptions, and knowledge that confident, valuable and worthy of
individuals hold about respect.
themselves

Self perception:
Self image : (How do I perceive myself?)
(How do I see myself?) Refers to the process by which
individuals form impressions and
Self image is how an individual make judgement about
see themselves at a specific point themselves. It how one interprets
in time, including physical their own behaviour, thought and
appearance, abilities and roles. feelings.
Why don’t we always do
exactly what we feel like
doing, when we feel like
doing it?

As adults, we pretty much have free

rein to do whatever we want,
whenever we want. The vast majority
of us won’t get arrested for not
showing up to work, and no one will
haul us off to prison for eating cake
for breakfast

So, why do we show up for work when we don’t

want to? Or Why don’t we eat cake for breakfast?
Self-Regulation
• Self-regulation frequently is used to denote the processes by
which people initiate, maintain, and control their own
thoughts, behaviors, or emotions, with the intention of
producing a desired outcome or avoiding an undesired
outcome (Carver & Scheier 1990, Karoly 1993).
• Heatherton (2011) also proposed that self-regulation requires
four psychological components, paraphrased as follows:

a) People need to be aware of their behavior and its

consequences, particularly in reference to salient norms,
standards, and goals

b) People need to understand how others are reacting to their

behavior and how others’ reactions can influence them in turn

c) People need to detect and anticipate negative outcomes,

especially in complex social situations

d) People need to resolve discrepancies between their actual

behavior and their desired (or undesired) outcomes.
Why Self-Regulation Is Important
• Self-regulation involves taking a pause between a feeling
and an action—taking the time to think things through,
make a plan, wait patiently.
• Self-regulation allows you to act in accordance with your
deeply held values or social conscience and to express
yourself appropriately.
• For example: If you value helping others, it will allow you to
help a coworker with a project, even if you are on a tight
deadline yourself.
• In its most basic form, self-regulation allows us to be
more resilient and bounce back from failure while also
staying calm under pressure.
Common Self-Regulation
Problems
• Self-regulatory dysfunction is implicated when people engage in
self-harm, overeating, fail to control their temper, budge to
ethical lapses, procrastinate, and underachieve.
• Self-regulation failure is at the core of health problems such as
obesity, eating disorders, cardiovascular disease, smoking, and
substance abuse (Ryan et al. 1997).
• Problems in self regulation can arise in connection with people’s
efforts to achieve important goals, eat healthy, exercise,
practice safe sex, follow medical regimens, and drive safely
(Bonin et al. 2000, Polivy et al. 1994, Sayette et al. 2001).
• A child who does not feel safe and secure, or who is unsure
whether their needs will be met, may have trouble self-
soothing and self-regulating
Self- regulation theory:
• Self-regulation theory (SRT) is a system of conscious, personal
management that involves the process of guiding one's own thoughts,
behaviors and feelings to reach goals.
• According to modern SRT expert Roy Baumeister, there are four
components involved (2007):
1. Standards of desirable behavior;
2. Motivation to meet standards;
3. Monitoring of situations and thoughts that precede breaking
standards;
4. Willpower allowing one’s internal strength to control urges.
• These four components interact to determine our self-regulatory
activity at any given moment. According to SRT, our behavior is
determined by our personal standards of good behavior, our
motivation to meet those standards, the degree to which we are
consciously aware of our circumstances and our actions, and the
extent of our willpower to resist temptations and choose the best path.
Learned helplessness
• Learned Helplessness is a phenomenon that occurs when a
series of negative outcomes or stressors causes someone to
believe that the outcomes of life are out of one’s control.
• If a person learns that their behavior makes no difference to
their aversive environment, they may stop trying to escape
from aversive stimuli even when escape is possible.
• Taken together, these response patterns of learned
helplessness have been shown to negatively impact physical
and mental health.
• The theory and its reformulation have subsequently been used
as the basis for several human conditions, particularly
depression and PTSD. According to the attributional
reformulation of the theory, individuals come to feel helpless
through learning to attribute internal, stable, and global
causes to a variety of events. This theory provides important
implications for treatment especially for mental health
problems such as depression.
Experiment on learned
helplessness
• Martin Seligman conducted a series of classic experiments in the
1960s (Seligman & Maier, 1967). Some dogs were placed in a
chamber where they received electric shocks from which they
could not escape (the non-escape condition)

• The dogs in the escape

group could escape the
shocks by pressing a panel
with their nose.
• In the second phase, the
animals were placed in a
shuttle box divided by a
barrier in the middle so that
the dogs could jump in order
to escape the shocks. Only
the dogs that had learned to
escape in the previous phase
tried to jump. The other dogs
did not.
• When the dogs in the “non-escape” condition were given the
opportunity to escape the shocks by jumping across a partition,
most failed even to try; they seemed just to give up and
passively accept any shocks the experimenters chose to
administer.
• In comparison, dogs who were previously allowed to escape the
shocks tended to jump the partition and escape the pain.
• In 1978, Lyn Abramson, Martin Seligman, and John Teasdale
reformulated the original learned helplessness model because
the theory was unable to explain why not everyone who was
exposed to uncontrollable negative life events would become
helpless and depressed. The reformulated learned helplessness
model proposed that individuals have habitual ways of
explaining the stressors that occur in their lives. This tendency
to explain stressors in a characteristic manner was termed
attributional or explanatory style.
The Role of Explanatory Styles
• Explanatory styles may also play a role in determining how
people are impacted by learned helplessness. This view
suggests that an individual's characteristic style of explaining
events helps determine whether or not they will develop
learned helplessness
• A pessimistic explanatory style is associated with a greater
likelihood of experiencing learned helplessness. People with
this explanatory style tend to view negative events as being
inescapable and unavoidable and tend to take personal
responsibility for such negative events.
• In contrary, an optimistic explanatory style is a way of
interpreting and explaining events in a positive and hopeful
manner. By consciously adopting an optimistic explanatory
style, individuals can enhance their overall well-being and
navigate life's challenges more effectively.
Learned Helplessness and Mental Health
• Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD):Individuals may
feel overwhelmed by a lack of control over various aspects
of their lives, leading to persistent worry and anxiety. When
people experience chronic anxiety, they may eventually
give up on finding relief because anxious feelings seem
unavoidable and untreatable. Because of this, people may
refuse medications or therapy that may help relieve their
symptoms.
• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): Survivors of
trauma may feel helpless during and after the traumatic
event, contributing to feelings of ongoing helplessness and
distress. Flashbacks, avoidance, and hyperarousal can be
linked to a sense of loss of control over one's environment
and reactions.
• Depression: Feelings of hopelessness and helplessness are
core symptoms of depression. People may feel that they
have no control over their lives and that nothing they do will
make a difference. Learned helplessness can contribute to
the onset of depression, and depression can reinforce
Attribution theory
• Attribution theory deals with how the social perceiver uses information
to arrive at causal explanations for events. It examines what
information is gathered and how it is combined to form a causal
judgment.
• Attribution theory is concerned with how ordinary people explain the
causes of behavior and events. For example, is someone angry
because they are bad-tempered or because something bad happened.
• A pessimistic explanatory style is the tendency to explain negative life
events with internal, stable, and global causes, and according to the
reformulated learned helplessness model it puts individuals at risk for
developing depression when exposed to uncontrollable life events.
• Considerable evidence exists to support the role of a pessimistic
explanatory style in depression, both in children and in adults. In
particular, the role of a pessimistic explanatory style as a
psychological risk factor for depression in the face of negative life
events has received much support.
Heider (1958) believed that people tend to see cause-and-effect
relationships, even where there is none. There were two main ideas that he
put forward that became influential: dispositional (internal cause) vs.
situational (external cause) attributions.

Dispositional Vs Situational Attribution

• 1. Dispositional Attribution

• Dispositional attribution assigns the cause of behavior to some internal

characteristic of a person rather than to outside forces.

• When we explain the behavior of others, we look for enduring internal

attributions, such as personality traits. This is known as the fundamental
attribution error.

• For example, we attribute the behavior of a person to their personality,

motives, or beliefs.

• 2. Situational Attribution

• The process of assigning the cause of behavior to some situation or event

outside a person’s control rather than to some internal characteristic.

• When we try to explain our behavior, we tend to make external

attributions, such as situational or environmental features.
Correspondent Inference Theory
(Edward E Jones & Keith Davis,
1965)
• Jones and Davis (1965) thought that people pay particular
attention to intentional behavior (as opposed to accidental or
unthinking behavior). Jones and Davis’s theory helps us
understand the process of making an internal attribution.
• They say that we tend to do this when we see a
correspondence between motive and behavior. For example,
when we see a correspondence between someone behaving in
a friendly way and being a friendly person.
• Dispositional (i.e. internal) attributions provide us with
information from which we can make predictions about a
person’s future behavior.
• The correspondent inference theory describes the conditions
under which we make dispositional attributes to behavior we
perceive as intentional. Davis used the term correspondent
inference to refer to an occasion when an observer infers that a
person’s behavior matches or corresponds with their
personality.
• Furthermore, Jones and Davis proposed that we draw on 5 sources of
information to make a correspondent inference

• Choice: If a behavior is freely chosen it is believed to be due to internal

(dispositional) factors.

• Accidental vs. Intentional behavior: behavior that is intentional is

likely to a attributed to the person’s personality and behavior which is
accidental is likely to be attributed to situation / external causes.

• Social Desirability: behaviors low in sociably desirability (not

conforming) lead us to make (internal) dispositional inferences more
than socially desirable behaviors.

• Non-common effects: If the other person’s behavior has important

consequences for ourselves. For example if the person asks us out on a
date we assume it was the fact that they like you that was important
(not that you were simply available!).

• Hedonistic Relevance: If the other person’s behavior appears to be

directly intended to benefit or harm us, we assume that it is “personal”,
and not just a by-product of the situation we are

• The purpose of this theory is to explain why people make internal or

external attributions. People compare their actions with alternative
actions to evaluate the choices that they have made, and by looking at
various factors they can decide if their behaviour was caused by an
Kelley’s Covariation Model
• Kelley’s (1967) covariation model is the best-known attribution theory. He
developed a logical model for judging whether a particular action should be
attributed to some characteristic (dispositional) of the person or the
environment (situational).
• The term covariation simply means that a person has information from multiple
observations at different times and situations and can perceive the covariation
of an observed effect and its causes.
• More specifically, they take into account three kinds of evidence:
• Consensus: the extent to which other people behave in the same way in a
similar situation. E.g., Alison smokes a cigarette when she goes out for a meal
with her friend. If her friend smokes, her behavior is high in consensus. If only
Alison smokes, it is low.
• Distinctiveness: the extent to which the person behaves in the same way in
similar situations. If Alison only smokes when she is out with friends, her
behavior is high in distinctiveness. If she smokes at any time or place, her
distinctiveness is low.
• Consistency: the extent to which the person behaves like this every time the
situation occurs. If Alison only smokes when she is out with friends, consistency
is high. If she only smokes on one special occasion, consistency is low.
Based on the information gathered from consensus, distinctiveness, and
consistency, observers make attributions about whether the behavior is due to
internal (personal) or external (situational) factors.

Internal Attribution:

• High Consistency: The person behaves this way every time in the situation.

• Low Consensus: Other people do not behave similarly in the same situation.

• Low Distinctiveness: The person behaves similarly in different situations.

• Example: If John always laughs at this particular joke (high consistency), others
do not laugh at it (low consensus), and John laughs at many different jokes (low
distinctiveness), we may conclude that John's behavior is internally caused (he
has a great sense of humor).

External Attribution:

• High Consistency: The person behaves this way every time in the situation.

• High Consensus: Others behave similarly in the same situation.

• High Distinctiveness: The person does not behave this way in other
situations.

• Example: If John laughs at this joke every time (high consistency), others also
laugh at it (high consensus), and John does not usually laugh at other jokes
(high distinctiveness), we may conclude that the behavior is externally caused
(the joke is very funny).
Social skill model
• Social skills involve the ability to express both positive and
negative feelings in the interpersonal context without suffering
consequent loss of social reinforcement. Such skill is
demonstrated in a large variety of interpersonal contexts, and
it involves the coordinated delivery of appropriate verbal and
nonverbal responses. In addition, the socially skilled individual
is attuned to realities of the situation and is aware when he is
likely to be reinforced for his efforts. (Hersen & Bellack, 1976,
p. 562)
• Social skill can be described as how individuals acquire,
develop, and use social skills to interact effectively with others.
These models help in understanding the components,
processes, and outcomes related to social behavior.
• The Albert Ellis Institute in New York defines social skills as the
skill or ability to facilitate interactions, recognize and
reciprocate emotional cues from others, and communicate with
others in various social situations.
Components of Social Skills
• Expressive behaviors

1. Speech content: The actual words and sentences that a person uses.

2. Paralinguistic features: Non-verbal elements of speech used to convey

emotion and modify meaning. Example voice, volume, speech rate, and
pitch/intonation.

3. Voice volume: The loudness or softness of the speaker's voice

4. Speech rate: The speed at which a person speaks.

5. Pitch Intonation: The highness or lowness of the voice (pitch) and the
variation in pitch during speech (intonation).

6. Nonverbal behaviors: Communication without words, through body

language and facial expressions, eye contact, posture, proxemics, and
kinesics.

• Receptive behaviors (social perception) Attention to and

interpretation of relevant cues emotion recognition

• Interactive behaviors: Response timing, use of social reinforcers, turn

taking

• Situational factors: Social “intelligence” (knowledge of social mores

• Persons with mental illness might have social skills deficits such as an
inability to express their thoughts, feelings and emotions appropriately.
Such deficits in social skills in some persons with mental illness could
arise either as part of the illness, or because the early onset of the illness
may have restricted their opportunities to learn new social skills, or use
the skills that they have learned. Sometimes symptoms of the mental
illness, such as anxiety, may interfere with the utilization of the skill.

• For example, schizophrenia often strikes first in late adolescence or

young adulthood, a critical period for mastery of adult social roles and
skills, such as dating and sexual behaviors, work-related skills, and the
ability to form and maintain adult relationships.

• Many individuals with schizophrenia gradually develop isolated lives,

punctuated by lengthy periods in psychiatric hospitals or in community
residences. Such events remove clients from their normal peer group,
provide few opportunities to engage in age appropriate social roles, and
limit social contacts to mental health staff and other severely ill clients.
Under such circumstances, clients do not have an opportunity to acquire
and practice appropriate adult roles. Moreover, skills mastered earlier in
life may be lost because of lack of reinforcement by the environment.
Stress diathesis Model
• The diathesis concept has a long history in medical terminology.
The word diathesis stems from the Greek idea of predisposition.
• The Diathesis-Stress Model suggests that psychological disorders
arise from the interaction of an underlying vulnerability (diathesis)
and external stressors. An individual may have a predisposition to
a disorder, but it’s the combination of this vulnerability and
adverse life events that triggers its manifestation.
• Theories of schizophrenia brought the stress and diathesis
concepts together and the particular terminology of diathesis–
stress interaction was developed by Meehl, Bleuler, and Rosenthal
in the 1960s.
• It intervenes in the debate about “nature vs. nurture” in
psychopathology — whether disorders are predominantly caused
by innate biological factor (“nature”) or by social and situational
factors (“nurture”) — by providing an account of how both might
coincide in giving rise to a disorder.
• According to this theory, neither predisposition nor stress alone can trigger
mental illness, rather, stress triggers the diathesis, and both interact in
some way to manifest the disease state. The more vulnerable a person is
and the lower his threshold, the less stress it takes to trigger a disorder.
• Individual Variation: Vulnerability explains why one person may develop
depression or a major psychiatric disorder while another does not, even
though they encounter the same stress. Because the level of diathesis and
resilience varies from one person to the other, people vary in how they
respond.
• The Predisposition : The diathesis or vulnerability to a psychological
disorder lies quiet until a person encounters stresses in his environment.
Diathesis factors can include:
 Genetics, such as having a family history of a psychological disorder that
might be related defective genes
 Biologic, such as oxygen deprivation at birth or poor nutrition during early
childhood
 Childhood experiences, such as isolation, loneliness or shyness that
creates a distorted view of the world
• Part of the theory is that everyone has a certain level of vulnerability and
a certain threshold for a stress to trigger disease. The more vulnerable you
are and the lower your threshold, the more likely that a mental disorder
will manifest
• Stress Factors: Stress factors that can interact with a person's
predisposition for psychological disease can range from mild to
major stressors and include:
 Minor daily stress in home or external environment
 Life events such as a family death, a divorce, starting school
 Short-term factors such as a school or a work assignment
 Long-term stress such as chronic pain or an ongoing illness

• Most stress–diathesis models presume that all people have some

level of diathesis for any given psychiatric disorder (Monroe and
Hadjiyannakis, 2002). However, individuals may differ with regard to
the point at which they develop a disorder depending on the degree
to which predispositional risk factors exist and on the degree of
experienced stress. Thus, relatively minor stressors may lead to a
disorder in persons who are highly vulnerable.

• For example, traumatic early life experiences, such as the loss of a

parent, can act as longstanding predispositions to a psychological
disorder. In addition, personality traits like high neuroticism are
sometimes also referred to as diatheses.
Resilience, coping and social support
• The American Psychological Association (2014) defines
resilience as “the process of adapting well in the face of
adversity, trauma, tragedy, threats or even significant sources of
stress
• There is some variation in the use of the term resilience. Among
psychologists, Werner (1995) referred to three general usages:
good developmental outcomes despite high risk status;
sustained competence under stress; and recovery from trauma.
• The most common definition of resilience in the past few years
is: positive adaptation despite adversity (Luthar, 2006).
• Luthar emphasizes that a child may demonstrate resilience in
one domain, but suffer disorder in another domain. For example,
she describes children who suffer significant adversity and yet
demonstrate academic competence, as measured through a
variety of means. Yet some of these children also suffer a variety
of psychological and emotional disturbances ranging from
anxiety to depression. Hence, resilience in one domain
(educational) co-exists in the same child with
psychological/emotional disorder
• Being resilient – being able to overcome challenges and setbacks
– helps to promote social and emotional wellbeing. A person who
is resilient and has positive social / emotional wellbeing is likely to
show the following:

1. The capacity for positive personal development in several

domains, including emotionally, intellectually and creatively

2. The capacity to form and maintain positive and respectful

relationships with others

3. The ability to identify and manage one’s own emotions and to

understand the feelings of others

4. Skills in communication, including assertiveness, empathy and

negotiation

5. The ability to solve problems, make informed decisions and

accept responsibility for one’s actions

6. The capacity to set realistic but rewarding goals and to actively

work toward these.
Coping
• Coping is defined as the thoughts and behaviors used to
manage the internal and external demands of situations that
are appraised as stressful (Folkman & Moskowitz, 2004; Taylor
& Stanton, 2007).
• When individuals are subjected to a stressor, the varying ways
of dealing with it are termed 'coping styles,' which are a set of
relatively stable traits that determine the individual's
behavior in response to stress. These are consistent over time
and across situations.
• Coping is a series of transactions between a person who has a
set of resources, values, and commitments and a particular
environment with its own resources, demands, and constraints
(Folkman & Moskovitz, 2004). Thus, coping is not a one-time
action that someone takes but rather a set of responses,
occurring over time, by which the environment and the person
Coping is generally categorized into four major categories
which are:
• Problem-focused, which addresses the problem causing the
distress: Examples of this style include active coping, planning,
restraint coping, and suppression of competing activities.
• Emotion-focused, which aims to reduce the negative emotions
associated with the problem: Examples of this style
include positive reframing, acceptance, turning to religion, and
humor.
• Meaning-focused, in which an individual uses cognitive
strategies to derive and manage the meaning of the situation
• Social coping (support-seeking) in which an individual reduces
stress by seeking emotional or instrumental support from their
community.
• According to Gurvich et al. (2021) coping is making use of
mechanisms intended to reduce psychological stress. These
mechanisms could be good or bad, some effective and some less
so, as an example, consider emotional eating or smoking, versus
seeking emotional support from friends or building resilience.
ROLE OF SOCIAL SUPPORT IN MENTAL HEALTH
• In 1995, Roy Baumeister and Mark Leary proposed that humans
have a fundamental need to belong, and that a sufficient quantity
of stable interpersonal relationships characterized by affective
concern is essential for optimal levels of well-being in daily life.
• Integration in a social network characterized by mutual obligation
and the perception that one is loved and cared for can have
ameliorative effects on mental health through promoting a stream
of positive feelings, a sense of stability, and a perception that one
has a worthwhile role in the community.
• Most research has found that quality of relationships (functional
dimension) is a better predictor of good health than quantity of
relationships (structural dimension), although both are important.
• Social support is the perception or experience that a person is
esteemed and part of a social network characterized by mutual
obligation and helping behaviours. Support can involve either
instrumental helping behaviours or attention to emotion through
expressing empathy or bolstering self-esteem. The presence of
supportive others may diminish the effects of stress and the risk of
developing certain mental illnesses such as depression.
Impact of social support on
health outcomes
• Social isolation and low levels of social support have been
shown to be associated with increased morbidity and
mortality in a host of medical illnesses.
• Numerous epidemiological studies have reported that poor
social support is associated with the onset and relapse of
depression, negative treatment response to dysthymia,
seasonality of mood disorder, and the presence of
depression comorbid in several medical illnesses, such as
multiple sclerosis, cancer, and rheumatoid arthritis.
• Strong social support has been shown to be an important
factor in decreasing functional impairment in patients with
depression and in increasing the likelihood of recovery.
Further, the risk of developing PTSD upon exposure to
combat trauma is inversely correlated with social support.
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