What is The self?

The concept of “the self” can be viewed from several different approaches and fields related to sociology, philosophy, psychiatry, and even neuroscience. Put simply it relates to the awareness of an individual of their own identity, experiences, and emotions.

Psychiatry and Psychology
In the field of psychology and psychiatry the concept of “the self” relates to how one understands who they are. It is often divided into three different aspects relating to how one values oneself, how one sees oneself, and how one wishes to be.

Philosophy
In philosophy, there is a very distinct line between the body and the mind, where the mind is perceived to have an important and central role in defining the idea of the self and being. In this sense, the self is viewed through their ideas and perception of the world based on their experiments.

Sociology
By contrast to philosophy and even psychology where “the self” is defined by things internal to the being, in the sociological perspective the self can only be seen to emerge through social interactions and socializing with others within the community. It is only through this socialization that an individual can develop their sense of self. In a sense, the self is often developed through how others in a social circle perceive us, and it can shape our interactions with others.
In this sense, there is also the idea that the self is only defined by others, for example by the role in their relationship, such as being a parent to someone or a friend. The self is more specifically defined by the self-perception of these roles and positions within the social world.

Neuroscience
Finally, neuroscience as a far more practical science is looking at the regions of the brain that are specifically involved in self-referential thinking, including the posterior cingulate cortex and medial prefrontal cortex. In this approach it becomes clear that the self is not viewed as being disconnected to the body, but rather as a product of the brain which can only be defined by looking at the entire body.