Report on Self Descriptions Tma04

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Report TMA 04 A comparison of self-descriptions between a girl of eight and a boy of 16 and how the characteristics change with age. Abstract The effect of how individual children’s self-descriptions and characteristics change with age were investigated by replicating a study carried out by Roseberg (1979). For the purposes of this practical TMA Rosenberg’s categories have been slightly adapted. It was hypothesised that children’s self-descriptions change over time as they become older. Two children one girl of eight and one boy of sixteen were given a self- completion questionnaire that started with the question ‘who am I’, and continued with ten numbered lines each beginning with ‘I’, that the participants were asked to write their chosen descriptions of themselves, after the participants had open ended interviews with the children individually to find out about their self- perceptions. It has been established that children’s self-descriptors change as they become more aware of outside influences as they get older. Thus the hypothesis was supported. Introduction This study explores how children’s self –descriptions of themselves change as they become older. Harter (1983) reviewed several studies and outlined a developmental sequence in which children’s self-descriptions change as they become more aware of the information about themselves available from other sources. The questions used in this research were based on those used by Harter (1983) and Rosenberg (1979) investigating the defining features of children’s self-descriptions. Rosenberg’s (1979) study of self-descriptors in children investigated a sample of children between the ages of 8-18 years of age. Participants in the study were asked questions that explored their categorical selves rather than simple self-descriptions of (‘who am I?’) questions included pride and shame aspects of self (‘what
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