Definition of “Self Concept” and Identity
Self-concept is a multi-dimensional construct that refers to an individual’s perception of “self” in relation to any number of characteristics, such as academics, gender roles and sexuality, racial identity, and many others. The self-concept is composed of relatively permanent self-assessments,[citation needed] such as personality attributes, knowledge of one’s skills and abilities, one’s occupation and hobbies, and awareness of one’s physical attributes. For example, the statement, “I am lazy” is a self-assessment that contributes to the self-concept. In contrast, the statement “I am tired” would not normally be considered part of someone’s self-concept, since being tired is a temporary state. Nevertheless, a person’s self-concept may change with time, possibly going through turbulent periods of identity crisis and reassessment. Interesting, huh? Read more from Wikipedia here.

Carl Jung and His Ideas on Self
Carl Jung’s entire work could be said to rest on two questions, “Who am I?” and “Who are we?” The depth of his work and his investigation into these questions is I think, unsurpassed in the Western World. Had he been born at a different time we would I believe now have the religion of Jung, and yet that would probably go against his own thinking. He recognised the danger of dogmas, the limitations on how far we can rationally answer some questions and he fiercely defended truth, knowing that truth is what you and I discover from our hearts and experience to be the truth, not merely some dry rationalisation that comes from our “head.” Read more here.

Multiple Personality Disorder (MPD): Having More Than One Identity
The French psychoanalyst, Jacques Lacan, taught that all desire is the “desire of the Other.” In plain language, this means that most of our unconscious life Jacques Lacan is a product of a variety of external social influences. The concept of personality, therefore, although a common term in psychology, really doesn’t mean much because any person is really composed of many diverse, fragmentary—and generally illusory—images of “self.” In the midst of such chaos, psychology can’t heal a personality so much as help a person recognize all these illusions. These normal fragments of personality are often called ego states, a term derived from the clinical hypnosis work of John & Helen Watkins. In contrast, Multiple Personality Disorder (MPD) is an abnormal condition in which the personality becomes so fragmented that the various parts cannot even communicate with each other. Read more about MPD here.

How to Get to Know Someone
A critical part of developing our identities is forming relationships with others. And, no one said making friends was easy, but follow this simple guide and, before you know it, you could bloom into a social butterfly. Getting to know someone is the first step and this will help you achieve your goals. Check out this WikiHow post on how to enhance your social skills and make more friends.

Happy Friday!

Weld County DA Ken Buck

Many of you may have seen our ongoing coverage of the Weld County, Colorado ID theft case that was thrown out by a judge last week for lack of “probable cause.” In an odd twist, that same judge announced his retirement the day after the controversial ruling.

So, the story continues. As expected, Weld County District Attorney Ken Buck is asking the Colorado Court of Appeals to overturn a judge’s decision that stopped his investigation of identity theft involving illegal immigrants. As you may recall, the case was thrown out because the DA had a local tax preparer’s office raided to find the critical information needed to bust more than 100 illegal immigrants.

We were not surprised to hear that the DA filed an appeal. We want to know what you think about this ongoing story. Of course, there is a much larger issue at hand – illegal immigration.

Funny stuff. Again, please let us know your thoughts!