What is the Ecological Self

By Gwendolyn Cuizon

 The ecological sense of self refers to the concept of "doing good for the other" which results in the attainment of an ecological self or eco-self, one that is environmentally aware and responsible.

Dimensions of Ecological Self

According to Stern, dimensions of ecological self are aspects of the core of self. There are four dimensions and these are:

Self-coherence

Self-coherence, the sense of being whole physical entity with boundaries and limitations.

Self-coherence with ecological self means realizing for instance that each has limits or boundaries. That as much as one wants to be free, a person's freedom is limited by the rights of others. In relation with nature, freedom is, to a certain extent, to be allied with nature. One cannot go against nature but should work harmoniously with it. Like, one can do what he or she wants with the body but there are limitations to what the body is capable of.

There are times that one cannot push the body beyond its limits. One can only work up to a certain point. Like, even if one wants to keep the house dust-free or cook gourmet food every meal but having to look after two kids and study are the more important priorities. Focusing on the priorities is important so one does not waste energy on less important tasks.

On a general level, the wants and needs may be in conflict or in harmony with the environment one revolves in.

Self-Agency

Self-Agency the sense that your actions will have consequences.

For instance, a mother is aware that her primary role is critical to the development of the kids. The actions that she does today will have an impact on the way my kids will behave tomorrow. For instance, instilling discipline in the children is as important as giving love and attention.

Being in their formative years, teaching them proper behavior is critical in shaping their attitudes, personalities and even their lives, in general, later. When they do something wrong, like when a child breaks a vase or hurt his sibling, explaining to him what his actions meant and what it does to the person concerned is essential. By doing this, the child will come to know the importance of choosing right from wrong.

Self-Affectivity

Self-Affectivity the sense of having emotional feelings that routinely go together with certain experiences.

Certain experiences evoke certain feelings from each person. It is impossible to separate feelings from experiences sometimes. For instance, seeing the child walk or talk for the first time evokes feelings of happiness. Seeing one's child get hurt evokes feelings of fear.

In a study conducted, it was found out that “different emotions develop overtime as a result of a dialogical process of pre-verbal communication between parents and infants. Joy does not appear until 3 months of age, anger not until 6 months, fear/anxiety not until 9 months. Although each of those emotions continues to develop in the context of pre-verbal and later verbal dialogues, virtually all the basic human emotions, and our self-awareness of those emotions, are acquired before individuals have the verbal ability to label, evaluate, and discuss those emotions.”

Self-History

Self-history is the sense of enduring, or having a past, of going on through changes.

Change is a necessary stimulus. Experiences in life teach one to withstand change or painful past. This has also taught one how to act and feel towards familiar situations or people. The reactions become a pattern to which one goes back to when confronted with change so one will be able to endure or cope with it effectively.

Everyday one experiences minor even major changes which affect life. Learning to cope with them effectively is necessary to be able to handle those changes.