At 7 years of age, Kenya wanted to be a soccer player and described herself as fast, strong, and coordinated. Yet try as she might, she couldn’t score a goal. At age 9, Kenya spent a lot of time on the sidelines, watching her teammates and hoping the coach would send her onto the field. She started to dislike going to practice because she couldn’t keep up during team runs. At age 12, Kenya didn’t make the team. At first, she was crushed. She focused on her schoolwork and soon discovered that she was much better at math than her classmates. Kenya’s teacher encouraged her to take a math placement test and Kenya’s high score led her to be placed in an advanced algebra class. She continued to excel and decided that she wanted a career in science or math, but she wasn’t sure which. Kenya did know, however, that if she wanted to date in high school, then she’d have to play down her smarts. Her friend told her that boys don’t like girls who are smarter than them, so Kenya decided to purposely fail an exam to commiserate with Peter and, hopefully, date him. 1. Describe Kenya’s self-concept. How has it changed? 2. Identify examples of Kenya’s ideal, real, and false self. 3. Compare Kenya’s development to normative development. 4. What role might Kenya’s experiences and interactions have in her developing sense of self?
At 7 years of age, Kenya wanted to be a soccer player and described herself as fast, strong, and coordinated. Yet try as she might, she couldn’t score a goal. At age 9, Kenya spent a lot of time on the sidelines, watching her teammates and hoping the coach would send her onto the field. She started to dislike going to practice because she couldn’t keep up during team runs. At age 12, Kenya didn’t make the team. At first, she was crushed. She focused on her schoolwork and soon discovered that she was much better at math than her classmates. Kenya’s teacher encouraged her to take a math placement test and Kenya’s high score led her to be placed in an advanced algebra class. She continued to excel and decided that she wanted a career in science or math, but she wasn’t sure which. Kenya did know, however, that if she wanted to date in high school, then she’d have to play down her smarts. Her friend told her that boys don’t like girls who are smarter than them, so Kenya decided to purposely fail an exam to commiserate with Peter and, hopefully, date him.
1. Describe Kenya’s self-concept. How has it changed?
2. Identify examples of Kenya’s ideal, real, and false self.
3. Compare Kenya’s development to normative development.
4. What role might Kenya’s experiences and interactions have in her developing sense of self?
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