Personal Life and History
Phrases such as “possessing an adventurous spirit”, “worldliness” and “glory seeker” are words which you will never see associated with the analyzed person. This is due to the fact that ever since an early age the analyzed person has been sheltered from the outside world. His parents, overprotective as they were, chose to shelter him from the supposed “dangers” that he might encounter should be allowed to go out.
Like many parents they thought that what they were doing would help to secure a better future for their child, unfortunately they were wrong. Various studies into the effects of social maladjustment in relation to overprotective parents has shown that individuals who were sheltered from proper social interactions early on in life have problems handling instances of social conflict (i.e. arguments, fights etc) and as result seem overly withdrawn, depressed and more prone to bouts of rebellious behavior (Tokie et al 2067).
While the analyzed person has never truly “rebelled” the fact remains that his situation early on in life is now manifesting itself in recent years placing him under the category of “potentially at risk” in terms of manifesting overly reckless behavior. Another factor that must be taken into consideration is the effects parental absenteeism has on childhood development (Tokie et al 2067). The concept of both parents working is no longer a strange concept in modern day society as either economic realities or the need to pursue a career causes both parents to be too busy to properly attend to the needs of their children (Hirshberg 39).
The family of the analyzed person is no exception to this and as both parents began to devote themselves to their respective careers the analyzed person became another statistic in the long line of cases of children having to live in a household where there is a distinct absence of parental guidance. This absence of parental guidance combined with the earlier effects of over protectiveness manifested itself in the distinct inability to properly form deep interpersonal relationships during the earlier years of his life.
On the other hand the analyzed person was able to develop early on a sense of self reliance which has actually been rather beneficial in that when it comes to accomplishing certain tasks or goals the analyzed person is more likely to able to do it himself rather than rely on other people. It must be questioned whether the development of early self-reliance and thus independence would help to resolve or contribute to the possible problems associated with overly protective parents during early childhood.
Ideologies
Religious/Spiritual Views
When speaking of religious conviction, faith, or belief in a higher order the analyzed person cannot be considered one of the most faithful people in world. His beliefs in religion extend so far as understanding the concept behind and believing in the presence of a divine entity that created us all yet is in utter disbelief as to the extent of religious conviction and zealotry many people possess. For him religion is a guide, a map if you will of what actions are to be expected from a person living in harmony within society however he fails to see the need to become overly religious.
He possess faith but lacks the will to truly embrace all the aspects of a religion, for him the religious expression shown by many is admirable however not a course of action that he himself would endorse. This is not due to any contempt for religious doctrine or rules but rather an observation that independent action without relying on an otherwise occupied divine entity for help would result in a more progressive life.
In other words he believes that the saying “God helps those who help themselves” is the most applicable mannerism that a person should adopt. Independent action from religious doctrine, pure faith and belief is what he ascribes as his form of religion, with the God acting as his compass rather than relying on God to carry him throughout his entire life.
Cultural Views
For the analyzed person the current obsession over pop culture has never truly agreed with him and as a result he usually distances himself away from various trends that crop up. This does not mean that he dislikes all aspects of popular culture rather the current obsession to be part of a group, to like what others like, to be part of the “in” crowd so to speak has never really appealed to him.
Basically he enjoys what he wants to enjoy with the people he likes being with; the appeal of being part of a large clique’ never really registering as a necessity (i.e. Twilight fans, the irrational fascination with Justin Bieber and Lady Gaga). Social scientists agree that various trends occur and become popular not only due to their inherent entertainment value or usefulness but through their ability to enable individuals to associate themselves with a larger whole (Guardo and Bohan 1909).
Some notable modern day examples of this can be seen in the literal obsession some groups have over Apple products, the fan base of Justin Bieber (who makes awful music I might add), and the rather odd Team Edward versus Team Jason fan base that developed as a result of the popularity of the Twilight saga. Man is said to be an inherently social animal and as such trends are merely an expression of the desire for man to socialize (Hirshberg 39).
On the other hand not all individuals possess such rampant obsessive tendencies towards such actions and would rather choose their own path when it comes to what they like, not basing it on a need to be accepted by being the same as everyone else. the analyzed person regularly chooses individualism rather than blind social acceptance however this in turn has created a form of narcissism in which he considers the obsessive compulsion of various individuals to follow trends as proof of their inherent inferiority to his own individualism.
Influences
The basic driving force behind the life of the analyzed person has been the distinct need to prove himself. His life is not one led by the nose by external influences rather it is one led by deep self-introspection. The reason behind this lies with the fact that the analyzed person values his independence above all else, outside influences such as those from friends or family members do not hold as much sway over him as they do others and as a result his life is defined by independent action and thinking which does not ascribe to all aspects of social norms but rather his own developed ideology based on self-reliance and independent thought and action.
Blind spots/ Self-Delusion
An apparent personality aberration for the analyzed person comes in the form of an independent streak which has actually made him anti-social when comparing it to the vast majority of the student population. It must be noted that various studies into the effects of social isolation at an early age indicate that in later years an individual that has not been allowed to develop an adequate social personality will be socially maladjusted and as a result will have a harder time coping with the problems people usually face (Guardo and Bohan 1909).
This is not the case though for the analyzed person, in terms of overall sociability, the ability to converse and get along with others as well as his ability to deal with various social problems he appears, for all intents and purposes, as a well adjusted individual who can properly function in society. The anti-social tendencies that crop up from time to time are apparently a personal choice to be isolated rather than any apparent problem in the development of his social personality however this is where the problem itself lies.
He may not be aware of it but his desire for independence has developed into an overzealous narcissistic streak in which his high opinion of himself combined with his often reckless behavior has been the cause of various “incidences” over the past couple of years. While not serious they are indicative of a personality flaw that he himself is unaware of. As mentioned earlier, people experiencing an overprotective childhood will often times display a certain amount of “rebelliousness”, this aspect is not limited to interactions with parents but with society in general (Topalova 53).
The fact is social interactions often times act as a limiter of sorts which help to constrain, mold and control a person’s rebellious tendencies (Topalova 53). A person that has not been adequately exposed to the necessities of proper social interaction early on in life often times displays behavioral aspects such as a certain disregard for rules, societal norms and various similar types of behavior. This is not due to any inherent desire to break the rules on the part of the analyzed person rather it is due to the fact that the lack of early social interaction negates the ability for particular social norms to properly embed themselves into the mindset of a person.
The development of the analyzed person self-reliant behavior is another aspect to consider when examining the development of his behavior over the years. While self-reliance is a trait that should be aspired to the fact remains that its development should come only at a certain point in life, under the theory of James Marcia in identity formation certain aspects of a person’s behavior should be developed and encouraged at certain times during the maturity cycle however this also means that certain behaviors should only be developed at certain times otherwise they might cause abnormalities in the proper development of an individual (Guardo and Bohan 1909).
The development of early self-reliant behavior has been known to cause certain aspects of over-confidence due to a feeling of superiority over one’s peers. As a result people who develop the ability to be self-reliant early on in life are more likely to be more self-confident and independent as compared to individuals who develop such traits normally or later on in life. The problem with this lies with the fact that the feeling of self-confidence and superiority leads to a certain amount of social isolation as a result of a different mindset as compared to other individuals.
It must be noted that not only does social interaction act as a constraint on a person’s rebellious tendencies but it also acts as a limiter which enabled individuals of the same age group to develop at roughly the same time. Individuals who develop certain traits faster or slower than others often times feel isolated from the greater majority due to the development of a distinctly different mindset (Guardo and Bohan 1909). This mindset further develops into a greater degree of independence from prescribed social norms; this can be seen in the ideology of the analyzed person in terms of his view on religion and how he chooses to be relatively independent from the norms and attitudes of other members of his religion.
Not only that, his cultural views are also affected since the value of going along with trends, the necessity to be with other people and various other aspects of similar social behavior do not seem as inherently necessary to him as they are to other people. The combined result of early self-reliance and rebellion due to an overprotective childhood have resulted in an apparent self-delusion for the analyzed person that he is inherently better than other people due to what he was able to accomplish early on in life. His independent tendencies and his view point on the wastefulness of trends created a mindset of superiority which even he might not be aware of. This has actually led to him acting out and trying to prove himself as being independent and superior by not going along with various social norms.
Works Cited
Guardo, Carol J., and Bohan, Janis Beebe. “Development of a sense of self identity in children.” Child Development 42.6 (1971): 1909-1921. EBSCO. Web.
Hirshberg, Meg Cadoux. “Minding the Kids.” Inc 32.2 (2010): 39.EBSCO. Web.
Tokie Anme, et al. “Relationship of working mothers’ parenting style and consistency to early childhood development: a longitudinal investigation.” Journal of Advanced Nursing 65.10 (2009): 2067-2076. EBSCO. Web.
Topalova, Velina. “Individualism/Collectivism and Social Identity.” Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology 7.1 (1997): 53-64. EBSCO. Web.