Self-Structure

Self-structure is the cognitive organization of our knowledge and beliefs about ourselves or “Who am I?” It describes how the different aspects of the self (traits, roles, states, domains) are organized, and whether this organization forms a coherent mental framework that guides our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. It’s an adaptive, but stable system built on self-concept (who we are, degree of self-esteem, our ideal-self), self-schemas (organized categories of beliefs that simplify our understanding of who we are), and other personal perceptions that develop through experience and social interaction. Self-structure is a dynamic and malleable system influenced by changeable social situations, personal motivations, and cultural factors. We build our self-structure by collecting/interpreting our thoughts, feelings, and personal experiences along with our social interactions—and making this information readily accessible. A well-organized, positive self-structure might be the result of effective self-organizing processes. It’s is the foundation for our personal identity, guides our behavior, and is linked to self-esteem and wellbeing. A maladaptive self-structure (disorganized self-structure) is a fundamental feature of narcissistic personality disorder (NPD). Also see Self-Organization and Incoherent Self-Organization