ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses that the idea of a central sense of self has been reasonably consistent across cultures, but the way in which that manifests itself, and how deeply it is located in its social context, have differed considerably from one theoretical model to another. The child's growing sense of agency and efficacy is one of the most important aspects of a psychological healthy childhood. It begins with transactions and contingencies, and continues as the child acquires both physical and mental skills, through play and everyday learning. Childhood is also a time for the gradual acquisition of social roles. Traditional theories of the self have tended to emphasise the idea of the independent individual, separate from its wider society. Self-awareness theory proposes that, for some of the time at least, we are actively aware of ourselves, rather than just taking ourselves for granted as we might do at other times.
