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Self-Effacement and Self-Aggrandizement

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In our very individualistic culture, is it not a contradiction that self-effacement is seen as more positive, and self-aggrandizement or high self-esteem (over-confidence) as more negative?

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Solution Summary

The expert examines self-effacement and self-aggrandizement. A high self-esteem being negative are given.

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The solution below should get you started. In this particular task, you are being asked to reflect on self-effacement. I am supposing that this reflection will be a short but substantiated by academic and personal views. I suggest therefore this simple outline:

1. Definitions of both - 100 words
2. Individualistic society expectations on behavior - 100 words
3. Opinion - 100 words

300 words should cover what you need. You can use the listed resources to further explore the topic.

Self-Effacement vs. Self-Aggrandizement
When we talk about self-effacement, we talk about that tendency or choice of an individual to work in the background, to be inconspicuous in a manner that can be labelled as humble and modest so that the individual works hard to achieve a goal but is modest about his/her role and chooses not to take the credit or is quite about it. Consider for example the manner by which British Royal Marine George Cross recipient L/Cpl Matt Croucher answered the question when asked about his selfless act of throwing himself at an ied to save his comrades (Wyatt, 2008) - "A grenade's usually got a 5m killing circumference. So I thought, I'm going to get seriously injured whatever I do so I might as well jump in front of the grenade and at least try and save the rest of the lads from getting seriously injured or killed themselves. So I lay in front of the grenade." He does not magnify or make so much of the 'heroism element' of the event that led him to be one of the very few in the last 2 centuries to have received a George Cross - he makes it a matter of fact act that makes logical sense. The opposite of being ...

Solution provided by:
Xenia Rochelle Jones, MA, PhD (IP)
Education
  • MPhil/PhD (IP), Open University, Milton Keynes, UK
  • MA, Open University, Milton Keynes, UK
  • Certificate, Geva Ulpan (via Universita Tel Aviv)
  • BA, University of the Philippines
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