Defining Self Defeating Behaviour:
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Defining Self Defeating Behaviour:
Self-defeating behaviour is the idea that sometimes people knowingly do things that will cause them to fail or bring them trouble. It is defined as “any deliberate or intentional behaviour that has clear, definitely or probably negative effects on the self or on the self’s projects” (Scher & Baumeister 1988). Many theories as to why humans sometimes behave in a self destructive ways have been examined by many psychologists. One proposed theory that answers this question is the Freudian argument, which states that “people have an innate death drive that impels them to pursue their own downfall and death”. This argument also concludes that people do harm themselves deliberately, even though they sometimes are not conscious of this. “Self defeating behaviours are especially common when people feel that others less favourably than the people desire” Psychologists have constructed three models that explain different types of self-defeating behaviours, which are “distinguished by their varying degrees of intentionality”. (Beaumeister 2008).
Three Models of Self-Destructiveness:
There are three models that represent self-defeating behaviours on the basis of “intentionality.” The first model is called, “primary self destruction.” This model includes those human beings who deliberately and intentionally hurt themselves. Those in this group, usually intentionally choose an action that they know will bring harm to them. “One example of this type of behaviour is called, “masochism” (Beaumeister & Scher 1988).
A second “conceptual model” of self-defeating behaviour is called, “tradeoff”. This behaviour is done when a person literally and knowingly makes a trade-off in a situation. It is when a person chooses a certain option that has some benefit but also has the potential to cause harm to the person as well. A good example of this would be when a person chooses to take up smoking. In a tradeoff, the “harm or risk to the self is...
Self-defeating behaviour is the idea that sometimes people knowingly do things that will cause them to fail or bring them trouble. It is defined as “any deliberate or intentional behaviour that has clear, definitely or probably negative effects on the self or on the self’s projects” (Scher & Baumeister 1988). Many theories as to why humans sometimes behave in a self destructive ways have been examined by many psychologists. One proposed theory that answers this question is the Freudian argument, which states that “people have an innate death drive that impels them to pursue their own downfall and death”. This argument also concludes that people do harm themselves deliberately, even though they sometimes are not conscious of this. “Self defeating behaviours are especially common when people feel that others less favourably than the people desire” Psychologists have constructed three models that explain different types of self-defeating behaviours, which are “distinguished by their varying degrees of intentionality”. (Beaumeister 2008).
Three Models of Self-Destructiveness:
There are three models that represent self-defeating behaviours on the basis of “intentionality.” The first model is called, “primary self destruction.” This model includes those human beings who deliberately and intentionally hurt themselves. Those in this group, usually intentionally choose an action that they know will bring harm to them. “One example of this type of behaviour is called, “masochism” (Beaumeister & Scher 1988).
A second “conceptual model” of self-defeating behaviour is called, “tradeoff”. This behaviour is done when a person literally and knowingly makes a trade-off in a situation. It is when a person chooses a certain option that has some benefit but also has the potential to cause harm to the person as well. A good example of this would be when a person chooses to take up smoking. In a tradeoff, the “harm or risk to the self is...