JOHARI WINDOWIdentity: A Sense of

Who You AreKnowing Yourself

JOHARI WINDOW

• A Johari window is a ‘game’ created by psychologists, Joseph Luft and Harry Ingham in the United States, used to help people better understand themselves and the way they are perceived by others.

JOHARI WINDOW

• Our identity is formed both by the information we receive from others about ourselves and by self-knowledge about our feelings, talents, and desires.

• Self-disclosure – talking about who we are with others- is one way of recognizing these feelings, talents, and desires, thus gaining a deeper sense of our identity.

Johari WindowI. Public Self - what we know about

self that others also knowII. Blind Self - the side of us that

others know but we don’t “see”III. Private Self - Information we know

about self but don’t let others know

IV. Unconscious Self - no one knows & neither do we (about self)

JOHARI WINDOW

• IDENTITY - formed both by the information we receive from others about ourselves (i.e., feedback) and by self-knowledge about our feelings, talents, needs and wants.

• SELF-DISCLOSURE - talking about who we are with others; one way of recognizing these feelings, talents, needs and wants.

Self-disclosure

• When we disclose ourselves to others, Area I (Public Self) begins expanding into Area III (Private Self). Our hidden/ private area therefore shrinks.

• When others tell us something about ourselves that we were not aware of Area I (Public Self) expands to take over some of Area II (Blind Self).

Identity

• As Area I (Public Self) expands with self-disclosure and feedback, we become less blind to ourselves and less hidden; with Public Self expanding so does our identity.

Johari WindowKnown toOthers

I.AREA of Free Activity(Public Self)II.Blind Area(“ Bad Breath Avoided orHidden Area(Private SelfNot Known toOthersIIIIVAREA OFUnknown Activity)(unconscious desires

and feelingsthat never surface)

JOHARI WINDOW

• With self-disclosure, area III shrinks.• When other people give us feedback,

area II shrinks.• As area I expands, so does our sense

of identity.

Autonomy

• The healthy ability to shape our own life and actions.

• Acting responsibly and shaping our own affairs brings about a more secure sense of identity.

• A strong sense of identity and autonomy reinforce each other.

Autonomy is not Independence

• Autonomy is different from independence (a state of relying on ourselves and not on others to fill our needs or to get insight).

• Autonomous people rely on their own judgment and competencies, but also on others with the sense of give-and-take (interdependence).

Interdependence

• To be interdependent means to function well on our own while realizing our need for others and their need for us.

• It implies that we rely on others to teach us things and that we teach others as well.

• Interdependence builds our sense of identity.

Board of Directors

• Journal – oval tabletop• Imagine the people who have been most

influential in helping you to become the person you are today.

• Sketch 9 chairs (boxes) – one at head of table + eight others around the table. In head chair box write the name of the person most influential in your life.

Your Chairperson

1. Why did you choose this person as your chairperson?

2. Describe 3 ways this person is a guide to you and has helped you grow.

3. What qualities does this person possess that you would like to develop in yourself?

Board Members

• In the eight chair-boxes write the names of the others in your life who have most influenced, guided and supported you.

• Under each chair-box, write one word that best describes how that person has guided or helped you.

Chair + Board Members• Below/ or inside each box write on of

the following ratings to indicate your behavior in relationship to that person:

• HD (highly dependent)• SD (somewhat dependent)• SI (somewhat independent)• HI (highly independent)• ID (interdependent)

• Describe your feelings about separating from any of the persons in your “board” whom you’ll be leaving as you go off to college.

• Share with your dyad partner.

Reflection questions:Who am I?

How do I know who I am?

Is there anyone who knows me better than I know myself?

Who would I be if I were alone on a desert island without the activities and people that are usually a part of my life?

What is an identity crisis? Can such a crisis be avoided? How might it be a positive experience?