Egocentrism in psychological literature is defined as the inability of one person to objectively assess the situation from the outside. Egocentrism is an innate moral and psychological state that can be expressed in different forms.
What is egocentrism
From early childhood, the child has a desire to be in the center of attention. The child's psyche is not able to perceive this or that event from the outside. Children find it difficult to assess a situation in which they are not a party. With age, egocentrism can increase if you do not take the right measures in raising a child at a certain stage. However, even in this case, the signs of self-centeredness will often remind of themselves.
Signs of self-centeredness
A person is considered egocentric if he is only interested in his own opinion. This type of personality will always feel like the center of the universe. The egocentric will not tolerate objections or claims against him. If he comes into conflict, the truth is always on his side. It is quite difficult to enter into communication with egocentrists, since often such people withdraw into themselves and do not make contact for a long time. However, in case of trouble, the self-centered person can be asked for help and often get support. There are no other people's opinions or experiences for him. Everything must obey certain rules, which the egocentrist determines for himself on his own.
You can understand how egocentric a child is by performing a simple psychological test. Place a group of children at one and a table and place three to four figures of different colors and sizes. Then ask each child to draw these objects. Have one child draw the shapes as the other child sees them. As a result, the kid will depict what he drew earlier with absolute precision. This indicates that the baby already has a high degree of development of egocentrism. In such a situation, it is important to quickly take action so that your own ego does not become a serious psychological problem in the future.
Difference between self-centered and selfish
Despite the fact that egocentrism and egoism are often viewed as synonymous concepts, there are some differences in their basis. Egocentrism is a special psychological state in which a person puts his opinion and views at the center of the universe. The point of reference for the egocentrist begins with his own preferences. Such a person is not able to adequately perceive reality, sees reality in a distorted form. Selfishness is a value-ethical principle that characterizes the behavior of a person. All actions of an egoist are aimed exclusively at achieving their own interests. At the same time, such a person can “go over the heads” of close people, since the main thing for him is to satisfy his needs.