Explain the factors that impede changes in the self-concept, and strategies for effecting change and overcoming these impediments

What will be an ideal response?

a . Factors that impede change of the self-concept
i. Other people in one's social world tend to see individuals as "stable" and come to expect consistency in behavior and attributes from those individuals. This expectation creates a powerful stabilizing force, encouraging people to act in ways consistent with how they have previously acted, which contributes to stability of the self-concept.
ii. Stability in social environment, because of the consistent expectancies this yields as described above, promotes stability in the self-concept. When people stay in the same physical location or with the same social circle, they are more likely to find change difficult.
b. Strategies for effecting change in the self-concept
i. Use the social environment by asking others in your social circle to help reinforce changes you are trying to make.
ii. Persuade others that you have changed, and use their new expectancies to help reinforce then changes you hope to see in your self-concept.
iii. Internalizing the changes you'd like to see and acting as if they have already come about--even if it feels disingenuous--can help others come to see you as changed. Once they are persuaded by your "act" you will have the social support to keep producing that change until it feels more natural and genuine.