Role of Self-Disclosure in Interpersonal Communication

Role of Self-disclosure in Interpersonal Communication
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January 23, 2021
Communication is perhaps one of the essential aspects of an individual's life. Aside from merely conveying information to others, it helps create relationships that would benefit his physical, emotional, and social growth, among others. In this article, the author would like to focus on the importance of 'self-disclosure' in interpersonal communication development. Simply said, self-disclosure is defined as the sharing of 'personal information' that has significant consideration upon others. All in all, the author believes that because of the 'emotional significance' that personal information has upon the individual, it helps foster a deeper and more significant relationship between him and his fellows.
Self-Disclosure
One of the primary importance of self-disclosure is that it helps shape the individual's 'self-concept.' According to McWorthy (2017), even though the individual's personality and physical nature do not change much, his 'idea of the self' (aka self-concept) is what changes over time. Accordingly, one of the primary sources that shaped this conception of the self is others' perception about who he is as a person. Thus, if others view him as someone who cannot achieve anything, this could affect how he views himself and his decisions and actions in life. Accordingly, through self-disclosure, an individual could help shape his self-concept and relationships with others CITATION Eve13 \l 13321 (Everett, 2013). This is because self-disclosure does not only 'clarify' any public misconceptions about him but also allows others to participate in his self-development.
Another reason self-disclosure is important in interpersonal relationships is that it allows others to create their idea of the individual's self rather than forcing them to accept how a person wants himself to be seen. For exa...