The way people perceive themselves and the environment around them is a key factor in their development and exerts incredible control over their personality and their behaviors. Each individual develops different ways of interpreting their environment and social-cognitive theory calls these patterns of interpretation, which can help one understand the environment and form a self-perception. Once self-perceptions are formed, self-verification theory states that people will strive to keep their self-perceptions consistent and predictable. Self-perception is a key factor in personality because it can affect people's beliefs about themselves, their ability to set appropriate goals, and have a healthy level of evaluation. A study was done that shows how the brains of depressed people work differently when they think about themselves than those of non-depressed people. Research has proven that people who have highly negative self-schemas, often depressed people, actively seek out information that confirms their negative self-perceptions. While it is unhealthy to receive negative feedback, it can also be unhealthy to receive information that contradicts someone's current perception. The information that individuals interpret about themselves constitutes self-perception and this perception will influence both their personality and their behaviors. Self-referent beliefs are essential to personality functioning. The human mind contains schemas, which are knowledge structures used to make sense of the world around us (Cervone, 2013). According to self-verification, people are motivated to be known and understood based on their firm and consistent self-perceptions. "Once we have developed ways of thinking about our own... middle of paper ......es with the aim of changing their negative perceptions of themselves and thus enabling them to begin to seek out positive feedback and live a happier life The observations people make about the environment and society around them have a huge impact on the way humans think and behave Works Cited Cassidy, JC (2003). ).Feedback seeking in children and adolescents: associations with self-perceptions, attachment representations, and depression, 72(2), 612-628. www.jstor.org/stable/3696334Cervone, D. (2013). Personality Theory and Research (12th ed., Vol. 1, pp. 427-467). (November 6, 2013). Self-reflection triggers increased brain activity during depressive episodes. Retrieved from http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/11/131106101620.htm.