Haber sido, haber estado?/ correct name of perfect tenses.

Question

How does one determine whether to use "sido" or "estado" with haber in such instances as "I have been a good person..." or "I have been seen with ..." or "I have not been trying hard to..."?

Also, with regard to "he, has, ha....etc.", is this conjugation referred to as the present perfect indicative, the past perfect indicative (preterito perfecto), or both?

Accepted Answer

Hola Gerald
To determine whether to use "sido" or "estado" with "haber", it's important to understand the distinction between the verbs "ser" and "estar".
"Sido" is the past participle of "ser" and is typically used for more permanent states, qualities, or characteristics.
"He sido una buena persona." (I have been a good person.)
Here, being a good person refers to a more permanent trait.
On the other hand, "estado" is the past participle of "estar" and is used for temporary states, conditions, or locations.
"He estado en casa todo el día." (I have been at home all day.)
In this case, it refers to a temporary situation.
 
Also, in sentences like
"No he estado esforzándome lo suficiente." (I have not been trying hard.)
you would use "estado", since effort is considered a temporary or changing condition.
However, if you want to say "I have been seen with...", you wouldn't use either "sido" or "estado" with "haber". Instead, you would say "Me han visto con...", using a passive or reflexive construction.
Regarding the conjugations "he, has, ha", these belong to the present perfect indicative tense, also known as pretérito perfecto (compuesto). This tense is used to express actions that have occurred recently or still have relevance to the present. 
"He trabajado mucho esta semana." (I have worked a lot this week.)
It's important to differentiate this from the past perfect indicative tense, also known as pretérito pluscuamperfecto, which uses the forms "había, habías, había..." to refer to actions completed before another past action.
"Había trabajado mucho antes de irme de vacaciones."  (I had worked a lot before I went on vacation.)
In summary, "he, has, ha" correspond to the present perfect indicative, while "había, habías, había" belong to the past perfect indicative.
I hope this explanation helps you understand the difference between "sido" and "estado" as well as the use of the present perfect and past perfect tenses.
If you have any more questions, feel free to ask.
Have a great day!
Silvia