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The social self week 3

Terms in this set (61)

refers to the sum total of beliefs that people have about themselves
Self concepts
beliefs about oneself that guide the processing of self-relevant information
self-schemas
consistent self-concept (across different situations) is related to
health, happiness and adjustment
sense of self can be damaged by
brain injuries
the self is a frame of reference which forms the basis of
our thoughts, feelings and behaviours
o How do we evaluate ourselves?
o How do we enhance our self-image?
o How do we maintain our self-esteem?
These relate to?
Affect
o How do we regulate our actions?
o How do we present ourselves in the world?
These relate to?
Behaviour
o How do we come to know ourselves?
o How do we maintain a stable sense of identity?
These relate to?
Cognition
Cognition relates to:
self-concept
Affect relates to: -
self-esteem
Behaviour relates to:
self-presentation
1. Our beliefs about ourselves influence the way we interact with others
2. The way others interact with us influences what we believe about ourselves
sources of self-concept -
1. Introspection
2. Perceptions of our own behaviour
3. Influences of other people
4. Autobiographical memories
5. Culture
our self-concepts are shaped by
Examining one's own inner thoughts and feelings
Introspection
One's Introspection may be inaccurate because of:
Confusion, Overestimation of positives, Inability to anticipate future emotions (affective forecasting)
-Introspection

-Perceptions of our own behaviour

- Influences of other people

- Autobiographical memories
some of the processes that underline how people come to have a self-concept.
is the self-knowledge gained through looking inward at one's own thoughts and feelings. There is diverse evidence regarding the role of introspection in the development of the self-concept
Introspection
An example of introspection not always leading to accurate self-knowledge:
difficulty in predicting our responses to future emotional events ('affecting forecasting'),
People can learn about themselves simply by
Perceptions of their own behaviour
when internal cues are difficult to interpret, people gain insight by:
observing their own actions and the situation in which their actions took place.
when internal cues are difficult to interpret, people gain insight by observing their own actions and the situation in which their actions took place. In this way, they can:
infer their internal state and thus develop a picture of their self-concept
_______________are also used as a source of self-concept development. When asked the question 'Who are you?', people tend to describe themselves in ways that set them apart from others in their immediate vicinity (e.g. family, friends, colleagues)
Influences of other people
When asked the question 'Who are you?', people tend to describe themselves:
in ways that set them apart from others in their immediate vicinity (e.g. family, friends, colleagues)
It is suggested that the self is:
'relative' to who is most immediate to the person at that time
We define ourselves in part by using:
others as a benchmark. This means that the concept of self can change from situation to situation
When people are uncertain of their abilities or opinions, we rely on:
'social comparison' with others to evaluate the self.
When asked to recall events from their past, people typically report more events from:
the recent than the distant past.
people typically report more events from the recent than the distant past. An exception to this is:
we tend to retrieve autobiographical memories from our adolescent and young adult years (a 'reminiscence bump' due to the importance of these years in development).

We have a tendency to remember transitional 'firsts' in our development.
autobiographical memory is not infallible and can be influenced by our self-concept. In particular:
memories can be distorted by the tendency for self-inflation
The process of predicting how one would feel in response to future emotional events.
affective forecasting
The theory that when internal cues are difficult to interpret, people gain self-insight by observing their own behaviou
self-perception theory
The hypothesis that changes in facial expression can lead to corresponding changes in emotion
facial feedback
The tendency for intrinsic motivation to diminish for activities that have become associated with reward or other extrinsic factor
over-justification effect
The theory that people evaluate their own abilities and opinions by comparing themselves to other
social comparison theory
The theory that the experience of emotion is based on two factors: physiological arousal and a cognitive interpretation of that arousal.
two-factor theory of emotion
An affective component of the self, consisting of a person's positive and negative self-evaluations.
self-esteem
The self esteem theory that self-focused attention leads people to notice self-discrepancies, thereby motivating either an escape from self-awareness or a change in behaviour
self-awareness theory
our self-esteem is defined by the match or mismatch between how we see ourselves and how we want to see ourselves
Self-discrepancy theory
minority status may provide a
boost to self-esteem.
A non-conscious and subtle form of self-enhancement/self-esteem.
implicit egotism
is illustrated in various types of research, such as studies showing that people are quicker to associate 'self' words with positive traits than with negative traits.
implicit egotism
Behaviours designed to sabotage one's own performance in order to provide a subsequent excuse for failure.
self-handicapping
think highly of themselves. consistently, and across a broad range of life domains, people see positive traits as more self-descriptive than negative traits, rate themselves more highly than they do others, rate themselves more highly than they are rated by others, exaggerate their control over life events, and predict that they have a bright future
The "better than average" effect
To increase self-esteem by associating with others who are successful.
bask in reflected glory (BIRG)
The defensive tendency to compare ourselves with others who are worse off than we are.
downward social comparison
Strategies people use to shape what others think of them.
self-presentation
consists of our efforts to shape others' impressions in specific ways in order to gain influence, power, sympathy or approval.
Strategic self-presentation
the desire to have others perceive us as we truly perceive ourselves.
self-verification
self-monitoring
The tendency to change behaviour in response to the self-presentation concerns of the situation
self-monitoring
a self-presentation term used to describe acts that are motivated by the desire to 'get along' with others and be liked.
ingratiation
a self-presentation term used to describe acts that are motivated by a desire to 'get ahead' and gain respect for one's competence
self-promotion
Recognising oneself as a distinct entity is the first step in the development of a:
self-concept.
Cooley's 'looking-glass' self suggests that social factors are a necessary second step of
self-concept
shows that people sometimes lose interest in activities for which they were rewarded
The overjustification effect
holds that when internal states are difficult to interpret, we infer our inner states by observing our own behaviour and the surrounding situation.
Bem's self-perception theory
Consistent with the facial feedback hypothesis, facial expressions can trigger or amplify the subjective experience of:
emotion.
Among adolescents and young adults, although the difference is very small, particularly as we age:
males have higher self-esteem than females do,
Stigmatised minority members often score ______ than majority members on self-esteem tests,
higher
Discrepancies between the actual and ideal selves are related to feelings of disappointment and depression, whereas discrepancies between the actual and the ought selves are related to:
shame, guilt and anxiety.
People protect their self-esteem through:
self-serving cognitions, self-handicapping, basking in reflected glory and downward social comparisons
Upward social comparisons can also boost positive feelings, but only when they occur in a domain that isn't :
self-relevant.
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