Chapter 5 - The Self Flashcards
Self-concept
the overall set of beliefs that people have about their personal attributes
Independent view of the self
a way of defining oneself in terms of one’s own internal thoughts, feelings, and actions and not in terms of the thoughts, feelings, and actions of other people
Interdependent view of the self
a way of defining oneself in terms of one’s relationship to other people, recognizing that one’s behavior is often determined by the thoughts, feelings, and actions of others
Functions of the self
- self knowledge
- self-control
- self-esteem
- impression management
Introspection
the process of looking inwards and examining your own thoughts, feelings, and motives
Causal theories
theories about the causes of one’s own feelings and behaviors
Self-perception theory
argues that when our attitudes and feelings are uncertain or ambiguous, we infer these states by observing our behavior and the situation in which it occurs
Two-factor theory of emotion
the idea that emotional experience is the results of a two-step self-perception process in which people first experience physiological arousal and then seek an appropriate explanation for it
Misattribution of arousal
the process in which people make mistake inferences about what is causes them to feel the way they do
Overjustification effect
the tendency for people to view their behavior as caused by extrinsic reasons, making them underestimate the extent to which their behavior was caused by intrinsic reasons
Fixed mindset
the idea that we have a set amount of abilities that cannot change
Growth mindset
the idea that achievement is the result of hard work, trying new strategies, and seeking input from others
Social comparison theory
the idea that we learn about our own abilities and attitudes by comparing ourselves to other people
Upward social comparison
comparing yourself to people who are better than you
Downward social comparison
comparing yourself to poeple who are worse than you
The looking glass self
we see ourselves and the social world through the eyes of other people and often adopt their views
Social tuning
the process by which people adopt another person’s attitudes
Self-control
the ability to subdue immediate desires to achieve long-term goals
Impression management
the attempt by people to get others to see them as they want to be seen
Ingratiation
the process in which people flatter, praise, and generally try to make themselves likeable to another person, often of higher status
Self-handicapping
people create obstacles and excuses for themselves so that if they do poorly on a task, they can avoid blaming themselves
Behavioral self-handicapping
people act in ways that will reduce the likelihood that they will succeed on a task so that if they fail, they can blame it on the obstaceles they created
Reported self-handicapping
providing an excuse prior to a task in anticipation of a failure
