lecture 4 + 5

Question 1

what are some evolutionary evidence of the need to belong?

Answer 1

pair bonding + attachment between parents will provide more protection + resources to offspring

universally of relationships + family structures across cultures

it feels like a need which that need feels satisfied when one is in a healthy relationship

Question 2

harry harlow monkey

Answer 2

what is more important
comfort/touch

or

food

all monkeys chose the cloth-expressive monkey mother over the wire mother with food. they would only go to the wire monkey mom for food then go back to the warmer cloth monkey mom

Question 3

what is social isolation

Answer 3

not having your need to belong met = social, mental, physical suffering

Question 4

T/F mortality is higher in married individuals

Answer 4

false: at least for men. mortality is higher in unmarried/widowed men. due to our need to have healthy relationships

Question 5

T/F people with a higher need to belong are more drawn to social networking sites

Answer 5

true

Question 6

how do we know if we’re belonging?

Answer 6

self esteem (the overall +ve/-ve evaluation that an individual has of their self)

Question 7

what are the 2 forms that self esteem can exist in?

Answer 7

1.) trait
what is your general level of self-esteem all of time time
2.) state
what is your level of self-esteem right now in this particular situation

Question 8

what makes our self esteem rise and fall

Answer 8

contingencies of self worth
[our self-esteem fluctuates based on our performance in areas that are relevant to our “self” – self-schemas]

Question 9

what is the sociometer hypothesis

Answer 9

self esteem works as a barometer for our standing with others

if we are not well regarded by others, our self-esteem falls
if we do not feel like we belong socially, our self-esteem falls

Question 10

evolutionary wise, why is belonging important?

Answer 10

food sharing
mating
protection
survival

Question 11

what is high self-esteem associated with?

Answer 11

• life satisfaction
• problem solving
• staying out of trouble
• happier marriages
• better health

Question 12

self-esteem based on accomplishments =

Answer 12

positive outcomes

Question 13

falsely inflated self-esteem =

Answer 13

no positive outcomes, some bad outcomes

Question 14

praise without cause =

Answer 14

inflated self-esteem and increased egotism

Question 15

what is the missing piece in the high self-esteem = positive life outcomes theory

Answer 15

= accomplishment

accomplish goals -> high self esteem -> positive life outcomes

Question 16

people with inflated self-esteem tend to

Answer 16

react negatively to threats on their self-esteem, sometimes violently

sense of superiority

desire to dominate those who challenge them

narcissism

Question 17

what other motives are there for evaluating the self beyond knowing if we are fitting in?

Answer 17

self enhancement and self verification

Question 18

what is self enhancement

Answer 18

desire to maintain, increase, or protect one’s positive self views]

Question 19

failures relevant to our self-schemas will lower our self esteem. when this happens we are motivated to restore our self esteem through self enhancement. how do we do this

Answer 19

self serving construals and affirmation theory

Question 20

what are distinctiveness threats

Answer 20

threats to what makes our identity distinct from others (ex. calling a police officer a mall cop)

Question 21

when is the better than average effect most likely to occur?

Answer 21

when people assess their abilites on ambiguous traits that can be construed in different ways

Question 22

pros and cons of positive illusions

Answer 22

pros of positive illusions:
people with more positive illusions show lower stress responses
positive illusions are associated with short term self-esteem gains

cons of positive illusions:
greater positive illusions can lead to others to view you as narcissistic
people with accurate self views are more liked by others. being liked = good for social belonging = good for actual self esteem

Question 23

T/F positive illusions are more common in eastern/interdependent cultures

Answer 23

false: they’re less common. well-being in eastern/interdependent cultures is associated with fulfilling social roles and obligations, not positive illusions about the self

Question 24

what is self-verification theory

Answer 24

people strive for stable, subjectively accurate beliefs about self in order to have a sense of coherence and continuity

we are motivated to confirm that what we already believe about ourselves

Question 25

seeking stable understandings of ourselves is called

Answer 25

coherence

Question 26

how do we verify the information we already believe about ourselves?

Answer 26

by selectively attending to and recalling information that confirms our beliefs

if you have a NEGATIVE self view
- pay extra attention to criticism and negative feedback
- you’ll remember it more easily
- you’ll be likely to seek social interactions that confirm your negative self-view

Question 27

study about emotional vs cognitive needs

Answer 27

participants with negative or positive beliefs about themselves were give either negative or positive feedback

participants rated the accuracy of the feedback
- self verification theory prevailed. the feedback that matched their self view was rated as being more accurate. even when the feedback was negative
- but everyone said the positive feedback made them feel good, even if it didn’t match their beliefs

Question 28

as our needs change (emotional or cognitive) we

Answer 28

switch between self-enhancement and self verification

Question 29

people strive for stable and accurate beliefs about the self. this motivation is emphasized by

Answer 29

self verification

Question 30

what is self identity theory

Answer 30

our personal identity and sense of self-esteem and accomplishment comes in part from our group memberships

“our social identities are who we are”

Question 31

the importance of group identity provides motivation for

Answer 31

• in group favouristim
• out group bias

Question 32

what is the paradox of social exclusion

Answer 32

the more socially included we feel, the more likely we are to exclude others

Question 33

what is basking in reflected glory

Answer 33

we are motivated to make our positive group memberships known to others

we take pride in the accomplishments of other people in our groups (ex. RedBull fans lol)

but we are less likely to associate ourselves with our group identities when our group reflects poorly on us, therefore our group identities provide another source of self esteem

Question 34

what are self serving construals?

Answer 34

looking at ourselves through ‘rose-tinted’ glasses

applying positive filters to our own conception of self

ex.) “better than average effect” thinking we are better than the average – 93% of us think we are above average drivers – mostly for abstract concepts vs more concrete ones

Question 35

what is self-affirmation theory

Answer 35

maintaining our self-worth by relying on positive affirmations

it’s self-deceptive but it has positive benefits

threats to the self can cause negative behaviours towards out group members

affirmations before the “threat” can prevent those negative behaviours

ex.) I did bad on this midterm but at least i did good on the other one