Lecture 4 - The Self continued

Question 1

Define the following key theoretical ideas:

1. Individualism versus collectivism
2. Self-esteem
3. Self-discrepancy theory
4. Self-awareness theory
5. Self-serving cognitions
6. Self presentation/strategic self-presentation

Answer 1

1. Varies historically and socio-culturally.
   individualism versus collectivism:
   Individualist cultural values independent view of self i.e. as self-contained, distinct, autonomous & unique.
   Collectivist cultural values interdependent view of the self; part of a larger network of relationships with friends, family, co-workers, etc.
   Contemporary societies express aspects of both, but there may be a difference in which values are emphasised in prevailing cultural norms.

E.g. Trompenaars &Hampden-Turner (1998) - The vast majority of American (79%), Canadian (79%), and Norwegian manager (76%) selected the first option stressing individual freedom. Most managers in Nepal (69%), Kuwait (61%) and Egypt (59%) selected the second option stressing collective responsibility
Collectivist cultures predominate mostly in Africa, Asia and Latin America.
Individualistic cultures predominate mostly in Western Europe, North America, Australia & New Zealand (WENA countries).

2. Much attention paid to this in
   Western/ised societies
   “An affective component of the self, consisting of a person’s positive and negative self-evaluations” (Kassin, Fein & Markus,2011, p. 72).
   Negative outcomes of low self-esteem:
   create anxiety, stress, loneliness, and increased likelihood of depression.
   cause problems with friendships and romantic relationships.
   seriously impair academic and job performance.
   lead to increased vulnerability to drug and alcohol abuse.
   See more details about ‘self-enhancement bias’ in the text book (page 138, Box 4.5)
   Self-enhancement motive
   : promote self-positivity (routinely and relatively globally)
   Self-protection
   : fends off self-negativity (related to threats of self-related interest)
   In contemporary capitalist societies:
   Low self-esteem linked to …
   Boosting self-esteem through self-improvement held up as route to happiness & success (Stainton Rogers, 2011).
3. Higgins (1989): we all have an actual self, ought self and ideal self.
   actual self: person who we think we currently are
   ought self: person we think we should be
   ideal self: person we would like to be
   System has a key role in self-awareness, but also has affective consequences!

The emotional fallout of:
A discrepancy between actual/ought self
A discrepancy between actual/ideal self

LOOK AT SLIDE 28 ON WEEK 4 SLIDE LOOK AT SLIDE 28 FOR CONSEQUENCES - Ideal self - Unhappiness
Disappointment
Dissatisfaction
Self-dislike

Ought self - Fear
Anxiety
Personal inadequacy
Alienation

4. A psychological state in which people are aware of their traits, feelings and behaviour.

Development of self-awareness
Infants are not born with self-awareness. Instead, they develop the ability over time
Think about the ‘mirror self-recognition test’
Babies aged b/w 9-12 months treated the mirror image as if it was another child and showed no interest in the spot on their nose.
By around 18 months, children would curiously look at themselves in the mirror and touch the spot on their nose.
“Being self-aware can be very uncomfortable”
When North American research participants forced to focus on themselves, they reported feeling relatively unhappy & wishing they were doing something else (Csikszentmihalyi & Figurski, 1982).
Neurological Basis of self-awareness
(Around age of 18months)Children show a rapid growth of spindle cells, specialised neurones in the anterior cingulate, an area of the frontal lobe in the cerebral cortex of the brain thought to be responsible for monitoring and controlling intentional behaviour (Allman & Hasenstaub, 1999)
This area of brain is activated when people are self-aware (Kjaer et al., 2002). However, it is not only area of the brain related to self-awareness.

Certain situations force us to be self-focused.
Leads us to compare our behaviour with some standard.
Comparison often results in a negative discrepancy; temporarily lowers self-esteem
More self-focused we are, more likely to be in a bad mood (Flory et al., 2000) or depressed (Pyszczynski & Greenberg, 1987).

Ways of coping with discomfort that self-awareness brings:

1) Try to match our behaviour with the standard of comparison OR
2) Avoid situations that draw us into a heightened state of self-awareness (e.g., drinking alcohol or suicide).

Carver & Scheier (1981): two types of self-awareness
The private self awareness: your private thoughts, feelings and attitudes (seeing yourself in a mirror)
Intensified emotional responses
Experience clarification of knowledge
Adhere to personal standards of behaviour

The public self awareness : how they are perceived by those around them (public image)
They are more likely to adhere to group norms, more likely to avoid embarrassing situations (Froming et al., 1990)

5. Attributional distortions that protect or enhance self-esteem or the self-concept.
   People tend to take credit for their successes (self-enhancing) & distance themselves from their failures (self-protecting) (Kassin, Fein & Markus, 2011).

This tendency is said to occur across a range of cultures (Mezulis et al., 2004).
Self-enhancing biases are more common than self-protecting biases because people with low self-esteem tend not to protect themselves by attributing their failure externally; rather, they attribute them internally (Campbell & Fairey, 1985)

6. Some have argued that identity is performed.
   Dynamic and multiple.
   “Read” by others.

Strategic self presentation (see Jones & Pitman, 1982)
Self-promotion – trying to persuade others that you are competent
Ingratiation – trying to get others to like you
Intimidation – trying to get others to think you are dangerous
Exemplification – trying to get others to regard you as a morally respectable individual
Supplication – trying to get others to take pity on you as helpless and needy

Question 2

2. Discuss key theory in relation to relevant social psychological research studies.

Answer 2

For social cognition/bias - Research to suggest that people are unrealistically optimistic (Weinstein, 1980)
Referred to as an optimistic bias:
Across cultures, most people report desirable events as more likely to occur than undesirable events (Kirzan & Windschitl, 2007; Lench, 2009).
Kassin, Fein & Markus (2011, p. 84) suggest people ‘harbor illusions of control’ (Thompson, 1999).

Talk about self-discrepancy theory consequences (slide 28)

Self-awareness - talk about neurological basis

Self-esteem - Heine et al. (1999) - Self-Esteem and Exposure to North-American Culture

Self-presentation - Strategic self presentation (see Jones & Pitman, 1982)

The self/indivuailsm vs collectivism - Markus & Kitayama (1991) - Representation of Self: Independent vs. Interdependence

Question 3

3. Apply “individualism” and “collectivism” in discussion of a key social psychological theory.

Answer 3

Said to be demonstrated by social psychology research, for example:
Trafimow et al. (1991) – Differences between American and Chinese students in self-description (private vs. collective self).
Akimoto & Sanbonmatsu, (1999), Heine et al. (2000) – Differences between American/Canadian students and others in judgements of individual contributions to tasks.

Why should we be careful about this?
Social psychology is typically conducted from the perspectives of WENA countries/cultures.
Overlooks variation/tensions within cultures.

The self-view changes quite drastically—especially between formal and informal situations—in East Asian cultures (e.g., Korean) Life satisfaction in Korea was predicted more effectively by social appraisal (the degree to which one believes his or her life is approved by significant others) than by
Identity consistency, whereas the reverse was true in the United States
(Suh, 2002)