Section 3: The Self Flashcards
Self concept:
Awareness of one’s self as distinct from others along with our beliefs and attitudes with our knowledge
Self awareness:
ability to see ourselves as distinct entities separate from others
What does research on non-human primates tell us about self-awareness?
Wants others opinion
Reflected appraisal
Looking Glass self:
use other people as a mirror to ourselves (Cooley 1902)
- Self as social creation (Mead 1934)
self-creation:
personal growth - how we perceive ourselves
Reflected appraisal:
person’s perception of how others see and evaluate him or her.
Social Comparison: downward vs. upward
- Someone who is worse off than you on a given dimension : protects self esteem
3 reasons why we self present:
- When observers control something we want
- When we are attempting to accomplish important goals
- If we believe that important observers already have unfavorably impressions of us
Person differences: the only woman in room, or only white person
Public eye:
when we feel like others are looking at us or will be looking at us
Spotlight Effect:
seeing ourselves in public eye even though you aren’t
-Self-presentation fails:
Self-editing: ex. Facebook
Goal of matter: present self that makes yourself more favorable
Not always successful: costs of self-presentation failure, shyness or social anxiety
3 ways how we protect sense of self:
Self-serving bias: tendency to take credit for and blame external factors for our failures
Illusion of control: delusions, preferences
Self-esteem: cultural differences in public self-esteem
Collectivists: try less to protect self-image
3 core motivations in presenting ourselves:
To be liked
To be Competent
To gain status
Ingratiation:
trying to get others to like us
4 strategies of ingratiation:
- Expressing liking for others (delicately)
- Creating similarity
- Making ourselves physically attractive (seen as more honest, more likely to be elected in public office, and receive more lineate jail time and fines)
- WIBG: What is Beautiful is Good - Projecting modesty (gender and cultural differences: down play successes)
- too much can seem as arrogant
Gender and cultural differences exist for modesty and bragging:
Religious controversial stereotypes, socialization, how were raised, evolutionary explanation: a male that is gaining and keeping status is more desirable to women, high testosterone is related to more dominance and aggressive behavior, women tend to get a lot of backlash (things men do not get criticized for, women do), and tend to be less likeable
How to appear competent:
Self-promotion: claiming competence that is real or staged
Trappings of competence: being really busy, displaying wealth, displaying awards, sometimes not what you know but who you know
Make excuses to discount possible failure in the future: look better
-Self-handicapping: create circumstances that will actually obstruct our ability to succeed when we are afraid that we won’t succeed
-Protects ego
Achievement motivation: individual difference that affects how competent of what we see
How to present status of power:
- Use props that announce status and power
- Associate with powerful others
- Show status or power non-verbally
