self and identity Flashcards
symbolic interactionism
= self evolves from human interaction (trade of symbols)
- -> being able to communicate by words, gestures, other symbols
- -> idea of collective self (self emerges & is shaped by social influence/ arises out of human interaction)
looking glass self/effect
= we see ourselves as we think others see us
self-schemas
different contexts activate different aspects of self (we have schemas about who we are and who we’d like to become/fear to become)
self-discrepancy theory (Higgins)
- self regulations
= theory about the consequences of making actual-ideal and actual- ‘ought’ self-comparisons that reveal self-discrepancies
- actual self (how we are)
- ideal self (how we’d like to be)
- ought self (how we think we should be)
- = strategies we use to match our behavior to an ideal or ought standard
regulatory focus theory (Higgins)
- promotion system
- prevention system
= promotion focus causes people to be approach-orientated in constructing a sense of self, a prevention focus makes us more cautious, avoidant in constructing a sense of self
- is concerned which achievement of one’s hopes, dreams –> sensitivity to absence/ presence of positive events, approach strategic means
- is concerned with one’s duties and obligations –> sensitivity to absence/ presence of negative events, avoid strategic means
self-perception theory (Daryl Bem)
- overjustification effect
= we gain knowledge about ourselves only by making self-attributes
- in absence of obvious external determinants of our behavior, we assume that we freely choose the savior because we enjoy it
- -> task accompanied by external reward reduces motivation
social comparison theory
- self-evaluation maintenance model
= comparing our behavior, attitudes to those of others to establish the correct/ socially approved way of thinking, behaving
- downward social comparison (compare ourselves with slightly worse performing people > positive self-concept)
- upward social comparison (can have harmful effect in self-esteem)
- people who are constrained to make upward social comparisons can underpay/ deny similarity to target or withdraw the relationship to keep up positive self-concept
self categorization theory
BIRGing (basking in reflected glory)
= process of categorizing oneself as a group member produces social identity, group and intergroup behavior
= name dropping in link yourself with desirable people or groups to improve others impression of you
self and identity
= are cognitive constructs that influence social interaction and perception, and are themselves influenced by society
- identity is who we believe we are
self concept
= a persons belief/ imagine about themselves (attributes and who/ what the self is)
- these constructs are build with our ability of reflexive through; ability to think about ourselves thinking
freud - psychodynamic self
believed unsocial/ selfish libidinal impulses are repressed and kept in check by internalized societal norms —> from time to time, in strange, peculiar ways these impulses come to surface
- you only truly know yourself with help of special procedure (e.g. hypnoses, psychotherapy) to reveal repressed thoughts
self- complexity
= people differ in their complexity of social identities
- high complexity means that the different social identities don’t share many attributes
- simple social identities –> different social identities share many attribute
types of self and identity
social identity
personal identity
- individual self
- relational self
- collective self
= defines self in terms of group membership
= defines self in terms of idiosyncratic traits and close personal relationships
- personal trades that differentiates you from all others
- connections and role relationships with significant others
- group membership that differentiates `us´ from them (attributes shared with others that differentiates individual from outgroups)
self-coherence
= the desire to maintain a stable concept of who we are, that we don’t differ too much in our behavior in different contexts
self-presentation
- impression management
- self-monitoring
- = peoples use of various strategies to get other people to view them in a a positive light
- = carefully controlling how we present ourselves
(situational and individual differences)
strategic self-presentation
- self-promotion
- ingratiation (Einschmeichelei)
- intimidation (Einschüchterung)
- exemplification
- supplication
= manipulating others perception of you
- persuade (überzeugen) others of your competence
- get others tolikeyou
- get others to think you’re dangerous
- get others to respect you as a morally respectable individual
- trying to get others to take pity on you as helpless, needy
expressive (self presentation)
= involves demonstration and validating our self-concept through our actions
(focus is more on yourself than on others)
–> identity requires social validation for it to persist and serve as a useful function
cultural differences in self and identity
- independent self
- interdependenz self
- = is grounded in view of the self as autonomous, revealed through ones inner thoughts and feelings
- = is grounded in ones connection to and relationship with others
social identity theory
self categorization theory (Turner)
= a part of persons self-concept comes from groups we belong to through self-categorizing, self-comparison, construction of shared self-definition
= how the process of categorizing oneself as a group member produces social identity and group, intergroup behavior
- process of social identity salience
2. meta-contrast principle
- = our sense of self and associated perceptions, feelings, attitudes, behavior rests on whether social or personal identity is the psychologically important basis of self conception
- group categories (prototypes) accentuate differences between groups and similarities within groups
self awareness
2 types of self we can be aware of:
- private self
- public self
= a state in which you are aware of yourself as an object and in which you compare yourself with how you’d like to be
- private thoughts, feelings, attitudes (match behavior with internalized standards)
- public imagine (present ourselves to others in positive light)
reduced objective self-awareness and deinviduation
= process where people loose the sense of socialized individual identity and may engage in antisocial behavior
–> opposite of self-awareness
self knowledge (self-schemas)
we store knowledge about us in form of schemas but more complex
- part of ones self concept: clear picture of you on dimensions that are important to you and some one others not
- -> schemas that are extremely can lead to mood swings and extreme positive/ negative feelings in regards to those schemas
self motives
self-affirmation theory
3 motivations that interact to influence self-construct and search for self-knowledge
- self-assessment (Bewertung)
- self-verification (Bestätigung)
- self- enhancement (Verbesserung)
= maintain positive image and reduce negative impact on self-concept by focusing on competences in another area when confronted with a negative evaluation
- seeking out new info about ourselves in order to find out what sort of person we really are
- seeking out information that verifies and confirms what we already know about ourselves
- developing and promoting a favorable image of self (self-serving bias)
