Self-Evaluation Flashcards
Motives for Self-Evaluation
Self-assessment
• The desire to have accurate information about self
Self-enhancement
• The need to achieve and maintain a positive sense of self; want to hear or establish how good we are
Self-verification
• People desire consistency in their cognitions about the self; desire for others to confirm views
• Along with self-enhancement, considered the most important
Self-improvement
Sources of feedback
Direct feedback from others
Indirect feedback from others
• How others react
• We see how others reinforce/punish behaviors in others
Structural/formal review
• Grades or a performance review
Social comparison
Temporal comparison
Social comparison
Compare self to others & how we react to them
Most often peers, since they are most similar to us
Downward comparison ensures we feel better about ourselves
Upward comparison motivates us to change
Comparison to media (i.e. celebrities) linked with anxiety, depression, and eating disorders
“big fish little pond” = if surrounding social group is high achieving, can easily become overwhelmed
Successful females in a traditionally masculine setting leads to the female being labeled with more negative traits, though these claims are made often by other females
Temporal comparisons
Produces a feeling of growth, even when no growth has occurred
Can be used as a coping mechanism in stressful situations
“I’m a better person for having gone through that”
Self-verification
McNulty & Swann, 1994 – roommate study
• Asked participants to rate roommates on numerous traits early in the semester, weeks after meeting them
• Asked similar task at the end of the semester
Reflected appraisal more in line with roommate’s view over time
Self-verification–roommate is viewing me more accurately (traits we’re confident about)
*Relying on feedback of others, we attempt to influence others to see us in a specific manner
Relationships
• Initially people demonstrate what others want to see, but overtime, they display increased desires for self-verification
Self-verification is affiliated with long-term success
Leads to comfort and trust if both individuals agree on an individuals’ traits
Also leads to increased sense of self-control of surroundings
Swann, 1997
Among people with negative self-views, desire for self verification can override the desire for positive evaluations
E.g. people with negative self-views seek relationship partners who view them negatively, elicit unfavorable evaluations from partners, and “see” more negativity in the reactions of others than is actually there
Clinical Implication: therapists are in a good position to validate their patients’ shortcomings and provide negative feedback in a supportive and accepting context
Self-enhancement
Taylor & Brown, 1988 promoted controversial views
Argued that our society operates on illusions concerning abilities, control, and optimism
A bit of distortion is beneficial to our mental health
Depressed individuals do not operate with such illusions
• It is normal/healthy to experience distortions of the world
Dunning et al., 2004, Flawed Self-Assessment
We have general lack of understanding our skills
Poor correlation between how others rate us and how we rate ourselves
Planning fallacy – we often misjudge the required time to complete a task
• Possibly due to inflated ego
For best prediction, see past experiences
“better-than-average” effect
• Belief we are better than most in regards to poorly-defined traits, such as “sophistication,” or controllable traits, such as “cooperative”
Our “psychological immune system” helps combat negative events, including cognitive dissonance, and illusions
o when we make such estimates, we are focused specifically on that event, and fail to consider any additional external events that may influence our emotions
Other examples of self-enhancement
We are better-than-average when it comes to charity
• Cornell students predicted that they would buy flowers and an annual charity drive for the American Cancer Society, but their fellow students would be less likely
Our relationships are better than most
Other people are more biased than us
We know ourselves and others better than most people know themselves and others
Over-claiming effect
Belief in a greater knowledge of a thing that someone else mentions, even if this thing doesn’t exist
People always want to be on the inside of a group, and try to identify with others
We believe our GPAs are better
• though the greater one exaggerates, the greater the grades tend to be actually be later on
We believe we are more attractive than most
• interestingly, we can more easily recognize ourselves in photos that have been modified to make us seem more attractive
o it is harder to recognize ourselves if the photos have been modified to make us seem less attractive
Overconfidence effects
CEOs believe they can run any company
Surgeons believe they can perform any surgery
Psychologists think they are well-versed in current treatments
Impact bias on affective forecasting
Tend to overestimate the emotional consequences of future life events
Illusions of Self-control
superstitious behaviors
• failing to engage in such behavior leads to decreased confidence as well as performance
• we need control, and will act out in an attempt to gain it
e.g. lower class spends more money on lottery tickets • unrealistic optimism
aware bad things occur, but believe we are immune to these bad situations
tend to easily generate positive future ideas but we struggle to generate future negative potentials
Should we teach people not to hold on to these illusions?
• Everything in moderation works best
• Handle on a case-by-case basis
o For those who have mania, decrease illusions
o For those who have depression, increase illusions
Illusions of Self-Control: Deliberative vs. Implemented mindset
Deliberative mindset = tends to have decreased illusions
Implemented mindset = tends to rely on illusions
*once decision is made to action, illusions are implemented
Self-enhancement is affiliated with resilience factors in dealing with trauma
e.g., those who demonstrated self-enhancement illusions who lived near ground-zero displayed better mental outcomes post-911
Breaking down these illusions?
o Is it due to talent?
o Do individuals who rely on these traits see everyone in better light?
o Some argue the benefit of self-enhancement illusions is not as obvious as it seems
Self-Verification, Clinical Implications
We all look for self verification, even for negative qualities
Unconditional positive regard – in spite of all negatives, trusts and acceptance
Abusive relationships – confirming low self-esteem/negative self image – if therapist is working to build positive self-concept, this might be counteracted by spouse’s feedback
