The Self as Perceived by Others (Midterm #2) Flashcards
The good judge
Judge: the individual trying to form an impression of the “target”. An individual who accurately understands the personality of another person based on the correspondence of their impressions with realistic criteria. Self-report, informant reports, behavioural measures.
The realistic accuracy model (RAM)
Necessary stages for an accurate impression to be formed under the realistic accuracy model:
Relevance: Whether the target (person being perceived) is sharing relevant personality cues?
Availability: Are the cues available to the judge?
Detection: Does the judge detect these personality cues?
Utilization: Does the judge use them to form an impression?
Testing the realistic accuracy model (Rogers & Biesanz, 2018)
Is the good target a necessary condition for the good judge to emerge? Method: Multiple large samples of judges + targets with either face-to-face interactions or videos. Accuracy of impression: correspondence between judge/target/informant reports of the target’s personality using the big 5 trait inventory, intelligence scale.
Testing the realistic accuracy model (Rogers & Biesanz, 2018) - Results
Individual differences between quality of targets larger than judges. Good targets: good judges more accurate. Bad targets: no relationship with judge quality and accuracy. This relationship held across video and face-to-face interactions.
Relevance Stage: Psychological Adjustment
Those high in self-esteem t are more likely to behave in line with their personality (trait-coherent behaviour): more accurate impressions, not overly positive. Low self esteem: less accurately perceived, more cautions in expressing negative feelings and traits.
Relevance Stage: Self-Concept Clarity
Self concept clarity: more accurate perception of you being formed. Greater motivation to behave in line with important/relevant traits.
Relevance Stage: Power
Power: greater expression of true opinions and values. Trait dominance, experimentally manipulated power led to greater expression of true opinions and values.
Availability Stage: Extroversion
Extroverts provide more information in a period of time to form an accurate impression of them. With others more frequently and for longer periods of time (provide more information within those periods). E.g. Human et al., 2021 found that extraversion predicted expressive accuracy of big 5 traits with new acquaintances, close others, and on Facebook.
Availability Stage: Emotional expressiveness
People who are emotionally expressive improves perceptions of more affect related traits. Improves perceptions of more affect related traits, e.g., agreeableness, neuroticism. Lower levels associated with less accurate personality judgement.
Why be a good target? Intrapersonal benefits
Self-disclosure: disclosing personal information to others is often rewarding. Self-verification: intrinsically satisfying to receive feedback that aligns with our self-views.
Why be a good target? Interpersonal benefits
People who are more accurately perceived tend to be better liked (Human et al., 2018). Greater intimacy and relationship satisfaction. Workplace: Moore et al. (2017) found that high quality applicants driven to self-verify were more likely to be offered a job.
The looking glass self/reflected appraisal
Processes by which people’s self-views are influenced by their perceptions of how others view.
Observe other’s reactions to us (direct feedback and behaviour) –> Infer other’s perception of us –> Internalize other’s perception into self-concept –> Self-concept guides behaviour –> Repeat
Metaperception
Stage of reflected subjective impressions of others’ views of them. Infer other’s perception of us stage.
Are metaperceptions accurate?
Research suggests accuracy even when controlling for self-appraisals. Accuracy best with family, then friends, then acquaintances. Change across development: Malloy et al. (2017): Study of kids in grade 1-6. Domains: observable behaviour, cognitive ability, social status, general mood. Results: Accuracy improves with age, but all kids displayed meta-accuracy.
Bias in metaperceptions
Research finds consistent biases in metaperceptions. “Literature review of looking-glass self research shows that there is no consistent relationship between self-reports and observers reports.” Implication: looking-glass self means that the self concept is shaped by how we think others see us, not by how they actually see us. Findings and conclusions of studies will differ based on methodology. Previously discussed variable will affect whether this is true, e.g., closeness of observer, quality of target/judge etc.
false consensus effect
Tendency to overestimate the overlap between self-views and views of others; applies to metaperceptions.
Biases in metaperception: Illusion of transparency (Cameron & Vorauer, 208)
Overestimating the extent to which our feelings, personality, goals etc. are evident to others.
Biases in metaperception: Overlooking overt cues
Social situations are cognitively taxing causing people to miss social cues.
Self-appraisals colour metaperception: Negative self-views
Low self-esteem associated with difficulty accepting positing views about oneself. More likely to “make mountains out of molehills” when criticized.
Self-appraisal colour metaperception: Self-enhancement bias.
People prone to interpret others’ views of themselves in a self-enhancing manner. Eagerness to learn what others’ impressions associated with self-enhancement.
Leadership Study (Taylor et al., 2012)
248 leaders from various companies in the U.S. Self-rating: leaders rated their own interpersonal competencies. Other-rating: leaders’ direct report stafff rated their leaders’ interpersonal competencies. Prediction-rating: leaders rated how they thought their direct reports rated their interpersonal competencies. Effectiveness rating: leaders’ supervisors rated how good leaders were at their job.
Leadership Study (Taylor et al., 2012) - Results
Self-ratings consistently higher than predictions-ratings. Alignment between self-ratings and other-ratings predicted effectiveness. BUT alignment between prediction-ratings and other-ratings significantly better predicted effectiveness.
Teamwork Study (Grutterink et al., 2013)
Reciprocal expertise affirmation: Extent to which team members respect, value, and affirm each other’s expertise. Sharpness of expertise perceptions: extent to which team members agree about each other’s expertise.
Teamwork Study (Grutterink et al., 2013) - Method
39 teams of 5-7 people competed during a 4-week business stimulation. Performance rated by a panel of experts (CEOs from real companies). Reciprocal expertise affirmation: ask people how they thought their team members view them.
Teamwork Study (Grutterink et al., 2013) - Results
High shared expertise perceptions: Reciprocal expertise affirmation –> coordinated action –> performance. Low shared expertise perceptions: Reciprocal expertise affirmation unrelated to coordinated action.
Idealizing one’s partner Hypotheses
Actor’s perception = Partner’s reality + Actor’s illusions.
Hypothesis 1: Positive illusions lead to relationship distress and dissolution. (If illusions are completely adrift of partner’s reality)
Hypothesis: Positive illusions have self-fulfilling effects, leading to more relationship satisfaction and longevity. (True).
Idealizing one’s partner: Reflected appraisals hypothesis
Individuals come to more closely resemble the idealized perceptions their partners view them with.
Idealizing one’s partner Study (Murray et a., 1996)
Method: 121 dating couples followed for a year. Measures of self, partner, typical partner, ideal parter. Personality: interpersonal qualities, self-esteem, attachment style. Outcomes measures: relationship satisfaction, ambivalence, conflict negativity, destructive conflict styles.
Idealizing one’s partner Study (Murray et a., 1996) - Results
Relationship quality: Idealizing one’s partner and being idealized –> greater satisfaction, fewer conflicts, less serious doubts. Perceiving one’s partner as falling short of ideals –> more destructive conflict styles.
Relationship longevity: Idealization –> longevity. Accurate understanding of a partner’s qualities unrelated to longevity. Self-fulfilling idealization: Idealization –> positive change in partner’s self-concept, more secure attachment style. Idealized images are most vulnerable when they are out of touch with a partners’ reality.
