Social Psychology Exam 2 - Self-Concept and Beliefs

James' I

Experimental consciousness, subjective experience of self.

James' Me

Self-concept, how one perceives themselves.

Looking-glass self

Self-identity shaped by others' reactions.

Reflected appraisals

Insights about self from others' perceptions.

Sense of self

Developed through social interactions and experiences.

Cultural differences in self-concept

Variations in self-perception across cultures.

Independent self

Self-concept viewed as separate from others.

Interdependent self-system

Self-concept connected and influenced by others.

Self-Esteem

Global evaluation of one's value and competence.

Rotter's Locus of Control

Perception of control over life events.

Bandura's Self-Efficacy

Belief in one's ability to succeed.

Self-Regulation

Ability to control impulses and behaviors.

Self-Control

Limited resource that can be depleted.

Better than average effect

Belief of being superior to peers.

False Consensus

Overestimating commonality of one's opinions.

False Uniqueness

Underestimating commonality of one's successes.

Unrealistic Optimism

Belief in unlikely negative personal outcomes.

Barnum effect

Tendency to accept vague, general statements as true.

self-knowledge

the way we understand who we are and formulate and organize this information

Remembering our own attitudes

People were asked about their attitudes 9 years ago, they then were wrong because they anchored away from their old attitudes with their new ones

Menstruation, Recalled Mood, and Actual Mood (McFarland et al. 1989)

Women remembered being in a worse mood in the premenstrual and menstrual mood and felt they were in a better mood in the inter-menstrual when in actuality it was the opposite

self-perception theory

The theory that when our attitudes and feelings are uncertain or ambiguous, we infer these states by observing our behavior and the situation in which it occurs

Examples of self-perception theory

Facial feedback research
Head-nodding
Pulling toward- pushing away
"Power Posing"
The "over justification effect"

overjustification effect

If given a reward for doing something they enjoy doing, people will do it less (or less well) after the reward is ceased than if never given the reward at all

Overjustification Effect (Greene, Sternberg, and Lepper, 1976)

People are playing with the toy more when they were rewarded rather than when the reward was discontinued

Social comparison

evaluating one's abilities and opinions by comparing oneself with others

Upwards comparisons

Sets an achievable standard

Downwards comparisons

Makes someone feel better about themselves but nothing to strive for, "better to have no shoes then no feet"

2-factor theory of emotion

states that emotion is based on two factors: physiological arousal and cognitive label

Misattribution of Arousal: Dutton and Aron, 1974

Men who crossed the high, wobbly bridge were more likely to call the park ranger then the men who crossed the low, secure bridge

Spotlight effect

Overestimating the extent to which our actions/appearance are noticed by and affect others

Illusion of Transparency

Overestimating others' accuracy in reading our thoughts and feelings

self-handicapping

Creating an excuse for possible future failure

False Modesty: Expression of gratitude for success (Baumeister and Ilko, 1995)

People who had to tell a story about their success they gave more credit to other people rather than when they had to tell a story anonymously

Biases exert themselves when information is ______, or judgement are _______

ambiguous or lacking, subjective

What are the motives for biases?

Accuracy, homeostasis (self-verification), self-enhancement

The self is_____

Social

Why might a little self-serving deception be adaptive

Benefits of unrealistic optimism
The phenomenon of depressive realism