Chapter 3 - The Social Self

Self-Schemas

a cognitive structure, derived from past experience, that represents a person’s beliefs and feelings about the self, in both general and specific situations

Self-Esteem

the overall positive or negative evaluation people have of themselves

Contingencies of Self-Worth

the thesis that people’s self-esteem is contingent on their successes and failures in domains they deem important to their self-worth

Sociometer Hypothesis

the idea that self esteem is an internal, subjective index or marker of the extent to which a person is included or looked on favorably by others 

Self-Enhancement

the desire to maintain, increase, or protect one’s positive self-views

Better-than-Average Effect

the finding that most people think they are above average on various personality trait and ability dimesnions

Self-Affirmation Theory

the idea that people can maintain an overall sense of self-worth after being exposed to psychologically threatening information by affirming a valued aspect of themselves unrelated to the threat

Self-Verification Theory

the theory that people strive for others to view them as the way they view themselves; such verification of one’s views of the self helps people maintain a sense of coherence and predictability

Self-Regulation

processes by which people initiate and control their behavior in the pursuit of goals, including the ability to resist short-term rewards that thwart the attainment of long term goals

Self-Discrepancy Theory

a theory that behavior is motivated by standards reflecting ideal and ought selves; falling short of these standards elicits specific emotions and may lead to efforts to get closer to them

Actual Self

the self that people believe they are

Ideal Self

the self that embodies people’s wishes and ambitions

Ought Self

the self that is concerned with the duties, obligations, and external demands people feel they are compelled to honor

Promotion Focus

self-regulation of behavior with respect to ideal-self standards; a focus on attaining positive outcomes through approach-related behaviors

Prevention Focus

self-regulation of behavior with respect to ought-self standards; a focus on avoiding negative outcomes through avoidance-related behaviors

Implementation Intentions

an “if-then” plan to engage in a goal-directed behavior (“then”) whenever a particular cue (“if”) is encountered

Self-Presentation

presenting the person we would like others to believe we are

Face

the public image of ourself that we want others to believe

Self-Monitoring

the tendency to monitor one’s behavior to fit the current situation

Self-Handicapping

the tendency to engage in self-defeating behavior in order to have an excuse ready should one perform poorly or fail