Chapter 2- Self in a Social World

spotlight effect

the belief that others are paying more attention to ones appearance and behavior than they really are

illusion of transparency

the illusion that our concealed emotions leak out and can be easily read by others

self concept

what we know and believe about ourselves

self-schemas

beliefs about self that organize and guide the processing of self-relevant information

schema

mental templates by which we organize our world

social comparisons

evaluations of ones opinions and abilities by comparing oneself with others

looking glass self

our use of how we think or imagine others perceive us as a mirror for perceiving ourselves

individualism

the concept of giving priority to ones own goals over group goals, and defining ones identity in terms of personal attributes rather than group identifications

independent self

construing ones identity as an autonomous self

collectivism

giving priority to the goals of ones group and defining ones identity accordingly

interdependent self

more deeply embedded in others, defined by connections with others

planning fallacy

the tendency to underestimate how long it’ll take to complete a task

impact bias

overestimating the enduring impact of emotion causing events

dual attitude

automatic, implicit attitudes regarding someone or something often differ from consciously controlled explicit attitudes

self-esteem

a persons overall self-evaluation or sense of self worth

terror management theory

people exhibit self-protective emotional and cognitive responses when confronted with reminders of their mortality

narcissism

having an inflated sense of self

self-efficacy

a sense that one is competent and effective

self-serving attributions

a form of self-serving bias, the tendency to attribute positive outcomes to oneself, and negative outcomes to other factors

defensive pessimism

the adaptive value of anticipating problems & harnessing ones anxiety to motivate effective action

false consensus effect

the tendency to overestimate the commonality of ones opinions and ones undesirable or unsuccessful behaviors

false uniqueness effect

the tendency to underestimate the commonality of ones abilities and ones desirable or successful behaviors

self-handicapping

protecting ones self image with behaviors that create a handy excuse for later failure

self-presentation

expressing oneself and behaving in ways designed to create a favorable impression

self-monitoring

being attuned to the way one presents oneself in social situations and adjusting performance for the desired impression

self-control

willpower requires energy, can get tired when used too much, can get stronger the more it is used

grandiose narcissim

outgoing, arrogant, risk taking, high self esteem, entitled, initially charming

covert/vulnerable narcissim

egocentric, brooding, not fun to be around, fragile/contigent self-esteem