3.1–3.3 Notes on the Cognitive, Feeling, and Social Self

What is the Self-concept?

Knowledge representation about ourselves, including beliefs about personality traits, physical characteristics, abilities, values, goals, roles, and the knowledge that we exist as individuals. It becomes more abstract and complex across childhood and adolescence and is organized into self-schemas.

What are Self-schemas?

Cognitive structures about specific domains (e.g., school progress, appearance, sports skills) that guide the processing of self-relevant information.

Explain the Self-reference effect.

A phenomenon demonstrating enhanced memory when processing adjectives or information in relation to the self, indicating that self-related processing leads to superior recall.

What is Self-complexity?

The degree of independence among multiple self-aspects. High self-complexity is associated with higher self-esteem, lower stress/illness, and higher resilience to negative events.

Define Self-concept clarity.

How clearly and consistently one defines the self; higher clarity is linked to higher self-esteem and better stress resilience.

What is Self-awareness?

The state where attention is focused on oneself, which can be heightened by situational cues like mirrors or cameras and can influence behavior.

Describe Self-discrepancy theory.

A theory stating that distress arises when there is a gap between one's actual self and ideal self; self-awareness intensifies this distress.

What is Self-esteem?

Positive (high) or negative (low) feelings about the self, influenced by performance, appearance, and relationships, and consisting of both a trait and a state component.

What is Narcissism?

A facet of excessively high self-esteem linked to self-centeredness, manipulation, and problematic interpersonal outcomes.

Explain Self-verification theory.

A theory proposing that people seek feedback that confirms their existing self-views, with preferences depending on relationship closeness and the trait being evaluated.

What are Self-enhancement strategies?

Strategies such as memory biases, favorable attributions, optimistic bias, and perceived control that may elevate self-esteem, more common in individualistic cultures.

Define Self-presentation.

The act of presenting a favorable image to others, which can be honest or strategic, using tactics like ingratiation, intimidation, exemplification, supplication, and self-promotion.

What is Self-monitoring?

The tendency to regulate one's behavior to suit social contexts; high self-monitors adapt their behavior to others, while low self-monitors act on internal standards.

Explain the Looking-glass self.

A concept suggesting that much of how we see ourselves comes from perceiving how others view us.

Describe Social comparison theory (Festinger).

A theory stating that people evaluate their abilities and opinions by comparing themselves to others, especially similar others.

What is Social Identity Theory (Tajfel)?

A theory explaining that group memberships contribute to self-esteem via perceived group positivity.

What does 'Basking in reflected glory (BIRG)' mean?

The tendency to enhance one's self-esteem by publicly associating with successful ingroups.

Explain Self-evaluation maintenance (SEM) theory.

A theory describing how threats to self-esteem occur when a close other outperforms us in a central domain.