The Role of the SelfCapacity for self-reflection is necessary for self-understanding Private, inner selfSelf is heavily influenced by social factors.Public, outer self

The ABCs of the SelfAffect: How do we evaluate ourselves, enhance our self-images, and defend against threats to our self-esteem?Behavior: How do we regulate our actions and present ourselves according to interpersonal demands?Cognition: How do we come to know ourselves, develop a self-concept, and maintain a stable sense of identity?

The Self-ConceptSelf is an important object of our attention.Cocktail party effect.Self-Concept: The sum total of beliefs that people have about themselves.Self-concept is made up of self-schemas.Self-Schema: Beliefs about oneself that guide processing of self-relevant information.

Rudiments of the Self-ConceptExcept for human beings, only the great apes seem capable of self-recognition.Self-recognition is an important first step in the development of a self-concept.Social factors influence development of a self-concept.Looking-glass selfSelf as relational

Self-Perception:A View of SelfSelf-perception: process by which people develop a view of themselvesDevelops from social interaction within different groups, including groups encountered on the InternetSelf-perception has three parts: self-concept, self-esteem, self-presentation

Self-Perception:A View of Self Self-concept:Set of beliefs people have about themselvesView people hold of their personal qualities and attributesFactors affecting a person's self-conceptObservations of behaviorRecall of past significant eventsEffect of the surrounding social context

Self-Perception:A View of Self Self-concept Observations of behaviorPeople see their behavior, and their situation, in the same way they see the behavior of other peoplePerson believes the behavior occurred voluntarily: concludes the behavior happened because of some personal quality or attribute

Self-Perception:A View of Self Self-concept Observations of behavior People learn about themselves by comparing themselves to other people with similar qualitiesExample: you may want to assess your abilities to hold a supervisory position. You compare yourself to people with backgrounds similar to yours who have had recent promotions

Personality TheoriesLearning theoriesLearn behavior from social interaction with other peopleYoung child: early family socializationContinuously learn from social environment: stable behavior forms the personalityUniqueness of each personality follows from variability in social experiences

Self evaluation Self esteem is the evaluative and affective component of self concept Maslows Subsets of Esteem Needs:Self-esteem (strength, achievement, mastery, competence, ..)Respect needs or the need for esteem from others

Components of Self-ConceptIdentityBody imageSelf-esteemRole performance

Interrelationship of Components of Self-Concept

Components of Self-Concept A sense of personal identity is what sets one person apart as a unique individual.Identity includes a persons name, gender, ethnic identity, family status, occupation, and roles.Ones personal identity begins to develop during childhood and is constantly reinforced and modified throughout life.

Components of Self-ConceptBody image is an attitude about ones physical attributes and characteristics, appearance, and performance.Body image is dynamic because any change in body structure or function, including the normal changes of growth and development, can affect it.

Components of Self-ConceptSelf-esteem is the judgment of personal performance compared with the self-ideal.Self-esteem is derived from a sense of giving and receiving love, and being respected by others.

Components of Self-ConceptRole refers to a set of expected behaviors determined by familial, cultural, and social norms.The level of self-esteem is dependent upon the self-perception of adequate role performance in these various social roles.

Development of Self-ConceptSelf-concept evolves throughout life and depends to an extent on an individuals developmental level.

Factors Affecting Self-ConceptAltered Health StatusExperienceDevelopmental considerationsCultureInternal and external resourcesHistory of success and failure

Self perception theory argues that people examine two things when making decisions about the cause of their own behavior.

They examine:

First,

The behavior itself

Second,

The environmental forces working on the individual

Observed Behavior+Environmental Forces=Attributions for the Cause of the Behavior

ExampleBehavior: I am eating asparagus+Environment: I am alone at home=Cause: I like asparagus

The old attribution question arises:

Is the cause of the behavior personal or situational?

Since there is no situational (environmental) explanation for my behavior, I must conclude that the cause is personal: I must like asparagus.

To summarize what self perception theory is saying about the cause of behavior:

If there is minimal environmental explanation for a behavior, we conclude that the cause is personal (dispositional)

If there is strong environmental explanation for a behavior, we conclude that the cause is situational (something in my environment)

Self-Perception Theory

Individuals come to know their own attitudes, emotions, and other internal states partially by inferring them from observations of their own overt behavior and/or the circumstances in which this behaviour occurs (Bem, 1972)

Intrinsic Motivation and the Extrinsic Motivation

Intrinsic MotivationDesire to perform an activity because were enjoy it.Extrinsic MotivationDesire to perform an activity because of external pressures or rewards

Overjustification EffectOverjustification EffectPeople view their behavior as caused by compelling extrinsic reasons, and underestimate the extent to which the behaviour was caused by intrinsic reasons

Self-Presentation and Self-DisclosureSelf-disclosure: The act of revealing personal information about oneself to others.Quantity of informationDepth of informationReciprocity

Self-EsteemSelf-esteem refers to affective evaluations of ones worth, value or importance. Synonymous with self-worth, self-regard, self-respect, self-acceptance. Various theories have been proposed to explain how people work to maintain a stable, positive self-concept.

Self-Discrepancy Theory (Higgins, 1987, 1989, 1996)Feel distressed when our actual self is different from our ideal (the type of person we desire to be) or ought (the type of person we feel we should be) self, on a criterion that is important to us.Actual-ideal discrepancies are associated with dejection, sadness, dissatisfaction, and depression-related emotions.Actual-ought discrepancies are associated with fear, worry, tension and anxiety-related emotions.

Self-Completion Theory (Gollwitzer & Wicklund, 1985)When people experience a threat to a valued aspect of their self-concept, they become highly motivated to seek social recognition of that aspect of the self.When an important identity has been challenged, we behave in ways to legitimate our claim to that identity.

Self-Evaluation Maintenance Theory (Tesser et al., 1995) Aspects of our self-concept can be threatened by another persons behaviour.Two factors are important:The immediacy of the other personThe personal importance of the behaviour

Basking in Reflected Glory (BIRGing)We take pride in the achievements of certain people and groups, even when we had nothing to do with attaining them.

Self-Enhancement and Self-VerificationSelf-enhancement is the tendency to hold unrealistically positive views about ourselvesSelf-verification is the tendency to seek veridical information about the self, whether positive or negative.

Self-Verification Theory (Swann 1990, 1996)We are motivated to have stable, coherent self-concepts.Information from others (both positive and negative) that is contrary to our self-concept threatens the stability of the self-concept.makes it comfortable to interact with someone who doesnt share our self-concept

Self-Verification Theory, continuedWhen do we self-verifyIn close relationshipsWhen we are highly certain of our self-conceptConsequences of being discovered are high

LanguageBroadly speaking, communication style varies from one ethnicity to another due to the nature of the construction of the language. Theorists have distinguished verbal communication, and analogic, nonverbal communication, components within languages (Bennett, 17). Depending on the language, some weigh more toward one form of communication than the other.

arelanguageskills needed to interact in social situations, for example, when speaking to a friend on the telephone. This refers primarily to context-bound, face-to-face communication, like the language first learned by toddlers and preschoolers, which is used in everyday social interaction.

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