Problem 2 The self Flashcards
(45 cards)
Real self
The real self describes our actual self
Ideal self
The self we would like to be
ought self
The self that we should be
Symbolic interaction
Theory about how self emerges from social interaction that involves people people trading symbols (through gesture/language) which are often similar to our’s and represent more abstract properties than concrete objects
Self-enhancing trait
overestimate their good characteristics and their control over events (unrealistic optimistic)
Self-perception theory
Bem’s idea that we only gain self-knowledge through self-attributions (internal attributions)
Attribution
The process of assigning a cause to our own behaviour and that of other
Social comparison
comparing behaviour and opinions with others to find the social approved way of thinking and behaving
Self-assessment
The motivation to gain new knowledge about ourselves to find out what sort of person we really are
Self-verification
Seeking out information that confirms and verifies what we know about ourselves
Self-enhancement
The motivation to develop and promote a favourable image of ourselves
Self-affirmation theory
The theory that people try to reduce the threat on their self by focusing on positive characteristics or affirming their competence in some area
Collective self
Based on group memberships
- Collective phenomena could not be explained in terms of individual psychology
- Grounded in group life
Individual-self
based on private thoughts and behaviour
Relational-self
based on connections and role relationships with others
Independent-self
revealed trough inner thoughts and feelings (Autonomous)(western countries)
Interdependent-self
grounded in one’s connection to and relationship with other people (Asian countries)
Self-reference effect
When we get information that is related to our self-schemas we process and remember it better
Social-identity
defines self in terms of group membership
Personal identity
defines self in terms of of idiosyncratic traits and close personal relationships
Self-esteem
Feelings about and evaluations of oneself
Race and ethnicity can influence your self-esteem
only varies between moderate and high, when its low you are depressed
Self-concept confusion
people with high self-esteem tend to have more consistent and stable stock of self-knowledge
Motivational orientation
People with high self-esteem have a self-enhancing orientation in which they capitalise on their positive features and pursue success, whereas low self-esteem people have self-protective orientation in which they try to remedy their shortcomings and avoid failure and setbacks
self-handicapping
Publicly making in advance external factors responsible for our expected failure or poor performance. (going out the day before exams and than blaming the hangover to ruin your results)