The Self Flashcards
What is the Self?
The self is the individual viewed as both the source
and the object of reflexive behaviour. As such, the self is both active and passive
What is so social about the self?
-Humans are social animals
-The self is constructed from social information
-Our social behaviors are influenced by self-related factors
Define the self-concept
the ‘content’ of the self or the knowledge about who we are
What is the purpose of the self-concept?
Helps determine how individuals will behave
Define self-schemas
Cognitive generalizations about the self, derived from
past experiences, that organize and guide processing
of self-related information
How do researchers measure the content of the self?
Self-evaluations can be validated by comparing the person’s self-evaluation to the objective evidence provided from the environment, including from other people.
Which traits are central to the self-concept?
-Ideal self: your vision and ambitions of who you want to be
-Real self (self-image): how you currently see and perceive yourself
-Self-esteem: how much worth and value you believe you have
Define schematic traits
Defining ourselves or deciding how we feel about ourselves
T/F: Traits an be schematic or aschematic
True
What is the self-reference effect?
Tendency for people to remember and process information better if related to themselves
What study is a good indicator of the schematic traits and what does this study show?
-The “me” or “not me” study (Markus, 1977
-We are more sensitive to information that is
congruent with traits that are central to our
self-concept
Determined by our sense of duty,
responsibility, or obligation (i.e., who we should be) is…
Ought self
Determined by our hopes, wishes, and
dreams, as well as those that others have for us
(i.e., who we would like to be) is…
Ideal self
Who is the self-discrepancy theory by and what year?
Higgins, 1987
What are the 3 self guides that come from the self-discrepancy theory?
-actual self
-ought self
-ideal self
Explain what the self-discrepancy theory is?
The difference between our self-concept and our
self-guides affects how we feel about ourselves
What is Introspection and what questions can be used to describe it?
-The process whereby people look inward and
examine their own thoughts, feelings, and
motives.
-Who am I?
-Why do I do the things I do?
Explain the Self-Awareness Theory
When people focus their attention on themselves,
they evaluate and compare their behaviour with
their internal standards and values
What is ‘self-perception’ and who coined the term?
-When internal cues are difficult to interpret,
people gain self-insight by observing their own
behavior
-Bem, 1972
What does the Self-perception study (Laird, 1973) find?
-facial expressions can affect emotion through a
process of self-perception
-“If I’m smiling, I must be happy.”
What is self-complexity?
It can be defined as our introvert self and our extroverted self can be independent of each other in varying situations. This can mean there is very little overlap and why sometimes there is inconsistencies in behaviour from others.
What are the differences between low and high self-complexity?
People with high self-complexity tend to have more positive outcomes like higher self-esteem, lower levels of stress and illness,greater tolerance for frustration, etc.
What is self-esteem?
Confidence in one’s own worth abilities or moral
What are 3 things that high self-esteem can result in?
- Healthy self-confidence
- Exaggerated sense of self
- Conceited, egotistical, arrogant sense of self