Week 2 - The Self: Self-Perception and Self-Presentation

Question 1

Self-concept

Answer 1

an individuals overall beliefs about his or her own attributes

Question 2

Self-Esteem

Answer 2

an individuals evaluation of his or her own worth

Question 3

Self-Awareness

Answer 3

state of being aware of oneself as an object of ones thoughts

Question 4

affective forecasting

Answer 4

the process of predicting the impact of both positive and negative events on mood

Question 5

self-discrepancy theory

Answer 5

the theory that our self-concept is influenced by the gap between how we actually see ourselves and how we want to see ourselves

Question 6

self-awareness theory

Answer 6

when people focus on their own behaviour, they are motivated to either change their behaviour (so their attitudes and behaviours are in line) or escape from self-awareness (to avoid noticing this contradiction)

Question 7

self-perception theory

Answer 7

we look to our own behaviour to determine our attitudes and beliefs

Question 8

overjustification

Answer 8

the phenomenon in which receiving external rewards for a given behaviour can undermine the intrinsic motivation for engaging in this behaviour

Question 9

social comaprison theory

Answer 9

the theory that people evaluate their own abilities and attributes by comparing themselves to other people

Question 10

false consensus effect

Answer 10

the tendency to overestimate the extent to which other people share our opinions, attitudes, and behaviours

Question 11

false uniqueness efect

Answer 11

the tendency to underestimate the extent to which other people are likely to share our positive attitudes and behaviour

Question 12

unrealistic optimism

Answer 12

a phenomenon in which people see themselves as more likely than other people to experience good events and less likely than other people to experience bad events

Question 13

perceived control

Answer 13

the tendency to see uncontrollable events as at least partially under our control

Question 14

basking in reflected glor (BIRGing)

Answer 14

associating with successful others to increase ones feelings of self-worth

Question 15

downward social comparison

Answer 15

comparing ourselves to people who are worse than we are on a given trait or ability in an attempt to feel better about ourselves

Question 16

upward social comparison

Answer 16

comparing ourselves to people who are better than we are

Question 17

self-handicapping

Answer 17

a strategy in which people created obstacles to success so that potential failure can be blamed on these external factors

Question 18

impression management

Answer 18

strategies that people use to create positive impressions of themselves

Question 19

self-promotion

Answer 19

a strategy that focuses on making other people think you are competent or good in some way

Question 20

ingratiation

Answer 20

a strategy in which people try to make themselves likeable to someone else, often trough flattery and praise

Question 21

self-verification theory

Answer 21

the expectation that other peoples perception of oneself is consistent with ones own perception of oneself

Question 22

self-monitoring

Answer 22

the extent to which one adjusts ones self-presentation in different situations

Question 23

spotlight effect

Answer 23

the tendency to overestimate the extent to which ones own appearance and behaviour are obvious to others

Question 24

independent self-construal

Answer 24

a conception of the self as autonomous and independent from others, and behaving primarily to express its own internal attributes

Question 25

interdependent self-construal

Answer 25

a conception of the self as connected to others, with its behaviour contingent on the values, thoughts, and preferences of others

Question 26

self-serving attribution

Answer 26

the tendency to view oneself in a positive light

Question 27

ecological fallacy

Answer 27

the error of assuming that relationships between variables at the group leveller the same as relationships at the individual level