The Self

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  • Created by: Sess
  • Created on: 17-05-15 06:23
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  • The Self
    • Self Concept
      • 20 Statements Test
        • Kuhn + McPartland (1954)
        • Attempts to measure self concept
        • Assumes that language is the key to understanding the base of it
        • Ppts are asked to complete 20 'I am...' statements about themselves
        • Your answers reveal aspects of your self concept
        • Types of responses
          • Physical Appearance
            • e.g. I have brown hair
          • Social Roles
            • e.g. I am a footballer, mum (Collectivist cultures favour these)
          • Personal Traits
            • e.g. I am smart, kind (Individualistic cultures favour these)
          • Existential Statements
            • e.g. I am a child of the universe
      • Self-schemas
        • Markus (1977)
        • Suggested that the self is full of multifaceted schemas
        • We have clear schemas on some aspects of ourselves but not on everything
        • Schemas include possible selves/ current selves
          • Markus et al (1989)
          • The more separate these schemas are, the greater the mood swings
        • e.g. if being an athlete is important to you, you will..
          • Notice other people's bodies/ athletic abilities
          • Remember many sporting events
          • Cantor et al (1984)
      • It's Development
        • The roles we play
          • We initially feel self conscious but then we grow into a role that becomes reality
        • Social Identity
          • eg. Religion, Gender, Nationality
        • Surrounding culture
          • Markus (1995)
          • Individualistic cultures result in people seeing themselves as a personal independent self
          • Collectivist cultures result in interdependent selves based on group norms
        • Social comparison
          • Festinger (1954)
          • We build a sense of self from comparing others and how we fit in
          • eg. we may determine where we fit on an economic scale by comparing others
        • Daily experiece
          • Our failures and successes
          • e.g. if we win a tennis game, we think we are good at tennis
      • Self Reference Effect
        • Refers to the notion that information relevant to our self concept is processed faster
        • Kahan + Johnson (1992)
        • 48 female pairs were asked to say things about themselves and others
        • In a surprise mem test, people remembered what their pair said about them best
        • Suggests that our self is the center of our world
      • Definition
        • The set of beliefs that people have about themselves
    • Illusions of the Self
      • Spotlight Effect
        • Savitsky et al (2000)
        • The belief that others pay more attention to us than they actually do
        • Ppts were asked to change shirts halfway through a lecture.
          • They thought that 40% of peers would notice when only 10% did
          • Lawson et al (2010)
      • Illusion of Transparency
        • The belief that our concealed emotions leak out + can be read by others
        • Gilovitch (1998)
        • In a study, ppts rated themselves as being more nervous than they appear, did better after being told about illusion of transparency
          • Savitsky + Gilovitch (2003)
      • Linked to self reference
    • Self-knowledge
      • Electric Pill
        • Nisbett + Schacter (1966)
        • Some ppts were given a pill to reduce the effect of an electric shock
        • They therefore withstood greater shocks
        • But when asked to explain why, they didnt think the pill had an effect on them
        • Therefore plastic surgeons have to psychologically analyse people first
      • Implications
        • Mcdonald + Ross (1997)
        • Couples are usually overly optimistic about the relationship's longevity
      • Plastic Surgery
        • Hilson & Gilbert (2005)
        • Over-estimating the duration + intensity of forecasted pleasure can lead to bad decisions
      • We use this to explain/predict behaviour + feelings
      • Our explanations & predictions are often inaccurate
      • We tend to ignore relevant factors & focus on irrelevant ones
        • eg. We may attribute our gloom to life's emptiness as opposed to the rainy day
        • Schwartz + Clore (1983)
    • Self Esteem
      • Narcissism
        • High self esteem but lack of care for others
        • Campbell et al (2002)
        • Bushman + Baumeister (1998)
          • Students with high self esteem + narcissism blasted those who criticsed them with loud noises
      • Maladaptive Self Esteem
        • Low self esteem can lead to drug abuse
        • High self esteem can lead to committing violent crimes (Hitler)
      • What is it?
        • Bottom Up Approach
          • Crocker _ Wolfe (2001)
          • Self esteem is made from our self schemas
          • if our schemas are that we are attractive and smart, we have high self esteem
        • Top Down Approach
          • Brown + Dutton (1994)
          • If you have high self esteem, you develop schemas for things you are good at as you notice them
      • One's overal positive/ negative self evaluation or sense of self eworth
    • Sense of Control
      • Self control is like physical energy, it depletes when used
      • Our perceived sense of control is how much control we believe we have over our actions
      • Its influenced by:
        • Self efficacy
          • How competant we feel in a particular task
        • Locus of control
          • Whether we feel we can control our futures or outside forces do
    • Self-serving Bias
      • Taking credit for our successes + denying responsibility for failures
      • We see ourselves as better than the average joe
      • A sense of false uniqueness

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