2. Overview
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What is the “self”?
What is the “social
self”?
Self-constructs
Evolutionary functions
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Adaptational functions●
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Self-complexity
Social comparison
Social feedback
Strategic self-
presentation
Self-monitoring
Self-regulation
5. What is “self”?
● Describe yourself e.g.,
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● “I am…” statements
What do I promote?
● What do I defend?
● Usually includes social
roles e.g.,
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● Gender, ethnicity
Social identity
Group memberships
8. What is the “self”?
Many, varied theories about
the purpose and function of
the ‘self’ –
e.g., in arts, philosophy,
science, culture, religion, and
through history.
9. What is the “self”?
Psychologically...
collection of cognitively-held
beliefs that a person
possesses about
themselves.
10. What is the “self”?
However…
“Self” seems to extend
beyond the physical self
(body), to include
psychologically meaningful
personal possessions and
personal space.
11. What kinds of impressions are
these people trying to make,
using their clothing?
12. What is the “self”?
“The self is an important
tool with which the
human organism makes
its way through human
society and thereby
manages to satisfy its
needs.”
13. What is the “self”?
Traditionally, “self”
was seen as
representing
stable, genetically
determined
“character” – or
later, “personality”.
14. What is the “self”?
More recently, “self”
was understood to
evolve during a
lifetime,
i.e.
Partly stable, partly
changing.
15. What is the “self”?
Most recently, “self” has been further
complexified and increasingly seen
as:
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● Dynamic & changeable
Multiple / Plural
Hierarchical
Situationally & cognitively influenced
Culturally constructed
16. What is the “self”?
The psychological self includes:
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● Attitudes
Cognitions
Emotions
Group Memberships (Social Identity)
Ideal / Imagined Selves
Memories
Possessions
Self-Beliefs
Self-Concepts
Self-Images
Social Roles
17. What is the “self”?
To determine “What is self”,
use diagnostic clues:
● Who am I?
● What are you prepared to
defend?
18. Fluctuating Image(s) of Self
Phenomenal self
(Working self-concept)
●
● Unusual aspects about you become
prominent
Being lone member of some
category
● Heightens self-awareness
● Can impair performance
20. What is the “social
self”?
● Humans are gregarious,
group-based creatures.
● A significant portion of our
‘self’ and its ‘behaviour’ is
socially directed and
influenced.
21. What is the “social
self”?
Some argue that ‘self’ is entirely
a function of the environment.
e.g., “Self” as a construct of post-
industrial, capitalist society and political
systems which promote self-identity and
choice-making, and then markets to the
“self”.
22. What is the “social
self”?
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Interpersonal self or social self
part of self that engages face-to-face, in
relation with others.
Social roles -> Social identity or
Societal self
can include ethnicity, gender, age, place
of residence or any other social
categorization that helps characterize a
person’s identity.
23. Purpose of the self
● Gain social acceptance
● Play social roles
● Society creates and
defines roles
● Individual seeks and
adopts them
25. Self-esteem
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Global feelings of self-worth
Value placed in & degree of liking
of self.
Often based on and closely related
to social comparisons. (e.g., too
thin, too fat)
People are motivated to see their
self as worthy/worthwhile (Fiske,
2004).
27. Self-esteem
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Healthy to have a slightly
inflated sense of self value
(Taylor).
Self-esteem serves as a
sociometer for one’s standing
in a group (Fiske, 2004).
Self-esteem has been
overemphasized in Western
society, to the detriment of
actual skill (Baumeister)
28. Basking and blasting
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Group membership may enhance
positive feelings about self (Cialdini
et.al, 1976)
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● Basking - Linking oneself to winners
Blasting - Criticizing a rival group
●
People show a stronger tendency to
blast (negative) than bask (positive)
29. Basking and blasting
●
Loyal fans experience changes in
their own confidence level based
on the success or failure of their
team
● Losing had a stronger effect than
winning
30. Low self-esteem
●
Research on low self-esteem
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● Do not want to fail
Self-concept confusion
Focus on self-protection
More prone to emotional highs and
lows
●
Myth of low-self esteem in United
States
31. Distorted perceptions of
nondepressed
● Positive illusions
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● Overestimate good qualities
Underestimate faults
Overestimate control over events
Unrealistically optimistic
32. Self-deception strategies
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Self Serving Bias
More skeptical of bad feedback
Junk Mail Theory of Self-Deception
Comparisons with those slightly
worse
Skew impressions of others to
highlight own good traits as unusual
33. Benefits of high self-
esteem
●
Initiative
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● Confidence you can do the right
thing
More adventurous in activities
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Feels good
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● Helps one to overcome bad
feelings
If they fail, more likely to try again
34. Why do we care about
self-esteem?
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Sociometer theory
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Self-esteem is a measure of social
acceptability
Self-esteem feels good
● Theory of terror management
35. Negative aspects of
high self-esteem
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Narcissism
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● Subset of high self-esteem
Tend to be more aggressive and
violent
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Higher prejudice
● Tend to think their group is better
36. Pursuit of self-esteem
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May have harmful consequences
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● Can compromise pursuit of competence
Impairs autonomy
Pressure to meet expectations of others
Weakens individual intrinsic motivation
Impairs learning
Can damage relationships
Can be harmful to health
38. Functions of self-
presentation
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Social acceptance
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Increase chance of acceptance and
maintain place within the group
Claiming identity
● Social validation of claims to
identity
39. Good self-presentation
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Demonstrate positive traits
Behave with consideration of
audience
Tradeoff
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Tendency toward favorable
presentation
Modesty
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More prevalent in long-term
relationships
Risky behaviors
40. Self-concept
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Cognitive representations of the self.
Now commonly seen as a set of multi-
dimensional and hierarchically organized
domains of self-concept, e.g.,
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● Physical Self-Concept
Academic Self-Concept
Social Self-Concept
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● Same-Sex Relations
Opposite-Sex Relations
Parent Relations, etc.
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Top-down vs. bottom-up debate
41. Self-efficacy
● Belief in one’s capacity to
succeed at a given task.
e.g. Public Speaking Self-Efficacy
● Bandura recommended
specific rather than general
measures of Self-efficacy.
42. Self-efficacy
● e.g. Social Self-Efficacy for Relating to
Teachers
1.I can get along with most of my
teachers.
2.I can go and talk with most of my
teachers.
3.I can get my teachers to help me if I
have problems with other students.
4.I can explain what I think to most of my
teachers.
5.I ask the teacher to tell me how well I'm
doing in class.
(Hoover-Dempsey & Sandler, 2005)
44. Self has evolutionary
functions
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● Self-bias
e.g., access to resources
Self-organization / Self-
complexity
e.g., adaptability & self-insight/self-control
Self-promotion
e.g., for increased likelihood of mating
Social comparison
e.g., motivation to improve
Social control
e.g., storage of social norms and rules
45. Self has evolutionary
functions
●
●
●
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● Self-bias
e.g., access to resources
Self-organization / Self-
complexity
e.g., adaptability & self-insight/self-control
Self-promotion
e.g., for increased likelihood of mating
Social comparison
e.g., motivation to improve
Social control
e.g., storage of social norms and rules
47. Self has adaptational
functions
“The self can serve various
social psychological
functions; having a self is not
only knowing where your
skin ends, but also how to
get along in a group.”
(Fiske, 2004, p. 176)
49. Self-complexity
There are individual variations
in self-complexity, with self-
complexity being
advantageous
e.g., less depressed, better able to
handle stress, etc.
51. Social comparison
Everyone uses social comparison to:
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● Understand how they are doing
(through comparison with
similar others)
Feel better
(through downward
comparison)
To improve
(through upward comparison)
64. Self-awareness
In general, people spend
little time actually thinking
about themselves.
(but a lot of time is spent
thinking about self-presentation
and self-preservation)
65. Self-awareness
● Certain situations
(e.g., mirrors, cameras,
audiences, self-development
exercises, increase self-
awareness)
● Individual differences in self-
consciousness
66. Self compared to standards
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Concepts of how things might
possibly be
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Ideals, norms, expectations, moral
principles, laws, past experiences
Around age 2, begin use of
standards
● Beginning of self-awareness
69. Self-awareness
To cope, we either adjust
our behavior to meet our
standards or withdraw from
self-focusing situations.
e.g., watch TV, play sport,
alcohol, suicide.
71. Purpose of self-awareness
● Self-regulation
● Adopt the perspective of
other people
● Manage behavior in pursuit
of goals
72. Why people seek self-
knowledge
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Appraisal motive
● Looking for the truth about oneself
Self-enhancement Motive
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Looking for flattering things about
self
Consistency motive
● Looking for confirmation about
current belief about self
74. Self-knowledge and the
duplex mind
● Automatic egotism
● Automatic, self-enhancing
● Modesty
● Conscious, deliberate control
75. Self and information
processing
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Self-reference Effect
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Information bearing on self is
processed more deeply and
remembered better
Endowment effect
● Items gain in value to the person
who owns them
76. Can self-concept change?
● Self-concept tends to be consistent
with public self:
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● People expect you to stay the same
Changing social environment may
change inner self
Convince others that you have changed
Allow others to see your changed
behavior
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Memory shifts to fit new self-concept.
77. References
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Fiske, S. T. (2004). The self: Social to the
core. In S. T. Fiske (2004). Social beings: A
core motives approach to social psychology.
(Ch 5, pp. 169 – 214). Hoboken, NJ: John
Wiley.
Hoover-Dempsey, K.V., & Sandler, H.M.
(2005). Final Performance Report for OERI
Grant # R305T010673: The Social Context of
Parental Involvement: A Path to Enhanced
Achievement. Presented to Project Monitor,
Institute of Education Sciences, U.S.
Department of Education, March 22, 2005.
78. Open Office Impress
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