COM125

Discussion 5: Perception and the Self 

(com125)

As we are exploring perceptions and the self this week, consider the following questions:

1. In what ways has your self-concept changed over the course of your adolescent and adult life? What parts of your self-concept have remained relatively constant?

2. What are some situations that threaten our need for inclusion? Our need for affection? Our need for control? How do you generally react in those situations?

3. Can you think of a situation when you have committed the error of overattribution with someone? How have you experienced fundamental attribution error in a situation? In what ways can we keep our biases in check when attributing meaning to others' behavior?

4. What inaccurate perceptions do people often have of you? Why are people prone to making these perceptual mistakes?

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Respond to 2 peers:

Peer 1: Joshua 

1. In what ways has your self-concept changed over the course of your adolescent and adult life? What parts of your self-concept have remained relatively constant?

My self-concept has changed significantly from my adolescence into my adult life. Just on an important values hierarchy, throughout middle and high school I had music as the top of my concerns whereas now my three girls are clearly the top. However there is also some constancy with music as I still play in my church's worship band and enjoy it a lot. Throughout adolescence I had a much stronger urge to explore sexually than I do now as I am married but in my past my sexual desires led me to be a part of the online furry internet community for a time.  This is no longer the case and hasn't been for several years now, close to a decade.

2. What are some situations that threaten our need for inclusion? Our need for affection? Our need for control? How do you generally react in those situations?

All three situations can be "achieved" through the issue of rejection, especially through a love interest. If a love interest has a desirable group of friends as well and we want to be with them all, rejection secludes us from our desired in-group, removes the possibility of desired intimate affection with the one we seek, and threatens our desire for control as we have no control in this situation anymore.

3. Can you think of a situation when you have committed the error of overattribution with someone? How have you experienced fundamental attribution error in a situation? In what ways can we keep our biases in check when attributing meaning to others' behavior?

*Political Opinion Warning*

I cannot say I have directly committed over attribution against an individual, at least not that I can remember. In a broad and general sense I have absolutely committed fundamental attribution error against people who identify as being politically left, as I have assumed those who are pro abortion who do not care about human life and are killing children out of convenience are only evil, but there are people who are pro choice who still do a lot of good for many others in the world. I suppose one of the easiest ways to keep personal biases in check is to consider that we do not know the situation the other is in. I do not mean economically, but as a whole, where they are currently in their life. They may have good reasons to feel and act the way they do based on their own biases and personal experiences. It is also important to remember that while they may not know what you know, you probably also do not know what they know, which highlights the value of interpersonal communication.

4. What inaccurate perceptions do people often have of you? Why are people prone to making these perceptual mistakes?

I do not know for sure what inaccurate perceptions people make of me. To make an educated guess I suppose maybe people may assume I am more naturally aggressive and disagreeable than I actually am. I have a decent sized beard and occasionally wear a beanie, so I assume it is possible there are some negative stereotypes with that general look but I am not certain.

Peer 2: Kim

1. My self-concept has relatively stayed the same; I’d like to say that any negative concepts I had of myself I was able to outgrow, but that’s just not true. I think the only thing that has really changed as I’ve gotten older: 1, I am a lot meaner. I don’t tolerate intolerance, and I will always confront hateful ideologies and behavior. And 2, I am fiercely protective of my inner circle. I am the oldest of 3 and was always protective over my sisters, but it has escalated in recent years.

2. I think prioritizing the wrong things can threaten our need for inclusion. I see this a lot in my son who wants me to play with him, but I have a million other things I have to do- homework, laundry, cleaning. I don’t think I have a great reaction to this; I know what I should do, but the constant feeling of being overwhelmed forces me to shut down and nothing gets done.

3. One of my earliest memories of over attribution was when I was about 13 or 14. I remember that the catholic church was making headlines after the reports that children were being harmed by priests. The church was supposed to be good and these men that were close to God should have known better. Why was I publicly shamed and questioned when I left the church, but these guys were harming kids and it kept getting ignored? I try to keep my biases in check by putting myself in someone else’s shoes. Though I do not accept any excuse or explanation from the church, I also realized many were probably victims themselves and continued the cycle.

4. I think there is some perception that I am shy or reserved; I’m not good at small talk, so aside from meaningless greetings, I don’t say much. I usually observe everyone around me at first, then gravitate towards people with fun and wild energies. I’m an introvert at heart, but extroverts are my favorite people because they bring it out of me.