social psychology reflection paper 4 pages
Chae
W2_SocialSelf.pptxThe Social Self
Three Motivations in Social Psychology
Motivation for certainty We need to feel like we understand our environment
Motivation for esteem We need to feel competent and proud of ourselves
Motivation for belonging We need pleasant and stable social connections
Three Motivations in Social Psychology
Motivation for certainty
Motivation for esteem
Motivation for belonging
The way we view our self-concept is driven largely by these
Self-concept: A system of knowledge and beliefs about our personal qualities
Self-Concept
Me
My likes
My values
My skills
My traits
My feelings
Sources of Knowledge
Write a list of 5 subjective traits that define you
I am outgoing (subjective)
I am a student (objective)
These can include your values, likes, talents, personality traits, aspirations, etc.
Next to each one: How do you know?
Knowledge Through Behavior
Self-perception theory We learn about ourselves by watching our own behaviors
I am talking in front of a classroom, so I must be outgoing
Our behaviors are more telling when:
They are freely chosen
There is no reward
Knowledge Through Behavior
Children asked to draw with new markers for 20 minutes
Condition 1: Promised a “Good player” certificate
2 weeks later, played with markers 8% of free-time
Condition 2: Not promised a certificate, but surprised with one
2 weeks later, played with markers 16% of free-time
Condition 3: Not promised a certificate, not given one
2 weeks later, played with markers 16% of free-time
Knowledge Through Behavior
Why?
Condition 1: I played with these before, but it was for a certificate, so I don’t actually like them
Condition 2 + 3: I played with these before without the promise of a certificate, so I must like them!
Knowledge Through Thoughts/Feelings
Similarly, we use our thoughts and feelings to define who we are
I am calm in this classroom right now, so I must be outgoing
Knowledge Through Feelings/Thoughts
Researchers put a female surveyor in a national park to approach men
Condition 1: Men approached in an open field/ picnic area
Condition 2: Men approached as they crossed a swaying, unstable bridge
A second researcher approaches after and asks how attractive that female was
Men in condition 2 reported being more attracted to her
Knowledge Through Feelings/Thoughts
Conclusion:
Being on the bridge elevated heartrate, sweating, and attention
Men took this to mean attraction
Knowledge From Others’ Reactions
We understand who we are through the ways others treat us/react to us.
My brother asked me to talk at his wedding, so I must be outgoing
We respond to both obvious and subtle information from others:
Obvious: Others tell me I am creative, people are impressed by what I create
Subtle: My brother asks me to help design his wedding invitations
Works more with under-developed self-concepts or new domains
Knowledge from Social Comparisons
We judge who we are by how we compare ourselves with others
I get a bit nervous before being in front of a large crowd, but my peers get incredibly nervous, so I must be outgoing
We feel different about the same traits when given different social comparisons
Knowledge from Social Comparisons
Downward social comparisons Comparing ourselves to someone less skilled/fortunate
Benefits: Boosts confidence, self-esteem
Drawbacks: Bad for improvement
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3gGkiWSzvg
Upward social comparisons Comparing ourselves to someone more skilled/fortunate
Benefits: Motivating (at times)
Drawbacks: Distressing, threatens the self
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HSPYgwP9R84
In Summary
We build our self-concept from several sources, including
Our own behaviors
Our own thoughts/feelings
Others’ reactions
Social comparisons
Multiple Selves
Multiple Selves
We are made up of multiple diverse “selves”
Sometimes these selves can be contradictory
Alejandro
Student
Teacher
Political activist
Father
Balancing the Self
An overly diverse, contradictory self-concept can be distressing
Cause feelings of hypocrisy, conflict, lack of identity
An overly narrow, singular self-concept can be instable
We need other identities to “fall back on” when one fails
An ideal self-concept is diverse, multi-faceted, but rooted in core values
Cognitive Dissonance
Protecting the self
Positive Self-Concepts
We are motivated to understand ourselves and have a strong sense of self
But
We want to feel good/proud about that sense of self
VS
Cognitive Dissonance
Cognitive Dissonance A distressing state that arises when we feel in conflict with a desired/perceived sense of self
I am X
Z is true for me
Z is not true for X’s
Cognitive Dissonance
I cheat on a statistics test
I am honest
I cheated on the test
Honest people don’t cheat
Cognitive Dissonance
I get cut from the soccer team
I’m good at soccer
I didn’t make the team
Good players make teams
Festinger & Carlsmith’s cognitive dissonance study
Had participants complete a boring task for an hour
Asked them to be an “assistant” If asked, tell the next participant this was fun
Payed either $1 or $20 for being an assistant
Asked to report on how fun they actually found it
Festinger & Carlsmith (1959)
Festinger & Carlsmith (1959)
I am a good person
A good person is honest
I just lied to that participant
Resolving Cognitive Dissonance
We are highly skilled and motivated to resolve cognitive dissonance
We find ways to satisfy both our need for certainty (feeling like we are making an accurate judgement) and our need for esteem (avoiding feelings of guilt/self-doubt)
Resolving Cognitive Dissonance
Three broad strategies to resolve:
Reappraise the situation
Create a new interpretation for the situation
Cheating is not bad in cases like this
Michael Jordan was cut from his team
Resolving Cognitive Dissonance
Three broad strategies to resolve:
Reappraise the situation
Blame external sources
The teacher made the test too hard
I had an injury
Resolving Cognitive Dissonance
Three broad strategies to resolve:
Reappraise the situation
Blame external sources
Restructure self-concept
I’m not a very honest person
I’ve always been more about academics
This approach is rare, only works for less important traits
Festinger & Carlsmith (1959)
Participants were offered $1 or $20 to lie to a confederate about how fun the study was
DV: How fun they later reported the study to be
$20: The study was rated very negatively
$1: The study was rated as enjoyable, fun
$20 could blame external sources (I knew it was a lie, but they paid well)
$1 could not (I knew it was a lie and I did it for a single dollar?!)
They reappraised the situation
Resolving Cognitive Dissonance
For each of the scenarios, please describe how this is an example of cognitive dissonance (what is the tension?) and one way it can be resolved
I repeatedly hear news stories about how smoking is bad, but I regularly smoke cigarettes anyway
I was faced with a difficult decision between two colleges I wanted to attend, and eventually choose College A. After some time, though, I start realizing that College B might have been a better choice.
I am cheating on my romantic partner despite having a happy relationship
Self-Esteem
Self-esteem
We need a way to monitor our self-concept and detect when we are failing to live up to it
This monitoring system is our self-esteem
Self-esteem: the overall positive/negative evaluation of our self-concept
Our self-esteem comes from a variety of different sources
Physical Appearance
We derive our self-esteem from our physical appearance, and how that matches societal norms
Social Roles/ Skills
We draw our self-esteem from the important roles and talents we have, and our ability to be good at those roles
Personality Traits
We draw our self-esteem from how our personality aligns with the traits we see as desirable
These traits, like a lot of other things, are socially ascribed
