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Social

Psychology
NIMRAH AHMED
20 OCTOBER 2016
The Self

The Self
Myers, D.G. Social Psychology, 10th Edition. McGraw Hill.
International Edition. Pg. 35- 40
Spotlight Effect
The belief that others are paying
more attention to ones
APPEARANCE AND BEHAVIOR than
they really are

WHY?
Self focused perspective
Overestimation of others attention when one feels
conscious
Gilovich & others
(2000)

Estimate= 50%
Only 23%
noticed
Timothy Lawson (2010) had college
students change into a sweatshirt
with American Eagle on the front
before meeting a group of peers.
Nearly 40% were sure the other
students would remember what the
shirt said, but only 10% actually did.
Most did not even notice that the
students changed sweatshirts after
leaving the room for a few minutes.
Activity for Spotlight effect
Illusion of Transparency

The illusion that our concealed


EMOTIONS, THOUGHTS AND
FEELINGS leak out and can be easily
read by others

WHY?
Aware of our own emotions, feelings thoughts
Feels ones internal state is visible or available to
others
Kenneth Savitsky &
Thomas Gilovich (2003)
Invited 40 students of Cornell
University in pairs
One sat one spoke on a random topic
Rate HOW NERVOUS THEY WERE & HOW
NERVOUS THE OTHER PERSON WAS (out
of 10)
How they rated self- 6.65, on average
How others rated them- 5.25, on
average
Activity for Illusion of
Transparency
Volunteer needed
Tap a beat and let others guess. If you know the answer, please
only raise your hand.
More examples of what happens in the
world around us & what goes on in our
heads
Social
surroundings affect our self-
awareness
When we are different from the rest of the group, we notice
that we differ and how others react to our differences
(gender, race, nationality, age and the like)
Self interest colors our social judgement
When problems arise, we attribute the responsibility to
others. When things go well, we take the credit
Self concern motivates our social
behavior
We generally adjust social behavior to leave a good
impression, we monitor others behaviors and expectations
and adjust our behavior accordingly

Eg. Behavior of a politician. Behavior in a huge gathering


Social relationships help define our self
How we are with one individual, we are not the same with
another person. Whatever relationship we are catering to at
the moment, we behave accordingly.

Eg, behavior with a child will differ from behavior with a


professor
Activity for the next concept

Take out a piece of paper


You have a minute
Draw yourself, half of the image should be how you see yourself,
the other half should be how others see you
Put the paper aside now!
Self Concept- Who am I? SCHEMA
Genetic influence
on personality
A persons answers to
the question of who
am I? Social experience
builds the social
self
Self schemas- belief about self
that organize and guide the
processing of self relevant
information. Beliefs that define
you.
Bit more about self schemas

It is a part of self concept


Affect how we perceive, remember and evaluate OURSELVES &
OTHERS
Eg- self scheme of being an athlete- YOURSELF will relate more to
sports events and notice athletic skills of OTHERS. They make up
our self concept and organize our experiences
Possible Selves
Images of what we
dream of or dread
becoming in the
future

Oprah Winfreys imagined possible selves,


including the dreaded overweight self, the
rich self, and the helpful self, motivated
her to work to achieve the life she wanted.
Summary
Social experience
Genetics i.e- social self
Self
Concept

Self
Schema
Possible
selves
Take out the image you drew

It depicts your self concept, and answers Who am I (will contain


genetic traits and your social self)
Shows self schema- belief about yourself
Shows how you see others perceive you
Shows ideal self/ possible self
Self Esteem and other aspects of
self functioning
Myers, D.G. Social Psychology, 10th Edition. McGraw Hill.
International Edition, page numbers mentioned at the top of
every new concept
Self & Culture (p.42)

Individualism: The concept of giving priority


to ones own goals over group goals and
defining ones identity in terms of personal
attributes rather than group identifications.

Collectivism: Giving priority to the goals of


ones group (often ones extended family or
work group) and defining ones identity
accordingly
Individualism Collectivism

Independent Interdependent
self- construing ones self construing
identity as an ones identity in
autonomous self relation to others
ShinobuKitayama and Hazel
Markus (1995): In these cultures,
people are more self-critical and
p. 42. imp have less need for positive self-
regard
Q/A

Is your culture collectivistic or individualistic?


Are you collectivistic or individualistic?
Do you notice any changes in your cultural trends?
Do cultures change? Is culture linear?
Do cultures change first or does an individual change first?
Culture and Cognition (p.43- 44 must
read)
Richard
Nisbett-
collectivism
also results in
different
ways of
thinking

Nisbett (2003)-
Asians more often
sees monkey eats
banana
Nisbett (2003)-
What do you see? Japanese spontaneously
recalled 60 percent
more background
features than did
Americans, and they
spoke of more
relationships (the frog
beside the plant).
Americans look more at
the focal object, such as
a single big fish, and
less at the surroundings
Conclusion of the above 2
examples

Asians think more holistically taking into account


objects and people in relationship to one another and
to their environment
Kim and markus (1999)

77 percent of Americans
but only
31 percent of Asians
chose the uncommon
color (regardless of
whether it was orange,
as here, or green).
Self Esteem (p.52)
A persons overall self evaluation or
sense of self-worth.

Grades

Smart
Abilities

Looks
Social experience
Genetics i.e- social self
Self
Concept

Self
Schema
Self Esteem
Possible
selves
Low Self Esteem vs Secure Self
Esteem (p.55-56)
Low self esteem:- effects SELF SCHEMA then POSSIBLE SELF then
VIEW OF SELF & VIEW OF OTHERS
Secure self esteem:- when ones feeling good is not associated
with looks, money or the like
Low self esteem is more connected to external sources, whereas
a secure self esteem is linked to an internal source of satisfaction
If feeling good is the end goal for everything, then we will be less
open to criticism, less empathetic and so on
Video about history of the self
Ancient Greeks at the Temple of Delphi, found KNOW THY SELF written on a
shrine. What does this tell you about the concept of self?
William James 1890, pioneered the scientific study of the self
He studied the mind from within and established 3 aspects of the self- material,
spiritual and social
Material- physical world and things around us, Spiritual- sees us as thinkers, the
inner witness to events, Social-focuses on the image we create in minds of others
What is individuation? Gradual separation of child from mother, to develop unique
sense of self and a healthy personality
Failure to undergo individuation? Can lead to psychological problem when one
doesnt develop their sense of identity
Even for FREUD, self was a weak concept in the personality triad of id, ego and
superego. What was Freuds concept of the self?
Carl Rogers (1960), focused more on the conscious self
CONTD
Humanistic movement was by Carl Rogers
Difference in view of carl and freud?
Self concept? The individuals awareness of his or her continuing identity as a
person. It is the internal regulator of thoughts, feelings and behavior. It interprets
and organizes our on going experiences. How our present actions compare with
our standards and expectations and it affects our performance by providing plans
etc
Schemas (knowledge clusters) hold information about a concept, attribute etc
Self schema or self image can have a powerful impact on our behavior. How does
self image affect us?
Theory of self efficacy (Albert Bandura)- it concerns peoples belief in their
capability to exercise control over situations that affect their lives. People with
high sense of efficacy tend to take challenges, those with self doubt tend to shy
away since they feel they cannot cope with it
Video about Bandura experiment on self
efficacy (p.57)
Topic- how SE influences performance
Delia Cioffi (chaw-fee), gave task of improving production at a model furniture factory.
Said the improvement will reflect his innate intelligence and ability
Another participant was told that complex decision making is an acquirable skill and can
be improved through ones own efforts
1st participant- gets irritated and feels low from initial mistakes, sets lower expectations,
falling confidence and efficacy
2nd one- learns from initial mistakes and sets higher goals and shows better efficacy
Have the same skills but used them differently based on self belief
Talks about the social self
Patricia, drama teacher, talks about status transaction. Elements- eye contact, body
movement, speaks in senses, calm and breaths deeply
Strategic self presentation- present ourselves in a way so that others see us the way we
see ourselves
Video on Culture and Self

Mutual constitution- culture being an idea or way of doing things, we practice it and
see ourselves in collaboration with it. Culture shapes the self, the thinking and self
allows the culture to continue to be a part of our lives.

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