Self Concept
the relatively stable set of perceptions you hold of yourself
Self Esteem
the part of the self-concept that involves evaluations of self worth
What age does self-concept start?
At about 6 or 7 months
Reflected Appraisal
a mirroring of the judgements of those around us; your self-concept can be seen as a reflection of the messages you have received throughout life
Significant Other
the term used to describe a person whose evaluations are especially influential
Social Comparison
evaluating ourselves in terms of how we compare with others; we decide whether we are superior or inferior and similar or different by comparing ourselves to reference groups
Reference Group
people we use to evaluate our own characteristics
Cognitive Conservatism
the tendency to seek information that conforms to an existing self-concept
The 4 requirements needed to regard appraisal as important
1. the person who offers appraisal must be someone we see as competent to offer it
2. appraisal must be perceived as highly personal
3. appraisal must be reasonable in light of what we believe about ourselves
4. appraisal must be reasonable in light of wh
Self-fullfilling prophecy
occurs when a person's expectations of an event and their behavior is based on those expectations, making the outcome more likely to occur than would otherwise have been true
4 Stages of Self-fullfilling Prophecy
1. holding an expectation
2. behaving in accordance with that expectation
3. the expectation coming to pass
4. reinforcing the original expectation
How to Change Your Self-Concept
1. have realistic expectations
2. have a realistic perception of yourself
3. have the will to change
4. have the skill to change: seek advice, observe models
Identity Management
the communication strategies people use to influence how others view them
Perceived Self
the person you believe yourself to be in moments of honest self-examination
Presenting Self
a public image, the way we want to appear to others, in most cases the presenting self we seek to create is a socially approved image
Face
term used to describe a socially approved identity
Facework
term used to describe the verbal and nonverbal ways in which we act to maintain our own presenting image and images of others
Characteristics of Identity Management
1. strive to construct multiple identities
2. it is collaborative
3. it can be deliberate or unconscious
4. there are varying degrees of identity management`
How We Manage Impressions
1. face-to-face identity
2. identity management in mediated communication
Face-to-Face Identity Management
can be managed in three ways:
1. manner-consists of communicators words and nonverbal actions
2. appearance-personal items people use to shape an image
3. setting-physical items we use to influence how others view us
Paul Cozby on Self Disclosure
1. contain personal information about the sender
2. sender must communicate this information verbally
3. another person must be the target
Self-Disclosure has to be...
1. have the self as subject
2. be intentional
3. be directed at another person
4. is honest
5. is revealing
6. contains information generally unavailable from other sources
7. gains much of its intimate nature from the context in which it is expressed
Percentage of Communication that Qualifies as Self-Disclosure
2%
Social Penetration Model (Irwin Altman and Dalmas Taylor)
The first dimension of self-disclosure in this model involves the breadth of information volunteered-the range of subjects being discussed
The second dimension of disclosure is the depth of the information being volunteered-the shift from relatively nonre
Types of Information used to Classify the Depth of the Relationship (Social Penetration)
1. cliches-ritualized stock responses to social situations-virtually the opposite of self-disclosure
2. facts-to qualify a fact as being self-disclosed it has to fit the criteria of being intentional, significant, and otherwise not known, disclosing these
Johari Window (Joseph Luft & Harry Ingham)
Part one: contains information which both you and your partner are aware of, the "open" area
Part two: represents the blind area, information which you are unaware but the other person knows
Part three: represents the hidden area, information you know but
Benefits of Self Disclosre
1. catharsis
2. self-clarification
3. self-validation
4. reciprocity
5. impression formation
6. relationship maintenance and enhancement
7. moral obligations
8. social influence
9. self-defense
Catharsis
disclosing information in an effort to get it off of your chest, when this is the only goal of disclosure the results of opening up may not be good
Self-Validation
disclosing information with the hope of seeking the listener's agreement, seeking validation of your behavior-confirming your belief you hold about yourself
Reciprocity
one person's act of self-disclosure increases the odds that the other person will reveal personal information; your own honesty can create a climate that makes the other person feel safer and perhaps even obligated to match your level of candor
Impression Formation
revealing personal information to make ourselves more attractive, which research shows that it seems to work
Relationship Maintenance and Enhancement
we like when people disclose personal information to us; the relationship between self-disclsoing and liking works in several directions: we like people who disclose personal information to us, we reveal more about ourselves to people who we like, and we
Moral Obligation
we disclose information because we feel morally obligated to do so
Social Influence
self disclosing can be an effective compliance gaining strategy, in addition to disclosing to help ourselves, people reveal personal information to help others; guests who disclose personal information on a tv show do so because their primary motive is to
Self-Defense
we may choose to self-disclose something before someone else discloses it for you; self-disclosing negative or damaging information is frequently used as an adaptive social influence strategy called "stealing thunder
Risk of Self-Disclosure
1. reflection
2. negative impression
3. decrease in relational satisfaction
4. loss of influence
5. loss of control
6. hurt the other person
John Powell
I am afraid to tell you who i am because if i tell you who i am, you may not like who i am, and thats all i have
Alternatives to Self-Disclosure
1. silence-sometimes keeping things to ourselves can be the best approach to take
2. lying-a deliberate attempt to hide or misrepresent the truth
3. Equivocation-has two or more equally plausible meanings; is neither a false message nor a clear truth but
Benevolent Lies
are defined as not being malicious and perhaps they are even helpful to the person to whom they are told; lies happen once in every 10 conversations with close people; 2/3 lies are told for selfish reasons
Guidelines for Self-Disclosure
1. is the other person important to you?
2. is the risk of disclosing reasonable?
3. is the self-disclosure appropriate?
4. is the self-disclosure relevant to the situation at hand?
5. is the disclosure reciprocated?
6. will the effect be constructive?
Self-Concept: Perception of Yourself Concerning...
1. physical appearance
2. intelligence
3. personality
4. strengths
5. weaknesses
William James: 3 components of self
1. Material-you are what you own
2. Social-many different social selves present to the world
3. Spiritual-asks the eternal life questions
4 Factors that Affect How We Develop
1. interactions with other people, starts at conception, and others affect us
2. groups we belong to shape the way we are
3. the roles we take on throughout life
4. self-lables-where do they come from? self reactive/reflectiveness, we talk to ourselves ab
Difference Between Self-Esteem and Self-Concept
self-esteem= evaluation
self-concept=description
self-worth is changeable with esteem
Self-Esteem is our sense of value found through social comparisons to other peopel
4 Life Positions
1. We're okay-people with this belief tend to live longer lives and have healthier relationships
2. I'm okay but you're not okay-these people tend to be prideful, not fun to be around because they see you as inferior
3. I'm not okay but you're okay-people
Communication Styles
1. The Driver-person is high on the assertive scale, very task oriented and gets the job done, control their emotions, stand offish, abrupt, strive for efficiency
2. The Analytical-very low on both scales of assertive and responsive, happy being in a cubi
Principals for Self-Disclosure
1. Building block for intimacy-early stages of relationship there are high levels of self-disclosure but is not very costly but as we get closer the disclosure drops
2. We expect it to be reciprocal and appropriate
3. We asses the risks differently
4. We
Inhibition Hypothesis
we exert stress upon ourselves to hide our emotions
Self Disclosure Paradoxes
1. Which comes first trust or self-disclosure
2. the more you self-disclose the more there is to disclose
How to Improve Self-Concept
1. you have to want change, you have to take risks
2. you have to be willing to forgive yourself
3. set realistic goals for yourself
4. develop your uniqueness
5. stand up for what you believe in
6. view yourself in proper perspective
7. practice positive
First-Order Realities
physically observable qualities of a thing or solution
Second-Order Realities
involve our attaching meaning to first-order things or situations, this doesn't reside in objects or events but rather in our minds
Steps in Perception Process
1. Selection
2. Organization
3. Interpretation
4. Negotiation
Organization
After selecting data from the environment we must arrange it in some meaningful way in order to make sense of the world, we do this by using personal schemas-cognitive frameworks that allow us to give order to the information we have selected
4 Types of Schemas to Classify Others
1. Physical constructs-classify people according to their appearance
2. Role Constructs-use social position such as student, attorney, or husband
3. Interaction Constructs-focus on social behavior
4. Psychological Constructs-refer to internal states of mi
Punctuation
Term used to describe the determination of cause and effects in a series of interactions
Interpretation
Once we have selected and organized our interpretations we interpret them in a way that makes some sort of sense
Factors that Affect Interpretation
1. Relational Satisfaction-behavior that seems positive when you are happy with a partner
2. Expectation
3. Personal Experience
4. Assumptions about human behavior
Negotiation
The process by which communicators influence each others perceptions through communication
Physiological Influences on Perception
1. The Senses
2. Age
3. Health and Fatigue
4. Hunger
5. Biological Cycles
6. Neurobehavioral Challenges
Psychological Influences on Perception
1. Mood
2. Self-Concept
Social Influences on Perception
1. Sex and Gender Roles
2. Occupational Roles
Psychological Sex Types
Replaces the masculine-feminine dichotomy with four roles for both male and female: Masculine Males, Feminine Males, Androgynous, and Indifferent
Common Tendencies in Perception
1. We Make Snap Judgements
2. We Cling to First Impression
3. We Judge Ourselves More Charitably than we do Others
4. We are Influenced by Our Expectations
5. We are influenced by the Obvious
6. We Assume Others are Like Us
Three Characteristics that Distinguish Stereotypes from Reasonable Generalizations
1. Categorizing others on the basis of easily recognized but not necessarily significant characteristics
2. Ascribing a set of characteristics to most or all members of a group
3. Applying the generalization to a particular person
Halo effect
Term used to describe the tendency to form an overall positive impression of a person on the basis of one positive characteristic
Confirmation Bias
Term used to describe the process in which we form a first impression about someone and tend to seek out and organize our impressions to support that opinion
Self-Serving Bias
The tendency to evaluate others critically and judge ourselves in the most generous terms possible
Synchronizing Our Perceptions
1. Perception Checking
2. Building Empathy
Perception Checking
Provides a better way to check and share our interpretation; has three parts
1. A description of the behavior you noticed
2. Two possible interpretations of the behavior
3. A request for clarification about how to interpret the behavior
Empathy
The ability to re-create another person's perspective, to experience the world from their point of view
Three Dimensions of Empathy
1. Perspective Taking-the ability to take on the viewpoint of another person
2. Emotional Contagion-we experience the same feelings the others have
3. Genuine Concern for the welfare of the other person
Values of Empathy
1. Increased self-esteem
2. The act of being understood can also be comforting
3. The target of empathy learns to trust the empathizer
Skills Required for Empathy
1. Open-Minded-to set aside your own beliefs for one moment and consider the beliefs of others
2. Imagination-picture another persons background and thoughts
3. Commitment-a sincere desire to understand another person