Chapter 15: The Self: What You Know About You

The IAT was developed to try to measure personal beliefs about the self as well as attitudes or opinions about the self. The procedure is somewhat complicated but effective. The IAT compares ___________ time for words that may describe the participant, or not. The IAT pairs comparison words together that should either __________ to what the participant's self-belief is, resulting in a faster reaction time or __________ the participant's self-belief, resulting in a longer reaction time. This longer reaction time is based on the hypothesis that the contradicting beliefs will take ________ to process. There is a significant amount of supporting research for the IAT's effectiveness in measuring implicit beliefs.

reaction, correspond, contradict, longer

the self as you currently see it (also known as the "actual self")

real self

Match each statement to the self that it describes. actual self ideal self ought self

refers to someone's understanding of themselves as they really are refers to someone's understanding of themselves as they would like to be in a perfect world discrepancies between this self and the real self can lead to anxiety

Long-term memories are recalled better when encoded in certain ways. Place the methods of recall in order from first to last.

rehearsal of information, elaboration on information, self-referent elaboration

This self, created by past experiences, informs us about how to interact with people we know well.

relational self

Our __________ is based on past experiences that direct how we relate with each of the important people in our lives.

relational self-schema

What is a particularly important influence on your working self-concept?

relational self-schema

Match each self-related concept example to the appropriate term. Zaire feels like he doesn't measure up in comparison to his friends and family. Zoe doesn't know why, but she feels most comfortable about herself when she's at work; she feels like she can function quickly and smoothly. Zach considers himself to be hard-working and shy Zalia wishes she was better at piano; she feels like she makes mistakes every time she plays. Zane has a detailed idea of what he is like, including his beliefs, abilities, and behaviors. As he prepares to walk into a party, Zed smiles, throws his shoulders back, and calls out to his friends.

self-esteem implicit self actual self self-efficacy self-schema working self-concept

The opinion one has of one's self is referred to as __________. This is a very influential attitude that can impact one's overall __________. If one's attitude toward oneself is __________ high or low, it could impact the self by altering the perceptions of self. In fact, people with excessively high self-esteem are prone to __________, which can significantly interfere with interpersonal functioning because these people often demean their peers. Alternatively, significantly low self-esteem can lead to __________, which has negative impacts on the self and on interpersonal relationships and can be very damaging if left unchecked. In conclusion, a balanced, accurate level of self-esteem is seen as the healthiest for the self.

self-esteem, self-schema, inaccurately, narcissism, depression

What term describes the wide range of knowledge a person has about their psychological attributes in a cognitive structure?

self-schema

The philosopher William James noted that the self can have two different meanings, which he called the I and the me. Which of the following correctly distinguishes the two?

the self that is being looked at is the me; the self that is doing the looking is the I

The enhancement of long-term memory that comes from thinking of how information relates to the self is called what?

the self-reference effect

What does the Implicit Association Test (IAT) aim to measure?

the strength of associations in an individual's cognitive system, of which the individual might not be concious

What is a downfall for people who self-enhance, or think they are better than what other people who know them think they are?

they run into problems with others, with mental health, and with adjustment

What is the best way to get information into your long-term memory (LTM)?

think about how it relates to your life

Let's say that you have a friend who, like you, is extremely good-looking, smart, funny, kind, and generally all-around attractive. Unlike you, however, your friend thinks he has no chance of having someone be romantically interested in him. When a big dance happens on campus, you ask someone you like to go with you, but your friend never makes the attempt to find a date and ends up staying in his dorm room.What was the cause of your different outcomes?

your friend lacked a positive view of the self

Your __________ self might include an image of yourself as being so good-looking that people pause and stare as you walk by. Your _________ self might include an image of yourself as somebody who never ever tells a lie.

ideal; ought

This self, which is part of the actual self, may not be as consciously accessible, but still influences our decisions and behavior.

implicit self

The self can impact us in many ways but is sometimes difficult to conceptualize. Consider the example of a cultural application of the self as seen in collectivist versus ________ cultures. Most of the discussion of the self has focused on a Western perspective, which has a(n) individualist culture, wherein the self is focused more on the individual. In more __________ cultures, on the other hand, some research shows that the self includes a concept of a group. When the self-_______ effect is considered, those from collectivist cultures responded the same to information related to __________ as they did to themselves, which was not the case for individualist cultures.

individualist, collectivist, reference, parents

What is the healthiest level of self-esteem one can have?

moderately high

Some philosophers and psychologists call the I the __________ self and the me the __________ self.

ontological; epistemological

refers to someone's understanding of how they think they should be based on social rules

ought self

The value of the Implicit Association Test (IAT) is that it can help to measure the characteristics of our implicit self. Why is this valuable?

our implicit selves can influence our emotions and behaviors

What are the images we have or can construct of the other ways we might be?

possible selves

Declarative knowledge is made up of items that we know: facts, impressions of other people, and the like. It can be changed by providing new knowledge, perhaps through conversation or from reading. Procedural knowledge is a different kind of knowledge, and changes in a different way.Which of the following best describes procedural knowledge?

procedural knowledge is learning by doing, so to change it, we need to actually practice a different behavior

Which of the following scenarios reflect components of the working self-concept? A) As she walks into a job interview, Natalia reassures herself, "You are a professional and you have the skill set for this job." B) Ginny's dad has always made bad decisions and is currently in prison. Ginny knows she wants something different for herself and focuses on her job applications as she finishes her last year of college. C) After finishing his shift at work, Raoul's mind is on taking a nap and meeting up with friends, in that order. As he leaves work, a scuffle breaks out between two men near him, but he does not even notice the interaction, and continues back toward his dorm room. D) Nancy's dad asks her to sit down and talk about her career. Nancy tells him that conversation is for another day, because she has plans to go to the beach.

A, C

Which of the following are related to low self-esteem? A) failure in the eyes of peers and feeling rejected B) more likely to engage in bullying or abusive behavior C) a poor opinion of the self and feeling unworthy D) less trusting in romantic partnerships E) loneliness and dissatisfaction with life

A, C, E

Which of the following are components of the self, or the me, according to James?

Component(s) of the Self: your relationship with your sister whether you own a bicycle skill level at playing tennis that you feel most comfortable at your grandma's house level of openness to experience eye color Not Component(s) of the Self: your relationship with the cashier at the grocery store your relationships with a new coworker at work

Which of the following are conditions of worth that can contribute to a person's overall self-esteem?

Condition(s) of Worth: social expectations physical attractiveness race gender Not Condition(s) of Worth: excelling at a sport

Ananya can envision herself having a career as a photographer. Which of the following decisions in her senior year of high school would align with her possible self?

Correct Answer(s): She may apply to mostly liberal arts colleges. She may be more likely to register for a photography elective class. She may be more focused on doing well on the verbal portion of the SAT. Incorrect Answer(s): She may apply to mostly colleges that offer an engineering major. She may be more likely to register for a physics class. She may be more focused on doing well on the math portion of the SAT.

Identify whether the following are examples of either declarative or procedural knowledge about the self.

Declarative Knowledge: Lucia knows that she is one of the most outgoing people in her class. Barry's mom told him that he learned to talk between 10 months and 2 years old. Procedural Knowledge: At soccer tryouts, Nathaniel isn't sure what the coach will ask players to do, so he waits in the back of the line and observes others first. Marianne is able to introduce herself and easily start a conversation with a new person.

_________ self-knowledge is the knowledge about our personality that we can actively process, discuss, and use to make decisions. Our self-esteem is part of this self, as we are aware of our opinion of our own worth. ________ self-knowledge is the collection of things that we know how to accomplish, such as a collection of skills. This self-knowledge results from an active process and is involved in decision making and behavior; it is not a process we can actively discuss. This is a key distinction between the two types of self-knowledge. Both are influential in our personality functioning but are present at different levels of awareness. The self-schema is comprised of both types of self-knowledge.

Declarative; procedural

Identify the important functions of the self.

Function(s) of the Self: helps us understand others based on our experiences helps us to restrain or maintain behaviors directs the gathering of accurate information about personality and ability organizes our self-knowledge Not Function(s) of the Self: organizes the information needed to study

What is a benefit of the working self-concept?

It helps us adapt to our current situation

Match each definition and example to the type of self it describes. Labels can be used more than once. procedural self implicit self relational self

Jacques is an outdoorsman, so he often invites dates on nature walks, where he is skilled and can converse easily. Jared says he likes fast food but he never wants to go to a fast-food restaurant. Marilu lives on her own, but when she returns home for Thanksgiving, she finds herself relaxing on the sofa while her parents prepare dinner.

Identify the following as applying to multiple selves or not.

Multiple Selves: working self-concept not knowing who you are or feeling that your identity is in flux changing behavior for different situations being short-tempered with one person but polite with another Not Multiple Selves: having goals that are congruent with one's self-image being "authentic" with predictable and steady behaviors having a coherent sense of self

Jazmin can envision herself working as a mechanical engineer after college. How might Jazmin's possible self impact her choices for her senior year of high school?

Possible-Self Outcome(s): She might be more likely to register for a physics class. She might apply to mostly colleges that offer an engineering major. She might be more focused on doing well on the math portion of the SAT. Not Possible-Self Outcome(s): She might be more focused on doing well on the verbal portion of the SAT. She might apply to mostly liberal arts colleges. She might be more likely to register for a photography elective class.

Anik goes to see a therapist with a specialty in nutrition because he is obese and a compulsive eater. What plan is the therapist likely to suggest to change Anik's procedural knowledge regarding eating?

Provide Anik with a food plan that he can follow as well as a food diary that Anik can compare to the plan, and give Anik feedback

Identify the following as either real self or possible self: Implicit, ought, future, relational, actual, ideal

Real: implicit relational actual Possible: ought future ideal

Match each function of the self to the correct definition. The process of controlling or continuing impulses and behaviors in order to move toward a long-term goal, such as earning good grades. The function that directs our attention and memory encoding toward the experiences that are meaningful to us. The organization of self-knowledge that tells us how we fit into our interpersonal groups, such as family. The process of understanding people through the lens of our own experience.relate to others

Self-regulation Information-processing filter Identity Relate to others

According to William James's (1890) theory of the self, identify the following as applying to either the I or the me.

The I: could also be called the homunculus the ontological self assesses how stubborn the self is actively observes and describes the self The Me: the epistemological self is observed and described when considering the self possesses a level of stubbornness

Why could you not really learn how to ride a bike, get dates, ice skate, or ace a job interview from reading a manual on the topic?

These have to do with procedural self that learns by doing and observing

Can the procedural self be changed?

Yes, through practice and feedback

What is the self-schema?

a cognitive structure that contains the declarative self

refers to someone's understanding of themselves as they really are

actual self

refers to someone's understanding of themselves as they would like to be in a perfect world

ideal self

Jamir has a test in his personality psychology class this Friday. What strategy should Jamir use to learn the term "self-esteem" and remember its definition for the test?

consider what his self-esteem is an how that influences his thoughts and behavior

The __________ self refers to things we know about ourselves, and the ___________ self refers to the things we know how to do or are comfortable with, and they provide others with an idea of who we are. Most theorists suggest that the procedural self works automatically, without much critical thought on our part. Part of this self includes __________ selves, which are general scripts that we use automatically to interact with people who we feel are important. These selves can also influence future relationships. Another part of this type of self is the concept of ___________ self. These selves direct our behavior based on attitudes or perceptions that may not be readily accessible to us consciously.

declarative, procedural, relational, implicit

Self-knowledge can be divided into two types: __________ consists of the facts and impressions that we consciously know and can describe; __________ is knowledge expressed through actions rather than words.

declarative; procedural

Within your conscious knowledge and opinions about your own personality traits, your overall opinion about whether you are good or bad is called self-__________. A more detailed opinion containing everything you know, or think you know, about your traits and abilities is called self-__________ and is __________ correct.

esteem; knowledge; not always

your self as you consider what could be in comparison to the actual self

future self