Cultural Psych: Ch. 6

Objective self-awareness

A state where the self can be experienced as the way that we perceive the rest of the world. That is, the self can be experienced as the "me" that is observed and interacted with by others. In this state, our concerns are directed specifically at ourselves, from the outside in. We are conscious of how we are being seen and evaluated by others.

Subjective self-awareness

A state where we consider ourselves from the perspective of the subject. In this state, our concerns are with the world outside of ourselves, and we are largely unaware of ourselves. Our attention is directed away from ourselves, from the inside out.

Five Factor Model of Personality

According to this model, there are five underlying personality traits, or "core traits." If you would attempt to measure people's personalities by use of any substantial list of personality traits, you would find a great deal of overlap among many of the traits, allowing the list to be reduced to a much smaller number.

Extraversion

Indicates how much an individual is active or dominant

Conscientiousness

Indicates how responsible and dependable an individual is.

Entity theory of self

People who endorse this set of beliefs tend to view their abilities and traits as largely fixed, innate features of the self. Individuals with this view see their attributes to be largely inborn.

Openness to experience

Reflects a person's intelligence and curiosity about the world

Essentialized

Something that is thought to reflect an underlying unchangeable essence.

Neuroticism

The degree to which an individual can be seen as emotionally unstable and unpredictable

Agreeableness

The extent to which person tends to be warm and pleasant.

Independent view of self

The self can be thought to derive its identity from its inner attributes. These attributes are assumed to reflect on inner essence of the individual in that they are the basis of the individual's identity, they are viewed as stable across situations and across the lifespan, they are perceived to be unique (in the sense that no other individual possesses the same configuration of attributes), they are self-contained in that they are perceived to arise from the individual and not from interactions with others, they are viewed as significant for regulating behavior, and individuals feel an obligation to publicly advertise themselves in ways consistent with these attributes.

Interdependent view of self

The self can be viewed as a relational entity that is fundamentally connected to, and sustained by, a number of significant relationships. This is a profoundly different orientation of the individual. Rather than elaborating on how behavior and thoughts emanate from individual's inner features, viewing oneself as part of an encompassing social relationship means that behavior is recognized as contingent upon perceptions of others' thoughts, feelings, and actions. With this view, individuals are not perceived as separate and distinct entities but as participants in a larger social unit. Their experience of identity is reflexive in that it is contingent on their position relative to others, and their relationships with those others.

Incremental theory of self

This theory of self represents the belief that a person's abilities and traits are malleable and can be improved. The attributes that one possesses are not seen to remain constant across one's life but are perceived as reflecting how hard one has worked on them.

Cognitive dissonance

We have a powerful motivation to be consistent. This phenomenon is the distressing feeling we have when we observe ourselves acting inconsistently.