Living in Two Worlds

external world

Everything that exists outside of our minds.

self-preoccupation

1) distracted from real life -- worse memory -- test taking anxiety 2) choking under pressure

test-taking anxiety

anxiety crowds out knowledge internal thoughts are self-evaluation or self-deprecating

insomnia

being preoccupied with your own thoughts can make it harder to sleep (could be both the cause and the result)

Wilson & Schooler (1991)

exp 1: taste and rate strawberry jam already rated by consumer reports IV: 2 conditions (told to think about their decision making vs control group) Results: control group made similar ratings to experts but the consciously think group chose significantly different from experts

flow

focused concentration in which person becomes absorved in activity (eg sports, running, playing, etc.)

home-field disadvantage

for decisive games (championships, playoffs, hockey) both teams are self-aware but it's worse to lose at home. home teams tend to win early games in the series but lose last game due to more errors

choking under pressure

happens when we pay conscious attention to processes that are automatic and nonconscious (sports, public speaking; some actions aren't part of 'declarative knowledge') becomes worse with increased self-awareness

declarative knowledge

knowledge of information that can be expressed in words

quieting the self

meditation can help minimize intrusive thoughts about the safe. relaxation, decreased heart rate, lower blood pressure, clarity of thoughts

internal world

mostly self-talk

intuition

people experience this feeling from automatic information processing (automatic; no conscious knowledge of process)

Butler & Baumeister, 1998

supportive audiences can increase pressure and self-awareness participants with supportive audiences showed highest scores on private self-consciousness (more inside your own mind, not paying attention to real life so worse performance) high self-conscious is negatively correlated with performance

true

t/f Instead of being in external world, you're inside your internal world and you have a worse memory. Can happen with presentations for example Next-in-line effect: can't remember information immediately before one's performance (more difficult performances --> worse memory problems)

true

t/f flow is different for each individual

true

t/f flow is the opposite of preoccupation

true

t/f participants performed worse when observed by supportive audience (increasing ur self awareness and getting into ur head)

true

t/f usually we can move back and forth easily between the external and internal world but it can also divide our attention and hurt us

false (no, it's a passive experience)

t/f watching TV is considered a flow activity

true

t/f we don't know where our automatic thoughts come from. this is bc we have no awareness of where the feelings come from (people might disregard or not trust)

true

t/f we may disregard or override our intuition because we can reflect upon it ex. pro/con list vs what you feel -- dont always know why we're attracted to people and too much analyzing can change our views

sexual dysfunction

the self is an enemy to sexual satisfaction since you need to be in the moment being in your own mind during sex could lead to you being distracted or critical