Psychology of the self

1
Psychology of the self

• An ecological perspective

2
Overview

• Neissers five forms of self knowledge
• The ecological self
• The interpersonal self
• The conceptual self
• The extended (or remembered ) self
• The private self
• Bems Self perception Theory
• Brewers optimal distinctiveness model

3
The ecological Self

• The ecological self refers to the relationship
  between the person and the physical
  environment-to be precise, the self as embedded
  in the physical environment
• (Kihlstrom and Klein, 1994).

Perspective view of an observer advancing
towards a planar surface (H. Y. Solomon, 1988).
4
Parallel flow in the moving room

• Lee (1994) demonstrated that toddlers have an
  ecological awareness.

Velocity of Body
Velocity of Room
5
The Interpersonal Self

• Where the ecological self is an active agent in
  the physical environment, the interpersonal self
  is an agent in an ongoing social exchange
  (Neisser 1994).

6
The conceptual self

• All human beings subscribe to a wide array of
  beliefs and assumptions about themselves. Taken
  together these beliefs constitute the
  self-concept or conceptual self (Neisser, 1988).

7
The self concept

• Includes
• Categories and roles, which bring-
• expectations,
• evaluations and
• obligations.

8
The remembered (or extended) self

• Consists of the persons self narrative.
• Extends back into the past and forward into the
  future.
• The life narrative develops in the third year or
  later.
• A version of the self-concept which transcends
  the present moment a temporally extended self
  (Neisser 1994).

9
The Private Self

• The experiences and thoughts that are
  inaccessible to other people accept through
  self-reports (e.g. hunger, pain, dreams,
  secrets).
• Kihlstrom and Klein 1994.

10
Self-perception Theory (Bem 1972).

• Individuals come to know their own attitudes,
  emotions, and other internal states partially by
  inferring them from observations of their own
  overt behavior and/or the circumstances in which
  this behavior occurs

11
Self-perception Theory

• Thus, to the extent that internal cues are weak,
  ambiguous or uninterpretable, the individual is
  functionally in the same position as an outside
  observer who must necessarily rely upon those
  same external cues to infer the individuals
  inner states.

12
Bems Self Perception Theory

• Was inspired by Skinners Radical-behavioral
  analysis of private events (Skinner 1945).
• Egoreception accompanies alteroception like the
  other side of a coinOne perceives the other and
  coperceives oneself (Neisser 1994).

13
Bems Self Perception Theory

• Neither the interpersonal observer nor the
  individual is confined to inferences based only
  on overt actions.
• There is something more to interpersonal
  perception than responding to the overt behavior
  of an individual (Miller and Dollard, 1941).

14
Self Perception Theory
THE PEACEMAKER 1997
Directed by Mimi LederCast George Clooney
(Tom Devoe), Nicole Kidman (Julia Kelly)Length
120 minutesProduced by Dreamworks SKG,
executive producer Steven SpielbergRating
1/2
15
Self Perception Theory

16
Applications of Self Perception Theory-
Discounting and Augmentation effects.

• When people are told that an external factor
  either facilitates or inhibits their overt
  reactions, they tend to discount or augment
  judgements of their own internal state.
  Especially if the internal state is weak or
  ambiguous.
• (J. M. Olson 1992)

17
Applications of Self Perception Theory. The
Feature-Positive effect.

• People tend to draw inferences about their
  attitudes from their decisions to perform a
  behaviour, but are not so inclined to draw
  inferences about their attitudes from the
  non-occurrence of a behaviour.
• (Fazio et al., 1982)

18
Optimal distinctiveness theory

• Social identity derives from a fundamental
  tension between human needs for validation and
  similarity (on the one hand) and a countervailing
  need for uniqueness and individuation (on the
  other)
• -Marilynn Brewer 1991

19
Social Identities

• Social identities are categorizations of the
  self into more and more inclusive social units
  that depersonalize the self-concept, where I
  becomes we (Brewer 1991).

Team member
Sports fan
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Social identities

A member of a church group
Vatican
04-06-2005 or a Religion
21
The Optimal distinctiveness model (Marilynn B.
Brewer).

Assimilation
Differentiation
Need (Dissatisfaction)
Resultant Satisfaction
Optimal Inclusion
Low
High
22
Conclusion

• Five types of self knowledge
• Ecological self
• Interpersonal self
• Conceptual self
• Extended self
• Private self
• Self perception theory
• Optimal distinctiveness model