ADORADA T.

REYNALDO
PA 51 – Social Psychology
2nd Semester 2020-2021
Master in Public Administration
Aklan State University
David G. Myers
 Professor of Psychology,
Hope College; Co-author,
Psychology, 11th Edition
 DAVID G. MYERS is the
John Dirk Werkman
Professor of Psychology at
Hope
1. those aspects of one’s identity or self-concept that are
important to or influenced by interpersonal relationships and
the reactions of other people.
2. a person’s characteristic behavior in social situations.
3. the facade that an individual may exhibit when in contact
with other people, as contrasted with his or her real self.
- American Psychological Association Dictionary of Psychology
https://dictionary.apa.org/self-concept
 Our selves are not created in isolation; we are not born with
perceptions and beliefs of ourselves. These are
determined by our observations of and interactions with
others.
 The self has meaning only within the social context; social
situation defines our self-concept and our self-esteem. We
rely on others to provide a “social reality”—to help us
determine what to think, feel, and do.
 Our selves operate at a social level, in addition to
psychological, neural, and molecular levels.
 "You can’t be a
self by yourself.“
- Hazel Rose Markus

Hazel Rose Markus

Social Psychologist and a pioneer in the
field of Cultural psychology and Professor
in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford
University
HOW DOES A PERSON’S SENSE OF SELF
EMERGE?
  The interactive process through which people learn
 Basic skills
 Values
 Beliefs
 Behavior patterns of a society

 Within socialization, a person develops a sense of self

 Conscious awareness of possessing a distinct identity that
separates you from other members of society.
 John Locke
 English philosopher from the
1600’s.
 Insisted each newly born
human being is a tabula
rasa
 “blank slate”
 No personality
 Newborns could be molded
into anything with training.
 Charles H. Cooley
 Developed idea of looking
glass self
 The interactive process by which
we develop an image of ourselves
based on how we imagine we
appear to others.
 Ex: Other people act as a mirror
reflecting back the image we see
with their reactions.
 Fear = ugliness
 3 STEPS
 We imagine how we appear to others.

 Based on the other’s reactions, we attempt to determine

whether they view us as we see ourselves.

 We use our perceptions of how others judge us to

develop feelings about ourselves.
George Herbert Meade
 Believed that we not only see ourselves as others
see us, but actually take on the roles of others.
 Called role-taking
 Socialization process that allows a person to anticipate
what others expect of us.
 EX: being a good person around grandma!
 You do so because she is a good person!
 Mead says a person first
individualizes significant others
 Mom
 Dad
 Sister
 Brother
 As we grow older
 People internalize attitudes,
expectations, and viewpoints of
society
 Generalized other
 Children develop skills
that are necessary in order
to role-take through social
interaction
 1 month – 3 years  After 5 years
 Children lack sense of self.
 Therefore, they can only
imitate the action of others.
 3 -5 years
 Children learn to play and act
out roles
 Can play “house” or role play
 Children can play games with
specific rules
 Children can anticipate actions of
others
 Children can outmaneuver other
players
 “I”
 The unsocialized, spontaneous, self-interested component
of personality.
 Very large role in children

 “Me”
 The part of our self that is aware of the expectations and
attitudes of society.
 Very large role in adults
a. Social Comparison Theory: Our Sense of Self Is
Influenced by Comparisons with Others
b. Social Identity Theory: Our Sense of Self Is Influenced
by the Groups We Belong To
c. Self-Presentation: Our Sense of Self Is Influenced by
the Audiences We Have
Social comparison occurs when we learn about our
abilities and skills, about the appropriateness and validity
of our opinions, and about our relative social status by
comparing our own attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors with
those of others.
Downward Social Comparison
 Upward Social Comparison.
 Downward Social Comparison occurs
when we attempt to create a positive
image of ourselves through favorable
comparisons with others who are worse
off than we are.
1. Can increase positive affect

2. Can decrease negative moods

3. Can increase optimism about the future

4. Can enhance/preserve self-esteem

5. Can increase relationship satisfaction

 Upward Social Comparison
occurs when we compare ourselves
with others who are better off than
we are.
1. Can allow for new goal-setting

2. Can provide motivation for improvement

3. Can improve our own confidence (watching others

complete a task or achieve a feat can provide us with
confidence we can do the same thing!)
4. Canprovide knowledge (learning from others’
experiences)
• Can lead to negative feelings about oneself
• Reduced self-efficacy
• Reduced self-esteem
• Feelings of inferiority
• Hopelessness
• Sadness
• Frustration
• The key to engaging in social
comparison is moderation and timing.
There are times when comparing oneself
to others is okay and natural, and there
are other times it can be harmful and
detrimental to one’s psychology.
Social identity theory asserts that we
draw part of our sense of identity and self-
esteem from the social groups that we
belong to.
We can gain self-esteem by perceiving
ourselves as members of important and
valued groups that make us feel good about
ourselves.
Group memberships result in positive
feelings, which occur because we perceive
our own groups and thus ourselves in a
positive light.
Your membership in social groups becomes
part of what you are, and the membership
often makes you feel good about yourself.
Belonging to a social group can
provide you with a social identity
Which of our many identities is most
accessible for us will vary from day to day as
a function of the particular situation we are
in.
Which of our identities we draw our self-
esteem from at a given time will depend on
the situation we are in, as well as the social
goals we have.
Self-Enhancement by Basking in the
reflected glory of our ingroups,
which occurs when we use and
advertise our ingroups’ positive
achievements to boost our self-esteem.
The tendency to present a positive
self-image to others, with the goal of
increasing our social status, is known
as self-presentation, and it is a basic
and natural part of everyday life.
1. The goal of ingratiation is to create liking by using flattery or charm.

2. The goal of intimidation is to create fear by showing that you can be

aggressive.

3. The goal of exemplification is to create guilt by showing that you are a

better person than the other.

4. The goal of supplication is to create pity by indicating to others that you

are helpless and needy.

5. The goal of self-promotion is to create respect by persuading others that

you are competent.
 Reputation management, which is a form of
long-term self-presentation, where individuals seek
to build and sustain specific reputations with
important audiences.
 Our behaviors in current social situations may not
only be to serve our self-presentational goals in
that moment, but also be based on a consideration
of their longer-term repercussions for our
reputations.
TAKE CARE AND KEEP SAFE!
 The Social Self video clip https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efafv2gh-yY

 The Social Self: The Role of the Social Situation

https://opentextbc.ca/socialpsychology/chapter/the-social-self-the-role-of-the-
social-situation/
 Social Comparison in our Society. https://claritychi.com/social-comparisons-in-
our-social-society/

 https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/social-comparison-theory

 https://psychology.iresearchnet.com/social-psychology/social-
cognition/downward-social-comparison/