self awareness

• 3 types of self

  individual - personal traits distinguish you from others

  relational - relationships that connect you to other people

  collective - group membership
• what are the three types of self?

  individual relational collective
• self awareness is a psychological state. we are not born with the understanding of the concept of self
• public v private self?

  public - apprehension knowing you're being evaluated by others

  private - internal thoughts / feelings
• chronic self awareness - constantly aware of shortcomings
• what can chronic self-awareness lead to?

  dangerous avoidance behaviour
• reduce self awareness - do not monitor your own behaviour
• what can reduced self awareness lead to?

  impulsive or reckless behaviour
• being chronically aware leads to heightened private and public
• characteristics of heightened private:

  • intense emotions
  • accurate self perception
  • stick to personal beliefs
• characteristics of heightened public:

  • nervousness
  • loss of self esteem
• we store our self-knowledge in our schema
• specific schemas about other people lead to stereotypes
• self schematic - important parts of self concept
• self aschematic - parts of self concept that are not that important to us
• what are the six theories of self development?

  1. control theory of regulation
  2. self discrepancy
  3. social comparison theory
  4. self evaluation maintenance
  5. social identity theory
  6. self categorisation theory
• control of self regulation (carver & scheier, 1981)


  assessing whether private goals have been met
• self discrepancy theory (higgins)


  evaluating actual self, ideal self, future self. if there is discrepancy between these, leads to disappointment and anxiety
• social discrepancy theory focuses on emotion driving change
• social comparison theory (festinger)


  our goal is to reach the level of our peers
• self evaluation maintenance (tesser)

  upwards social comparison. target's ability exaggerated and viewed as unattainable. individual may change target to have an easier goal
• social identity theory (tajfel & turner)


  focused on group behaviour and group norms. individual defines themselves by group membership
• self categorisation theory


  extends social identity theory. individual; internalise group identity