{"id":4308,"date":"2018-09-18T22:00:55","date_gmt":"2018-09-19T02:00:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/?p=4308"},"modified":"2019-05-25T23:46:18","modified_gmt":"2019-05-26T03:46:18","slug":"self-and-personality","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/cultural-psychology\/self-and-personality\/","title":{"rendered":"Self and Personality"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>WHO AM I<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The nature of ourselves strongly influences the ways we perceive and interact with our social worlds<\/li>\n<li>People all over the world are able to think of themselves in terms of both abstract psychological attributes (\u201cI am creative\u201d) and concrete roles and relationships (\u201cI am a younger brother\u201d) o The ways in which they think of themselves in these two ways varies across cultures<\/li>\n<li>Our survival and fitness depend both on the things that we accomplish as individuals and on our abilities to interact successfully with others<\/li>\n<li>How we are ultimately distinct from other or how we are closely connected with others is the most researched psychological dimension across culture<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>INDEPENDENT VERSUS INTERDEPENDENT VIEWS OF SELF<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The self can be thought to derive its identity from its inner attributes \u2013 these are assumed to reflect an essence of the individual in that they are: o The basis of the individual\u2019s identity o Stable across the lifespan o Perceived to be unique\n<ul>\n<li>are self-contained in that they are perceived to arise from the individual and not from interactions with others<\/li>\n<li>Viewed as significant for regulating behaviour<\/li>\n<li>Individuals feel an obligation to publicly advertise themselves in ways consistent with these attributes<\/li>\n<li>Referred to as the <strong>independent view of self<\/strong> o <em>View figure on page 201 <\/em><\/li>\n<li>Independent selves tend to be viewed as distinct, autonomous entities whose identities are grounded in a variety of internal component features, and who interact with other similarly independent entities<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>The self can be viewed as a relational entity that is fundamentally connected to, and sustained by, a number of significant relationships<\/li>\n<li>Viewing oneself as part of an encompassing social relationship means that behavior is recognized as dependent upon perceptions of others thoughts, feelings, and actions<\/li>\n<li>In this view, individuals are not perceived as separate and distinct entities but as participants in a larger social unit o Their experience of identity is reflexive in that it is contingent on their position relative to others, and their relationships with those others\n<ul>\n<li>Referred to as the <strong>interdependent view of self<\/strong> o <em>View figure on page 203 <\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><em>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>These cultural differences in the self concept can also be observed in brain activation patterns\n<ul>\n<li>The medial-prefrontal cortex is an area that has previously been linked to self representations<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Self concept shapes much about how people think-not just about themselves but about the world more generally<\/li>\n<li>Our minds are like a computer \u2013 they both take in information, execute various programs or heuristics to process that information, and reach conclusion regarding the info considered o The mind, however, has a self-concept<\/li>\n<li>Our self concepts serve a number of key functions o Organize the info that we have about ourselves o Direct our attention to info that is viewed to be relevant\n<ul>\n<li>Shape the concerns we have<\/li>\n<li>Guide us in our choice of relationship partners and the kinds of relationships we maintain<\/li>\n<li>Influence how we interpret situations \u2013 which influences the emotional experiences that we have about them<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>The ways that people view themselves, in sum, are central topics of human cognition, motivation, emotions and relationships<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><em>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p>INDIVIDUALISM AND COLLECTIVISM<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>In addition to the constraints and affordances of the physical environment, cultural practices are also shaped by the kinds of self concepts a culture\u2019s members have<\/li>\n<li>Culture and self can be said to make up each other<\/li>\n<li>People participating in individualistic cultures are more likely to elaborate on independent aspects of themselves, and they come to feel distinct from others and emphasize the importance of being self sufficient<\/li>\n<li>People participating in a collectivist culture are more likely to attend to interdependent aspects of their self-concepts, such as their close relationships and group membership<\/li>\n<li>Most people participate in collectivistic cultures where interdependent selves are more common; these cultures likely encompass more than 80% of the world\u2019s population<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>A NOTE OF HETEROGENEITY OF INDIVIDUALS AND CULTURES<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Every individual surely has both interdependent and independent aspects of self; however, people do vary considerably in the degree to which they are closer to the independent or interdependent sides of the spectrum<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>GENDER AND CULTURE<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Features of interdependent identities seem more characteristic of women than men<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\u2013 features of independent identities seem more characteristic of men than women<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Women are apparently more interdependent than men only with respect to their attention to others feelings and concerns<\/li>\n<li>There are strikingly different views toward gender equality around the world<\/li>\n<li>Regardless of where the data were collected, within a culture, men and women tended to share fairly similar views about gender equality<\/li>\n<li>On average, males have significantly more traditional gender views than females \u2013 probably because traditional gender views benefit men more than women<\/li>\n<li>Geographical location of cultures and the percentage of population that practiced a particular religion had an impact on gender views o Countries who practiced Christianity had more egalitarian gender views o Countries who had a large percentage of Muslims had more traditional gender views<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>o Northern countries expressed more egalitarian views o Southern countries expressed more traditional views<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Also, more urbanized countries were more egalitarian, as well as country\u2019s individualism score also correlated positively with egalitarian views<\/li>\n<li>It is argued that a seemingly simple cultural innovation in agriculture had far reaching implications for gender norms<\/li>\n<li>Agriculture is conducted in 2 ways: shifting cultivation, and \u201cplough cultivation\u201d<\/li>\n<li>Shifting cultivation is more likely to be adopted by women and plough cultivation by men o When plough cultivation is practiced, women do not participate much at all in the labor sphere, but instead tend almost exclusively to domestic affairs<\/li>\n<li>Another way to consider how culture influences people\u2019s perceptions of gender is to determine which gender identity is viewed to be more essentialized (it reflects an underlying unchangeable essence)<\/li>\n<li>In general, the gender that is associated with more power in a culture is the one that is more likely to be essentialized o According to Hindu religion, female identity is viewed as pure, strong and powerful \u2013 this suggests that Indians should be more likely to essentialize female identity over male identity<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><u>SOME OTHER WAYS THAT CULTURES DIFFER IN THE SELF CONCEPT<\/u><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>SELF-CONSISTENCY<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>An important way that the self concept shapes our psychology is in how we think and behave across different situations<\/li>\n<li>Cultures vary considerably inn the degree that individuals are motivated to be consistent across situations<\/li>\n<li>It is proposed that we have a powerful motivation to be consistent and that cognitive dissonance is the distressing feeling we have when we observe ourselves acting inconsistently \u2013 this distressing sense gives us a great need to rid ourselves of it o One way to fix this is to act more consistently<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>o Another is to change our attitudes so that we no longer appear so inconsistent \u2013 known as dissonance reduction<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>One way we can see our desire to avoid dissonance is when we make choices<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>o There is a similarity across cultures in motivations to keep something consistent, however, what people try to keep consistent varies across cultures \u2013 these have marked effects on people\u2019s behaviours<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>One way to view this is to see how these motivations affect peoples responses to advertisers<\/li>\n<li>Our desire to be consistent is something that advertisers play on to encourage us to give them more of our money ( ex. If you\u2019ve ever agreed to give money to a certain cause, you will likely be reminded of you past contributions the next time that fundraiser\/cause contacts you)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>o If people with interdependent self concepts are less motivated for consistency within themselves, they should be less affected by fund raisers who remind them of their past behaviours<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>On the other hand they are especially attentive to others and might be motivated to act in ways consistent with how others similar to themselves have acted<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>o People with independent views of self therefore are motivated to be consistent across situations<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>SELF-AWARENESS<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Subjective self awareness<\/strong>: a state of mind which individuals consider themselves from the perspective of the subject and demonstrate little awareness of themselves as individuals<\/li>\n<li><strong>Objective self awareness: <\/strong>a state of mind in which individuals consider how they appear to others and are conscious of being evaluated<\/li>\n<li>A \u201cfirst person\u201d memory contains the imagery that you experience firsthand<\/li>\n<li>When your thoughts of others\u2019 perceptions leak into your memory it provides you with some \u201cthird person\u201d imagery<\/li>\n<li>People are motivated to view themselves in certain ways, which can often distort the accuracy of their self assessments o Assessments made by others might be more accurate because they would be less distorted by the way that people want to view themselves<\/li>\n<li>People tend to be very critical when adopting the perspective of an audience, because they take on the role of the judge o As the judge they are always able to conjure up standards to compare themselves with that are higher than their current levels of performance<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>o When people hear their own voices on audiotape, see a video camera directed at them, or see themselves in a mirror, they are more likely to be in a state of objective self-awareness<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>IMPLICIT THEORIES REGARDING THE NATURE OF THE SELF<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The nature of our self concept is shaped by the implicit theories that we have about it<\/li>\n<li>Implicit theories guide our interpretation of much of what happens in the world<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>o Ex. You might believe its dangerous to walk through a particular neighborhood by yourself late at night because of your belief that much violence occurs there, especially a solo pedestrian in the dark<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Implicit theories are a great place to explore cultural influences on psychology because they reflect the beliefs that people have<\/li>\n<li><strong>Incremental theory of self<\/strong>: the belief that we can easily change, and are expected to change o Represents the belief that a person\u2019s abilities and traits are malleable and can be improved<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>o The attributes that one possesses are not seen to remain constant across ones life but are perceived as reflecting how hard one has worked on them<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Entity theory of self<\/strong>: the belief that aspects of the self are largely resistant to change o People who endorse this set of beliefs tend to view their abilities and traits as largely fixed, innate features of the self\n<ul>\n<li>Individuals with this view see their attributes to be largely inborn and stay largely the same as they get older<\/li>\n<li>If your self varies from situation to situation, it seems unlikely that you would embrace an entity theory<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>The different ways that we educate people shape the theories that people hold about the nature of intelligence, likewise, the theories that we have shape the decisions that our schools make for educating people o This is one way that we can see the mutual influences of cultural practices and psychological processes<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><u>PERSONALITY<\/u><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>THE FIVE-FACTOR MODEL OF PERSONALITY<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u201cThe Big Five\u201d \u2013 according to this model there are five underlying personality traits or \u201ccore traits\u201d<\/li>\n<li>Factor analysis is a technique that can identify groups of things that are alike or different o It can simplify a long list of items into a much shorter list of underlying factors by investigating the patterns of correlations among the various items\n<ul>\n<li>In the case of personality testing \u2013 factor analysis has been used to reduce the number of personality traits to a much more manageable number \uf0b7 The five underlying personality traits are:<\/li>\n<li><em>Openness to experience<\/em> \u2013 reflects a persons intelligence and curiosity about the world<\/li>\n<li><em>Conscientiousness <\/em>\u2013 how responsible and dependable an individual is o <em>Extraversion<\/em> \u2013 indicates how much an individual is active or dominant o <em>Agreeableness <\/em>\u2013 extent to which a person is warm and pleasant o <em>Neuroticism <\/em>\u2013 degree to which an individual is seen as emotionally stable\/unstable<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Proposes that all personality traits largely reflect some combination of these different five core traits<\/li>\n<li>It is possible that the five factor model represents fundamental responses to biological challenges encounters by many species o If this is true \u2013 the five factor model should indeed be evident in humans of all cultures<\/li>\n<li>Interpersonal relatedness might be a sixth personality factor that is especially salient in Chinese culture o Whether it is a reliable sixth factor in western samples has yet to be determined<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>WHO AM I The nature of ourselves strongly influences the ways we perceive and interact with our social worlds People all over the world are able to think of&hellip; <a class=\"continue\" href=\"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/cultural-psychology\/self-and-personality\/\">Continue Reading<span> Self and Personality<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[108],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4308"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4308"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4308\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4858,"href":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4308\/revisions\/4858"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4308"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4308"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4308"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}