Self-Esteem and Self-Enhancement

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zachary P. Hohman ◽  
Joshua K. Brown
Keyword(s):  
Psychological Theory ◽  
Self Determination Theory ◽  
Self Esteem ◽  
The Self ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Social Psychological ◽  
Domain Specific ◽  
Self Worth ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Social Psychological Theory

Self-esteem and self-enhancement are two critical phenomena that play major roles in social psychological theory and research. Everyone has an idea what self-esteem is; however, from an empirical standpoint, what exactly is self-esteem is hotly debated. The unidimensional definition of self-esteem defines it as a global assessment of one’s worth, with greater self-esteem being associated with greater self-worth. Whereas the multidimensional view of self-esteem defines self-esteem as a ratio of competences and worthiness. Furthermore, self-esteem can be broken down into different types: trait self-esteem is a stable view of the self that does not fluctuate much from day to day; state self-esteem is a more transitory view of the self that fluctuates from day to day; and domain-specific self-esteem relies on decisions we make about ourselves or self-evaluations about how we perform in specific situations. Regardless of type, there is an overall belief that humans have an innate need for high self-esteem and that they are particularly attuned to situations that may threaten this. When self-esteem is threatened, people enact behaviors aimed at increasing it: this is called self-enhancement. The idea that people are driven to self-enhance has become a popular topic in psychology and is found in some of the field’s most influential theories. For example, self-determination theory (SDT) examines both interpersonal and intrapersonal aspects of self-esteem and self-enhancement. Terror management theory (TMT) explains why human beings need self-esteem and how they self-enhance. Sociometer theory is concerned with understanding how self-esteem developed in humanity’s past and how it affects self-enhancement in the present. Finally, self-affirmation theory focuses on how people try to self-enhance after their self-integrity has been threatened.

Self-Concept and Perceived Social Support among College Students with and without Learning Disabilities

1997 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 2-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Merith A. Cosden ◽  
Joanne McNamara
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
Social Acceptance ◽  
Self Esteem ◽  
The Self ◽  
Domain Specific ◽  
Self Perceptions ◽  
Campus Organizations ◽  
Intellectual Abilities ◽  
Students With Ld ◽  
Self Worth

This study examined the self-perceptions of college students with and without LD. Fifty college students with LD and 50 college students without LD were individually administered the Self-Perception Profile for College Students and People in My Life. Students with LD had lower grades, test scores, and perceptions of their scholastic and intellectual abilities than students without disabilities. However, students did not differ in their perceptions of global self-worth, the importance they placed on academic competence, or their ratings of domain-specific competencies. Students with LD reported more social acceptance and support, and more support from campus organizations, than did students without LD. Support from campus organizations was related to self-esteem for students with LD, while support from instructors was associated with self-esteem for students without LD. Other factors related to self-esteem are discussed.

Taking the Social Origins of Human Nature Seriously: Toward a More Imperialist Social Psychology

2004 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 107-113 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marilynn B. Brewer
Keyword(s):  
Social Psychology ◽  
Psychological Theory ◽  
Building Blocks ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Social Psychological ◽  
Basic Premise ◽  
Social Interdependence ◽  
Human Psychology ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Psychological Theory

To recognize that human beings are adapted for social living is fundamental to the science of human psychology. I argue that the development of broad social psychological theory would benefit from taking this basic premise more seriously. We need to pay more attention to the implications for personality and social psychology of recognizing that all of the building blocks of human psychology—cognition, emotion, motivation-have been shaped by the demands of social interdependence. In this article I illustrate the generative potential of this basic premise for development of more expansive social theory.

scholarly journals Grief, Care, and Play: Theorizing the Affective Roots of the Social Self

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seth Abrutyn ◽  
Omar Lizardo
Keyword(s):  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Psychological Theory ◽  
The Self ◽  
Social Self ◽  
Social Psychological ◽  
Symbolic Interactionist ◽  
Social Scientists ◽  
The Social ◽  
Understanding Emotions ◽  
Social Psychological Theory

For several decades, some sociologists have turned to evolutionary biology, neuroscience, and cognitive science to support, modify, and reconfigure existing social psychological theory. In this paper, we build on this momentum by considering the relevance of recent work in affective and cognitive neuroscience for understanding emotions and the self. Our principal aim is to enlarge the range of phenomena currently considered by sociologists who study emotion, while showing how affective dynamics play an important role across every outcome and process of interests to social scientists. : Central to our concern is the way in which external social objects become essential to, and emotionally significant for, the self. To that end, we draw on ideas from phenomenology, pragmatism, classic symbolic interactionism, and dramaturgy. We begin by showing how basic affective systems may graft on, build from, and extend current social psychological usages of emotions as well as the important sociological work being done on self, from both symbolic interactionist (SI) and identity theory (IT) perspectives. Subsequently, we turn to the promising directions in studying emotional biographies and various aspects related to embodiment.

Care of the S: Dynamics of the mind between social conflicts and the dialogicality of the self

Human Affairs ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Roman Madzia
Keyword(s):  
Social Psychology ◽  
Moral Philosophy ◽  
Psychological Theory ◽  
The Self ◽  
Social Conflicts ◽  
Social Psychological ◽  
The Mind ◽  
Social Psychological Theory

AbstractThe paper deals predominantly with the theory of moral reconstruction in George H. Mead’s thinking. It also points out certain underdeveloped aspects of Mead’s social-psychological theory of the self and his moral philosophy, and attempts to develop them. Since Mead’s ideas concerning ethics and moral philosophy are anchored in his social psychology, the paper begins with a description of his theory and underlines some problematic areas and tries to solve them. The most important of these, as the author argues, is the hypothesis that social conflicts should be seen as the root of reflective, discursive thinking. Unlike some of his contemporaries (such as Vygotsky), Mead failed to appreciate this aspect of the genesis of the dynamics of the self.

Social Psychological Theory: View From Germany

1981 ◽  
Vol 26 (8) ◽  
pp. 611-612
Author(s):  
Stephen G. West ◽  
Anne Maass
Keyword(s):  
Psychological Theory ◽  
Social Psychological ◽  
Social Psychological Theory ◽  
Theory View

scholarly journals So Useful as a Good Theory? The Practicality Crisis in (Social) Psychological Theory

2021 ◽  
pp. 174569162096965
Author(s):  
Elliot T. Berkman ◽  
Sylas M. Wilson
Keyword(s):  
Social Issues ◽  
Self Regulation ◽  
National Level ◽  
Laboratory Data ◽  
Psychological Theory ◽  
Social Psychological ◽  
Psychological Theories ◽  
Health Domains ◽  
Societal Problems ◽  
Social Psychological Theory

Practicality was a valued attribute of academic psychological theory during its initial decades, but usefulness has since faded in importance to the field. Theories are now evaluated mainly on their ability to account for decontextualized laboratory data and not their ability to help solve societal problems. With laudable exceptions in the clinical, intergroup, and health domains, most psychological theories have little relevance to people’s everyday lives, poor accessibility to policymakers, or even applicability to the work of other academics who are better positioned to translate the theories to the practical realm. We refer to the lack of relevance, accessibility, and applicability of psychological theory to the rest of society as the practicality crisis. The practicality crisis harms the field in its ability to attract the next generation of scholars and maintain viability at the national level. We describe practical theory and illustrate its use in the field of self-regulation. Psychological theory is historically and scientifically well positioned to become useful should scholars in the field decide to value practicality. We offer a set of incentives to encourage the return of social psychology to the Lewinian vision of a useful science that speaks to pressing social issues.

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