Psychology 2070A/B Chapter Notes - Chapter 5: Richard E. Nisbett, Motivation, The Need
1 Apr 2014
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Chapter 5: self-knowledge and the need to maintain self-esteem. William james described the basic duality of our perception of self: Self-concept: the contents of the self; that is, our knowledge about who we are. The self serves an executive function, regulating people"s behavior, choices, and plans for the future. The self-regulatory resource model: self-control is a limited resource, like a muscle that gets tired with frequent use but then rebounds in strength. Self-schemas: an organized body of knowledge about the self (e. g. , attitudes, preferences, traits) that influences what people notice, think about, and remember about themselves. Self-reference effect: the tendency for people to remember information better if they relate it to themselves. Self-concept clarity is defined as the extent to which knowledge about the self is stable, and clearly and consistently defined. There is a link between low self-concept clarity and low self-esteem. In many western cultures, people have an independent view of the self.
