Self-image Maintenance Research Articles

The model of threat-infused intergroup feedback: Why, when, and how feedback to ethnic minority learners is positively biased

This article concerns the positive feedback bias, which occurs when White instructors supply selectively more praise and less criticism to ethnic minority learners relative to White learners. The positive bias is reliable and enduring and affects feedback to various ethnic groups in North America and in Europe. The model of threat-infused intergroup feedback (MOTIIF) is introduced to explain the positive bias. MOTIIF integrates research on feedback practices, interracial dynamics, self-image maintenance, and psychosocial resources to explain why and when the bias is expressed. According to MOTIIF the positive bias is driven mainly by racial anxiety, the concern of many White people that they will reveal self-compromising prejudices, to others or to themselves, when engaging with ethnic minority persons. Inflated praise and muted criticism to ethnic minority learners serve, per MOTIIF, to quell racial anxiety. The article reviews evidence of the positive bias and relates it to the MOTIIF framework. It also discusses how the positive bias can affect ethnic minority learners; how it diminishes their trust in feedback, erodes their self-esteem, increases their stress, and potentially, undermines their learning. The article draws on MOTIIF to consider potential solutions to the positive bias and to recommend future research.

Identity-Consistent Self-Image Maintenance Following Leader Abuse: Integrating Self-Presentation and Self-Concept Orientation Perspectives

Although coping with an abusive boss can be psychologically demanding, those who suffer from leader abuse often stay in these unpleasant relationships, actively managing the way they are viewed in the eyes of their abusive leader (source of the abuse) and coworkers (observers of the abuse). Accordingly, the abusive supervision literature has relied almost exclusively on an emotional appraisal perspective to study the self-image implications following leader abuse. The present study seeks to add to this emerging line of scholarly conversations by presenting a novel theoretical alternative. Specifically, we integrate self-presentation and self-concept orientation perspectives to portray individuals’ identity-driven self-image maintenance following leader abuse. We argue that only those with a stronger relational self-concept are likely to be motivated to preserve their identity-consistent self-image and present themselves in positive and socially desirable ways toward both their coworkers and leader, following leader abuse. Using survey data collected from working professionals in China across two field studies, we found support for our hypotheses that when employees with a stronger relational self-concept experienced abusive supervision, they were motivated to help their coworkers as a result of their relational reputation maintenance concerns, and to use ingratiation tactics toward their leader due to their image preservation motives. We also offer insights about both the theoretical and practical implications of our research and discuss study limitations and directions for future research.

Situational and Trait Self-Handicapping among Grandiose and Vulnerable Narcissist

Self-handicapping is an effective strategy for self-enhancement and self-protection in situations in which one’s self-image is evaluated. Previous studies have shown that grandiose narcissists use self-handicapping for self-enhancement, while research on vulnerable narcissists’ use of self-handicapping is still scarce. In this study, we examined trait, behavioural, and proclaimed self-handicapping among the two forms of narcissism. After questionnaire measures were collected, a total of 105 individuals participated in the experimental study, in which they were led to believe they would be doing a hard or an easy ability test. The results showed that grandiose narcissism was only related to trait self-handicapping in achievement situations, while vulnerable narcissism was related to self-handicapping in interpersonal and achievement situations. Experimental results showed that participants did not seize the opportunity for behavioural or proclaimed self-handicapping. Moreover, the use of these strategies was not related to vulnerable or grandiose narcissism. The results are here discussed in the context of self-image maintenance dynamics of individuals with different levels of vulnerable and grandiose narcissism as well as methodological aspects of the study, and the validity of the concept of self-handicapping

Compensatory Belief in Health Behavior Management: A Concept Analysis.

PurposeThis study aimed to identify the exact definition of the concept of compensatory belief (CB) and to help clinicians and caregivers to distinguish patients who tend to form such beliefs.MethodsThis study is a conceptual analysis based on the strategy of Walker and Avant (2014). We retrieved studies from existing literature using databases such as PubMed, CINAHL, Wiley, and Web of Science, and extracted information from the results. No date limitations were applied.ResultsA total of 35 articles were sourced for data extraction. The identified attributes of CB were as follows: cognitive coping strategy, pleasure without guilt, compensatory behaviors, automatic motivated self-regulatory process, and implicit cognition. The observed antecedents were: failure to resist desire, reluctance, a conflicting motivational state, seeking appropriate balance, and self-image maintenance. The consequences of CB were lower health-related intentions, justification of unhealthy choices, relief from cognitive dissonance, continued existence of conflict feeling, and poor long-term health.ConclusionCompensatory belief stems from motivational dissonance or confliction. Despite causing feelings of pleasure and relief, it can negatively impact long-term health. Although CB is crucial to establish healthy behaviors, it is easily ignored in medical work.

The Consequences of Self- and Other-Signaling on Diversity-Related Cognitions and Decisions

One relatively under-studied factor that can influence diversity-related cognitions and decisions is the desire to signal—to oneself and to others—an egalitarian, non-prejudiced mindset. At the organizational level, companies try to manage impressions of organizational diversity to avoid social sanction. At the individual level, people are motivated to avoid the appearance of bias or prejudice. But how might these signaling decisions backfire, and can we capitalize on them to improve outcomes for women and racial minorities? In this symposium, we focus our attention on how self- and other-signaling affect diversity-related cognitions and choices, focusing both on third party perceptions of reputational signaling behavior and on how desires for value-consistency and self-image maintenance can shape decision-making. The Risky Business of Organizational Claims: Effects of (In)consistency Between Claims and Outcomes Presenter: James T. Carter; Columbia Business School Presenter: Mabel Abraham; Columbia Business School Presenter: Vanessa Burbano; Columbia Business School Friend or Faux: Performative Wokeness and Reputational Signaling on Social Issues Presenter: Preeti Srinivasan; Stanford Graduate School of Business Presenter: Peter Belmi; U. of Virginia Presenter: Gabrielle Adams; U. of Virginia Ironic Egalitarianism: When Organizational Diversity Goals Promote Hierarchy-Enhancing Beliefs Presenter: Rebecca Ponce de Leon; Fuqua School of Business, Duke U. Presenter: Aaron Kay; Duke U. Opportunity Luck Presenter: David Mauricio Munguia Gomez; U. of Chicago Booth School of business When Women and Racial Minorities Seek Help, Mentioning Their Demographic Identity is an Asset Presenter: Erika Kirgios; The Wharton School, U. of Pennsylvania Presenter: Aneesh Rai; The Wharton School, U. of Pennsylvania Presenter: Edward Chang; Harvard Business School Presenter: Katherine Milkman; U. of Pennsylvania

Self-Affirmation and Prejudice Reduction: When and Why?

The question of the antecedents of prejudicial responses has a long history that includes contributions of historical, structural, cultural, and psychological factors. Social-psychological research on prejudice as self-image maintenance provides evidence that manifestations of prejudice stem, in part, from the motivation to maintain a feeling of self-worth and self-integrity. Here, we review studies that indicate when and why prejudice toward out-groups in response to self-threats is weakened by affirmations of self-worth. A distinction emerges between in-group threats (e.g., negative acts committed by the in-group) and out-group threats (e.g., immigrants) to social identity, on the one hand, and the defensive reactions people make in response to each kind of threat (i.e., denying in-group responsibility vs. displaying prejudice), on the other. Such negative intergroup interactions can be attenuated by affirming the self. We present theorized moderators (i.e., individual differences and cultural norms) and proposed mechanisms underlying affirmation effects in the domain of prejudice. We discuss potential applications of self-affirmation in prejudice-reduction efforts.

Social Anxiety and Relationship Formation During the College Transition: Self-Verification, Self-Image, and Victimization.

This study tested a self-verification model of social anxiety in the context of relationship formation during the transition to college. Incoming college freshmen (N = 68) completed measures of social anxiety and social self-esteem at the beginning of college and 10 weeks later. Using sociometric ratings completed 10 weeks later, relational victimization appeared to be a unitary construct and not distinct from physical victimization. Participants with low social self-esteem at Time 1 were subsequently seen as victimized, reported disliking spending time at Time 2 with peers who reported liking them, and reported high social anxiety at Time 2 even in the absence of subsequent victimization. The implications of these results for understanding the role of self-verification processes in the maintenance of self-image and social anxiety are discussed.

An interpersonal perspective to study silence in Indian organizations

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to investigate dimensions of employee silence in Indian work context with regard to the supervisors and how job satisfaction mediates the relationship between silence and turnover intention. The study also explores the relevance of superior-subordinate relationship and self-image maintenance perspectives in Indian socio-cultural context to explain and understand the phenomenon of silence in India.Design/methodology/approach– Qualitative (n=55) and quantitative data (n=334,n=314 andn=116) were collected from employees working in private, public and multinational organizations located in northern part of India. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were performed to explore and validate the dimensions of silence behavior among Indian managers and structural equation analysis was carried out to see the meditating role of job satisfaction in the relationship of silence and turnover intention.Findings– Results have indicated the existence of four major dimensions of silence in India namely; fear of retaliation, internal motivation, self-competence and self-image as the possible causes of silence. Further job satisfaction has mediated the effect of silence on turnover intention. This study showed the positive impact of silence on satisfaction which is contrary to the western studies. These results have supported the theoretical arguments developed in this paper in the Indian work context.Practical implications– The results are useful in understanding the dynamics of silence in Indian organizations as employees might use silence in a strategic manner to regulate their satisfaction and in maintaining their membership with the organization.Originality/value– The present study is among the first attempts to empirically examine the causes and consequences of employee silence in the high power distance and collectivistic cultural context.

Defining racism safely: The role of self-image maintenance on white Americans’ conceptions of racism

We suggest that the need to maintain a positive self-image motivates White Americans to conceive of racism as a phenomenon rooted in individuals instead of institutions. They do so because an institutional conception of racism, more so than an individual conception of racism, raises their awareness of White privilege, a concept threatening to Whites’ self-image. In support of this idea, Experiment 1 found that a self-affirmation manipulation increased Whites’ willingness to conceive racism in institutional terms. Experiment 2 found that a self-image threat lowered Whites’ willingness to conceive racism in institutional terms. In neither experiment did the self-image maintenance manipulation affect Whites’ conceptions of individual racism, suggesting that the individual conception of racism may be a less ego-threatening way for Whites to conceive of racism.

Perceptions of Self and Other in the Prisoner’s Dilemma: Outcome Bias and Evidential Reasoning

In the prisoner's dilemma, self-interest clashes with collective interest. The way players resolve this conflict affects how others view them. Cooperators are seen as more moral than defectors, and, when there is no information about the other player's choice, cooperators and defectors are seen as equally competent. However, players who are defected against are seen as less competent, especially if they themselves cooperated (Experiments 1 and 2). Similarly, cooperators see themselves as more moral, but not as less competent, than defectors do (Experiments 3). Independent of concerns about reputation and self-image maintenance, evidential reasoning contributes to cooperative behavior. Players who project their own attitudes onto others are more likely to cooperate (Experiments 3). Compared with classic game theory, a theory of reputational concerns and evidential reasoning is better equipped to explain empirical patterns of choice behavior in social dilemmas.

Do Messages about Health Risks Threaten the Self? Increasing the Acceptance of Threatening Health Messages Via Self-Affirmation

Two studies demonstrate that self-image maintenance processes affect the acceptance of personally relevant health messages. Participants who completed a self-affirmation were less defensive and more accepting of health information. In Study 1, female participants (high vs. low relevance) read an article linking caffeine consumption to breast cancer. High-relevance women rejected the information more than did low-relevance women; however, affirmed high-relevance women accepted the information and intended to change their behavior accordingly. In Study 2, sexually active participants viewed an AIDS educational video; affirmed participants saw themselves at greater risk for HIV and purchased condoms more often than did nonaffirmed participants. Results suggest that health messages can threaten an individual’s self-image and that self-affirming techniques can increase the effectiveness of health information and lead to positive health behaviors.

Prejudice as self-image maintenance: Affirming the self through derogating others.

Prejudice as self-image maintenance: Affirming the self through derogating others.

Prejudice as self-image maintenance: Affirming the self through derogating others.

The authors argue that self-image maintenance processes play an important role in stereotyping and prejudice. Three studies demonstrated that when individuals evaluated a member of a stereotyped group, they were less likely to evaluate that person negatively if their self-images had been bolstered through a self-affirmation procedure, and they were more likely to evaluate that person stereotypically if their self-images had been threatened by negative feedback.' Moreover, among those individuals whose self-image had been threatened, derogating a stereotyped target mediated an increase in their self-esteem. The authors suggest that stereotyping and prejudice may be a common means to maintain one's self-image, and they discuss the role of self-image-maintenance processes in the context of motivational, sociocultural, and cognitive approaches to stereotyping and prejudice.

Redecisions Required for Mental Health

This article condenses theoretical material from an as yet untitled book-length manuscript. It explains the basis of redecision therapy and why redecisions are necessary. It identifies ten human behavior principles that specify: two inborn basic defenses underlying the necessary early decisions; requirements for growth; child-rearing rules that proscribe harmful injunctions; self-limiting early decisions; their invariable consequence (overconcern with self); resulting sexualization of bad feelings; sexual “love” as self-image maintenance; consequently flawed secret contracts in relationships; the passing along of the pathology to offspring; and a way out, by redeciding.

Orthodontic applications of psychological and perceptual studies of facial esthetics.

Historically, orthodontists have not reconciled the paradox that their diagnostic and treatment decisions are based largely on objective morphological considerations and their patients' decision-making centers on esthetic expectations and other subjective factors related to self-image and outcome. Key to the unraveling of this discrepancy is a greater understanding of the role of perception by self and others in orthodontic diagnosis and treatment. Esthetics can be defined as relating to feeling, and perception can be defined as the organization of environmental stimuli. Various physical, psychological, and social factors that affect perceptual judgments are described and related to the development and maintenance of self-image and/or concept. The impact of these self and/or other perceptions of dentofacial attractiveness on motivation for seeking orthodontic care are discussed. New quantitative approaches to relate morphological changes to perception of facial appearance are reported.

Managing radical surgery: notes from the patient's viewpoint.

Based on a diary which was kept while preparing for and undergoing pan-proctocolectomy, the paper describes the process of coming to terms with an ileostomy. A number of stages in the process are identified: anticipation, reorientation, trauma, maintenance of selfimage and accommodation. The social-psychological strategies for coping with the process are elaborated.