Public Self-consciousness Research Articles

Testing an interactionist perspective on the relationship between personality traits and performance under public pressure

ObjectivesThe interactionist principle of trait activation [Tett & Gutermann (2000). Situation trait relevance, trait expression, and cross-situational consistency: testing a principle of trait activation. Journal of Research in Personality, 34, 397–423.] explains human behavior through the stimulation of traits by trait-relevant situational cues (i.e., situation-trait relevance). In applied (real-world) high-pressure situations, audiences provide the situational demand of public evaluation. Therefore, traits that are related to public evaluation are appraised as situation-relevant. The purpose of the current study was to test if situation-relevant traits (i.e., narcissism, public self-consciousness) predict performance in applied high-pressure situations, while situation-irrelevant traits (i.e., private self-consciousness) do not contribute to the performance explanation. Design/MethodExperienced handball players (N = 55) completed personality questionnaires and performed a throwing task in low and high-pressure conditions, whereby the high-pressure condition involved 1500–2000 spectators during halftime breaks of professional handball games. ResultsFindings supported the assumptions about situation-trait relevancies and indicated that narcissism and public self-consciousness were relevant to high-pressure performance (i.e., positively associated), whereas private self-consciousness was found to be irrelevant. No predictors were correlated to low-pressure performance. ConclusionsResults emphasize that trait activation is a promising explanation for the relevance of personality characteristics to performance under pressure. A systematic consideration of situational demands of high-pressure situations will result in adequate appraisals of situation-trait relevance and help predict performance with trait scores.

Traits, Predictors, and Consequences of Facebook Self-Presentation

With Mowen’s Meta-theoretic Model of Motivation (3M Model) as a theoretical framework, this article examines the hierarchical trait predictors and consequence of one’s perceived ability to modify self-presentation on Facebook (Facebook self-presentation). The study identifies several hierarchical routes to Facebook self-presentation (e.g., agreeableness, need to belong, online public self-consciousness, Facebook self-presentation, or conscientiousness self-efficacy, Internet self-efficacy, Facebook self-presentation). Facebook self-presentation is also significantly correlated with its outcome variable of Facebook intensity. Theoretical implications are provided.

공적자기의식과 외모에 대한 사회문화적 태도 및 객체화된 신체의식이 이미지관리행동에 미치는 인과관계

This study establishes public self-consciousness, sociocultural attitudes toward appearance, and objectified body consciousness as causal variables to identify their direct or indirect effects. This study is an aggregate analysis of existing studies that reveals the relations of how these factors turn to be the image management behaviors. A survey was conducted on 962 women from the ages of 20 to 59 who live in the Daegu and Gyeongbuk areas. The data analysis was performed through programs such as AMOS 16.0 and SPSS 18.0 for Windows. The findings are as follows: first, public self-consciousness had a direct effect on the sociocultural attitudes toward appearance and on objectified body consciousness, whereas it affected image management behaviors directly or indirectly. This means that as women become aware of others' attention, they recognize the social importance of appearance, internalize ideal social standards, and observe and evaluate their own bodies from a third person's viewpoint regarding the standards for a body required by society; in addition, these procedures lead them to manage their image behaviors. Second, the sociocultural attitudes toward appearance had a direct influence on objectified body consciousness; however, they had an indirect effect on image management behaviors. This demonstrates that body consciousness plays a role as a mediator between the sociocultural attitudes toward appearance and the image management behaviors. Third, it appeared that objectified body consciousness directly affected image management behaviors. Objectified body consciousness was identified as a causal variable that exerts immediate influence on image management behaviors where the more objectified body consciousness women objectified themselves as the body standards that created further image management behaviors.

Personality and Persona: Personality Processes in Self‐Presentation

This article examines the role that personality variables and processes play in people's efforts to manage their public images. Although most research on self-presentation has focused on situational influences, people differ greatly in the degree to which they care about others' impressions of them, the types of impressions they try to convey, and their evaluations of their self-presentational effectiveness. Personality constructs such as public self-consciousness, approval motivation, and fear of negative evaluation are associated with the motive to manage one's impressions, and people who differ in self-disclosure and desire for privacy differentially reveal information about themselves to others. Other variables relating to people's self-concepts, interpersonal goals, and traits influence the construction of specific images. Finally, the extent to which people believe they are capable of making desired impressions influences their impression management strategies and how they respond to other people's evaluations.

The Mimicker is a Mirror of Myself: Impact of Mimicking on Self-Consciousness and Social Anxiety

In this experiment, a confederate was asked to mimic the posture and movements of participants who, subsequently, completed the French version (Pelletier & Vallerand, 1990) of the Scheier and Carver (1985) Self-consciousness Scale. Results showed that mimicry was associated with increased private and public self-consciousness and decreased social anxiety. Such data confirmed that mimicry is associated not only with changes in perception about a mimicker but also has an effect on self-perception of the person mimicked.

여대생의 신체수치심과 외모변경의도에 영향을 미치는 변인 연구: 한국, 중국과 독일의 비교

This study aims to make a comparison between variables influencing female college students' body shame and appearance change intention in individualist culture(Germany) and collectivist culture(Korea, China), that which variable among individual's physical character(BMI), psychological character(public self-image), and sociocultural pressure has the biggest influence in each culture. The findings of the research are as follows. 1. The German group of female college students had the highest BMI, and there were no difference between Korean and Chinese group. Public self-consciousness, sociocultural pressure, ideal appearance attitude, body shame, and appearance change intention were highest in Korea and lowest in Germany. 2. The variables that affected body shame were powerful in the order of sociocultural pressure, appearance internalization, BMI, and appearance awareness in the Korean group of female college students. In the Chinese group, the order was sociocultural pressure, appearance internalization, and public self-consciousness. On the contrary, in the German group the order was appearance internalization, appearance awareness, sociocultural pressure, and public self-consciousness. 3. The variables that affected appearance change intention were powerful in the order of sociocultural pressure, body shame, and appearance awareness in the Korean group of female college students. In the Chinese group, the order was sociocultural pressure, body shame, and appearance awareness, and in the German group, the order was appearance internalization, body shame, and BMI.

Gender and Age Group Differences in Mass Media and Interpersonal Influences on Body Dissatisfaction Among Chinese Adolescents

Despite evidence that middle adolescent girls (ages 14–17) experience more body dissatisfaction than early adolescent girls (ages 10–13) or boys at these ages, researchers have rarely considered whether such differences are observed regarding factors related to body dissatisfaction, particularly within non-Western samples. To address this issue, gender and age group differences in media and interpersonal influences on body dissatisfaction were assessed among early and middle adolescents living in Chongqing, China. In Study 1, 595 boys and 648 girls completed self report measures of demographics, public self-consciousness and appearance-based social pressure, comparisons, and conversations. Compared to boys, girls reported more appearance pressure from mass media and close interpersonal networks (friends, family), appearance comparisons with peers, and appearance conversations with friends; these effects were qualified by interactions with age group, indicating media and interpersonal factors were more prominent in the lives of middle adolescent girls than other groups. Effects were observed independent of body mass index (BMI) and public self-consciousness. In Study 2, 738 girls and 661 boys completed the same measures and a body dissatisfaction scale. By and large, gender and age differences were replicated. Middle adolescent girls also reported more body dissatisfaction than peers did. Perceived appearance pressure from mass media and interpersonal ties were both implicated in mediation analyses to explain this gender × age group effect.

Mediating and Moderating Effect of Identity Achievement in the Relation between Public Self-Consciousness and Social Anxiety

Mediating and Moderating Effect of Identity Achievement in the Relation between Public Self-Consciousness and Social Anxiety

Individual difference variables as moderators of the effect of extended cross-group friendship on prejudice

A correlational study investigated whether individual difference variables (public self-consciousness and social comparison) moderate the impact of extended cross-group friendship on attitudes towards two outgroups (Asians and gay men). Social comparison moderated the impact of extended cross-group friendships on attitudes to both Asians (significantly) and gay men (marginally). There were no reliable effects of public self-consciousness. These results are consistent with findings that extended cross-group friendship works primarily when individuals attach importance to social norms, and that attitudes towards some outgroups (e.g., ethnic outgroups) are more influenced by norms than are other attitudes (e.g., attitudes towards gay men). We argue that the moderation effect of social comparison does not weaken the potential of extended contact to reduce prejudice, because intergroup encounters typically involve some degree of uncertainty and foster reliance on social norms.

P03-44 - Sensitivity to punishment, sensitivity to reward and self-consciousness as predictors of the referential thinking

AntecedentsIn previous works, referential thinking was predicted by clinical and dispositional variables such as social anxiety or vulnerability to depression (Rodríguez-Testal, Senín-Calderón & Fernández-Jiménez, submitted to revision).Objectives and hypothesesWe propose to find personality variables to characterize the emergence of referential thinking. We predict a greater referential thinking in subjects with a high sensitivity to punishment and higher scores on social anxiety.MethodsParticipants: 366 subjects selected from the general population, 66.6% women, mean age = 33.18 (SD = 12.79).MaterialsWe used the REF-scale (Lenzenweger et al., 1997) adapted to Spanish language, GHQ-28 (Goldberg, 1996), SPSRQ (Torrubia et al., 2001) and The Revised Self-Consciousness Scale (Scheier & Carver, 1985).It was applied a cross-sectional design and a correlation method. All the analysis were accepted at p < .05.ResultsThe multiple linear regression analysis showed the importance of the clinical variable of depression, public self-consciousness, and sensitivity to reward and punishment as predictors of referential thinking (34% of the variance explained). The discriminant analysis according to scores in referential thinking was significant (Lambda = .87, p = .001). The combination of the above variables correctly classified 85.1% of cases.ConclusionsSubjects more concerned about how they are perceived by others tend to a greater presence of self-references, although they don’t show a high score in social anxiety. Susceptibility to reward and high vulnerable to punishment are the personality variables that best predicted referential thinking.

Fashion Consumers' Gossip Behavior Tendency

The purpose of this study was to examine consumers' gossip behavior tendency with regard to collectivism and public self-consciousness. Three hundred fifty-five college students (male: 123, female; 227) in the 20s age group participated in this study. For data analysis, descriptive statistics, multiple regression, t-test, Pearson's Correlation, and Cronbach's Alpha were used to test the research questions. As the result, first, those who had a higher score on collectivism had higher gossip behavior tendency than those who had a lower score. Second, those who had a higher public self-consciousness had higher gossip behavior tendency than those who did not. Third, female students showed more gossip behavior tendency than male students did. Finally, all three variables (collectivism, public self-consciousness, and gender)) did affect on gossip behavior tendency among college students. Out three variables, collectivism affected on gossip behavior tendency the most. These results would provide useful information for fashion marketers to understand fashion consumers better. Based on these results, fashion marketing strategies such as WOM (word-of-mouth) marketing strategy would be provided to fashion retailers or marketers.

Sociocultural Attitudes toward Appearance and Cosmetic Consumption: The Comparison between Chinese and Thai Males

Abstract The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of major variables and their re-lationship with the males' appearance consciousness that affect the men's cosmeticconsumption. Also, the study also intended to verify the differences of men's cosmeticconsumption between Chinese and Thai males. The samples consisted of 200 males whoranged in age from 18 to 35 years (M=24.64). One hundred participants were Thai andone hundred were Chinese. Based on literature review, six research questions wereproposed. For data analysis, descriptive statistics, factor analysis, t-test, and multiple re-gression were used for this study. As the results, the sociocultural attitudes of consumerstowards their appearance are positively relevant to the self-esteem and public selfconsciousness. Also, appearance consciousness such as appearance evaluation and ap-pearance orientation led more cosmetic consumption. Chinese males revealed higherscores on public self-consciousness, appearance orientation, and sociocultural attitudestoward appearance than Thai males. Based on these results, some implications for globalcosmetic markets would be suggested.Key Words : sociocultural attitude, appearance, cosmetic consumption, culturalcomparison study

The impact on public self-consciousness of psychological education based on non-evaluative emotional experiences

The impact on public self-consciousness of psychological education based on non-evaluative emotional experiences

Self-face recognition in children with autism spectrum disorders: A near-infrared spectroscopy study

It is assumed that children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) have specificities for self-face recognition, which is known to be a basic cognitive ability for social development. In the present study, we investigated neurological substrates and potentially influential factors for self-face recognition of ASD patients using near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS). The subjects were 11 healthy adult men, 13 normally developing boys, and 10 boys with ASD. Their hemodynamic activities in the frontal area and their scanning strategies (eye-movement) were examined during self-face recognition. Other factors such as ASD severities and self-consciousness were also evaluated by parents and patients, respectively. Oxygenated hemoglobin levels were higher in the regions corresponding to the right inferior frontal gyrus than in those corresponding to the left inferior frontal gyrus. In two groups of children these activities reflected ASD severities, such that the more serious ASD characteristics corresponded with lower activity levels. Moreover, higher levels of public self-consciousness intensified the activities, which were not influenced by the scanning strategies. These findings suggest that dysfunction in the right inferior frontal gyrus areas responsible for self-face recognition is one of the crucial neural substrates underlying ASD characteristics, which could potentially be used to evaluate psychological aspects such as public self-consciousness.

Using self-aware agents to analyze public self-consciousness in the iterated prisoner’s dilemma

Self-aware individuals are more likely to consider whether their actions are appropriate in terms of public self-consciousness, and to use that information to execute behaviors that match external standards and/or expectations. The learning concepts through which individuals monitor themselves have generally been overlooked by artificial intelligence researchers. Here we report on our attempt to integrate a self-awareness mechanism into an agent’s learning architecture. Specifically, we describe (a) our proposal for a self-aware agent model that includes an external learning mechanism and internal cognitive capacity with super-ego and ego characteristics; and (b) our application of a version of the iterated prisoner’s dilemma representing conflicts between the public good and private interests to analyze the effects of self-awareness on an agent’s individual performance and cooperative behavior. Our results indicate that self-aware agents who consider public self-consciousness utilize rational analysis in a manner that promotes cooperative behavior and supports faster societal movement toward stability. We found that a small number of self-aware agents are sufficient for improving social benefits and resolving problems associated with collective irrational behaviors.

공적 자기의식과 사회문화적 압력이 이상적 외모태도와 신체수치심에 미치는 영향에 관한 비교문화연구

Personal appearance attitude about the ideal beauty is influenced by the context of the culture one belongs to. In a cultural sphere the higher public self-consciousness individuals have then the more sensitive one would be to the sociocultural pressure about thinness and thus the higher the expectations about the ideal appearance. Accordingly, in that culture one would have more body shame when they do not reach the ideal beauty standard. This study examines the difference between Korean and German culture, with a focus on the age group of university students who are especially sensitive to aesthetic consciousness. The results are as follows: There were differences of public self-consciousness, perceived sociocultural pressure, appearance internalization, appearance awareness and body shame between the two cultural spheres; in addition, Korean female university students were significantly higher in all the variables when compared to German female university students. The higher public self-consciousness and perceived sociocultural pressure then the higher the internalization of the ideal appearance; the ideal appearance awareness increased the body shame. In the case of the German female university student group, public self-consciousness influenced body shame directly; however, in case of the Korean female university student group public self-consciousness were not directly affective. Rather, perceived sociocultural pressures directly affected body shame and showed the difference between the cultural spheres. Finally, in regards to the direct effect about body shame, the German female university student group noted the influence of public self-consciousness as the most significant; however, the Korean female university student group noted the influence of sociocultural pressure as the most significant.

The relationship among Ego identity, Public self-consciousness and Depression in college students

The relationship among Ego identity, Public self-consciousness and Depression in college students

Investigating Software Piracy in Jordan: An Extension of the Theory of Reasoned Action

Software piracy, the illegal and unauthorized duplication, sale, or distribution of software, is a widespread and costly phenomenon. According to Business Software Alliance (2008), over 41% of the PC software packages installed worldwide were unauthorized copies. Software piracy behavior has been investigated for more than 30 years. However, after a review of the relevant literature, there appears to be two voids in this literature: a lack of studies in non-Western countries and a scarcity of process studies. This study contributes to literature by developing a software piracy model to better understand the decision-making process that underlies this unethical behavior. The model was tested using data collected from a sample of 323 undergraduate business students. Consistent with the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA), attitudes toward software piracy and subjective norms were significant predictors of intention to pirate software. Also, the results suggested that ethical ideology, public self-consciousness, and low self-control moderated the effect of these variables on intention to pirate software. The results have important practical implications for the software industry and governments hoping to curtail software piracy. Limitations of the study and recommendations for future studies are discussed as well.

Being there with others: How people make environments norm‐relevant

In two studies we show that people make environments norm-relevant and this increases the likelihood that environments influence norm-relevant judgments. When people see environments without having people on their mind, this effect does not occur. Specifically, when exposed to an environment (a library), people's perceived importance of environment-relevant norms (be silent in libraries) increases, when the concept of 'people' is primed compared to when this is not the case. The impact on normative judgments of priming significant others (Study 1) is stronger than priming people in general (Study 2). Additional effects on conformism and public self-consciousness are discussed, as well as implications for future studies.

Self-Focused Cognitive Styles and Bipolar Spectrum Disorders: Concurrent and Prospective Associations

We examined concurrent and prospective associations of self-focused cognitive styles with bipolar spectrum disorders. Controlling for depressive and hypomanic/manic symptoms, 125 individuals with bipolar spectrum disorders scored higher than 149 demographically similar normal controls on the rumination scale of the Response Styles Questionnaire (RSQ) and the private self-consciousness subscale of the Self-Consciousness Scale (SCS). The two groups did not differ on the distraction scale of the RSQ or the public self-consciousness and social anxiety subscales of the SCS. In addition, among the bipolar individuals, controlling for initial depressive and hypomanic/manic symptoms, rumination predicted the number, but not the likelihood of onset, of depressive episodes, whereas private self-consciousness predicted the likelihood of onset, but not the number, of hypomanic/manic episodes over a 3.5-year follow-up.