Bringing It All Together, Research Paper Example

Introduction

The process of discovering and understanding the real self is demanding. However, once an individual acquires comprehensive knowledge about them and intently understand himself or herself then they can be able to tap on their full potential. Some aspects of self-discovery play a central role in the process. These aspects include self-schema, self esteem, self-awareness, self-serving bias, self-control as well as self-efficacy. These aspects are essential in determining the actions of an individual as well as their reaction to certain issues (McGraw, 2001).

Self-schema

Self-schema is considered as a reference point of oneself. It is constituted of different aspects that constitute the personality of individuals. The beliefs play a central role in controlling the information process in process ads well as the decision-making process. The significance of any information is evaluated through a filter that is intrinsic to an individual. In some instances self, schema is used interchangeably with self-concept. Self-schemas are instrumental in the organization of information in self-concept. An individual’s perceptions regarding their relationship with different objects or intangible issues in the world play a significant role in determining their actions (Levi, 2001).

Self-concept

Self-concept is often confused with self-schema. However, there are some differences between the two aspects. Self-concept can be considered multiple structures that signify an individual’s perceptions to certain issues. Self-concept can be considered to incorporate various constructs. The first most notable construct is self-esteem. Self-esteem is a personal evaluation of their abilities and worth within the society. The conclusion of a certain level of self-esteem is influenced by several external factors directly associated with the individual. Another aspect of self-concept is self-stability. This is the continuity as well as the consistency of an individual’s self-concept. The perceptions about an individual are stable when the interpretation is consistent over a considerable period. Another construct of self-concept is self-efficacy. Self-efficacy can be evaluated through the confidence levels of a person (McGraw, 2001).

Whenever an individual engages in an activity, it is possible to assess the level of confidence. It is pertinent to note that self-efficacy is closely linked to the abilities of an individual. The human characteristics that influence self-concept include but not limited to gender, race, academic level, color, as well as sexuality. Moreover, these aspects are collectively responsible to the self-concept of an individual. A high self-esteem is closely associated with a high self-efficacy. This implies that individuals with a high self-esteem are likely to depict characteristics of highly confident people (Myers, 2011).

As a result, these individuals are the most successful in the society and are happier. Most people are comfortable talking about their positive aspects. People with a high self-esteem at times can be obsessed by their abilities or their successful past. However, it is unlikely that individuals with a high self-esteem are affected by depression. On the contrary, people with a low self-esteem are vulnerable to depression especially when they undergo stressful moments in life. In the academic world, self-esteem is associated with well performing individuals. This implies that there is a high correlation between grades and self-esteem (Feenstra, 2011).

Self-efficacy as a construct of self-concept incorporates a self-evaluation of abilities. It is helpful to have a belief in the capabilities of oneself. With a high self-esteem, persistency, and the ability to accomplish a task, an individual has a high likelihood of succeeding in life. A high self-efficacy is characterized by low chances of depression, persistency, as well as a high productivity (Feenstra, 2011).

Self-awareness is a crucial aspect in understanding ourselves. Self-serving bias is described as the inclination to positive aspects about ourselves. This bias can be beneficial to an individual in different ways. An example occurs when an individual succeeds in something that they consider easy making them attribute the success to their abilities (Levi, 2001).

Thinking about others

When taking into considerations other people, several aspects are of importance. These aspects can be categorized as attribution making, evaluations, jugging others as well as prejudice.

Attributions

There are different types of attributions broadly categorized as either internal or external attributions. When making judgments about why people behave the way they do there are different issues to be considered. These are considered as attributions because they explain ones perceptions to the actions of others. There are two approaches towards attributions. Internal attributions can be described as judgments that are justified by the intrinsic characteristics of a person. These include the individuality of the person and their attitudes (McGraw, 2001).

Another form of an attribution is an external attribution. This is where the actions of an individual are associated with external situational factors. Things that happened because of some external force are at times received with understanding unlike those arising from internal factors (Coon, Mitterer, Talbot, & Vanchella, 2010).

It is pertinent to note that as someone go through life, her or she is expected to explain many things and seek understanding wherever possible. These phenomena are sometimes characterized by a number of incomplete information. The explanations we offer are based on some partners visible to people within the society. This is referred to as fundamental attribution error because the explanation is usually based on external influences (Feenstra, 2011).

Apart from external and internal attributions, there are other attributions such as explanatory styles. Pessimistic and optimist explanatory attributions are used to explain certain aspects based on the perception of the individuals. Another attribution is based on hostility and stability of the explanation (McGraw, 2001).

Attitudes and behaviors

Attitudes and behaviors of a person are affected by the environment. This incorporates the behavior of other people in the surrounding. Whenever an individual intends to behave in a certain way, some considerations are made. The factors that form the broad categories of the considerations made include the social and personal factors. Social factors can be described to be the perceptions that people have on what is preferred by others (Myers, 2011). On the other hand, the personal factor is based on the attitudes of an individual. The formation of an intention to engage in ascertain behavior is based on the balance stroked by the actor between the social norm and the personal attitude towards the behavior. There is a difference between what people are inside and what they display to the public (Levi, 2001). However, the general behavior displayed by an individual to the public emanates from private beliefs. It is easy to predict people’s actions and behaviors based on their attitudes. The prediction of behaviors using attitudes is influenced by a range of social influences. In an environment where social expectations are minimal, individuals will behave according to the expressed attitudes (Feenstra, 2011).

There are attitudes that are specific to behavior. Through such attitudes, it is potential to envisage the behaviors of an individual accurately. However, after repetitive actions or once a habit is formed, and an individual tends to act where the attitudes linked to the behavior become potent automatically. The implications of attitudes on actions cannot be ignored at any level. It is pertinent to note that the correlation between attitudes and behaviors increases as the external influence reduces (Feenstra, 2011).

On the other hand, studies investigating the influence of behavior on attitudes identify startling results. Psychologist has offered different explanations on how behaviors affect attitudes of individuals. This reverse of the attitude-action relationship is evidence that it is possible to act ourselves into certain attitudes. This can be explained on the basis that an action strengthens or creates an idea that underlies the action. In actions that are out of social expectations, there is a towering possibility of emergence of a related attitude (McGraw, 2001).

Influencing others

Multiple persuasion techniques can be used to influence people in the society.

The foot in the door technique

This persuasive technique is applied in multiple disciplines. It involves gradual shift from small requests to large request. The person being influenced is leading into accepting something they would have initially rejected. The technique takes advantage of the human reality of continuous approximations (Levi, 2001). When an individual is hooked with small requests, it is easy to get, them to commit. However, this can be advanced gradually with the individuals committing to greater requests. This technique is appropriate for requests that have a social outlook (Coon, Mitterer, Talbot, & Vanchella, 2010).

Low-ball technique

This is a technique applicable in influencing people to buy products. The initial price of accepting the offer is lower than the usual price. An individual is enticed to consider the option after which they are price is increased to the advantage of the persuader. The initial offer is highly attractive, and the persuader has to balance between the successive requests and that maiden offer.

Door in the face technique

This is a persuasive technique where an initial exaggerated offer is presented to a buyer. This offer is highly unattractive, and there are high chances that the customer will reject that offer. After the rejection, the persuaders offer a better than the previous offer. There are high chances that the second offer looks more attractive than when it was offered as the first item with the comparative nature of human beings (Levi, 2001).

That is not all technique

This technique can be used to influence people in different ways. Offers are given in an incremental approach. The desire to get extra keeps the individual attached to the persuader.

Obedience and conformity

These can be considered forms of social influences that play a role in compliance. Conformity is the change in attitudes and behaviors because of social judgment. Individuals are influenced to change their actions based on social alignment. The perceptions that influence decisions or individuals where social justification is applied are considered as the main constructs of conformity. On the other hand, obedience is acting in accordance to laws or commands issued regarding a certain issue (Coon, Mitterer, Talbot, & Vanchella, 2010).

Various factors lead to conformity. Cultural influences are some of these factors since they have heavy significance on the group rather than individuals. The need for acceptance in the society is another factor that can push people to conform to the social norms (McGraw, 2001).

Aggressive behavior

There are different causes of aggressive behavior within the society, which can be broadly classified as biological and psychological. The biological vie incorporates the human response to the actions of hormones or the brain. On the other hand, a psychoanalytic perspective implies that the behavior is because of frustrations in life (Myers, 2011).

Pro-social behavior

This is behavior with an intention of benefiting others and society. Most of the actions classified as prosaically help in the harmonious existence of the humanity. The intent of the behavior should be purely to offer assistance or benefits to a third party.

Relation building

To develop a relationship with another person, there must be some sense of attraction or circumstance that leads to the relationship. The factors that lead to attraction include the need for companionship, similarity, familiarity, and social needs. Love develops as a gradual and leads to a strong feeling between different individuals (Myers, 2011).

Group dynamics

This subject area incorporates understanding the process and structures involved in groups. Moreover, it tackles the functionality of groups in different contexts comprehensively. There are multiple elements of group dynamics. The formation of the group is a crucial element of group dynamics that determines the effectiveness of the group. The constitution of a group is defined by the composite details of the members (Feenstra, 2011).

Group cohesion is another element of a group that plays a role in its effectiveness. The cohesion of a group incorporates the togetherness of the group members. Solidarity within members ensures that all the members of the group are able to have a high morale in whatever they are doing. Another element of a group is its performance. Performance can be measured through various approaches. One approach is the objective attainability. Every group is formed with the intention of achieving certain objectives (Levi, 2001).

Some of the types of groups that are common in the society include but not limited to primary, formal, secondary, as well as informal groups.

Social dilemmas

These are situations where there is a contradiction of collective and private interests. There are many types of social dilemmas, which can be broadly classified into public interest, prisoners, and the commons dilemma. Each of these types of dilemmas is based on the contradiction of different interests. It is pertinent to note that social dilemmas challenge the logical criteria of evaluation. In such situations determination of the optimal solution must be widely consulted (Feenstra, 2011).

Future of social psychology

The future of social psychology will base most of studies on Self-awareness. This is considered the level to which an individual is aware about different aspects that characterize them. These include issues that are affected by feelings, desires, as well as thoughts. Self-awareness concerning ones values and attitudes can be described as private. Whenever an individual acts contrary to their values, discrepancies may occur leading to some guilt consciousness. This pushes individuals to act in positive ways since they want to live within the boundaries of their values. This premise takes into account personal values whilst seeking to promote mutual relationship among human beings (McGraw, 2001).

References

Coon, D., Mitterer, J. O., Talbot, S., & Vanchella, C. M. (2010). Introduction To Psychology: Gateways To Mind And Behavior (12th Ed.). Belmont, Calif.: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.

Feenstra, J. (2011). An Introduction To Social Psychology. New York: D. Appleton.

Levi, D. (2001). Group Dynamics For Teams. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage Publications.

Mcgraw, P. C. (2001). Self-Matters: Creating Your Life From The Inside Out. New York: Simon & Schuster Source.

Myers, D. G. (2011). Exploring Psychology: Eighth Edition In Modules (8th Ed.). New York, NY: Worth Publishers.