Question 1

William James's components of the self-concept include:
A) the ideal self, the actual self, the ought self.
B) the bad me, the good me, the not me.
C) the material me, the social me, the spiritual me.
D) the actual me, the public me, the private me.

Accepted Answer

William James's components of the self-concept include the material me (physical possessions and body), the social me (recognition from others), and the spiritual me (inner or subjective being).

Question 2

Mark Leary's sociometer theory suggests that:
A) self-esteem is determined by the number of an individual's successes divided by the number of the individual's aims and expectations.
B) self-esteem is directly related to the quality of our interactions and sense of positive relations with others.
C) the factors that determine self-esteem are unique for every individual.
D) self-esteem is determined by the match between an individual's actual self and ideal self.

Accepted Answer

Sociometer theory posits that self-esteem is a gauge of interpersonal relationships and social acceptance, reflecting the quality of interactions and perceived relational value.

Question 3

Our sense of self depends on the reactions of other people, and how other people treat us. The reactions we receive from others are incorporated into our sense of self. This statement refers to:
A) Charles Cooley's looking glass self.
B) William James' description of the self concept.
C) the reaction of an insecure person who pays too much attention to what others think.
D) Mark Leary's conception of the self concept.

Accepted Answer

This statement refers to Charles Cooley's concept of the "looking glass self," which suggests that our self-concept is influenced by how we perceive others see us.

Question 4

The term "reflected appraisal" refers to:
A) self appraisal.
B) the persons perception of other people's appraisal.
C) actual appraisal.
D) hidden appraisal.

Accepted Answer

Reflected appraisal refers to the person's perception of other people's appraisal.

Question 5

In Gergen's experiment on the looking glass self:
A) being the recipient of positive reinforcement from the experimenter led to higher levels of self-esteem.
B) positive reinforcement increased self-esteem only in the ingratiation condition.
C) positive reinforcement increased self-esteem only in the accurate impression condition.
D) self-esteem was unaffected by the experimenter's feedback.

Accepted Answer

Being the recipient of positive reinforcement from the experimenter led to higher levels of self-esteem.

Question 6

According to George Herbert Mead, symbolic interactionism theory is concerned with:
A) our perception of the treatment we receive from others.
B) the actual treatment we receive from others.
C) how the treatment we receive from others shapes our self-concept.
D) All of the above

Accepted Answer

The answer of According to George Herbert Mead, symbolic interactionism...

Question 7

Meta-accuracy:
A) is the term for our ability to "size up" other people.
B) is the term for our ability to predict how people will react to different social situations.
C) is the term for how accurate we are in our sense of how other people view us.
D) None of the above

Accepted Answer

Meta-accuracy refers to the accuracy of our perceptions about how others perceive us.

Question 8

Erikson's stage theory:
A) encompasses the life span, while Freud's stages of development end at the beginning of adulthood.
B) ignores the role of culture.
C) focuses on the superego rather than the ego.
D) includes four psychosexual stages.

Accepted Answer

Erikson's theory covers the entire life span with eight stages, whereas Freud's psychosexual stages end in early adulthood.

Question 9

The crisis in Erikson's first stage of development is:
A) autonomy versus shame and doubt.
B) initiative versus guilt.
C) trust versus mistrust.
D) intimacy versus isolation.

Accepted Answer

Erikson's first stage of psychosocial development is "trust versus mistrust," which occurs from birth to about 18 months. During this stage, infants learn to trust their caregivers to meet their needs.

Question 10

We say that there is an identity deficit when the person ______________________, whereas in an identity conflict, ________________________.
A) has a distorted sense of self; two or more aspects of the self are in opposition to each other.
B) two or more aspects of the self are in opposition to each other; the person has no sense of self.
C) seeks to establish a single identity; has two or more different personalities.
D) seeks to establish a desired identity; two or more aspects of the self are in conflict with each other.

Accepted Answer

The answer of We say that there is an identity...

Question 11

Which of the following is not a strength of Erikson's model?
A) Erikson's model considers cultural factors.
B) The model focuses on personality across the lifespan.
C) Most concepts in Erikson's model readily lend themselves to empirical evaluation.
D) Those who study his work find it to be meaningful and personally relevant.

Accepted Answer

Erikson's model is often criticized for lacking empirical evaluation because many of its concepts are abstract and difficult to measure scientifically.

Question 12

When Tim was 10 years old, he decided he wanted to be a lawyer, and to the delight of his parents, he never wavered from that decision. By the age of 25, Tim was called to the bar (became a lawyer). According to James Marcia, Tim has attained the ego identity status of:
A) foreclosure.
B) identity achievement.
C) identity diffusion.
D) moratorium.

Accepted Answer

The answer of When Tim was 10 years old, he...

Question 13

When she first started university, Brittany planned to be a systems engineer. After two years she switched from engineering to psychology. Brittany is now 25 years old and is enrolled in a graduate program in clinical psychology. Although the program is challenging, and she sometimes envies the lifestyles of her friends who are already working, Brittany knows that she is on the right career path. Brittany is probably in the ego identity status of ______________.
A) foreclosure.
B) identity achievement.
C) identity diffusion.
D) moratorium.

Accepted Answer

Brittany has explored different career paths and has made a committed decision to pursue clinical psychology, indicating she has achieved a stable sense of identity.

Question 14

According to Marcia, ________________is associated with low neuroticism, high conscientiousness, and extroversion.
A) foreclosure.
B) identity diffusion.
C) moratorium.
D) identity achievement.

Accepted Answer

Identity achievement is associated with low neuroticism, high conscientiousness, and extroversion, as it reflects a resolved identity status where individuals have explored options and made commitments.

Question 15

According to _________________ theory, people strive actively to confirm their sense of self, and desire a sense of predictability and control.
A) self-enhancement
B) self-verification
C) self-consistency
D) self-presentation

Accepted Answer

Self-verification theory suggests that people desire to confirm their existing self-concept, seeking predictability and control in their social interactions.

Question 16

In the movie Catch Me If You Can, which is based on a true story, a con man named Frank Abagnale Jr. would dress up in a pilot's uniform not only to pass bad cheques, but also to improve his mood when he felt lonely, insecure, and depressed. According to Abagnale, the uniform brought him respect and dignity, and helped him to overcome feelings of uselessness and dejection. In addition to financial gain, Abagnale's motive(s) for wearing a pilot's uniform addressed the need for:
A) self-presentation and self-enhancement.
B) self- presentation and self-verification.
C) self-improvement and self-enhancement.
D) self-improvement and self-consistency.

Accepted Answer

Frank Abagnale Jr. wore the pilot's uniform for self-presentation, to project a certain image to others, and for self-enhancement, to boost his own self-esteem and mood.

Question 17

When he got back a statistics test, Doug compared his grades with the grades of other students. Festinger calls this:
A) social-verification.
B) self-improvement.
C) self-verification.
D) social-differentiation.

Accepted Answer

The answer of When he got back a statistics test,...

Question 18

In the example above, Doug sought out students who typically received similar grades to make the comparison. Doug appears to be motivated by a goal of:
A) accurate self-verification.
B) self-enhancement.
C) self-improvement.
D) accurate-self evaluation.

Accepted Answer

Doug is motivated by accurate self-evaluation as he is comparing himself with students who typically receive similar grades to assess his own performance accurately.

Question 19

In a research paradigm, participants are given adjectives describing personal traits, and are asked to indicate if these words apply to themselves. A standard finding is that subjects are quicker to remember self-referent words when later tested on a word recognition test. This is known as the:
A) self-description effect.
B) self-encoding test.
C) self- reference effect.
D) self-relevant effect.

Accepted Answer

The self-reference effect refers to the phenomenon where individuals are more likely to remember information that is personally relevant or related to themselves.

Question 20

People from countries like Japan typically engage in self-enhancement in ways that emphasize ________________, and people from individualistic countries like the United States typically engage in self enhancement that emphasizes ________________.
A) their connectedness to others; their personal traits.
B) financial success; collectivistic values.
C) their differences from others; their efforts at self-improvement.
D) personal traits; personal traits.

Accepted Answer

In collectivistic cultures like Japan, self-enhancement often focuses on one's role and connectedness to others, while in individualistic cultures like the United States, it emphasizes personal traits and individual achievements.

Quiz 11: Personality Theory and the Self-Concept

William James's components of the self-concept include:

Mark Leary's sociometer theory suggests that:

Our sense of self depends on the reactions of other people, and how other people treat us. The reactions we receive from others are incorporated into our sense of self. This statement refers to:

The term "reflected appraisal" refers to:

In Gergen's experiment on the looking glass self:

According to George Herbert Mead, symbolic interactionism theory is concerned with:

Meta-accuracy:

Erikson's stage theory:

The crisis in Erikson's first stage of development is:

We say that there is an identity deficit when the person , whereas in an identity conflict, __.

Which of the following is not a strength of Erikson's model?

When Tim was 10 years old, he decided he wanted to be a lawyer, and to the delight of his parents, he never wavered from that decision. By the age of 25, Tim was called to the bar (became a lawyer) . According to James Marcia, Tim has attained the ego identity status of:

According to Marcia, ________________is associated with low neuroticism, high conscientiousness, and extroversion.

According to _________________ theory, people strive actively to confirm their sense of self, and desire a sense of predictability and control.

When he got back a statistics test, Doug compared his grades with the grades of other students. Festinger calls this:

In the example above, Doug sought out students who typically received similar grades to make the comparison. Doug appears to be motivated by a goal of:

In a research paradigm, participants are given adjectives describing personal traits, and are asked to indicate if these words apply to themselves. A standard finding is that subjects are quicker to remember self-referent words when later tested on a word recognition test. This is known as the:

People from countries like Japan typically engage in self-enhancement in ways that emphasize , and people from individualistic countries like the United States typically engage in self enhancement that emphasizes .