SAGE Journal Articles
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Abstract: Do people know when they are seen as pressing too hard, yielding too readily, or having the right touch? And does awareness matter? We examined these questions in four studies. Study 1 used dyadic negotiations to reveal a modest link between targets’ self-views and counterparts’ views of targets’ assertiveness, showing that those seen as under- and over-assertive were likely to see themselves as appropriately assertive. Surprisingly, many people seen as appropriately assertive by counterparts mistakenly thought they were seen as having been over-assertive, a novel effect we call the line crossing illusion. We speculated that counterparts’ orchestrated displays of discomfort might be partly responsible—behaviors we termed strategic umbrage. Study 2 revealed evidence for widespread strategic umbrage in real-world negotiations and Study 3 linked these behaviors to the line crossing illusion in a controlled negotiation. Study 4 showed that this illusion predicted outcomes in a multi-round negotiation.
Abstract: Attachment shapes people’s experiences in their close relationships and their self-views. Although attachment avoidance and anxiety both undermine relationships, past research has primarily emphasized detrimental effects of anxiety on the self-concept. However, as partners can help people maintain stable self-views, avoidant individuals’ negative views of others might place them at risk for self-concept confusion. We hypothesized that avoidance would predict lower self-concept clarity and that less self-verification from partners would mediate this association. Attachment avoidance was associated with lower self-concept clarity (Studies 1-5), an effect that was mediated by low self-verification (Studies 2-3). The association between avoidance and self-verification was mediated by less self-disclosure and less trust in partner feedback (Study 4). Longitudinally, avoidance predicted changes in self-verification, which in turn predicted changes in self-concept clarity (Study 5). Thus, avoidant individuals’ reluctance to trust or become too close to others may result in hidden costs to the self-concept.
Abstract: After failure, individuals frequently turn to others for support. The current research examined the process through which individuals utilize interpersonal relationships to stabilize threatened self-views. We may seek support to reassure us with warmth and acceptance after a self-threat, or to provide support for threatened self-knowledge. We proposed that although both types of support are likely to repair the affective consequences of a self-threat, only interacting with others who can provide evidence from the individuals’ past that reconfirms a threatened self-aspect would help stabilize the self-concept. Two studies demonstrated that, for individuals who have suffered a self-threat, receiving specific evidentiary support for the threatened self-aspect was more effective at restoring confidence in both the specific self-aspect and at recovering self-concept clarity than was receiving emotional support, whether the interaction was imagined (Study 1), or offered in person (Study 2) after the threat.
Abstract: Previous research has shown that mass media stimulate the development of an objectified self-concept. However, we know little about the role social networking sites (SNS) play in these relationships. The current longitudinal study (N = 1,041) aimed to fill this gap by studying adolescents’ frequency of SNS use in general and their use of SNS to monitor attractive peers in particular. The results showed that the use of sexualizing mass media was associated with considering the appearance ideals promoted in mass media as one’s own standards to pursue. This internalization of appearance ideals, in turn, was related to the tendency to monitor attractive peers on SNS. Both the use of SNS to monitor attractive peers and the use of sexualizing mass media stimulated self-objectification and body surveillance over time. The frequency of SNS use played a limited role in the relationship between mass media and an objectified self-concept.