Psychology of Introspection and Self-Awareness

Introspection

• Looking inward to examine our thoughts, feelings, and motives.
• We often don't spend much time thinking about ourselves.
• Csikszentmihalyi & Figurski (1982) found that people have lower affect when thinking about themselves, especially during voluntary activities.
• Self-Awareness Theory: Explains that introspection leads us to evaluate our current behaviour against internal standards, causing self-judgment and potential guilt.
• Diener & Wallbom (1976): Participants with a mirror in front of them were less likely to cheat on a timed test, implying that self- awareness promotes ethical behaviour.
• Sohn et al. (2019): People who see themselves on Facebook (greater introspection) are less likely to write abusive comments, showing that greater introspection can reduce negative social behaviour.

Observing Our Own Behaviour

• Self-Perception Theory: We infer our feelings and attitudes by observing our behaviour and the situation.
• Nisbett & Wilson (1977): We are often unaware of the true reasons behind our thoughts and feelings, suggesting our explanations are often inaccurate.
• Dutton & Aron (1974): Misattribution of arousal can occur, meaning we can mistake physical signs of fear for attraction.
• Costa et al. (2018): People act calmer when their voice sounds calmer, demonstrating the influence of behaviour on feelings and perceptions.

Using Other People for Self-Reflection

• Social Comparison Theory: We learn about ourselves by comparing with others.
• Upward Social Comparison: Comparing ourselves to those doing better than us (can lead to envy or inspiration).
• Downward Social Comparison: Comparing ourselves to those doing worse (can reduce self-esteem, or, ironically, provide comfort).
• Lateral Social Comparison: Comparing ourselves to those at the same skill level.
• Gerber et al. (2018): We both contrast and assimilate with others during social comparisons.
• Helgeson & Mickelson (1995): Cultural influences motivate different comparison strategies: self-enhancement, self-destruction, self-evaluation, self-improvement, altruism, common bond.
• Song et al. (2019): Facebook fatigue is influenced by cultural motivations for social comparisons.
• Johnson (2012): Shows that reacting negatively to upward comparisons (by harming the successful person) can result from feeling threatened and unable to improve.
• Self-Evaluation Maintenance Theory/Model: We are particularly sensitive to the success of those we are close to in domains we care about.
• Tesser & Smith (1980): People sabotage the success of friends who excel in areas they care about.
• Nicholls & Stukas (2011): Narcissists are more likely to reduce closeness to friends who outperform them because they are preoccupied with maintaining an image of superiority.

Explore the concepts of introspection and self-awareness in psychology. This quiz covers important theories and studies, including Self-Awareness Theory and Self-Perception Theory, which explain how we evaluate our behaviors and their impact on our moral actions. Test your understanding of how introspection influences ethical behavior and social interactions.