Individuals differ in the degree to which they see themselves as behaving and feeling similarly or differently in different situations and at different times. This dimension of the self-concept, which is conceived to extend from strong constancy of the self-concept at one extreme to marked variability at the opposite pole, is designated as self-pluralism. An inventory for the assessment of degree of self-pluralism--the Self-Pluralism Scale (SPS)--is presented, and the correlations of this scale with other relevant personality measures are reported. Several studies utilizing the SPS are presented. The results indicate that self-pluralism is negatively related to psychological adjustment, positively related to long-term real-life variability, and negatively related to age.
SEARCH by Rogers and his colleagues has suggested that the concepts of self and ideal-self become less discrepant as a function of brief psychotherapy and that such changes reflect improvement in adjustment (Butler & Haigh, 1954). Other investigators, such as Block and Thomas (1955) and Hatfield (1958), have found evidence of a curvilinear relationship between psychiatric adjustment or personality integration and the discrepancy between self and ideal-self. The latter investigators also demonstrated that persons with very low self-ideal discrepancies tend to use repressive and denying defenses. The purpose of this study is to attempt further specification of the variables related to self-ideal discrepancies by investigating whether people with different defenses or modes of adaptation differ in self-ideal discrepancy and change in different ways subsequent to psychotherapeutic interpersonal interaction.The mode-of-aclaptation dimension which is suggested is repression-sensitization, the terms having been applied by Gordon (1957) to a dimension suggested by Eriksen and his colleagues (Lazarus, Eriksen, & Fonda, 1951) from research in perceptual defense. Repressers are defined as those who tend to use avoidance, denial, and repression of potential threat and conflict as a primary mode of adaptation. Sensitizers are defined as those who are alerted to and perhaps overinterpret potential threat and conflict and who use intellectual and
This review shows that research on accuracy and assumed similarity has primarily led to blind alleys thus far, but investigations of attribution of specific traits, differentiation, free descriptions, and implicit personality theories show promise. Theories which attend to personality and social factors together and research dealing with personality, situational, and stimulus variables together are needed. The authors offer a framework for future research which delineates phases of the judging process and which suggests that cognitive control variables may be especially prominent in selection of cues, motivational-interpersonal variables may be important in drawing inferences from cues, and situational variables may be salient in making a verbal report. * D. N. Jackson, personal communication, 1964.
Attribution of intent, often observed in human interactions, is central to person perception and interpersonal relations, and indirectly raises theoretical issues concerning the relevance of intentions. Conditions which facilitate the attribution of intent include personalism, hedonic relevance, power, intimacy, and ascription of responsibility. Attribution of intent is alternatively described as a logical process of inference from cues or as a more intuitive process based on personal knowledge of one's own intentions. The internal-external dimension and individual coping techniques in interaction with motivational arousal are promising individual difference variables. Attribution of intent often contributes to percepton of the social world as more predictable and to socially appropriate behavior but can also lead to behavior which is destructive to self or others.
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