Social desirability as a predictor of self-disclosure in groups.

Abstract

Self-disclosure is emerging as a major construct in group process research. The extent to which a person is able to share material of a personal nature appears to be related to his overall interpersonal adjustment (Jourard, 1964). Recent findings contained in the encounter group and group therapy literatures (Stoller, 1968;Wiegel & Warnath, 1968) attest to the importance of the exchange of personal information, i.e., self-disclosure, among group members. A crucial but unstated assumption made by many group therapists is that it is desirable to create conditions which facilitate self-disclosure in therapy groups. Consequently, group process research is evolving which utilizes personality variables to predict actual self-disclosing behavior in groups (Berger & Anchor, 1970).The present study explores the relationship between an established personality variable Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability (MCSD) or the motive for social approval, and self-disclosure, i.e., the extent to which one expresses personal feelings, experiences, and thoughts in a group setting. Generally, the MCSD is considered on the basis of those with High and Low scores. Highs are frequently described as more conforming, cautious, and persuasible, and their behavior is more normatively anchored, than persons who depict themselves less euphemistically (Crowne & Marlowe, 1964). In addition, an earlier study (Strickland & Crowne, 1963) reported that ''approval dependent patients (Highs) terminate psychotherapy much earlier than those less approval dependent.

The need for approval and the private versus public disclosure of self1

“…high-need-for-approval subjects m the public condition spoke rehably more than high-need subjects m the private condition Additionally, high-need subjects spoke more than moderate-need subjects m the public condition, and low-need subjects spoke more than high-need subjects m the private condition Means and standard deviations of the number of words are shown m Table 2 Other variables The attempts to fmd relationships between the specific content of the speeches and personality and condition were generally unsuccessful, although one trend was noted High-need-for-approval subjects m the public condition made a larger proportion of negative self-references than those m the private condition (x'l == 3 27, p < 10) An additional evaluation of the refusal to allow one's name to be used m the citation of the statements showed the refusers were reliably lower on need for approval than those who complied (Mann Whitney, U-Test, Z = -163, p= 0516, one-tailed) DISCUSSION •The pnncipal hypotheses of the present study were supported by the fmdings that high-need-for-approval subjects publicly disclosed more intimately than low-and moderate-need-for-approval subjects or privately disclosing high-need-for-appioval subjects, and the findings that pnvately disclosing high-need-for-approval subjects were less intimate than pnvately disclosing low-and moderate-need subjects 'The significance of this data for an understanding of personality dynamics was twofold ^ First, it supported the proposal by Strickland and Crowne (1963) that highneed-for-approval subjects will find it difficult to intimately discuss themselves m a private, confidential setting and extended the confirmation of that proposal beyond Burhenne and Mirels (1970) and Anchor et al (1972) to verbalizations of normal college students i Second, the study supported the proposition of Crowne and Marlowe (1964) that high-need-for-approval subjects are more likely to conform to situational demands than lowor moderate-need-for-approval subjects when possibilities for social approval are part of the circumstances and extended the findings to include self-disclosure behavior That high-need subjects would overcome a general reluctance to discuss themselves pnvately m order to conform to social demands whereas low-and moderate-need subjects revealed less in the public than m the private disclosure condition underscored the strength and importance of the social context of behavior for high-need-forapproval subjects Additional evidence m the present study demonstrating that low-need-for-approval subjects are less likely to conform than high-need-for-approval subjects was the finding that MCSDS scores of subjects who refused to allow their names to be used m the proposed publication of the expenment were lower than those who allowed their names to be used 0 The self-report data given by high-need-for-approval subjects on the MCSDS m which these subjects cast themselves in an overly positive light was contradicted by self-references made in the laboratory conversations The trend noted in the present study for higher need-for-approval subjects to spontaneously emit more negative self-references m the public condition than m the private condition was also observed m males m a different context by Kopfstein and Kopfstein (1973) »Although it was impossible to resolve this contradiction by data from the present study, one resolution existed m the possibility that the social expectations which the high-need subjects might have been implicitly shanng m the pubhc condition was that open...…”

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Crowne and Marlowe (1964) have demonstrated that individuals characterized by a high need for social approval are inclined to be conforming to cultural values and more persuasible than those low m need for social approval An important consequence of the validation of the need for approval motive was the development of the proposal that individuals high m need for approval are protecting a vulnerable self-esteem by the use of primitive defenses such as repression and denial Stiickland and Crovrae (1963) argued that psychotherapy should pose a particular threat to those high m need for approval, because their defensively ideal self-image would be endangered by the demands of the therapeutic milieu to be open and realistic Indeed, as predicted, Strickland and Crowne found that high-needfor-approval clients terminated therapy soonei than low-needfor-approval clients Based, m part, on these observations, Burhenne and Mirels (1970) showed that intimacy of disclosure m written self-descriptive essays was less for high-need-for-approval subjects than for low-need-for-approval subjects Additionally, Anchor, Vojtisek, and Berger (1972) demonstrated that verbal self-disclosure m institutionalized, high-need-for-approval psychotics was lower than for institutionalized, moderate-need-forapproval psychotics While the conflict between the requirement to be open and realistic and the need to protect one's vulnerable self-concept results m lowered self-disclosure and early termination of therapy in high-need-for-approval subjects in confidential dyads or groups, the outcome of this conflict might change if critical elements of the interaction circumstances were changed For example, if the contents of an interaction were to be made pubhc, the 1 Requests for repnnts should be sent to Richard W Cravens,

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Trait anxiety, initial structuring and self-disclosure in groups of schizophrenic patients.

“…Videotapes of all four groups were rated by four experimentally naive raters according to the Group Interaction Profile (Anchor, 1970). This instrument measures the number of personal and impersonal statements made by each group member and has been used successfully in previous studies of self-disclosure in groups (Berger & Anchor, 1970;Anchor, et al, 1972).…”

Defensive Avoidance of Disapproval: The Relationship of a Defensive Style to Physical and Mental Health

“…61,65,66 Research has implicated high MCSDS scores to be associated with (1) low self-disclosure, 61,67,68 (2) greater willingness to self-disclose only when the therapist clearly communicates the expectancy that the patient will disclose private information, 69 (3) earlier termination of therapy, 66,70 and (4) significant distress when health care professionals communicate threatening information that exceeds the conscious capacity to tolerate the material. 71,72 Thus, in the context of psychotherapy, it is possible that the high DAD person will terminate treatment early due to (1) the potential or actual threat of receiving information contrary to an idealized image of social functioning, (2) low levels of self-disclosure impeding development of a therapeutic working alliance, or (3) an avoidant coping style designed to safeguard against being overwhelmed by interpersonal stress.…”