Communication and the Self CH 2 Foundations of

Communication and the Self CH 2 Foundations of Interpersonal Communication

How does our self concept affect our communication? • Self-concept: relatively stable set of perceptions you hold of your self. • Self-esteem: how you evaluate the relatively stable set of perceptions you hold of yourself • Your self-esteem then has a powerful affect on your communicative behavior

How does the self concept develop? Reflected appraisal: perceptions or judgments of your significant others Significant others: the people whose opinions/judgments were or are the most influential Social comparison: evaluating ourselves in terms of how we compare with others Reference groups: our peers or the people we use to evaluate our own characteristics

Characteristics of the Self Concept 1. The self-concept is subjective-our understanding of ourselves may be different from how others see us. 2. A healthy self-concept is flexible-it changes with changes in our life but don’t typically change radically after the age of 30. 3. The self-concept also resists change-once we become set in our self-concept we tend to out seek people who confirm it also known as cognitive conservatism.

Self-fulfilling Prophecy-when a person's expectations of an outcome makes the outcome more likely to occur 1. Two types: When your own expectations influence your behavior or when someone else’s expectations influence your behavior 2. The influence that self prophecies have on your communication-your effective communication or lack thereof may be a result of an existing self-fulfilling prophecy which may be helping or hindering your relationships

Changing your Self-Concept • Have realistic expectation • Have a realistic perception of yourself • Have the will to change • Have the skill to change

PRESENTING THE SELF: Communication as Identity Management 1. Identity management-communication strategies people use to influence how others view them 2. The aspect of the self involves the perceived(private) self and the presenting (public) self 3. Perceived self-the person you believe yourself to be in moments of honest self-examination 4. Presenting self-the way we want to appear to others 5. Facework-the verbal and nonverbal way in which we act to maintain our own presenting image and the images of others.

Characteristics of Identity Management • We strive to construct multiple identities • Identity management is collaborative • Identity management can be deliberate or unconscious • People differ in their degree if identity management

Why we Manage Impressions? • Social rules-society tells us to • To accomplish personal goals

How we Manage Impression? • Face-to-face Identity Management • Manner • Appearance • Setting • Identity Management in Mediated Communication

What is the difference between identity management and dishonesty?