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The Inactive Self: Mental Representation of Dormant Social Roles

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Date Issued:
2007
Summary:
A significant portion of the self is constructed from our actions and the roles to which they correspond. Although many of our social roles are enacted regularly, some may lay dormant, yet still influence one's self-concept. We propose that there are systematic differences in mental representation between these inactive roles and more active roles. Specifically, inactive roles should be more likely to be construed in high-level terms, while active roles should be more likely to be construed in lowlevel terms. Experiment 1 found that for inactive roles, participants displayed an implicit construal preference for the high-level aspects of the role. Experiment 2 provided evidence that an implicit measure of construal was necessary in order to tap these unconscious associations. These experiments support the hypothesis that inactive social roles are mentally represented in a unique manner with respect to more active roles.
Title: The Inactive Self: Mental Representation of Dormant Social Roles.
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Name(s): Moyer, Ryan M., author
Sagristano, Michael D., Thesis advisor
Florida Atlantic University, Degree grantor
Type of Resource: text
Genre: Electronic Thesis Or Dissertation
Date Created: 2007
Date Issued: 2007
Publisher: Florida Atlantic University
Place of Publication: Boca Raton, Fla.
Physical Form: application/pdf
Extent: 64 p.
Language(s): English
Summary: A significant portion of the self is constructed from our actions and the roles to which they correspond. Although many of our social roles are enacted regularly, some may lay dormant, yet still influence one's self-concept. We propose that there are systematic differences in mental representation between these inactive roles and more active roles. Specifically, inactive roles should be more likely to be construed in high-level terms, while active roles should be more likely to be construed in lowlevel terms. Experiment 1 found that for inactive roles, participants displayed an implicit construal preference for the high-level aspects of the role. Experiment 2 provided evidence that an implicit measure of construal was necessary in order to tap these unconscious associations. These experiments support the hypothesis that inactive social roles are mentally represented in a unique manner with respect to more active roles.
Identifier: FA00000801 (IID)
Degree granted: Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2007.
Subject(s): Self-esteem
Identity (Psychology)
Personal construct therapy
Social perception
Held by: Florida Atlantic University Libraries
Sublocation: Digital Library
Persistent Link to This Record: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00000801
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Use and Reproduction: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Host Institution: FAU
Is Part of Series: Florida Atlantic University Digital Library Collections.