1. The Social-Cognitive Perspective
Of Personality

2. Bandura is Back
Social cognitive theory stems from social learning theory (under the umbrella of behaviorism).
Behaviorism (as introduced by Watson) supports a direct and unidirectional pathway between stimulus and response, representing human behavior as a simple reaction to external stimuli.

3. Social Cognitive Theory
Focus on how we interact with our environment.
Reciprocal Determinism: the interacting influences between personality and environmental factors.

4. Social Cognitive Perspective
Different People choose different environments.
The TV you watch, friends you hang with, music you listen to were all chosen by you (your disposition)
But after you choose the environment, it also shapes you.

5. Social Cognitive Perspective
Our personalities help create situations to which we react.
If I expect someone to be angry with me, I may give that person the cold shoulder, creating the very behavior I expect.

6. Personal Control
Our sense of controlling our environment rather than the environment controlling us.

7. External Locus of Control
The perception that chance or outside forces beyond one’s personal control determine one’s fate.

8. Internal Locus of Control
The perception that one controls one’s own fate.

9. Learned Helplessness
The hopelessness and passive resignation an animal or human learns when unable to avoid repeated aversive events.

10. Personal Control Optimism Versus Pessimism
Optimism and Health
Excessive Optimism
Blindness to one’s own incompetence
Positive psychology
the scientific study of optimal human functioning; aims to discover and promote strengths and virtues that enable individuals and communities to thrive.

11. Exploring the Self

12. Introduction Self Possible selves Spotlight effect
overestimating other’s noticing and evaluating our appearance, performance, and blunders (as if we presume a spotlight shines on us).

13. The Benefits of Self-Esteem

14. Self-Serving Bias Self-serving bias Defensive self-esteem
People accept more responsibility for good deeds than for bad, successes than failures
Most people see themselves as better than average
Defensive self-esteem

15. Culture and the Self
Individualism
Collectivism

16. Individualism versus Collectivism

17. Individualism versus Collectivism

18. Individualism versus Collectivism

19. Individualism versus Collectivism

20. Individualism versus Collectivism

21. Individualism versus Collectivism

22. Individualism versus Collectivism

23. Individualism versus Collectivism