Society of self: the emergence of collective properties in self-structure.
Using cellular automata, the authors show how mutual influences among elements of self-relevant information give rise to dynamism, differentiation, and global evaluation in self-concept. The model assumes a press for integration that promotes internally generated dynamics and enables the self-structure to operate as a self-organizing dynamical system. When this press is set at high values, the self can resist inconsistent information and reestablish equilibrium after being perturbed by such information. A weak press for integration, on the other hand, impairs self-organization tendencies, making the system vulnerable to external information. Paradoxically, external information of a random nature may enhance the emergence of a stable self-structure in an initially disordered system. The simulation results suggest that important global properties of the self reflect the operation of integration processes that are generic in complex systems.
Nowak
A
A
Department of Psychology, Warsaw University, Poland. anowak@samba.iss.uw.edu.pl
Vallacher
R R
RR
Tesser
A
A
Borkowski
W
W
D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D012649:Self Concept; D013997:Time Factors