Being accepted for who we are: evidence that social validation of the intrinsic self reduces general defensiveness.
Three studies examined the possibility that being liked intrinsically by others--for who one is--reduces self-esteem defense, whereas being liked for what one has achieved does not. All 3 studies contrasted the effects on self-esteem defense of liking based on intrinsic or achievement-related aspects of self. Study 1 showed that thoughts of being liked intrinsically reduced defensive bias toward downward social comparison. Study 2 demonstrated that being liked for intrinsic aspects of self reduced participants' tendency to defensively distance themselves from a negatively portrayed other. Study 3 revealed that being liked for intrinsic aspects of self encouraged a preference for upward over downward counterfactuals for a negative event. In all 3 studies, similar reductions in defensiveness were not found when liking was based on achievements. Discussion focuses on implications for understanding the functional value of different bases of self-worth.
Schimel
J
J
Department of Psychology, University of Arizona, Tucson 85721, USA. jschimel@u.arizona.edu
Arndt
J
J
Pyszczynski
T
T
Greenberg
J
J
D000124:Achievement; D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D003674:Defense Mechanisms; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012929:Psychological Distance; D012649:Self Concept; D012647:Self-Assessment; D012718:Set, Psychology; D012928:Social Desirability; D012933:Social Identification