title: Disowning the self: The cultural value of modesty can attenuate self-positivity.
abstract: Western participants endorse a higher number of positive traits as self-descriptive, but endorse a lower number of negative traits as self-descriptive. They also respond quicker to categorize positive traits as self-descriptive, but respond slower to categorize negative traits as self-descriptive. Is this self-positivity bias qualified by the cultural value of modesty? We induced modesty (vs. punctuality) and assessed self-descriptiveness judgments and response times among Chinese participants. We replicated the self-positivity bias in regards to both self-descriptiveness judgments and response times. In the case of self-descriptiveness judgments, however, the bias was partially qualified by modesty. Relative to control participants, those in the modesty condition endorsed fewer positive traits as self-descriptive and manifested a tendency toward endorsing more negative traits as self-descriptive. In the case of response times, the self-positivity bias was unqualified by modesty. Within both conditions, participants were quicker to categorize positive traits as self-descriptive and were slower to categorize negative traits as self-descriptive. The results speak to the relation between the self-positivity bias and the self-reference effect and illustrate the malleability of self-processing.
authors.affiliation: a Institute of Psychology , Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing , China.|b University of Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing , China.|c Department of Psychology , University of Southampton , Southampton , UK.
authors.forename: Yuanyuan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Shi
authors.affiliation: c Department of Psychology , University of Southampton , Southampton , UK.
authors.forename: Constantine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Sedikides
authors.affiliation: a Institute of Psychology , Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing , China.
authors.forename: Huajian
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Cai
authors.affiliation: a Institute of Psychology , Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing , China.|b University of Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing , China.
authors.forename: Yunzhi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: a Institute of Psychology , Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing , China.|b University of Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing , China.
authors.forename: Ziyan
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Yang
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D015982:Bias; D003469:Culture; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007600:Judgment; D008297:Male; D011930:Reaction Time; D012649:Self Concept; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Chinese culture; Culture; Modesty; Self-positivity; Self-processing; Self-reference effect