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Imposter Phenomenon (IP) is a set of psychological experiences characterized by self-doubt, attributing success to external causes, and a constant fear of being perceived as a phony (Clance & Imes, 1978), which may be suggestive of dissatisfaction with basic psychological needs of competence, autonomy, and relatedness. Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk) workers (N = 325, 61% men, 39% women) ranked their self-identified knowledge and abilities relative to others, completed the Clance Imposter Phenomenon Scale (CIPS) assessing IP, and the Balanced Measure of Psychological Needs (BMPN) assessing competence, autonomy, and relatedness. We hypothesized that IP and dissatisfaction in basic psychological needs would predict underestimation of knowledge and abilities relative to those of other people. However, we found imposter phenomenon and basic psychological needs predicted positive self-evaluations. Inflated self-evaluations may be strategically used to defend against IP feelings and against a sense of “ill-being” associated with thwarted psychological needs. Thus, a positive, confident presentation may be compensatory or defensive in nature. Future research could explore specific defense mechanisms that may mediate this positive self-evaluation of knowledge and ability relative to others as well as the role of styles of perfectionism.
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Constructing a personal narrative and consolidating identity is an ongoing process that becomes pressing in the face of mortality. The current pilot study examined the process of life review in a sample of older people, specifically examining the effects of participation in a memoir course on wisdom, identity, and well-being. We hypothesized that wisdom, identity fidelity and coherence, and subjective well-being would increase for those in the memoir group compared to a control. Eighteen elderly individuals from two senior retirement communities were randomly assigned to participate in weekly classes, for four weeks, either to work on a memoir or discuss films (control group). After engaging in the process of organizing their life story and writing about important memories, the nine individuals in the memoir group scored significantly higher on self-report measures of wise reminiscence, identity fidelity, and subjective well-being compared to those in the control group. Furthermore, exploratory analyses found that wise reminiscence statistically mediated relationships between the memoir condition and the outcome measures of identity fidelity, identity coherence, and subjective well-being. These findings point to the benefits of memoir writing for positive aging as well as potential mechanisms underlying its effectiveness.
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Memes on social media can carry ageist messages and can elicit reactions that are both emotional and self-evaluative. The present study investigates age-related differences in nine discrete emotions and in the evaluation of when individuals have been or will be their best selves. Participants (n = 360) representing young (m = 26 years), middle-aged (m = 39 years) and older adults (m = 63 years) were randomly assigned to view either non-ageist (animals) or ageist (e.g., incompetent older people) memes. After viewing memes, we assessed nine emotional reactions (i.e., fear, anger, sadness, happiness, anxiety, discomfort, disgust, surprise, enjoyment) and Best Self evaluations. Younger and middle-aged people reported more intense emotional reactions to memes than older people, with the exception that older people reported more discomfort and disgust in response to ageist versus non-ageist memes. Younger adults were less surprised by ageist memes (vs. non-ageist) and for all age groups ageist memes (vs. non-ageist) elicited less happiness and enjoyment and were less likely to be shared. With respect to evaluations of one's Best Self, older individuals were more likely to report being their best selves in the past, while after viewing ageist memes, younger individuals were more likely to report being their best selves in the future. Emotions of disgust and discomfort were related to identifying one's Best Self as further in the past. The current study adds to the literature on the impact of ageism by examining age-related differences in the emotions and self-evaluations experienced when confronted with memes on social media.
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- Psychology (4)
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- Journal Article (4)
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- English (2)