The proposed research examines the links between belief certainty and several important phenomena, including error in person perception, stereotyping, and low self-esteem. Section I follows up on preliminary studies of dating couples and college roommates indicating that as time and involvement in their relationships increase, they become increasingly certain of their beliefs about their partners with no concomitant increase in the accuracy of these beliefs. It is proposed that these effects exemplify a more general set of phenomena in which factors that make our beliefs richer foster confidence but not necessarily accuracy. The proposed studies will test this hypothesis and identify its range of applicability. Section II focuses on whether or not the model of belief certainty developed in Section I applies to social stereotypes. One study attempts to resolve an apparent contradiction between my model and past research on the certainty of social stereotypes. Another study will test the hypothesis that unmitigated losses of belief certainty increase prejudice. Yet another study will consider the counter-intuitive notion that providing prejudiced people with support for a stereotype may increase their tendency to individuate a member of a stereotyped group. The final study in this series will test the hypothesis that temporary loses in self-certainty within some domains will make people more likely to confirm the stereotype-based expectancies of perceivers. The third and final set of studies will examine the antecedents and consequences of self-certainty. Two studies will examine the cognitive and motivational antecedents of self-certainty. Another study will follow up on preliminary evidence that self-uncertainty and the low self-esteem it theoretically fosters can be eliminated by bolstering people's sense of self-certainty through confirmation of their negative as well as positive self-views. Studies are proposed to examine more directly the hypothesized confidence-bolstering effects of information that confirms people's self-views and specify how increasing self- certainty bolsters self-esteem.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
1R01MH057455-01A2
Application #
2767202
Study Section
Social and Group Processes Review Committee (SGP)
Program Officer
Morf, Carolyn
Project Start
1999-01-01
Project End
2002-12-31
Budget Start
1999-01-01
Budget End
1999-12-31
Support Year
1
Fiscal Year
1999
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Texas Austin
Department
Psychology
Type
Schools of Arts and Sciences
DUNS #
City
Austin
State
TX
Country
United States
Zip Code
78712
Swann Jr, William B; Sellers, Jennifer Guinn; McClarty, Katie Larsen (2006) Tempting today, troubling tomorrow: the roots of the precarious couple effect. Pers Soc Psychol Bull 32:93-103
Swann Jr, William B; Seyle, Conor (2005) Personality psychology's comeback and its emerging symbiosis with social psychology. Pers Soc Psychol Bull 31:155-65
Gill, Michael J; Swann Jr, William B (2004) On what it means to know someone: a matter of pragmatics. J Pers Soc Psychol 86:405-18
Swann Jr, William B; Kwan, Virginia S Y; Polzer, Jeffrey T et al. (2003) Fostering group identification and creativity in diverse groups: the role of individuation and self-verification. Pers Soc Psychol Bull 29:1396-406
Swann Jr, William B; Rentfrow, Peter J; Gosling, Samuel D (2003) The precarious couple effect: verbally inhibited men + critical, disinhibited women = bad chemistry. J Pers Soc Psychol 85:1095-106
Swann Jr, W B; Rentfrow, P J (2001) Blirtatiousness: cognitive, behavioral, and physiological consequences of rapid responding. J Pers Soc Psychol 81:1160-75
Swann Jr, W B; Milton, L P; Polzer, J T (2000) Should we create a niche or fall in line? Identity negotiation and small group effectiveness. J Pers Soc Psychol 79:238-50
Bosson, J K; Swann Jr, W B; Pennebaker, J W (2000) Stalking the perfect measure of implicit self-esteem: the blind men and the elephant revisited? J Pers Soc Psychol 79:631-43