Comments on: The bigger the ego, the harder the fall – how self-awareness buffers against social rejection http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2009/07/07/the-bigger-the-ego-the-harder-the-fall-how-self-awareness-buffers-against-social-rejection/ Mon, 26 Nov 2012 12:00:51 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.4.2 By: abb3w http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2009/07/07/the-bigger-the-ego-the-harder-the-fall-how-self-awareness-buffers-against-social-rejection/#comment-4253 abb3w Thu, 09 Jul 2009 04:20:40 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2009/07/07/the-bigger-the-ego-the-harder-the-fall-how-self-awareness-buffers-against-social-rejection/#comment-4253 <b>Ed Yong:</b> <i>I cite you this paper from 1958</i> Maybe it's just that it's a study about refrigerators, but DAMN.... that's both Cool and Cold. Plus, epic: <i>a higher rate of success being associated with <b>fewer</b> years of education attained by mother and father combined</i>. I'm going to have to pass that example along to others. Contrariwise, merely because you can turn up sociological monstrosities from the 1950s-1960s does not make the current work a shining beacon. Ed Yong: I cite you this paper from 1958
Maybe it’s just that it’s a study about refrigerators, but DAMN…. that’s both Cool and Cold. Plus, epic: a higher rate of success being associated with fewer years of education attained by mother and father combined. I’m going to have to pass that example along to others.
Contrariwise, merely because you can turn up sociological monstrosities from the 1950s-1960s does not make the current work a shining beacon.

]]> By: Candid Engineer http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2009/07/07/the-bigger-the-ego-the-harder-the-fall-how-self-awareness-buffers-against-social-rejection/#comment-4252 Candid Engineer Thu, 09 Jul 2009 04:01:48 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2009/07/07/the-bigger-the-ego-the-harder-the-fall-how-self-awareness-buffers-against-social-rejection/#comment-4252 Somehow I am quite satisfied knowing that all of the horrid egomaniacs I've encountered will be feeling badly about themselves at some point of another. Really interesting study. Somehow I am quite satisfied knowing that all of the horrid egomaniacs I’ve encountered will be feeling badly about themselves at some point of another. Really interesting study.

]]> By: Shaun http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2009/07/07/the-bigger-the-ego-the-harder-the-fall-how-self-awareness-buffers-against-social-rejection/#comment-4251 Shaun Thu, 09 Jul 2009 02:54:24 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2009/07/07/the-bigger-the-ego-the-harder-the-fall-how-self-awareness-buffers-against-social-rejection/#comment-4251 At the risk of asking an obvious question: what if a lot of the kids were actually just aware of how popular they were in their peer group? If this study had been done on me in a workplace where I didn't get on with anyone, upon hearing I was the least popular I would have thought "fair enough". If I was in a workplace where I did get on with everyone, and the survey said that I was the least popular, I'd feel bad. Not because of an inflated sense of self worth, but because I felt lied as I was under the (correct) impression that I was well liked. At the risk of asking an obvious question: what if a lot of the kids were actually just aware of how popular they were in their peer group? If this study had been done on me in a workplace where I didn’t get on with anyone, upon hearing I was the least popular I would have thought “fair enough”. If I was in a workplace where I did get on with everyone, and the survey said that I was the least popular, I’d feel bad. Not because of an inflated sense of self worth, but because I felt lied as I was under the (correct) impression that I was well liked.

]]> By: Zach Miller http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2009/07/07/the-bigger-the-ego-the-harder-the-fall-how-self-awareness-buffers-against-social-rejection/#comment-4250 Zach Miller Wed, 08 Jul 2009 17:57:41 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2009/07/07/the-bigger-the-ego-the-harder-the-fall-how-self-awareness-buffers-against-social-rejection/#comment-4250 Ed, that fridge study is AWESOME. Ed, that fridge study is AWESOME.

]]> By: DC Elzinga http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2009/07/07/the-bigger-the-ego-the-harder-the-fall-how-self-awareness-buffers-against-social-rejection/#comment-4249 DC Elzinga Wed, 08 Jul 2009 17:29:05 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2009/07/07/the-bigger-the-ego-the-harder-the-fall-how-self-awareness-buffers-against-social-rejection/#comment-4249 Fascinating and I share your dislike of egotists. But I question the causal conclusions. An alternative interpretation: people with better social self-awareness respond more finely to negative social indicators. People with worse social sense respond more coarsely (i.e. wider swings). Fascinating and I share your dislike of egotists.
But I question the causal conclusions. An alternative interpretation: people with better social self-awareness respond more finely to negative social indicators. People with worse social sense respond more coarsely (i.e. wider swings).

]]> By: Mark Tyrrell http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2009/07/07/the-bigger-the-ego-the-harder-the-fall-how-self-awareness-buffers-against-social-rejection/#comment-4248 Mark Tyrrell Wed, 08 Jul 2009 11:51:20 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2009/07/07/the-bigger-the-ego-the-harder-the-fall-how-self-awareness-buffers-against-social-rejection/#comment-4248 The fact that kids who predicted worse than the actual outcome had lower mood (after a surprisingly positive outcome) doesn't surprise me at all. I think the need to be right ties in to the very human need for a sense of control in life. It can be difficult to be denied an: "I told you so!" even if it's connected to a negative outcome; a question of "better the devil you know..." The fact that kids who predicted worse than the actual outcome had lower mood (after a surprisingly positive outcome) doesn’t surprise me at all. I think the need to be right ties in to the very human need for a sense of control in life.
It can be difficult to be denied an: “I told you so!” even if it’s connected to a negative outcome; a question of “better the devil you know…”

]]> By: Ed Yong http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2009/07/07/the-bigger-the-ego-the-harder-the-fall-how-self-awareness-buffers-against-social-rejection/#comment-4247 Ed Yong Wed, 08 Jul 2009 10:24:19 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2009/07/07/the-bigger-the-ego-the-harder-the-fall-how-self-awareness-buffers-against-social-rejection/#comment-4247 Re: juvenile social sciences. I cite you <a href="http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/abstract/22/4/628" rel="nofollow">this paper from 1958</a> where a bunch of children were trapped in fridges, essentially to see what would happen. Over two hundred hapless kids were imprisoned in fridges and the authors’ deadpan description of their plight is brilliant. <blockquote>“Success in escaping was dependent on the device, a child's age and size and his behavior.” “Some children had curious twisting and twining movements of the fingers or clenching of the hands.” “One-third of the children emerged unruffled, about half were upset but could be comforted easily, and a small group (11%) required some help to become calm.” “A number of children still talked about the tests, some with pleasure, a few with resentment.” </blockquote> And thankfully, the study gave us this mind-boggling insight: <blockquote>“An important result of the behavior study was the finding that, when entrapped, children most often try to escape either by pushing on the door through which they entered the enclosure, or by manipulating a knob release as they would a doorknob. Relatively few children pushed against the back, sides or ceiling of the enclosure.” </blockquote> SCIENCE! Re: juvenile social sciences. I cite you this paper from 1958 where a bunch of children were trapped in fridges, essentially to see what would happen. Over two hundred hapless kids were imprisoned in fridges and the authors’ deadpan description of their plight is brilliant.

“Success in escaping was dependent on the device, a child’s age and size and his behavior.”
“Some children had curious twisting and twining movements of the fingers or clenching of the hands.”
“One-third of the children emerged unruffled, about half were upset but could be comforted easily, and a small group (11%) required some help to become calm.”
“A number of children still talked about the tests, some with pleasure, a few with resentment.”

And thankfully, the study gave us this mind-boggling insight:

“An important result of the behavior study was the finding that, when entrapped, children most often try to escape either by pushing on the door through which they entered the enclosure, or by manipulating a knob release as they would a doorknob. Relatively few children pushed against the back, sides or ceiling of the enclosure.”

SCIENCE!

]]> By: Marc Abian http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2009/07/07/the-bigger-the-ego-the-harder-the-fall-how-self-awareness-buffers-against-social-rejection/#comment-4246 Marc Abian Wed, 08 Jul 2009 10:10:04 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2009/07/07/the-bigger-the-ego-the-harder-the-fall-how-self-awareness-buffers-against-social-rejection/#comment-4246 <blockquote>For the various people who questioned the ethics, bear in mind that "Participants were thoroughly debriefed." So no child was left walking away thinking that everyone hated them.</blockquote> Poor naive Ed. In juvenile social sciences this is code for "were given atomic wedgies".

For the various people who questioned the ethics, bear in mind that “Participants were thoroughly debriefed.” So no child was left walking away thinking that everyone hated them.

Poor naive Ed. In juvenile social sciences this is code for “were given atomic wedgies”.

]]> By: Nathan Myers http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2009/07/07/the-bigger-the-ego-the-harder-the-fall-how-self-awareness-buffers-against-social-rejection/#comment-4245 Nathan Myers Wed, 08 Jul 2009 08:21:04 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2009/07/07/the-bigger-the-ego-the-harder-the-fall-how-self-awareness-buffers-against-social-rejection/#comment-4245 Child abuse for science has a long and distinguished history. Child abuse for science has a long and distinguished history.

]]> By: Simon http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2009/07/07/the-bigger-the-ego-the-harder-the-fall-how-self-awareness-buffers-against-social-rejection/#comment-4244 Simon Wed, 08 Jul 2009 05:38:48 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2009/07/07/the-bigger-the-ego-the-harder-the-fall-how-self-awareness-buffers-against-social-rejection/#comment-4244 What a surprise, the 'everybody is a winner, give them a prize for trying' egalitarianism we suffer in todays society based on dubious psycho babble can be positively dangerous. Remember Col Jessup in a Few Good Men, "You can't handle the truth", truth is a powerful tool when dealing with reality. It is also interesting to me as an ex serviceman that military personnel who have been awarded their countries highest decorations for extraordinary acts of courage & self sacrifice are often those quiet, self effacing people who wouldn't stand out in a crowd yet somehow are able to find extraordianry depths of resillience & capacity for action in themselves when necessary. Surely they can't have a low opinion of themselves! What a surprise, the ‘everybody is a winner, give them a prize for trying’ egalitarianism we suffer in todays society based on dubious psycho babble can be positively dangerous.
Remember Col Jessup in a Few Good Men, “You can’t handle the truth”, truth is a powerful tool when dealing with reality. It is also interesting to me as an ex serviceman that military personnel who have been awarded their countries highest decorations for extraordinary acts of courage & self sacrifice are often those quiet, self effacing people who wouldn’t stand out in a crowd yet somehow are able to find extraordianry depths of resillience & capacity for action in themselves when necessary. Surely they can’t have a low opinion of themselves!

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