Sex-Related Comparisons: Theory 175a gun. The traditional male may realize certain
situations call for emotional expression, such
as a funeral.
There are individual differences in
concerns with self-presentation and self-
verification.Self-monitoringis an indi-
vidual difference variable that describes
the extent to which one is more concerned
with self-presentation or self-verification
(Snyder, 1979). A high self-monitor is some-
one who changes his or her behavior to fit
the situation. This person will be outgo-
ing at a party, yet serious during a study
session. This person will be both support-
ive of a woman’s right to an abortion when
talking to a group of feminists but sym-
pathetic to the plight of the unborn child
when talking to a priest. This person is very
much concerned with self-presentation.
A low self-monitor typically behaves the same
from one situation to the next. If this person
is serious, he or she will be serious at a party,
serious at a study session, and serious at a din-
ner. If in favor of reducing social security, this
person will state his or her beliefs whether
talking to a 30-year-old or a 70-year-old. The
low self-monitor is most concerned with self-
verification. The situation, however, will also
influence whether we are more concerned
with self-verification or self-presentation.Situation
In some situations, you may be more con-
cerned with adhering to your principles and
values and want to behave in a way that is
consistent with them. What will determine
this? The strength of your values is one de-
terminant. If the issue is something you
care strongly about, you will stand firm in
your beliefs no matter what the situation.
If I believe hunting is a valuable sport, I
will voice this opinion to a group of peopleThe two of you actually see the same replay
but interpret the behavior differently and, not
surprisingly, in line with what you hoped to
see. Behavior is often subject to multiple in-
terpretations, especially social behavior. Thus
the person who believes baby boys are more
active than baby girls will probably main-
tain this belief despite numerous counterex-
amples because he or she is free to interpret
a wide range of behavior as active or inactive.
Behavioral confirmation is the process
by which a perceiver’s expectation actually
alters the target’s behavior. The target then
confirms the perceiver’s expectancy. Imagine
that a mother believes girls are more capable
than boys of taking care of small children.
This mother is likely to give her daughter
more opportunities to take care of the new
baby in the family. Thus it will not be surpris-
ing if the daughter becomes more skilled than
the son at feeding and entertaining the baby!Target
The target in an interaction is the person
whose behavior is of interest. The target of
an interaction influences whether she or he
displays behavior consistent with stereo-
types about sex differences by two processes:
self-verificationandself-presentation. Self-
verification is our concern with behaving in
ways consistent with our self-concept. If you
are a member of the National Rifle Asso-
ciation (NRA), you may not be able to keep
yourself from speaking about the importance
of the Second Amendment. If you are a very
traditional male, it may be important to you
not to express emotions in any situation. Self-
presentation is our concern with how our
behavior appears to others. The NRA mem-
ber may find it inappropriate to voice con-
cerns about Second Amendment rights to a
mother whose child was accidentally killed byM05_HELG0185_04_SE_C05.indd 175 6/21/11 8:03 AM