Loyola University Chicago Loyola eCommons Dissertations Theses and Dissertations 1959 An Experimental Study of the Relation between Perception of Self and Evaluation of Another Henry Joseph Lambin Loyola University Chicago Follow this and additional works at: https://ecommons.luc.edu/luc_diss Part of the Psychology Commons Recommended Citation Lambin, Henry Joseph, "An Experimental Study of the Relation between Perception of Self and Evaluation of Another" (1959). Dissertations. 597. https://ecommons.luc.edu/luc_diss/597 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses and Dissertations at Loyola eCommons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Loyola eCommons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License. Copyright © 1959 Henry Joseph Lambin AN EXPE1m:IENTAL STUDY OF THE RELATION BEMEN P'i:RCEPTION OF SELF Am> EVALUATION OF .ANOTHER A Dissertation Submitted to the Facul:t,v of the Graduate School of IDtola Universitq 1n Partial Fult111ment of t.he Requ~ for the Degree of Doctor of PhUo~ Bemy Jo,eph Larab1n .... 'Donl in Chleqo, Il11D01, oa J .... 10. 1921. Be lra4ua~ trom toyola Aetad.,-, Chloaco. IlllDol. 111 Jw.w, 1940. rroa Sept__ bel', 1940 to !lareh, 1M3 he att•• ded. Lo)'Ola UAl ••rlity. Chioap. Il1$.D01,. .. len 0011•• in Maroh, 194' 110 .ern a. an Aerial .a'f1&atol' With the Ail" ro ..... Afier 'epuatlon troa .eni,.e 1D .".. ber. 1946 he Ntunaed to loyo1a and .... oelftd hi, Baohelor ot An, ne'.... 1n rebrual7. 191'1. r_ wnter bepa hl. &ra4wlte Rudie, at to,ola in the .... flO_h. Ie al.o took ooun.. at Iorthweatern ad the 'Old;,..... lt)" ot Chioago. In JUDe, 1968 he r ...lved hl. flaster ot An, De,.... ho. I.Qyo1a. While ~&I.4 in era.... t. nudi•• he taught &8 a tenurer in Payoho1- oU' at to,ola aln.. 1949 and at the Str1toh School ot riediolM dur1n& 1961 tmcl 19M. 'rom JUBe ot 1950 to OctoHr or 1966 he " .., -.ployM a. "yoholocin Oil the ltart ot the aehanor OlUdo ot the Cria1Ja&l Court of Cook Ccnmt7. J>u1.a& 1956 aad 1966 h ....1 ODe or the panurl of A4'riaor. 1n Mau&..... a pa)'Oh.ol­ °1"_1 consult111& firm. Slnoe Sept_be" ot 1968 1me write" hal been teuh1D& at lo)'Ola .... Inatruotor in the nepana.r.r.t or 'ayobolo&1. l1i TABLE or CON'tEIRS Chapter I. INTRODUCTION • .. • • • • • · . .. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • .. • 1 II. ltEVID or TBBLI'tERATURE • •• . .. .. .. .. • • • • • • · .. • • 4 III. DTHODOLOGY AID IXPERIMEI1'AL PROCEDURE .. • • .. .. " . .. .. .. .. .'2 IV. PRESENTA TION AND ANALYSIS OF THE DATA • • • • • • • • • • • • • .82 v. SUMURY AND COHOLUSIONS · . .. .. · . .. .. .. • • • • • .. • 122 Appendb I. EXCERPTS FROM BOOK VII OJ' UPUBLIO or PLATO .. .. • • • •• • 134 II. STA'l'ElIENTS OF THE !i SORT .. ...... .. .. .. • • • • .. .. .. · .. .. .. 136 III. RECORD J'OIDI . .. · .. • • • • . .. • • • • • • . .. .. · .. • • 139 IV. INSTRUOTION SHEET • • • • • • • • • . .. • • • • • • • • • •• 140 v. POST SORT QUESTIONNAIRE • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 142 VI. INSTRUCTIONS TO SUBJECT • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • .. • • 143 VII. SUMMARY OF OORRELATIONS • • • • • • • • • · . .. .. · .. .. • • 144 VIII. SUMMARY OF Z SOORES .. • • • . .. .. .. .. .. · .. .... 148 IX. STATISTIOAL NOTES • • • • • • • • • • • • • .. .. .. • •• • • 162 Bibliography • • • • • • • .. .. • • • • .. • • • • • • .. • • .. • • • • • • 166 iv LISf or TABLIS 'a\)l. I. JUDGESt PERCEPTION or THE SUBJIC'f OO¥PAHn WI'll JtJDGu' AID SUBJECts' PBRC&:PTI01S 0' !BEiI$ELVIS " • " • " • • " · " " . .86 II. nAt SI¥lUBI!! OF SUiJEOT Am J®GE OOMPARED WI!1l PERCEIVED SI.ItARltT ..""... • • • " • • • " • " . " . " .88 III" PARTIAL eORREI...\TIOJlS BF.:'rnEH VARIOUS O::>rnlUIA'l'IOIS Of lEAL. IDEAL, ABO PEROEIVED SORtS ..""...... " . • 91 IV" JODGl1' I PERCEntol OF T111 StlBJ!CT OOMPARED Ylln O'l'Jit!m JUOOS8 t .PDCEP!IOD 01l'l'lE SUBJECf "" •••• " ••• " •••• 96 v. COlmELA.'fIONS BETm!:Im to JU'OO'ES t (J-4) ltATlmS COM'PA'RID WIT! JUDGES' OTHER SORTS " •••• "..... •• "" ••• ". 98 VI. RAn ORDER OORREL-AfIORS IftWUI VARIOUS SORn • " • • ••••• .101 VII. OO).fPARI SONS OF SILBCn:n OORRELA TIOI'S or fBi UOST ACCURATE AND LlAST ACCURATE IODGIS .."".......... .107 nIl. LIST or S'lAfi1ClDTS USED BY (w..J) 1'0 'DESORIBE RIAL SEL, • • • • .11' VIII. LISf 0' S'fATmsftS USIl) BT (tAJ) fO DESCRIBE RiAL SEL, · . " " IX. SW;,ARY or PRlQtJEfmIES OF SfAt:usns mum 'BY (KAJ) an4 (LAJ) ., .117 LIST OF FIGURES Figure Pa.ge 1. DIAGRAMS OF SOME PERSONAL PERCEPTUAL PROCESSES AND AOTS • • • • • .130 ClJAPTER I INTRODOOTIO:et Who can be sure, in his sensible perception of a ohair, bow muoh comell from. the eye, and how muoh is supplied out of previous knowledge of the m1ncl' Thh brief atatement of William James (111, p. 191) sUlJllll&r:i.zea one pt the oruclal problam.8 in the proce8. ot peTOeption. It was a problem 8ixty vears ago, it is a problem today, and ls likely to ramain one tor some time in the tuture. The re&eon, ot course, 18 obvious. We are consoious ot the results of peroeption, the ohair. and not the prooess through whioh .e become aware ot the chair. furthermore, in attempting to resolve this problem by introspection, the proce•• 8tudied, perception, ia itselt used in the analysis. The perSOD pb.erving is still the person observed. In Plato's (166, Ik. VII) analogy ot the cave the prisoners could ... rothing but the shadows cast on the wall. They did not know, nor could they ~e expected to know, that the shadow. on the wall were merely illusions and. ~ere not real. Only whem relea.ed trom their chains could they real:i.ze that ~h. shadows ...re representations of objeot. passing before the tire, and their previous peroeptions were erroneous. To continue the analogy, our state ot awareness i8 equivalent to ithat of the prisoners. While no one exploring this problem may expect a literal treedom from his chains 80 as to attain the privileged perspeotive ot 1 2 observing direotly the difference between his sense perceptions and the objects gi~ rise to them" he may nevertheless approxims:ee this state by com.paring hiB perceptions of an objeot with those ot another observer. furthermore" it the objeot peroeived is another person" the individual observed lIl8.y otter hi. perceptions ot himself to serve as a basis of comparison. Peroeption and/or evaluation ot another is a oruoial issue in psyohol· ogy. Whether the investigator direotly or implioitly regards psychology as a study ot oonsoiousns.s, behavior, peroeption" motivation" the unconsoiou.s, or the whole man, all ot these subject matters have 80methtns in common, namely, observation and/or introspeotion, evaluation, e,nd desoription. Furthermore, aocording to Allport (8, p. 169, footnote) the subject matter ultimately must be referred to the consoious state of the observer. 1. It is nowadays ta8hlonable to distrust the evideoe ot immediate experienoe ••• (yet) ••• the core of the objeotive method 1. still the relianoe eaoh soientist plao• .-upon the testimony ot his own tuga­ tive and overlapping consoious states ••• and what is more impor­ tant, hi. aooeptanoe and rejeotion ot eTidenoe, his de'VOt10n to hi. own standards, are bound to the still more subjeotive core of his per­ sonality. viz., his selt-consoiousn.... (italio. mine) Oonsequently, mt only what 18 observed, but the way it is observed. evaluated, and desoribed by the observer cannot be oonsidered independently ot the soien­ tist· s own mental .tate.Would mt the biography ot Jones (113) suggest that Freud' 8 theory ot personality dynamio. 8'901,,84 in so.e way out ot the dynamios ot his own personality? Obviously, the mental state of the observer is less inttmately invol".d in 80me observations and evaluations than in others. It i. one thiD& to report that a man i8 .ix t.et tall ••peaks rapidly, bites his nails, and it is something else to affirm tha~ he is rigid, autlIDritarian, prejudiced, since none of the latter qualities can. be observed directly in his behavior. Yat we probably all have impressions aud opinions such as these of other people. Some of' these impressions are verbalized, others verbalizable. Another group is held llllpl1oitly. whose influenoe on our behavior mi&ht be equally signiticani • Consequently, the process by which we establish these judgments and opinions and their validity ill of no small importanoe in psyohology. Several investigators have found extensive signifioanoes in the problems intra and interpersonal peroeption. Rogers (159, Oh. n) uses per­ oeption as a focal point in desoribins personal adjustment and maladjustment. He 8ee8 the psyohotic, tor example, as a person with a rigid peroeptual pattern whose le1f 1s built up by distorted peroeptions of the world about him. In addition, he regards progress in therapy in terms of peroeptual change in the patient. Finally, the studies of Fiedler (69) illustrate that the prooess ot inter and intraper80nal perception differentiate effeotive from ineffeotive small groups engaged in some specifio task. ne value of this type of study has been demonstrated in terms of the pertonnanoes of athletio teams, military combat orews, and industrial groups. In briet, this study will endeavor to investigate the intra and interpersonal prooesses of perception, evaluation, and desoription with prin­ oipal amphasi. on how peroeption of self is related to evaluation ot Mother. A.. review ot the literature follows. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE :lhe genen.l purpose of this dissertation is to advance and te8t speoifio hypotheses on the way we know and understand other people and inci.. dentally ourselves as well. The relevant literuture, remote and tmmediately related, is extensive and the limits of the field are by :00 means clearly oiroum.soribed. In gaining knowled.t;e of other people several faoto rs might be dis­ tinguished. (1) the Judge (the observer), (2) the Subject (tho one observed); (3) the Relation between Judge and Subject (are they strangers, friends, an.tagonist.), (4) Intake (what is observ.dh (5) Integration (how Intake is tused with previous experience).