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The concept of ego threat in social and personality psychology: is ego threat a viable scientific construct?

Publication ,  Journal Article
Leary, MR; Terry, ML; Batts Allen, A; Tate, EB
Published in: Personality and social psychology review : an official journal of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc
August 2009

Although widely invoked as an explanation for psychological phenomena, ego threat has been conceptualized and induced in a variety of ways. Most contemporary research conceptualizes ego threat as a threat to a person's self-image or self-esteem, but experimental operationalizations of ego threat usually confound threats to self-esteem with threats to public image or decreased control over negative events, leading to an inability to distinguish the effects of threats to people's personal egos from threats to public image or threats to feelings of control. This article reviews research on ego threat, discusses experimental manipulations that confound ego threat with other processes, and makes recommendations regarding the use of ego threat as a construct in personality and social psychology.

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Published In

Personality and social psychology review : an official journal of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc

DOI

EISSN

1532-7957

ISSN

1088-8683

Publication Date

August 2009

Volume

13

Issue

3

Start / End Page

151 / 164

Related Subject Headings

  • Social Psychology
  • Social Perception
  • Social Identification
  • Self Concept
  • Psychological Theory
  • Personality
  • Internal-External Control
  • Humans
  • Emotions
  • Ego
 

Citation

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Leary, M. R., Terry, M. L., Batts Allen, A., & Tate, E. B. (2009). The concept of ego threat in social and personality psychology: is ego threat a viable scientific construct? Personality and Social Psychology Review : An Official Journal of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc, 13(3), 151–164. https://doi.org/10.1177/1088868309342595
Leary, Mark R., Meredith L. Terry, Ashley Batts Allen, and Eleanor B. Tate. “The concept of ego threat in social and personality psychology: is ego threat a viable scientific construct?Personality and Social Psychology Review : An Official Journal of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc 13, no. 3 (August 2009): 151–64. https://doi.org/10.1177/1088868309342595.
Leary MR, Terry ML, Batts Allen A, Tate EB. The concept of ego threat in social and personality psychology: is ego threat a viable scientific construct? Personality and social psychology review : an official journal of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc. 2009 Aug;13(3):151–64.
Leary, Mark R., et al. “The concept of ego threat in social and personality psychology: is ego threat a viable scientific construct?Personality and Social Psychology Review : An Official Journal of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc, vol. 13, no. 3, Aug. 2009, pp. 151–64. Epmc, doi:10.1177/1088868309342595.
Leary MR, Terry ML, Batts Allen A, Tate EB. The concept of ego threat in social and personality psychology: is ego threat a viable scientific construct? Personality and social psychology review : an official journal of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc. 2009 Aug;13(3):151–164.
Journal cover image

Published In

Personality and social psychology review : an official journal of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc

DOI

EISSN

1532-7957

ISSN

1088-8683

Publication Date

August 2009

Volume

13

Issue

3

Start / End Page

151 / 164

Related Subject Headings

  • Social Psychology
  • Social Perception
  • Social Identification
  • Self Concept
  • Psychological Theory
  • Personality
  • Internal-External Control
  • Humans
  • Emotions
  • Ego