This is the first major volume dedicated to the processes by which people exaggerate their virtues, deemphasize their shortcomings, or protect themselves against threatening feedback. Leading investigators present cutting-edge work on the key role of self-enhancing and self-protective motives in social perception, cognition, judgment, and behavior. Compelling topics include the psychological benefits and risks of self-enhancement and self-protection; personality traits and contextual factors that make certain individuals more likely to hold distorted views of the self; innovative approaches to assessment and measurement; and implications for relationships, achievement, and mental health.

Table of Contents:
Introduction. Self-Enhancement and Self-Protection: Historical Overview and Conceptual Framework, Mark D. Alicke and Constantine SedikidesI. Neurocognitive Bases of Self-Enhancement and Self-Protection 1. Neural Bases of Approach and Avoidance, Eddie Harmon-Jones 2. Self-Enhancement: A Social Neuroscience Perspective, Jennifer S. Beer and Brent L. HughesII. Self-Enhancement and Self-Protection in Self-Construal 3. Self-Enhancement via Redefinition: Defining Social Concepts to Ensure Positive Views of the Self, Clayton R. Critcher, Erik G. Helzer, and David Dunning 4. Moral Hypocrisy: A Self-Enhancement/Self-Protection Motive in the Moral Domain, C. Daniel Batson and Elizabeth C. Collins 5. The Role of Time in Self-Enhancement and Self-Protection, Anne E. Wilson and Michael Ross 6. Reconciling Self-Protection with Self-Improvement: Self-Affirmation Theory, David K. Sherman and Kimberly A. HartsonIII. Perceptual, Judgmental, and Memory Processes in Self-Enhancement and Self-Protection 7. Of Visions and Desires: Biased Perceptions of the Environment Can Serve Self-Protective Functions, Shana Cole and Emily Balcetis 8. Self-Enhancement and Self-Protection in Social Judgment, Mark D. Alicke and Corey L. Guenther 9. Postdecisional Self-Enhancement and Self-Protection: The Role of the Self in Cognitive Dissonance Processes, Jeff Stone and Elizabeth Focella 10. The Positivity Bias and the Fading Affect Bias in Autobiographical Memory: A Self-Motives Perspective, John J. SkowronskiIV. Self-Enhancement and Self-Protection in Interpersonal, Relational, and Group Contexts 11. The Social Consequences of Self-Enhancement and Self-Protection, Vera Hoorens 12. Seeking Pleasure and Avoiding Pain in Interpersonal Relationships, Joanne V. Wood and Amanda L. Forest 13. An Attachment Perspective on Self-Protection and Self-Enhancement, Phillip R. Shaver and Mario Mikulincer 14. To Enhance or Protect the Self?: The Complex Role of Explicit and Implicit Self-Esteem, Tracy DeHart, Julie Longua, and Jennifer Smith 15. Attributions to Discrimination as a Self-Protective Strategy: Evaluating the Evidence, Brenda Major and Dina EliezerV. Self-Enhancement and Self-Protection in Developmental, Clinical, Health, Personality, andCultural Contexts 16. Self-Enhancement and Self-Protection in a Developmental Context, Kali H. Trzesniewski, Megan Peggy-Anne Kinal, and M. Brent Donnellan 17. The Breakdown of Self-Enhancing and Self-Protecting Cognitive Biases in Depression, Lauren B. Alloy, Clara A. Wagner, Shimrit K. Black, Rachel K. Gerstein, and Lyn Y. Abramson 18. When Self-Enhancement Drives Health Decisions: Insights from a Terror Management Health Model, Jamie Arndt and Jamie L. Goldenberg 19. Narcissistic Self-Enhancement: Tales of (Successful?) Self-Portrayal, Carolyn C. Morf, Stephan Horvath, and Loredana Torchetti 20. Cultural Perspectives on Self-Enhancement and Self-Protection, Chi-yue Chiu, Ching Wan, Shirley Y.Y. Cheng, Young-hoon Kim, and Yung-jui YangVI. Boundary Conditions and Methodological Issues in Self-Enhancement and Self-Protection 21. Academic Exaggeration: Pushing Self-Enhancement Boundaries, Richard H. Gramzow 22. Measurement of Self-Enhancement (and Self-Protection), Joachim I. Krueger and Jack C. Wright