biased scanning

a hypothetical process in which people alter or maintain a particular self-concept by searching the contents of their memory in a selective manner, focusing on memories that fit a predetermined impression. The theory assumes that people have a wide range of implicit memories, enabling them to support different views of the self by selectively remembering certain events.

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Psychology term of the day

December 26th 2024

false self

in the object relations theory of British psychoanalyst Donald Winnicott (1896–1971), the self that develops as a defense against impingements and in adaptation to the environment. This contrasts with the true self, which develops in an environment that adapts to the infant and allows him or her to discover and express true impulses.