UUnniivveerrssiittyy ooff NNoorrtthh FFlloorriiddaa UUNNFF DDiiggiittaall CCoommmmoonnss UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations Student Scholarship 1995 HHooww DDoo AAccttoorrss aanndd AAccttrreesssseess AAggee??:: SSeellff--MMoonniittoorriinngg aanndd AAggiinngg Barbara A. Bowman University of North Florida Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.unf.edu/etd Part of the Counseling Psychology Commons SSuuggggeesstteedd CCiittaattiioonn Bowman, Barbara A., "How Do Actors and Actresses Age?: Self-Monitoring and Aging" (1995). UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations. 92. https://digitalcommons.unf.edu/etd/92 This Master's Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Student Scholarship at UNF Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of UNF Digital Commons. For more information, please contact Digital Projects. © 1995 All Rights Reserved Self-Monitoring HOW DO ACTORS AND ACTRESSES AGE? : SELF-MONITORING AND AGING by Barbara A. Bowman A thesis submitted to the Department of Psychology in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology UNIVERSITY OF NORTH FLORIDA COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES April, 1995 Unpublished work c Barbara A. Bowman Self-Monitoring CERTIFICATE OF APPROVAL The thesis of Barbara A. Bowman is approved: (Date) Signature Deleted '-\. \ \. \. l\ S- Signature Deleted 1/7/95 Committee Chairperson Accepted for the Department: Signature Deleted Chairperson z:or the College: , Signature Deleted Dean Accepted for the University: Signature Deleted Dean 0 Self-Monitoring 111 Acknowledgments I would like to express my deep appreciation to Dr. Christopher Leone for serving as my mentor and director for this thesis. Dr. Leone's dedication to scientific research is surpassed only by his untiring willingness to share his knowledge with students. I would also like to thank Dr. Russell Jones for serving on my thesis committee and Dr. Betty Gilkison for her input. Additionally, I appreciate the efforts of fellow psychology students, Tanya Braswell and George Freeman for their participation on the interview team. I have a special debt of gratitude to my family and friends for their patience and understanding of my time commitments to this study. Finally, I wish to acknowledge and thank the many fine older adult subjects who shared so willingly and openly the impact of events in their lives. Self-Monitoring IV Table of Contents Acknowledgments 111 Abstract V Introduction 1-13 Method 13-17 Subjects 13 Materials 14, 15 Procedures 16, 17 Results 17-25 Discussion 25-30 Appendix A ( demographics) 31,32 Appendix B (Impact of Events Inventory) 33-40 Appendix C ( Aggregated Items) 41 References 42-44 Vita 45 Self-Monitoring v Abstract This study investigates the relationship between life events, self-monitoring, and aging. This relationship is explored in the following five areas: religious practices, social networks, intergenerational relationships, retirement, and leisure. It was hypothesized that, compared to low self-monitors, high self-monitors would (a) spend less time in private devotional activities as they age, (b) feel a heavier impact from the reduction in the quantity of social networks, (c) have more distant intergenerational ties, (d) adjust to forced retirement more quickly, and ( e) be less satisfied with leisure time as they age. The 120 volunteer participants ranged in age from 51 through 93. The Self-Monitoring Scale ( Snyder, 1974) and the Impact of Events Inventory were administered in structured individual interviews. Findings support the hypothesis that high self-monitors will experience more impact from the reduction in the quantity of social networks as they age. However, the results fail to support the other four hypotheses. Possible alternative explanations for these findings are explored. An appeal is made for future research on the topic of self-monitoring and aging. Self-Monitoring How Do Actors and Actresses Age? : Self-Monitoring and Aging Helen Hayes, often referred to as "First Lady of the American Theatre," made this comment at age 72 about growing old: "I never had time for myself I was always busy .. . entertaining people in the theater. .. now I have that time ... and I'm beginning to find myself a little bit" (1991, p. 279). This statement piqued my curiosity about self-monitoring and aging. Actors and actresses have represented the epitome of high self-monitors ( HSM). Yet here is an older actress now sounding very much like a low self-monitor (LSM). The difference in self-monitoring style seems to be in the type of actor or actress. High self-monitors view each situation as a setting for a new and different acting role. They have the ability to assume many diverse roles and enjoy a large, heterogeneous supporting cast. Low self-monitors are more like character actors or actresses. They spend much time in introspection and know their part well. Whatever the new setting they tend to play the same character role--themselves. These character actors like a small, intimate supporting cast ( Snyder, 1974 ). Self-presentation and impression management by self-monitoring has been a popular topic for research since Snyder's early work on the subject ( 1974). A more formal definition of self-monitoring would be "individual differences in the extent to which people monitor (observe and control) their expressive behavior and self-presentation" Self-Monitoring 2 (Snyder, 1974, p. 536). Snyder ( 1987) began his exploration ofthe subject to search for the link between private realities and public appearances of the self Snyder developed the Self-Monitoring Scale in 1972 to begin his empirical research of the subject. The statements of the scale describe the following: "concern with situational appropriateness of self-presentation; attention to social cues to situationally appropriate self-presentation; ability to control expressive behavior; use of this ability in particular situations; and situation-to-situation shifts in expressive self-presentation" ( Snyder, 1987, pp. 15-16). Individual differences exist in the areas of personal motivation, focus of attention, ability to control behavior, strategic use of ability, and situational specificity of behavior. The motivational concern is self-congruence for the LSM, but is situational or social appropriateness for the HSM. The focus of attention is introspection for the LSM, whereas social comparison appeals to the HSM. The ability to control behavior also differentiates the LSM and the HSM. Low self-monitors have a small repertoire of less-developed skills, whereas high self-monitors have a large repertoire of well-developed skills. The two groups also vary in the use of their ability. The LSM uses it for self-verification, but the HSM uses it for strategic self-presentation. The social behavior differs also--Iow self-monitors act like themselves consistently and have cross-situational similarity in their behaviors. High self-monitors, on the other hand, act like different people, with situationally specific behavior ( Snyder, 1987 ). Self-Monitoring 3 Prototypically, high self-monitors observe, regulate, and control the self they present to others. They think to themselves, "What does this situation call for me to be and how can I best be that person?" High self-monitors make good multi-role actors and play charades well. Their behavior is situationally specific ( Snyder, 1987). They choose friends by the activities they share together and usually have a large and heterogeneous group of casual friends ( Snyder, Gangestad, & Simpson, 1983). After all, if a tennis partner is a whiz, the high self-monitor will look good on the court too. High self-monitors rely more strongly on physical attractiveness in dating partners than do low self-monitors ( Snyder & Simpson, 1984). Beautiful co-stars appeal to high self-monitoring actors or actresses. In contrast, low self-monitors look within and think, "Who am I and how can I best be me in this situation?" ( Snyder, 1987). Their behavior is consistent across situations. They choose friends based on similarities and mutual affection. They tend to have close friendships, but fewer of them ( Snyder, Gangestad, & Simpson, 1983 ). Self-monitoring has been investigated from a developmental perspective. Eder ( as cited in Snyder, 1987) developed a measure of self-monitoring that can be used with children as young as three years. A self-monitoring scale for those in middle childhood has been developed by Graziano, Leone, Musser, and Lautenschlager ( 1987). Of course, numerous college students have participated in a variety of studies on the topic ( see Snyder, 1987, for a review). Self-Monitoring 4 Much less frequently have older adults and the elderly been cited as subjects in research on self-monitoring. McFarland and Sparks ( 1985 ) found that age and education are both linearly related to the internal consistency with which subjects respond to personality scales, including the Self-Monitoring Scale. Allen ( 1986 ) used the Revised Self-Monitoring Scale (Lennox & Wolfe, 1984) in a study of the following four age groups: 16 toI8-year-olds, 21 to 34-year-olds, 35 to 54- year-oIds, and 55 to 82-year-olds. He found no significant differences in self-monitoring scores among the various age groups. Reifinan, Klein, and Murphy ( 1989) also conducted a study of two adult samples with ages ranging from 18 to 73 years. Both samples displayed negative correlation between self-monitoring and age. In other words, the older the individual, the lower the score tended to be on the measure of self-monitoring. Further research is indicated to look more closely at the relationship between self-monitoring and aging. Higgins and Parsons ( 1983 ) postulate that children may have stagelike changes in social cognition. These changes result from the interaction of cognition and social-life changes. A child's social life changes during different age phases, such as when one enters elementary school. Similar social-life changes may take place in older individuals, such as when one retires or enters a nursing home. What effect do such life events have upon one's self-monitoring style? As individuals grow older they are exposed to numerous and diverse situations In which they can express their self-monitoring style. Ferrini and Ferrini ( 1986) state that the process of aging is a complex, continuous one that begins at maturity ( some people