Social Desirability Scales as Indicators of Self-Enhancement and Impression Management

Abstract

This article presents 2 studies testing Paulhus's (2002) assumption that unconscious self-enhancement and conscious impression management represent separate processes of socially desirable responding (SDR) that can be observed within 2 content domains (egoistic and moralistic bias). In Study 1, we devised egoistic and moralistic SDR scales intended to measure self-enhancement in honest responding and impression management under demands for positive self-presentation. In Study 2, we correlated scores on these scales with external indicators of self-enhancement and impression management. In honest responding, both SDR scales most strongly correlated with self-enhancement indicators, whereas under demands for positive self-presentation they correlated more strongly with external measures of impression management.

Predictors of self-perceived cultural responsiveness in entry-level physiotherapy students in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand

“…In this view, social desirability may have implications on how educators address this area from a social-cognitive and a professional standpoint. However, social desirability as a personality trait is also influenced by multiple cultural and personality variables [66–68]. More research is required to understand this perspective, how it relates to culturally responsive practice and whether there is a role within curriculum to explore social desirability for learning culturally responsible practice.…”

Assessing simulation-based clinical training: comparing the concurrent validity of students' self-reported satisfaction and confidence measures against objective clinical examinations

“…However, there is good reason to suspect that indirect measures such as these—based as they are on students' subjective, self-reported data—are unreliable indicators of SBE learning outcomes. It is known that measurements of satisfaction are prone to inflation owing to socially desirable response bias, whereby participants tend to respond favourably out of politeness, apathy or ingratiation 18. Similarly, students are noted to significantly inflate self-evaluations of their clinical competencies compared to their instructors19 suggesting there is every chance that self-reported confidence measures are also inflated.…”

Burnout in Journalism: Evidence from Regional Television Stations in Ethiopia

“…The thesis may be valid in the context of collectivist societies such as Ethiopia's which emphasize positive self-presentation irrespective of one's circumstances (Eysenck 1990). Indeed, admission of elevated burnout may be contrary to selfenhancement and impression management as important socially coping skills (Parmač Kovačić, Galić,, & Jerneić, 2014).…”