Pride: Why The Deadliest Sin Could Hold the Secret to Your Success with Dr. Jessica Tracy
Nov 9, 2023
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Dr. Jessica Tracy, researcher and expert on pride, joins the podcast to discuss the definition of pride and the distinction between self-esteem and narcissism. They explore the difficulty of accepting criticism and the difference between strategies of dominance and prestige. They also touch on the universal recognition of pride expressions and the benefits of authentic pride. Finally, they discuss a research study comparing dominance and prestige in leadership and the importance of cultivating authentic pride for personal growth.
There are two distinct types of pride - authentic pride, stemming from realistic self-assessment and accomplishment, and hubristic pride, linked to arrogance and egotism.
Leadership styles can be categorized into dominance and prestige, with the latter yielding better long-term results in terms of sustained influence and positive relationships.
Authentic pride is associated with positive evaluations of oneself and can enhance motivation and personal growth, while hubristic pride can lead to narcissism and problematic relationships.
Deep dives
Pride: The Complex Emotion of Self-Reflection
Pride is a complex emotion that involves feeling good about oneself. It can arise from achieving significant or small goals, as well as from reflecting on personal qualities. However, there are two distinct types of pride: authentic pride and hubristic pride. Authentic pride stems from realistic self-assessment and accomplishment, while hubristic pride is linked to arrogance and egotism. Authentic pride leads to positive outcomes, such as continued motivation and prosocial behavior, while hubristic pride is associated with negative consequences and psychological problems. It is crucial to distinguish between the two types and focus on fostering authentic pride for personal development.
The Power Dynamics of Dominance and Prestige
Leadership styles can be categorized into two strategies: dominance and prestige. While dominance is characterized by aggression, manipulation, and selfishness, prestige is based on competence, helpfulness, and respect from others. Studies show that both dominance and prestige can be effective in gaining power, but there are significant differences in their long-term effects. Dominant leaders may elicit fear and compliance, but not genuine liking or respect. In contrast, prestigious leaders are admired, willingly followed, and retain influence even in the absence of power. Thus, cultivating prestige as a leadership strategy yields better results in terms of sustained influence and positive relationships.
The Role of Self-Conscious Emotions: Pride and Shame
Self-conscious emotions are unique to humans due to our complex sense of self. These emotions, such as pride and shame, arise from our ability to evaluate and reflect on our actions, behaviors, and self-identity. Pride is associated with positive evaluations of oneself, accomplishment, and a realistic self-assessment. On the other hand, shame is a self-conscious emotion that arises from negative evaluations of oneself, wrongdoing, or violating social norms. While pride can enhance motivation and personal growth, shame is less motivating and often contributes to negative psychological consequences. Understanding the role of these self-conscious emotions can lead to personal development and greater self-awareness.
Recognition of the Pride Expression: Similarity Among Humans and Blind Athletes
Humans, as a species, are naturally inclined to recognize the expression of pride. This evolutionary adaptation allows individuals to identify pride in others as well as experience it themselves. To study the universality of this expression, researchers observed the behavior of blind Olympians and sighted judo athletes competing in the 2004 Olympic Games. Both groups displayed the recognizable pride expression, regardless of their visual abilities, suggesting that the expression of pride is consistent across different cultures and individuals with varying visual experiences.
Authentic Pride and Hubristic Pride: Similar Nonverbal Expression, Different Connotations
The nonverbal expression associated with both authentic and hubristic pride is largely the same: an expansive posture, a slight smile, and arms extended out from the body. However, distinguishing between the two forms of pride based solely on nonverbal cues is challenging. Contextual information, such as knowledge about a person's arrogance or sense of self-importance, can aid in differentiating between authentic and hubristic pride. While authentic pride is linked to motivation and self-improvement, hubristic pride can lead to narcissism and problematic relationships. Both forms of pride can be adaptive strategies for obtaining social influence, but they operate through distinct pathways: authentic pride facilitates prestige, while hubristic pride fosters dominance.
In this episode we discuss PRIDE – and why it may not be the deadly sin that it’s often cracked up to be. We dig into how the research defines pride, examine the critical distinction between self esteem and narcissism, the deep importance of being able to accept criticism, and look at the difference between strategies of dominance and strategies of prestige with Dr. Jessica Tracy.
