Impression Management in Action - Essay Example

OPTIONAL
Introduction
In our social interactions, individuals are consciously, unconsciously, and constantly attempting to control the pictures that are projected in these interactions. This behavior is termed impression management. Impression Management is described as the behavior used to maintain and create desired images of ourselves. The general explanation that is used by scholars is the procedure through which people try to influence the perceptions of other people form of them.

Thesis statement:
In different situations, we maintain our actions and our dress more consciously in order to create certain desired results. An example from the daily life of this kind of active impression management could be a job interview where first impressions are the important ones and we often want to represent ourselves as a certain type of person or possible employee. In many cases, impression management is an essential and accepted social pattern, while in some cases it can be used to the position where some may call it unfair misrepresentation. I’m sure this is true of many individuals, I can remember many instances of impression management, both subconscious and active, that I make use of in my everyday social interactions. Now I will explain two examples that were personally observed and analyzed by me -- one which is mostly subconscious and another one which is active and useful.

Each day when I go to my classroom I utilize a certain amount of subconscious impression management. In many cases, it is only negligible. The things that I say, the clothes that I wear, and the ways I work, though they are mostly dependent on my own choices, are limited to a certain degree by how I want society to observe me or to not observe me. In the majority of cases, there is not a problem with what I "exactly want to do" and what I may want society to observe me doing, even so, if there were I would usually restrict my actions consequently. For example, I would not want to lift up my hand and answer each question that is asked in the class, for I would then be sighted as a big dork. Another hand, I may not want to sit during a whole semester not answering a single question because then I would be viewed as stupid. On so far a third hand, I may not want to answer out loudly with not raising my hand, as I would be viewed as unmannered. If one day I really wanted to show up to wear a tuxedo to class, it could be important to consider the class's views. Luckily most of my activities in general fit into what is regarded socially normal for my classroom, however, few may argue that this is a positive result of me first determining what is satisfactory and then applying impression management to fit into this model.

A bit different and more transparent type of impression management occurs when I went for job interviews. Due to the nature and importance of the meeting, actions and my dress are highly dependent on the impressions that I want to create in my interviewer. It is also very important, to be honest, and not deliberately trick the interviewer by lying, but some measures can safely be taken to make sure that my picture is as favorable as possible. Initially, I wear clothes which are suitable and expected of me. I may not want to wear the same clothes that I would wear to a dance party, nor my outing suit, for those, is not the stuff I need to show off in the majority of interviews. My activities during the interview are also extremely dependent on the impressions I wish to arouse, as a matter of fact in this case those impressions might even be the primary need of my actions. I politely greet the interviewer instead of doing any other awkward action. I provide required information regarding myself like my accomplishments and career goals, and not of the time when I failed an English exam in seventh grade or the time when I tried to steal a traffic cone from a construction site. Rather, I cautiously do and say things that will create my impression of what I would like it to be, and this is what actually is impression management (Merel, 2007).

Conclusion
The conclusion for this research is when people appear when others are also present, there will commonly be some reason for him to organize his activity so that it may express an impression to others which it is in his interests to pass on.