Corrections_Today_November_December_2020_Vol.82_No.6

Schmader et al. (2004) examined women’s self- perception. The study surveyed women who majored in career fields that were math related. The Schmader et al. (2004) study found women who believed in the legiti - macy of gender difference were more likely to agree with the gender stereotypes. The stereotype about women and math skills predicted more negative self-perception of math competence. Simply said, women’s perception of themselves were more negative. Gender differences exist in self-evaluation (Beyers, 1998; Chamorro-Premuzic & Furnham, 2014; Schmader et al., 2004). Studies show these differences to be evi - dent when examining recall biases and math competence. Female self-evaluations have been found to be inaccurately low compared to the males and that males either overesti - mated or accurately evaluated when self-evaluating (Beyers, 1998). An additional study explored Subjectivity Assessed Intelligence (SAI) and found gender differences in self-eval - uation of performance and intelligence. Chamorro-Premuzic & Furnham (2014) supported the findings of women under- estimating their intelligence and performance. Mental and physical health Additional research on self-perception explored its connection to mental and physical health. Studies show that an individual’s self-perception when self-reporting is the same as other’s observations except when asking about current thoughts of suicide (Kaplan et al., 1994). Those individuals that are not aware of their mental distress and who positively distort self-views may have poorer mental and physical functioning (Bergeron, 2004). What people do by way of health behaviors, physical activity and dietary behaviors influence self-perception (Woekel et al., 2013). There is a connection between en - gaging in good physical health behaviors and developing positive self-views (Woekel et al., 2013). Self-reports Other research has shown findings on self-reports. The merge of shared reality between self-judgment and the judgment of others, has been considered by some re - searchers as confirmation for the accuracy of self-reports (McCrae, 1982; Spain et al., 2000). Self-reports are based on self-perception of the individual. People observe their behaviors and define themselves on the foundation of

their behavior as they perceive it (Fazio, 2014: Robak, 2001). Self-reports of personality were more accurate than other reports when predicting daily emotional expe - rience (Spain et al., 2000).

As corrections officers and other corrections staff are observed, it is important to know self-perception can be affected by different factors.

Race Research has found race differences in self-reports. Studies have concluded that Caucasians give more negative self-evaluations than Black/African Americans (Tashakkar & Thompson, 1991; Trzesniewski, Donnellan, Moffitt, Robins, Poulton, & Caspi, 2006). In an article by Hughes & Deno (1989), the authors studied personal self- esteem, racial self-esteem, and personal efficacy (beliefs about one’s ability to accomplish specific tasks). This national study involved Black Americans and showed how these three dimensions are unified. These researchers wrote: Personal self-esteem is most strongly in- fluenced by microsocial relations with family, friends, and community, while personal efficacy is generated through experiences in social sta- tuses embedded in macrosocial systems of social inequality. We conclude that Black self-esteem is insulated from systems of racial inequality, while personal efficacy is not, and suggest that this ex - plains why Black Americans have relatively high self-esteem but low personal efficacy. The belief that racial discrimination, rather than individual

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