ABSTRACT
A familiar example of our tendency to self-enhancement is our attempting to capitalize on someone elses victory or fame, even when we have little if anything to do with it ourselves. Cialdini were quick to point out, however, that the tendency to wear university-related clothing following football wins may have nothing to do with efforts to exploit an incidental affiliation for egotistical ends. An aspiring comedian may be psychologically threatened by a friends hilarious performance but roll in laughter at the buffoonery of a stranger. As Gordon Allport, one of social psychologys prime movers, put it: attachment to ones own being is basic to human life and along with this beloved self go all of the persons basic memberships. According to renowned sociologist Irving Goffman, social interactions represent a kind of theatrical performance in which one presents a line: carefully chosen words and deeds meant to express a certain self.
