Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Self-Evaluation: Self-Enhancement and Self-Verification

Self-Evaluation: Self-Enhancement and Self-Verification

Social psychologists have documented that feeling good about ourselves and maintaining positive self-esteem is a powerful motivator of human behavior (Tavris & Aronson, 2008). In the United States, members of the predominant culture typically think very highly of themselves and view themselves as good people who are above average on many desirable traits (Ehrlinger, Gilovich, & Ross, 2005). Often, our behavior, attitudes, and beliefs are affected when we experience a threat to our...

Self-Discrepancy Theory

Self-Discrepancy Theory

One influential perspective on what motivates people's behavior is detailed in Tory Higgin's self-discrepancy theory (Higgins, 1987). He proposed that people hold disagreeing internal representations of themselves that lead to different emotional states.

Self-Presentation

Self-Presentation

Self-presentation is a fundamental aspect of social interaction, shaping both how others perceive individuals and how they view themselves. This dynamic process influences behaviors in various social settings, often leading people to adjust their appearance, speech, and demeanor to align with their desired identity. While self-presentation can be deliberate or unconscious, it plays a critical role in interpersonal relationships and self-perception.Forms of Self-PresentationSelf-presentation can...

Automatic Processing and Automatic Social Behavior

Automatic Processing and Automatic Social Behavior

Automatic processing refers to the cognitive operations that occur without conscious intent or awareness, playing a fundamental role in shaping social cognition and behavior. These processes enable individuals to navigate complex social environments efficiently by relying on mental shortcuts and pre-existing knowledge structures known as schemas. One of the most influential mechanisms underlying automatic processing is priming, which subtly activates mental representations through exposure to...

The Sense of Self: Reflected Self-Appraisal and Social Comparison

The Sense of Self: Reflected Self-Appraisal and Social Comparison

According to Charles Cooley, we base our image on what we think other people see (Cooley 1902). We imagine how we must appear to others, then react to this speculation. We don certain clothes, prepare our hair in a particular manner, wear makeup, use cologne, and the like—all with the notion that our presentation of ourselves is going to affect how others perceive us. We expect a certain reaction, and, if lucky, we get the one we desire and feel good about it. But more than that, Cooley...

Perception

Perception

Perception is a fundamental psychological process that enables individuals to organize, interpret, and consciously experience sensory information. This process is crucial for understanding and interacting with the world around us. It includes both bottom-up and top-down processing, each playing a distinct role in how we perceive our environment.
Bottom-up processing begins at the sensory level, where receptors detect external environmental stimuli. These could include the tactile sensation of...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Theta band activity during event-file retrieval is influenced by stimulus salience in the preceding action episode.

Cortex; a journal devoted to the study of the nervous system and behavior·2026

Same author

Perception and action as one: Re-integrating research on human action through event files.

Psychological review·2026

Same author

Binding and retrieval of omitted responses in complex response sequences.

Attention, perception & psychophysics·2026

Same author

From prediction to control: Age-related dissociations between implicit regularity encoding and attentional modulation during perception-action integration.

Developmental cognitive neuroscience·2026

Same author

A Multiplexed Neural Code Governs Dynamic Perception-Action Reconfiguration during Response Inhibition.

Journal of cognitive neuroscience·2026

Same author

The sound of silence: Binding and retrieval of silence in distractor-response binding.

Attention, perception & psychophysics·2026

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Apr 27, 2026

The Joint Effect of Social Comparison and Social Distance on Evaluation of Intertemporal Choice Outcomes in Event-related Potential Studies

The Joint Effect of Social Comparison and Social Distance on Evaluation of Intertemporal Choice Outcomes in Event-related Potential Studies

Published on: August 25, 2023

Self-priorization processes in action and perception.

Christian Frings¹, Dirk Wentura²

¹Cognitive Psychology, University of Trier.

Journal of Experimental Psychology. Human Perception and Performance

|July 8, 2014

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

This study shows that people process self-related actions faster and more accurately than actions linked to others. This self-prioritization effect extends from perception to action, impacting cognitive processing.

More Related Videos

The Adventures of Fundi Intervention Based on the Cognitive and Emotional Processing in Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder Patients

The Adventures of Fundi Intervention Based on the Cognitive and Emotional Processing in Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder Patients

Published on: June 12, 2020

Task Interruption and Resumption Paradigm for Testing the Activation and Pursuit of an Abstract Thinking Goal

Task Interruption and Resumption Paradigm for Testing the Activation and Pursuit of an Abstract Thinking Goal

Published on: April 18, 2017

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Apr 27, 2026

The Joint Effect of Social Comparison and Social Distance on Evaluation of Intertemporal Choice Outcomes in Event-related Potential Studies

The Joint Effect of Social Comparison and Social Distance on Evaluation of Intertemporal Choice Outcomes in Event-related Potential Studies

Published on: August 25, 2023

The Adventures of Fundi Intervention Based on the Cognitive and Emotional Processing in Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder Patients

The Adventures of Fundi Intervention Based on the Cognitive and Emotional Processing in Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder Patients

Published on: June 12, 2020

Task Interruption and Resumption Paradigm for Testing the Activation and Pursuit of an Abstract Thinking Goal

Task Interruption and Resumption Paradigm for Testing the Activation and Pursuit of an Abstract Thinking Goal

Published on: April 18, 2017

Area of Science:

Cognitive Psychology
Social Neuroscience
Human Action Processing

Background:

Prior research established a self-prioritization effect for perception-related information.
This effect demonstrates faster and more accurate processing of self-related stimuli compared to other-related stimuli.
The mechanisms underlying this self-prioritization effect, particularly concerning action, remain less understood.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate whether the self-prioritization effect extends from perception-self links to action-self links.
To examine if self-related movements are processed with enhanced speed and accuracy.
To compare the processing of self-related actions against actions linked to familiar others and neutral labels.

Main Methods:

Participants performed a task involving simple movements (up, down, left, right) linked to themselves, two others (mother, stranger), or a neutral label.
Movement cues triggered action execution, followed by a brief presentation of a label.
Participants judged the congruence between executed movements and presented labels.

Main Results:

A significant self-prioritization effect was observed, mirroring findings in perception-self research.
Self-related trials (matching movement-label pairings) were verified significantly faster and more accurately.
Processing of self-related actions was demonstrably prioritized over actions linked to others or neutral labels.

Conclusions:

The self-prioritization effect is not limited to perception but extends to action-self links.
Self-related actions benefit from enhanced cognitive processing, leading to faster and more accurate judgments.
This finding contributes to understanding the pervasive influence of the self on cognitive functions, including action control.