Private and public self-consciousness in clinical and non-clinical samples

Two studies were conducted to explore the nature of private and public self-consciousness, as measured by the 2 principal subscales of the Self-Consciousness Scale (SCS; Fenigstein, Scheier, & Buss, 1975). In the first study the effects of 2 common manipulations of self-awareness – the presence of a small mirror and a salient audience – on 60 college students' private and public SCS scores were investigated. Neither of these manipulations affected students’ scores on the 2 subscales, supporting the assumption that the private and public SCS subscales measure relatively stable traits or dispositions. In Study II, the SCS was administered to 120 psychiatric inpatients. No significant mean differences on either the private or public SCS subscales were found, although there were differences between clinical and nonclinical samples.