12 - Social Psychology Flashcards
cognitive dissonance
justifying effort
hazing and initiation, why does it work?
- works because behaviour has to match attitude
- showing a positive attitude towards a group which justifies the behaviour
cognitive dissonance
Postdecisional Dissonance
- focus on the positive aspects of our choices
- ex. choosing a university and dissing on the ones you decided not to go to
- the more we think about it, the more we begin to love the decisions we made
compliance
door in the face technique
- if you refuse a large request, you are more likley to comply with a smaller request
- ex. saying no to a $20 burger but yes to a $5 cookie
cognitive dissonance
foot in the door technique
- if you agree to a small request, you are more likley to comply with a large request
- ex. saying yes to a small sign on your front lawn then 2 weeks later having to say yes to a bigger one in your front window because you have established that you support the message so if you back out now your attitude and behaviour won’t be the same
cognitive dissonance
low-balling
- when you buy a product for a certain price, you are likely to comply with a request to pay more for the product
elaboration likelihood model
central route of persuasion
- when people are motivated and paying attention
- leads to strong attitudes that last over time and that people actively defend
elaboration likelihood model
peripheral route of persuasion
- people aren’t motivated
- unable to process info
- minimally process a message
- leads to more impulsive decisions (not much info to back it up)
- attitudes that develop this way are weaker and more likley to change over time
Actor/Observer Discrepancy
- The tendency to focus on situations in order to explain our own behaviour but focus on disposition (qualities of mind and character) to explain other people’s behaviour
- ex. I didn’t want to go to the movie because i was feeling sick and needed to go to bed but my friend didn’t go to the movie because she is lazy and disorganized
- mainly happens for negative events
aggression
any behaviour that involves the intention to harm another
- caused by a blend of social, situational, and biological factors
Altruism
- providing help when it is needed without an immediate reward for doing so
Attitudes
- people’s evaluations of other people, objects, events, or ideas
- often shaped through socialization
- guide behaviour
Attributions
- people’s explanations of why events or actions occur
- try to understand why things happen so we can better predict them in the future
Biological determinants of aggression
- hormone testosterone
- serotonin in the regulation of aggressive behaviour
- MAOA gene
bystander intervention effect
- the failure to offer help by those who observe someone in need when other people are present
Companionate love
a strong commitment based on friendship, trust, respect, and intimacy
Compliance
- the tendency to agree to do things requested by others
Conformity
- altering one’s behaviours and opinions to match those of other people or to match other people’s expectations
Social and Cultural determinants of aggression
- culture of honour (protect their reputation)
Deindividuation
- lack of self awareness
- tendency to do things they wouldn’t do while alone
Discrimination
- differential treatment of people as a result of prejudice against their group
Cognitive Dissonance
what are 2 ways it can be changed?
- when beliefs are inconsistent with our actions
- change action or behaviour
elaboration likelihood model
- the idea that persuasive messages lead to attitude changes in either of two ways:
1) central route
2) peripheral route
explicit attitudes
- attitudes that a person can report
- aware of them
- take effort to retrieve
Fundamental Attribution Error
- in explaining someone’s behaviour, the tendency to overemphasize personality traits and underestimate situational factors
- ex. assuming the participants in the Milgram study were evil people when in reality they were being compliant for the study
- mistaken association between a behaviour and a fundamental feature about a person
Group Polarization
- the process where the initial attitudes of a group become more extreme over time
- more conservative?
Groupthink
- extreme group polarization
- typically under stress, group members reassure each other that their decision is correct without truly considering all the information
- usually when a group is already biased in some way
How and why are negative attitudes stronger?
- evolutionarily, they tend to warn of us danger
- negative attitudes are stronger when they are formed through direct experience
implicit attitudes
- attitudes that subconsiously influence a person’s feelings and behaviour
- implicit bias tests
- fast, instant but can be replaced/overridden in 30 seconds