13a - Social Psychology Flashcards
What is social psychology?
Area of psychology that studies how people’s thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of others.
What are the four topics of social psychology?
- Social cognition
- Social forces
- Social relations
- Social functioning
What is social cognition?
How we think about ourselves and others: attitudes and attributions.
What are social forces?
How the presence of others affects our behaviors: norms, social roles, conformity, and obedience.
What are social relations?
How we behave toward each other in social situations: group dynamics, helping behaviour, aggression, interpersonal attraction.
What is social functioning?
Social neuroscience and the role of the brain.
What are social cognition attitudes?
Relatively stable and enduring evaluations of things and people. They can influence how we think about and act towards others.
What comprises attitudes?
A - affective component, how we feel about something.
B - behavioural component, how we behave toward it
C - cognitive component, what we believe about it
How do external factors develop attitudes?
Some (many) develop early on through socialisation by parents, peers, schools, and media (learning).
What is social desirability factor?
When people act in a way that is socially desirable, but not necessarily how they would normally act.
What’s the bogus pipeline procedure?
It leads people to believe you can tell if they are lying, so they give more truthful responses.
What are implicit attitudes?
Unconscious attitudes people possess may unknowingly guide behavior.
What are stereotypes?
Generalized impressions based on social categories. It may be positive or negative.
What is a prejudice?
Negative stereotypical attitudes toward all members of a group.
What is realistic conflict theory?
The amount of actual conflict between groups determines the amount of prejudice between groups (conflict over resources).
