3.Social Psychology Flashcards
social cognition
social cognition involves how we interpret, analyse, remember and use informations to make judgements about others in different social situations.
person perception
person perception refers to the mental processes that we use to from impressions and draw conclusions about the personal characteristics of other people.
what influences person perception
-impressions from physical appearance
-impressions from non verbal communication
two types of non verbal communication
eye contact
facial expressions
halo effect
the halo effect-a cognitive bias in which the impression that we form about one quality of a person (eg physical appearance/attractiveness) influences our beliefs and expectations about the person in other qualities.
research on physical appearance
- people are more likely to assist attractive people
- attractive people often have higher salaries
-attractive people more likely to get the ‘benefit of the doubt’
-judges are more lenient with attractive people for minor offences
body language
body language- communicating inner aspects of ourselves through facial expressions, eye gaze, posture, gestures and other bodily movements.
eye contact
-eye contact is considered the most significant form of non verbal communication
-if eye contact is maintained it is perceived as a sign of interest, honesty and friendliness.
-too much eye contact can be perceived as threatening and uncomfortable
-eye contact may be viewed as offensive in particular cultures (eg some asian cultures)
attribution
the process by which people explain the causes of their own and other peoples behaviour.
types of attribution
personal attribution
situational attribution
other name for personal attribution
dispositional attribution
Personal attribution
+eg
An explanation (of a behaviour) due to internal characteristics/factors of the individual involved, such as their personality, ability, attitude, motivation, mood or effort
eg he didn’t do his homework because he is lazy
Situational attribution
+eg
an explanation (of a behaviour) due to factors external to the individual involved, such as the actions of others, luck, fate or some aspect of the environment
eg he didn’t do his homework because he has been having issues with his family at home
biases that influence attribution
Fundamental attribution error
Actor observer bias
Self serving bias
Culture
Fundamental attribution error
+eg
Fundamental attribution error: the tendency to overestimate the influence of personal factors and underestimate the impact of situational factors on OTHER peoples behaviours.
eg he was late because he’s disorganised
Explanations of the fundamental attribution error
saliency bias- the person stands out (is salient/noticeable) whereas the situation is barely noticeable in the background.
Just words belief- “bad things happen to bad people, and good things happen to good people”. Enables us to feel safe in an uncertain world.
Actor-observer bias
+eg
Actor-observer bias: refers to our tendency to attribute our own behaviours to external or situational factors yet attribute others’ behaviours to personal factors.
eg he did bad on the test because he’s dumb, but I did bad because I didn’t t have time to study
Self-serving bias
+eg
Self-serving bias: when judging ourselves, we tend to take credit for our successes, and attribute our failures to situational factors
eg.I did well on the test because I’m smart
Culture influence attribution
Collectivist cultures are often more understanding, hence are more likely to attribute behaviour to situational factors.
Individualist vs. Collectivist cultures
Individualist cultures- achieving personal goals is considered to be more important than achieving group goals. Being independent is valued
Collectivist cultures- achieving group goals is considered to be more important that achieving individual goals.
attitude
an attitude is a learned, relatively enduring favourable/unfavourable evaluation of a person, object or idea that can affect an individual’s behaviour.
describe parts of the tri component model of attitudes
+eg
Affective:the emotions/feelings towards an attitude object
-I love pavlova
Behavioural:The actions towards an attitude object
-I will order pavlova
Cognitive:the beliefs, thoughts, understandings about an attitude object
-I know the ingredients in a pavlova
limitations of the tri component model of attitudes using examples
- Can be inconsistent
(A) I feel good when I swim (C) swimming is good for me (B) can’t swim because don’t have the time
2.Can be non existent
(C) evaluate policies of political party (B) vote (A) no pos or neg feelings towards the party
cognitive dissonance
Cognitive dissonance is the discomfort or tension that is felt when our behaviour is not consistent with our attitudes
Factors that influence whether our attitudes and behaviour match
(PASS)
-Perceived control over the behaviour:people are more likely to ‘act’ on their attitude if they believe they’re free to perform
-Accessibility of the attitude: attitudes and behaviour are more likely to be consistent if the attitude is well known and effectively stored in memory
-Strength of attitude:Stronger attitudes are more likely to influence behaviour
-Social context of the attitude: whether it is appropriate to express the behaviour in a particular social context
Factors that influence attitude formation
Classical conditioning
Operant conditioning
Observational learning/social leraning
Repeated exposure
classical conditioning
Classical conditioning: a simple form of learning that occurs through repeated Association of two or more different stimuli or events
UCS
any stimulus that produces a UCR
UCR
the response that occurs automatically as a result of the UCS
NS
the stimulus that is to be associated with the UCS so that it produces the response, NS presented before UCS
CS
stimulus that is neutral to begin with, and does not produce the UCR but is eventually associated with the UCS
CR
the learned or acquired response to the CS , after CS associated with the UCS
List the key processes In classical conditioning
acquisition
extinction
spontaneous recovery
stimulus generalisation
stimulus discrimination
acquisition
the overall process during which an organism learns to associate two events (the CS and the UCS)
extinction
the gradual decrease in the strength or rate of a response, which occurs over time when the UCS is not presented.
Spontaneous recovery
the re-appearance of a CR after its apparent extinction
stimulus generalisation
the tendency for similar stimuli to produce the same, but not necessarily identical response
stimulus disrimination
the ability to distinguish between two (or more) different stimuli, even if the stimuli are similar
operant conditioning
a kind of learning for which the consequence of an action (eg reward or punishment) determines the likelihood that it will be performed again in the future.
types of consequences
reinforcement and punishment
reinforcement
Reinforcement: an environmental event that increases the probability that a response will occur
Positive reinforcement
a response is followed by the addition of a pleasant stimulus, increasing likelihood of behaviour
negative reinforcement
a response is followed by the removal of an unpleasant stimulus, increasing likelihood of behaviour
Punishment
an environmental event that decreases the probability that a response will occur
positive punishment
the delivery of an unpleasant stimulus following a response, decreases the probability a response will occur.
response cost (negative punishment)
when a pleasant stimulus is taken away following a response, decreases the likelihood that a response will occur.
three phase model of operant conditioning
Antecedent- (discriminative stimulus) - what precedes/prompts a particular response
Behaviour- response that occurs
Consequence-what happens as a result of the response
mere exposure effect
we can develop a positive attitude towards people, objects,events or issues if we are exposed to the repeatedly (NO REWARD NECESSARY)
observational learning
observational learning is a learning process where an individual learns to reproduce a behaviour exhibited by another individual (the model)
the model
who or what is being observed
identify + describe types of models (observational learning)
live model-real life person
symbolic model-real or fictional character
identify + describe the parts of the observational learning process
attention-person must actively watch model
retention-person must hold mental representation of behaviour and how to imitate it
reproduction-person must have the motor skills + cognitive ability to reproduce behaviour
motivation-person must be motivated to demonstrate what they have learned
reinforcement- (consequences)
(ARRMR)
stereotyping
the process of assigning individuals into a particular social or cultural group-assuming all members display similar characteristics
stereotype
a collection of beliefs or ideas that we have about the people who belong to a particular social group, without taking into account the individual differences of its members
advantage of stereotypes
enables us to rapidly respond to situations because of past experiences
disadvantage of stereotype
makes us ignore individual differences and lacks evidence
-may lead to social stigma
ingroups
the group you belong to or identify with
outgroup
any group that we don’t belong to or identify with
assumptions about in-groups and outgroups
-people in ingroups are similar to us, hence we are more likely to view them in a positive way
-people belonging to the outgroup(s) are less like us and we are therefore more likely to view them negatively
prejudice
prejudice is an unfavourable or negative attitude towards members of a particular group, solely based on their membership to the group
characteristics of majority prejudice
- believe that they’re superior to the minority group
- believe that the minority group are different and ‘do not belong’
- believe that they’re more powerful and important than the minority group
- fearful that the majority group may become more powerful or important than the majority group
list types of prejudice
Old fashioned prejudice
Modern prejudice
old fashioned prejudice
members of the majority group openly express their prejudicial attitude towards minority groups
involves
-blatant negative stereotypes
-open opposition to equality
(OVERT) (EXPLICIT)
modern prejudice
a more subtle, hidden and expressed in ways which are socially acceptable
eg ‘its just a joke’
(COVERT) (IMPLICIT)
discrimination
is the positive or negative behaviour towards members of a particular group that expresses the prejudiced attitude.
list types of discrimination
direct discrimination
indirect discrimination
direct discrimination
+eg
when someone is treated unfavourably based on a personal characteristic
eg being overlooked for a job based on gender
indirect discrimination
+eg
when treating everybody the same way disadvantages someone because of personal characteristics
eg employees not being allowed to wear a head covering
briefly describe the difference between prejudice and discrimination
prejudice is an attitude whereas discrimination is the behaviour that arises from the prejudiced attitude
list the methods that may reduce prejudice
intergroup contact
superordinate goals
equality of status
cognitive interventions
Intergroup contact reduce prejudice
sustained contact-contact between groups or individuals must be maintained over a long period of time
the contact hypothesis-certain types of direct contact between groups can reduce prejudice eg face to face contact (leads to revelation of incorrect stereotype)
Mutual interdependence- rivalry and prejudice will reduce if groups are mutually independent on each other (leads to breakdown of stereotypes)
Superordinate goals reduce prejudice
A superordinate goal is a goal that can not be achieved by any one group alone, and overrides other existing group goals that may be present.
Status of group
The importance or standing of the group when compared to other groups
quality of status reduce prejudice
reducing inequity between groups can reduce prejudice
cognitive interventions
cognitive interventions involve challenging and therefore changing the way someone thinks about prejudice
3 steps in cognitive interventions
- Individual must decide their prejudiced attitude is wrong
- Individual must hold their non-prejudiced beliefs and incorporate them into sense of self
- Individual must suppress prejudiced reactions from conscious awareness and replace them with non prejudiced responses.
group
+eg
two or more people who influence or have the potential to influence each other, often haven a common goal, interest or purpose.
eg 5 people working on group assignment
collective
+eg
two or more people who exert minimal influence on each other and do not interact with each other
eg 5 students lining up for lunch
other name for collective
collective or AGGREGATE
Status
status- the level of importance of a group members positions in that group ( can be real or imagined)
power
individuals ability to control or strongly influence the thoughts, feelings and behaviours of another person or group.
list types of power
coercive
expert
informational
legitimate
referent
reward
(CERRLI)
coercive power
+eg
ability to mediate and administer punishment eg teacher
expert power
+eg
specialist knowledge or expertise
eg.doctor
informational power
+eg
useful information that can not be gained elsewhere
eg. only lecturer that teaches the subject in Australia
legitimate power
+eg
has right to prescribe behaviour for another
eg.police officer
referent power
+eg
try to identify with, or idolise a person perceived to have power
eg famous footy player
reward power
+eg
ability to give positive or remove negative consequences in response to certain behaviours
eg sports coach
aim of zimbardo’s prison experiment
explored the effects of roles, status and the situation on behaviour
participants for zimbardo’s prison experiment
-24 participants (9 guards and 9 prisoners)
why did the guards behave as they did? (SFP experiment)
Zimbardo suggests that the Fundamental attribution error was present
-guards overestimated the influence of personal (internal) factors and underestimated the influence of situational (external) factors while explaining the behaviour of prisoners.
conclusions from Zimbardo’s SFP experiment
concluded that power, status and role expectations are powerful influences on both group and individual behaviour.
ethical considerations from zimbardo’s SFP experiment
-‘do not harm’ principle-participants suffered both physical and psychological harm from each other
-withdrawal rights-some asked to be removed (withdraw) but this was delayed by zimbardo
obedience
obedience occurs when we follow there commands of someone with authority or the rules or laws of our society.
compliance
compliance involves changing your own behaviour in response to a request (does not necessarily involve authority figure)
participants for the Stanley milligram experiment
40 male research participants between 20 and 50 years old
aim of the Stanley milligram experiment
wanted to explore whether individuals would obey an authority figure who was instructing them to inflict pain on another person.
results from the Stanley milgram experiment
-65% of participants administered a lethal shock
-all participants delivered a intense electric shock
-before the experiment confederate mentioned to the teacher that they had heart problems
list the factors influencing obedience
-social proximity
-legitimacy of authority figure
-group pressure
social proximity influence obedience
-the closer the social contact between the participant and the authority figure, the greater the obedience
-the closer the social contact between the participant and subject (person receiving shocks), the lesser the obedience
legitimacy of authority figure influence obedience
the greater the status (perceived status) of the authority figure the greater the obedience
eg janitor vs scientist
group pressure influence obedience
people are far more likely to disobey if others are seen to be disobeying also
eg in a classroom environment
conformity
conformity is the tendency to adjust ones thoughts,feelings or behaviour to accomodate the standards of peers or groups
describe Asch’s experiment on conformity
-participant came into room with 5 other people (confederates) and an experimenter
-participant was asked to select a line from the second card that matched the ‘standard line’
-confederates were asked to answer incorrectly for majority of the trials
findings from Asch’s experiment
-75% participants agreed with confederates incorrect response at least one
-all participants reported feelings of self doubt
list factors that influence conformity
NORMAL SCHOOLS DON”T CUT UP INNOCENT GOATS
normative influence
social loafing
deindividuation
culture
unanimity
informational influence
group size
group size- influence conformity
+eg
as group size increased so did levels of conformity
ideal group size is between 4-10 people
eg asch’s experiment used 6 people (total)
unanimity- influence conformity
+eg
participants were more likely to conform if the group unanimously agreed on a particular response
eg 12 jurors and 11 vote guilty
informational influence- influence conformity
+eg
individuals are more likely to conform when they are uncertain or incompetent, they may look to others who they perceive to be more knowledgable for guidance
eg when selecting VCE subjects we may look to those who have completed VCE
normative influence- influence conformity
+eg
individuals tendency to ‘follow the pack’ and comply with social norms, so that they will gain approval and ‘fit in’ with other group members
eg change in music taste
culture- influence conformity
+eg
there is a higher rate of conformity in collectivist cultures compared to individualist cultures
eg asian countries
collectivist vs individualistic cultures
individualistic cultures-emphasis placed on individual goals and being independent form the larger group
collectivist cultures-emphasis on uniformity and ‘fitting in’ for the good of the wider group
social loafing- influence conformity
+eg
tendency for individuals to reduce their effort when working in a group compared to working alone
eg.group assignment
deindividuation- influence conformity
the loss of individuality or sense of anonymity that can occur in group situation
eg soccer match between two rival teams
pro social behaviour
+criteria
pro social behaviour involves acts of helping behaviour that involve personal cost to the helper
must be
-intentional
-must benefit someone
factors influencing helping behaviour
situational
social
personal
identify the situational factors that influence helping behaviour
noticing the situation
interpreting the situation
taking responsibility for helping
noticing the situation
-Individuals are quicker to notice the situation (something unusual or abnormal) when they are on their own compared to when in a group
interpreting the situation
situations are often ambiguous, hence making it difficult to judge whether a helping response is require
taking responsibility for helping
the presence of others can influence an individuals sense of responsibility to to take action-perceiving others as equally or more responsible to help
bystander effect
Individuals are less likely to assist if other bystanders are present (or believed to be present). The greater the number of bystanders, less likely one is to help
social norms
standards that govern what people should or should not do in different social situations
identify the social factors influencing helping behaviour
reciprocity norm
social responsibility norm
reciprocity norm
an unwritten rule that we should give what we receive or expect to receive
‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you”
social responsibility norm
we should help those who need help because it is our responsibility and duty do so
-more likely to help if we feel the person is not responsible for their hardship
eg homeless because of floods
identify the personal factors that influence helping behaviour
empathy
competence
mood
empathy influence helping behaviour
we are more likely to help others if we feel empathy for them
-the more distressed a person is the more distressed the bystanders become and hence are more likely to help
mood influence helping behaviour
-we are more likely to help a person if we are in a good mood
-being in a bad mood can increase or decrease the likelihood of helping behaviour
competence influence helping behaviour
we are more likely to help someone if we feel we have the skills and expertise required
direct vs indirect help examples
direct help-someone with first aid helping at a crash scene
indirect help-someone without first aid training calling the ambulance at a crash scene
altruism
a type of helping behaviour where the motive to help is totally selfless
5 step decision making process
- notice the situation-(more likely to alone)
- interpret that help is required-(can be difficult when ambiguous)
- accept personal responsibility to help-(bystander effect and diffusion of responsibility)
- know how to help-(competence + resources)
- administer helping behaviour
identify the influences on reluctance to help
CHRIS DOESN’T ASSIST
Cost benefit analysis
diffusion of responsibility
audience inhibition
Diffusion of responsibility
Diffusion of responsibility is the belief that, in a situation where help is required and others are present, one or more other people will or should take responsibility for helping
-hence responsibility is diffused/spread across whole group
Audience inhibition
-the presence of others at a scene provides an audience
-Audience inhibition involves not helping another person because of fear of appearing foolish in the presence of others
cost benefit analysis
-involves an individual weighing up the personal and social costs of helping against the personal and social benefits of helping
