Ch. 10: Social Thinking Flashcards
defn: interpersonal attraction
the phenomenon of individuals liking each other
defn and func: golden ratio
humans are attracted to individuals with certain body proportions approximating the golden ratio
what are 4 factors that affect attraction
- similarity
- self-disclosure
- reciprocity
- proximity
defn: self-disclosure
sharing one’s fears, thoughts, and goals with another person and being met with nonjudgemental empathy
deepens attraction and friendship
defn: reciprocal liking
people like others better when they believe the other person likes them
defn and aka: mere exposure effect
aka: familiarity effect
the tendency for people to prefer stimuli that they have been exposed to more frequently
what parts of the brain are involved in violent or aggressive behavior?
- amygdala –> responsible for telling us whether or not something is a threat
- reduced prefrontal cortex activity –> increased aggression
defn: cognitive neoassociation model
we are more likely to respond to others aggressively whenever we are feeling negative emotions, such as being tired, sick, frustrated, or in pain
defn: attachment
an emotional bond between a caregiver and a child that begins to develop during infancy
what are the 4 main attachment types? describe them.
- secure
- avoidant
- ambivalent
- disorganized
SECURE = a child has a consistent caregiver, is able to go out and explore, knowing that there is a secure base to return to (upset at caregiver’s departure, comforted by their return)
the remaining three are INSECURE ATTACHMENT
AVOIDANT = caregiver has little or no response to a distressed child; these children show no preference between stranger and caregiver and show little to no distress when the caregiver leaves and little to no relief when they return
AMBIVALENT = caregiver has inconsistent response to a child’s distress, child cannot form a secure base bc they cannot consistently rely on the caregiver’s response; child is distressed on separation, mixed response when caregiver returns (sometimes called ANXIOUS-AMBIVALENT)
DISORGANIZED = no clear pattern of behavior in response to caregiver’s absence or presence, mix of behaviors (avoidance, resistance, dazed, frozen, confused, repetitive behaviors (e.g. rocking)) –> assoc. with erratic behavior and social withdrawal by the caregiver (may be a red flag for abuse)
defn and 5 main types: social support
the perception or reality that one is cared for by a social network
- emotional
- esteem
- material
- informational
- network
defn: esteem support
similar to emotional support, but touches more directly on affirming the person’s qualities and skills
defn and aka: material support
aka: tangible support
any type of financial or material contribution to another person
defn: informational support
providing information that will help someone
defn: network support
the type of social support that gives a person a sense of belonging
defn and 3 types: mating system
the organization of a group’s sexual behavior
- monogamy
- polygamy
- promiscuity
defn: polygyny vs. polyandry
polygyny: having relationships with multiple females
polyandry: having relationships with multiple males
defn and aka: mate choice vs. mate bias
MATE CHOICE (intersexual selection) = selection of a mate based on attraction
MATE BIAS = how choosy members of the species are while choosing a mate (evolutionary mechanism aimed at increasing species fitness)
what are direct and indirect benefits of mate bias?
direct: material advantages, protection, emotional support
indirect: promoting better survival in offspring
what are the 5 recognized mechanisms of mate choice?
- phenotypic benefits
- sensory bias
- Fisherian/runaway selection
- indicator traits
- genetic compatibility
defn: phenotypic benefits
observable traits that make a potential mate more attractive to the opposite sex (usually indicate increased production and offspring survival)
defn: sensory bias
development of a trait to match a preexisting preference that exists in the population
defn: Fisherian/runaway selection
a positive feedback mechanism in which a particular trait has no effect or a negative effect on survival becomes more and more exaggerated over time
if a trait is deemed sexually desirable it is more likely to be passed on (which increases attractiveness, which increases likelihood)
defn: indicator traits
traits that signify overall good health and well-being of an organism, increasing its attractiveness to mates (may or may not be genetic)
defn: genetic compatibility
the creation of mate pairs that, when combined, have complementary genetics
provides a mechanism for the reduced frequency of recessive genetic disorders in the population (attraction to others who have starkly different genetic makeups)
defn: empathy-altruism hypothesis
one explanation for the relationship between empathy and helping behavior
one helps another when feeling empathy for the other, regardless of the cost
heavily debated
defn: game theory
attempts to explain decision-making behavior and predict interaction based on game characteristics (strategy, winning and losing, rewards and punishments, and profits and cost)
game is defined by its players, the info and actions available to each player at decision pints, and the payoffs associated with each outcome
defn and effect: evolutionary stable strategy
when an ESS is adopted by a given population in a specific environment, natural selection will prevent alternative strategies from arising
ESS: the inherited traits passed along with the population, with the object of the game being becoming more fit than competitors
what are “game payoffs” in biology? (game theory)
fitness
describ: Hawk-Dove game
- focus = access to shared resources
- each round: player chooses hawk or dove strategy
hawk: aggression, fighting until wins or injured
dove: avoidance, aggression at first but retreating if fight escalates; if no fight, dove will attempt to share
THREE POTENTIAL OUTCOMES
1. 2 hawks: one wins, one loses
2. hawk and dove: hawk wins
3. 2 doves: share food resources
payoff: based on value of reward and cost of fighting
If reward > cost, hawks advantage
If cost > reward, doves advantage
SO they can coexist as ESS at an equilibrium point
what are the four alternatives to the Hawk-Dove game and what does the Hawk-Dove game represent? describe them.
HAWK-DOVE: pure competition between individuals
BUT social influences come into play and give for alternatives for competitors when dealing with strategic interactions
- altruism: the donor provides a benefit to the recipient at a cost to the donor
- cooperation: both the donor and the recipient benefit by cooperating
- spite: both the donor and the recipient are negatively impacted
- selfishness: the donor benefits while the recipient is negatively impacted
defn: inclusive fitness
a measure of an organism’s success in the population based on
1. number of offspring
2. success in supporting offspring
3. ability of the offspring to then support others
how does inclusive fitness related to altruistic behavior?
inclusive fitness promotes the idea that altruistic behavior can improve the fitness and success of a species as a whole
defn and aka: social perception
how we form impressions about the characteristics of individuals and groups of people through observation of their behavior, past experiences, and personal beliefs and attitudes
aka: social cognition
provides the tools to make judgements and impressions of others including (assessments of social roles, relationships, characteristics such as friendliness, and attributions)
defn: attributions and attribution theory
attributions: explanations for the causes of a person’s actions
attribution theory: how individuals infer the causes of other people’s behavior
what are the 3 primary components of social perception? describe them.
- the perceiver
- the target
- the situation
PERCEIVER = influenced by
1. experience (past affect attitudes toward current and present, leads to expectations)
2. motives (what info we deem important, what we ignore)
3. emotional state (affects event interpretation)
TARGET = the person about which the perception is made; knowledge of the target can include
1. past experiences
2. specific info
–> affects need for observation and interpretation by perceiver
SITUATION = a given social context can determine what info is available to the perceiver
defn: primacy effect and recency effect (making impressions)
PRIMACY = first impressions are often more important than subsequent impressions
RECENCY = the most recent info we have about an individual is most important in forming our impressions
defn: reliance on central traits
individuals tend to organize the perception of others based on traits and personal characteristics of the target that are most relevant to the perceiver
defn and effect: implicit personality theory
there are sets of assumptions people make about how different types of people, their traits, and their behavior are related
forms the basis for the categories we place others in during impression formation
defn: halo effect
the tendency to allow a general impression about a person (I like Jin) to influence other, more specific evaluations about them (Jin is a good person, trustworthy, can do no wrong)
defn: just-world hypothesis
good things happen to good people, bad things happen to bad people
noble actions are rewarded, evil actions are punished
denies the possibility of innocent victims
defn, aka, and func: self-serving bias
aka: self-serving attributional bias
individuals credit their own successes to internal factors and blame their failures on external factors
why? protects our self-esteem
defn: self-enhacement
the need to maintain self-worth (can be accomplished in part by self-serving bias)
defn: self-verification
people will seek the companionship of others who seem them as they see themselves, thus validating a person’s self-serving bias
defn: in-group bias vs. out-group bias
IN-GROUP BIAS: the inclination to view members in one’s group more favorably
OUT-GROUP BIAS: the inclination to view individuals outside one’s group harshly
defn: dispositional vs. situational attributions
DISPOSITIONAL = internal = those that relate to the person whose behavior is being considered (beliefs, attitudes, personality characteristics)
SITUATIONAL = external = those that relate to features of the surroundings (threats, money, social norms, peer pressure, social context, luck)
what are the purpose of cues and the 3 types? describe them.
Cues help us understand the behavior of others
CONSISTENCY = the behavior of a person over time (the more regular, the more we associate the behavior with their motives)
CONSENSUS = the extent to which a person’s behavior differs from others (if one deviates from socially expected, we are likely to form dispositional attribution about them)
DISTINCTIVENESS = the extent to which a person engages in similar behavior across a series of scenarios (if behavior varies across scenarios, we are likely to form a situational attribution)
defn: correspondent inference theory
takes the concept of cues a step further by focusing on the intentionality of others’ behavior
when one does a behavior that helps or hurts us, we tend to explain that behavior dispositionally
defn: fundamental attribution error
we are generally biased toward making dispositional rather than situational attributions when judging the actions of others
dispositional explanations are usually simpler (assuming a person’s behaviors accurately portray who they are as a person is easier than speculating about what circumstances might have caused the observed behavior)
defn and related concepts: actor-observer bias/asymmetry
results from self-serving bias (ACTOR) and fundamental attribution error (OBSERVER)
due to our own unique knowledge about our own actions, we are more likely to make situational attributions for the self as compared to others
defn: attribute substitution
occurs when individuals must make judgements that are complex, but instead they substitute a simpler solution or apply a heuristic (think about optical illusions)
what is the impact of culture on attribution? (individualist vs. collectivist)
INDIVIDUALIST cultures –> put high value on individual, personal goals, independence –> tend to make more fundamental attribution errors, more likely to make dispositional attributions
COLLECTIVIST cultures –> view individuals as members of a group, place high value on conformity and interdependence –> more likely to make situational attributions
what is the overarching difference between stereotypes, prejudices, and discrimination?
stereotypes = cognitive
prejudices = affective
discrimination = behavioral
defn + psychological purpose + sociological purpose: stereotypes
expectations, impressions, and opinions about the characteristics of members of a group
in psychology: used to make sense of a complex world by categorizing and systematizing information in order to better identify items, predict their behavior, and react
in sociology: occur when attitudes and impressions are based on limited and superficial information about a person or group
content: attributes that people believe define and characterize a group
defn: prejudice
reflects the overall attitude and emotional response to a group
an irrational positive or negative attitude toward a person, group or thing, prior to an actual experience with that entity
defn: discrimination
differences in actions toward different groups
defn: stereotype content model
attempts to classify stereotypes with respect to a hypothetical in-group using 2 dimensions: warmth and competence
warm groups = not in direct competition with the in-group for resources
competent groups = have high status within society
what are the four combinations of warmth and competence that form stereotypes per the stereotype content model?
- PATERNALISTIC = the group is looked down upon as inferior, dismissed, or ignored
- CONTEMPTUOUS = the group is viewed in resentment, annoyance, or anger
- ENVIOUS = the group is viewed with jealousy, bitterness, or distrust
- ADMIRATION = the group is viewed with pride and other positive feelings
defn: self-fulfilling prophecy
stereotypes can lead to expectations of certain groups or people
these expectations can create conditions that then cause the expectations to become reality
(if a med student is stereotyped as being bad at tying knots, they may be nervous, and do poorly, which validates the stereotype and completes the self-fulfilling prophecy)
defn: stereotype threat
a concern or anxiety one may have about inadvertently confirming a negative stereotype about their social group
stereotype threat often results in self-fulfilling prophecy
defn: propaganda
a way by which large organizations and political groups attempt to create prejudices in others
posters often invoke messages of fear and depictions of the target group exaggerated absurdly
what are the three biggest social factors that influence prejudice? define them.
- POWER = the ability of people or groups to achieve their goals despite any obstacles and their ability to control resources
- PRESTIGE = the level of respect shown to a person byothers
- CLASS = socioeconomic status
defn: ethnocentrism
making judgements about other cultures based on the values and beliefs of one’s own culture, especially in terms of language, customs, and religion
defn: cultural relativism
the recognition that social groups and cultures should be studied on their own terms
acknowledges that the values, mores, and rules make sense in the context of that culture
defn: individual vs. institutional discrimination
INDIVIDUAL DISCRIMINATION = one person discriminating against a particular person or group
INSTITUTIONAL DISCRIMINATION = the discrimination against a particular person or group by an entire institution
