Ch. 8: Social Processes, Attitudes, and Behavior Flashcards
defn: social action
actions and behaviors that individuals are performing or modulating because others are around (humans will behave in different ways based on their social environment and how their behavior will affect those around them)
defn: social action vs. social interaction
social action: considers the individual that is surrounded by others
social interaction: considers 2+ individuals who take one another into account
defn: social facilitation
people tend to perform better on simple tasks when in the presence of others (performance sparks a perceived evaluation)
defn: Yerkes-Dodson law of social facilitation
being in the presence of others raises arousal –> enhances the performance of tasks one is already good at (simple tasks) and hinders performance of less familiar tasks (complex tasks)
defn, aka, contributing factors: deindividuation
the loss of one’s self-awareness in a group setting and the associated adoption of a more group oriented identity
aka: mob mentality
factors: group cohesion (individual can relate to group), individual anonymity (diffuse sense of individual responsibility)
defn: antinormative behavior
can stem from deindividuation
behavior not socially acceptable in most social circumstances
defn, contributing effects: bystander effect
individuals do not intervene to assist those who are in perceived need when other people are present
likelihood and timeliness of response is inversely related to the # of bystanders
factors: less likely to notice out of the ordinary, take cues from others, degree of emergency, degree of responsibility felt (competency, relation to at risks, deserving of aid?), group cohesion
defn: social loafing
the tendency of individuals to reduce effort when in a group setting
defn: peers and peer pressure
peers: individuals regarded as equals within a social group
peer pressure: the social influenced placed on an individual by one’s peers
can be positive or negative
can lead to risky behaviors in teens
defn: identity shift effect
when one’s state of harmony is disrupted by a threat of social rejection, they often will confirm to the group norms
they then experience internal conflict bc the behavior is outside the norm for the individual
to eliminate the internal conflict: identity shift wherein they adopt the group standards as their own
defn: cognitive dissonance
the simultaneous presence of two opposing thoughts or opinions which generally leads to an internal state of discomfort
individuals will try to reduce this discomfort by changing, adding to, or minimizing one of these dissonant thoughts
what was Solomon Asch’s conformity experiment testing? what were the results?
test: perception; examine if the behavior of the individual was influenced by the confederates
result: individuals will sometimes provide answers they know to be untrue if it avoids going against the group (the urge toward conformity could outweigh the desire to be correct)
defn: group polarization
the tendency for groups to collaboratively make decisions that are MORE EXTREME than the individual ideas of the group members
can lead to riskier or more cautious decisions
defn: choice shift
measured changes in decisions before and after group interaction
defn: choice shift vs. group polarization
choice shift: measured changes in decisions before and after group interaction
group polarization: more general to tendency of a group to move to more extreme decisions as a result of interaction
defn: groupthink
desire for harmony or conformity results in a group coming to an incorrect or poor decision
in an attempt to minimize conflict: consensus decisions are reached without assessing alternative ideas
desire to agree with group causes loss of independent critical thinking
what are the 8 factors that Irving Janis describes as indicative of groupthink? describe them.
- ILLUSION OF INVULNERABILITY (encourage risk, ignore pitfalls, too optimistic)
- COLLECTIVE RATIONALIZATION (ignore expressed concerns about group approved ideas)
- ILLUSION OF MORALITY (believe group ideas are morally correct, disregarding contrary evidence)
- EXCESSIVE STEREOTYPING (construct stereotypes of those expressing outside opinions)
- PRESSURE FOR CONFORMITY (feel pressured not to express opinions that disagree with group, view opposition as disloyal)
- SELF-CENSORSHIP (withhold ideas and opinions that disagree with the group)
- ILLUSION OF UNANIMITY (believe the decisions and judgements of the group to be without disagreement, even if it does exist)
- MINDGUARDS (some may decide to take on a role protecting the group against oppoisng views)
what 3 cultural phenomena involve similar patterns of thinking to groupthink and group polarization)?
riots, fads, and mass hysteria
defn: mass hysteria
a shared, intense concern about threats to society
groupthink features lead to a shared delusion that is augmented by distrust, rumors, propaganda, and fear mongering
defn: culture
the beliefs, behaviors, actions, and characteristics of a group or society of people
learned by living with in a society, observing behaviors and traits, and adopting them
defn: cultural assimilation
the process by which an individual’s or group’s behavior and culture begin to resemble that of another group
can also mean that groups with different cultures begin to merge
an uneven merging of cultures
what are the four primary factors used to assess the degree of assimilation in immigrant communities?
- socioeconomic status
- geographic distribution
- language attainment
- intermarriage
defn: ethnic enclaves
an alternative to assimilation
locations with a high concentration of one specific ethnicity (e.g. Chinatown)
defn and aka: multiculturalism
aka: cultural diversity
communities/societies containing multiple cultures or ethnic groups
encourages, respects, and celebrates cultural differences
multiculturalism vs. assimilation
multiculturalism (cultural mosaic, coexistence)
assimilation (melting pot, uneven, into one homogenous culture)
defn and char: subculture
groups of people within a culture that distinguish themselves from the primary culture to which they belong
symbolic attachment to things such as clothing, music can differentiate the group from the majority
can be founded based on race, gender, ethnicity, sexuality, etc.
defn: counterculture
a subculture group that gravitates toward an identity that is at odds with majority culture and deliberately opposes prevailing social mores
defn: socialization
the process of developing, inheriting, and spreading norms, customs, and beliefs
individuals gain the knowledge, skills, habits, and behaviors necessary for inclusion in society
defn: cultural transmission/learning vs. cultural diffusion
cultural transmission/learning: the process by which beliefs, customs and norms passed down from one generation to another WITHIN a society
cultural diffusion: the process by which beliefs, customs, and norms are spread from one culture to another
defn: primary vs. secondary socialization
primary:
- occurs during childhood
- we initially learn acceptable actions and attitudes in our society
- primarily through observation of our caregivers and other close adults
- sets stage for future socialization and personal opinion development
secondary:
- process of learning appropriate behavior/rules within smaller, specific sections of larger society
- outside the home (schools, sports, church, etc.)
- teens and adults
- smaller changes/refinements to already established behaviors
- can also occur when you move, change schools, or change professions
defn: anticipatory socialization
the process by which a person prepares for future occupation, living situation, or relationship changes (ex: premed student shadowing doctors)
defn: resocialization
process by which one discards old behaviors in favor of new ones through intensive retraining and can be positive or negative (e.g. cult, army)
defn: norms vs. mores
norms: societal rules that define boundaries of acceptable behavior (serve as a means of social control)
mores: widely observed social norms
defn: social control
a mechanism for regulating the behavior of individuals and groups
defn: sanctions (positive and negative)
penalties for misconduct or rewards for appropriate behavior
negative sanctions punish behaviors that deviate from norms
positive sanctions reward behaviors that comply with norms
a means of social control
defn: formal vs. informal sanctions
formal: enforced by formal social institutions like governments or employers (e.g. promotions, jail)
informal: enforced by social groups (sit at certain cafeteria table, exclusion from social group)
defn: taboo
what is socially unacceptable, disgusting, or reprehensible
defn: folkways
norms that refer to behavior that is considered polite in particular social interactions (shaking hands after a sports match)
defn and life path progression for interpersonal relationships: agent of socialization
any part of society that is important when learning social norms and values
in childhood: caregivers
teens: direct family, social circles
adults: colleagues, bosses
defn: popular culture
common trends, beliefs, prevalent at a given point in time
what are 9 agents of socialization (with some examples of what they provide)?
- family (language, relationships, rules, social interactions, morals, role models, behavior)
- peers (activities, trends)
- religion (values, love for others, life meaning, life guidelines)
- government (laws, security, sanctions, punishment)
- media (stereotypes, trends, how to act)
- work (employment, money, rules, roles)
- ethnic background (beliefs, customs, values)
- clubs/social groups (social interaction, activity rules)
- school (grammar, social setting values)
defn: deviance
any violation of norms, rules, or expectations within a society (can be positive or negative)
defn: social stigma
extreme disapproval or dislike of a person or group based on perceived differences from the rest of society (diff in beliefs, abilities, behaviors, and appearance)
evolves over time, can spread to affect associated others
defn: labeling theory
strongly linked with deviance, stigmatization, and reputation
the labels given to a person affect how others respond to that person, and affect the person’s self-image
labels can lead to channeling of behavior into deviance or conformity
defn: role engulfment
internalizing a label and assuming the role implied by the label leads to the assumed role taking over a person’s identity
defn: differential association theory
deviance (esp. criminal behavior) can be learned through interactions with others
intimate exposure to others engaging in deviant behavior lays the groundwork for people to engage in deviant behavior themselves
differential association is the degree to which one is surrounded by ideals that adhere to social norms vs. ideals that go against them
when deviant groups are more numerous or intense than normative groups, individuals gravitate toward deviant behavior
defn: strain theory
attempts to explain deviance as a natural reaction to the disconnect btwn social goals and social structure
e.g. American dream
deviant behavior may arise as an attempt to achieve the social goal outside of the limiting social structure
defn: conformity vs. compliance vs. obedience
CONFORMITY = matching one’s attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors to group or societal expectations
COMPLIANCE = change in behavior based on a direct request made by someone without actual authority over an individual
OBEDIENCE = changing one’s behavior in response to a direct or or expectation expressed by authority figure
aka: conformity
majority influence
defn: normative conformity
the desire to fit into a group because of fear of rejection
what are two types of conformity? describe them.
internalization: changing one’s behavior to fit with a group while also privately agreeing with the group ideas
identification: the outward acceptance of others’ ideas without personally taking on these ideas
describe the Stanford Prison Experiment in brief and what social process it relates to
21 male college students randomly assigned to prisoner or guard role
internalization (a type of conformity)
had to be ended after 6 days because “guards” had begun to be physically abusive to “prisoners”
what type of society tends to conformity? what type doesn’t?
does: collectivist culture (group mentality supersedes the individual)
doesn’t: individualist culture (value independent thought and unique ideas)
what are the four main compliance techniques? describe them
FOOT-IN-THE-DOOR = begins with small request, after gaining compliance, larger request is made
DOOR-IN-THE-FACE = opposite of above; a large request is made first, and if refused, a second smaller request is made (actual goal)
LOWBALL TECHNIQUE = requestor will get an initial commitment from an individual, then raise the cost of the commitment (can include money, effort, time)
THAT’S-NOT-ALL TECHNIQUE = individual is made an offer, but before making a decision, is told the deal is even better than expected (i.e. infomercials)
are people more likely to obey or comply? why?
obey because of real or perceived social power of the individual
describe Stanley Milgram’s obedience experiment in brief. what were the results?
learner = paid actor, teacher = volunteer who told they would be randomly assigned to teacher or learner
teacher given sample shock, told they would be administer shocks to learners who make mistakes
teachers told they would need to increase voltage each time learner was incorrect
learners receive no real shocks, but act more and more uncomfortable –> teachers become less willing to increase shock voltage
HOWEVER using increasingly demanding language, the researchers were able to get he majority of participants to administer very high voltage shocks, despite discomfort shown while doing so
PEOPLE OBEY EVNE IF THEY DO NOT WISH TO CONTINUE
defn: social cognition
focuses on the ways in which people think about others and how these ideas impact behavior
impacted by attitudes
defn and cause: attitude
the expression of positive or negative feeling toward a person, place, thing, or scenario
develop from experiences with others who affect our opinions and behaviors
what are the three primary components of attitude? describe them.
ABC
- AFFECTIVE (the way a person FEELS toward something, emotional)
- BEHAVIORAL (the way a person ACTS with respect to something)
- COGNITIVE (the way an individual thinks about something, usually the justification for the other two components)
what are the four main theories of attitudes?
- functional attitudes theory
- learning theory
- elaboration likelihood model
- social cognitive theory
defn: functional attitudes thoery
attitudes serve four functions
1. knowledge
2. ego expression
3. adaptation
4. ego defense
defn and corresp attitude theory: knowledge function
functional attitudes theory
attitudes help provide organization to thoughts and experiences
knowing the attitudes of others helps to predict their behavior
defn and corresp attitude theory: ego expression
functional attitudes theory
allows us to communicate and solidify our self-identity
defn and corresp attitude theory: adaptation
functional attitudes theory
expressed socially acceptable attitudes will lead to acceptance
defn and corresp attitude theory: ego defense
functional attitudes theory
attitudes protect our self-esteem or justify actions that we know are wrong
defn: learning theory
an attitude theory
attitudes are developed through different learning forms (i.e. direct contact with object of attitude, direct instruction from others, others’ attitudes, classical conditioning, operant conditioning, observational learning)
defn: elaboration likelihood model
a theory of attitude formation and attitude change that separates individuals on a continuum based on how they process persuasive information
what are the two extremes of the elaboration likelihood model? what are these extremes referred to as?
- elaborate extensively (think deeply about info, scrutinize its meaning and purpose, draw conclusions or make decisions based on this analysis) = CENTRAL ROUTE PROCESSING / CENTRAL ROUTE TO PERSUASION (scientific paper)
- do not elaborate, focus on superficial details (appearance of the one delivering the argument, catchphrases, slogans, credibility) = PERIPHERAL ROUTE PROCESSING / PERIPHERAL ROUTE TO PERSUASION (ad with just a logo that is a visually appealing image)
defn: social cognitive theory
an attitude theory
people learn how to behave and shape attitudes by observing the behaviors of others
behavior develops through direct observation and replication of the actions of others (influenced by personal factors and environment)
defn: Bandura’s triadic reciprocal causation
behavior, personal factors, and environment are not independent concepts, but influence each other
