Chapter 1 - 4 Flashcards
What is psychology?
The scientific study of behavior; anything an animal or human does, feels, or thinks
What is social psychology?
Science that:- studies influences of our situations- with special attention to how we view and affect one another;Scientific study of how people think about, influence, and relate to one another.
What constitutes social thinking?
- How we perceive ourselves and others- What we believe- Judgments we make- Our attitudes
What constitutes social influence?
- Culture and biology- Pressure to conform- Persuasion- Groups of people
What constitutes social relations?
- Helping- Aggression- Attention & intimacy- Prejudice
What are some examples of social thinking?
- Self-fulfilling prophecy- Diagnostic labels- Self-handicapping- Hindsight bias
What are some examples of social influence?
- Groupthink- Obedience- Conformity
What are some examples of social relations?
- Bystander apathy- Mob mentality- Cults
What are six major themes in social psychology? How do they relate to the three subfields of social psychology?
Social Thinking:1. We construct our social reality.2. Our social intuitions are powerful, sometimes perilous.Social Influences:3. Social influences shape behaviour.4. Dispositions shape behaviour.Social Relations:5. Social behaviour is also biological behaviour.6. Relating to others is a basic need.
What are two problems with correlational research?
- Directionality problem2. Confounding variables
How did Kurt Lewin summarize the fundamental principles of social psychology?
“Behaviour is a function of the person and the situation.”
What is the naturalistic fallacy?
Error of defining what is “good” in terms of what is observable. i.e. Typical = normal = good.
What are the obvious ways in which the values of social psychologists penetrate their work?
- Choice of research topics- Types of people who are attracted to various fields of study
What are the subtle ways in which the values of social psychologists penetrate their work?
- Hidden assumptions when forming concepts- Choosing labels- Giving advice- Naturalistic fallacy
What does a good theory accomplish?
- Effective summarization of many observations- Clear predictions that can be used to confirm or modify the theory, generate new exploration, and suggest practical applications.
What are demand characteristics?
Cues in an experiment that tell the participant what behaviour is expected.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of correlational and experimental research?
Correlational research:+ Often uses real-world settings- Causation often ambiguousExperimental research:+ Can explore cause and effect by controlling variables by random assignment- Some important variables cannot be studied with experiments
What is the fundamental attribution error?
The tendency for observers to underestimate situational influences and overestimate dispositional influences on others’ behaviour.AKA The correspondence bias
Why do we make the fundamental attribution error?
When people explain their own behavior they typically are giving reasons (not causes) that justify how they chose to behave. Reasons are justifications perceived by the actor.Causes are objective factors (features of the environment, the actor, etc.) as discerned by objective or external observers.Also, the situation is visible to us because we’re focusing on what we’re reacting to while when we watch someone act, that person is the focus of our attention.
How is negative behaviour interpreted through dispositional attribution vs. situational attribution?
Dispositional attribution:- Person is naturally a negative person- Leads to unfavourable reactionSituational attribution:- Person has received some bad news- Leads to symptomatic reaction
What is priming?
- Activating particular associations in memory(e.g., watching a scary movie and interpreting household noises as an intruder)- Can influence our thoughts & actions
What is unconscious transference?
Refers to an eyewitness’s misidentification of an innocent bystander for a criminal perpetrator because of the witness’s exposure to the bystander in another context.
What do Elizabeth Loftus’ studies show about eyewitness accounts?
Elizabeth Loftus found that those who had “seen” were, indeed, believed, even when their testimony was shown to be useless. Compared to criminal cases lacking eyewitness testimony, those that have eyewitness testimony are more likely to produce convictions even if that eyewitness testimony was discredited.
What is the misinfomation effect?
Incorporating “misinformation” into one’s memory of an event, after witnessing the event and receiving misleading information about it.Potential for the creation of false memoriese.g., Supposed child sexual abuse
How do we falsely construct our memories?
Reconstructing past attitudes:- Rosy (or less then rosy) retrospections- “Maturation makes liars of us all” Reconstructing past behaviour:- Hindsight bias- Self-serving bias
What is the representativeness heuristic?
Snap judgments of whether someone or something fits a category.May lead to discounting other important information.
What is the availability heuristic?
Quick judgments of likelihood of events (how available it is in memory).May lead to over-weighting vivid instances and thus, for example, to fearing the wrong things.
What is counterfactual thinking?
- Imagining alternative scenarios and outcomes that might have happened, but did note.g., Bronze versus silver medalists at the Olympic games- Underlies our feelings of luck- Typically more regret over things not done
What are two examples of illusory thinking?
Illusory correlation:- The perception of a relationship where none exists, or perception of a stronger relationship than actually existse.g., Noticing “coincidences”Illusion of control:- The perception of uncontrollable events as subject to one’s control or as more controllable than they aree.g., Gambling- Regression toward the average
What did the Charles Lord study show about the students who had reviewed information that was disconfirming their beliefs favouring/disfavouring of capital punishment?
They were very critical of the disconfirming evidence, which only strengthened their disagreement of it.
What is spontaneous trait transference?
When we say something good or bad about someone else, people will tend to associate that trait with us. If we go around talking about others being gossipy, people may then unconsciously associate “gossip” with us.
Which things do we remember explicitly and implicitly?
Explicit recall includes facts, names, and past experiences.Implicit recall includes skills and conditioned dispositions.
What is the overconfidence phenomenon?
The tendency to be more confident than correct; to overestimate the accuracy of one’s beliefs.
Which two factors strongly influence how we interpret and remember events?
Our schemas and preconceptions strongly influence how we interpret and remember events.
What do before-the-fact judgments and after-the-fact judgments bias?
Before-the-fact: Perceptions & interpretationsAfter-the-fact: Recall
What is meant by “totalitarian egos”?
We revise the past to suit our present views. Thus, we under-report bad behaviour and over-report good behaviour.
What are three techniques that successfully reduce overconfidence bias?
- Prompt feedback. For example, weather forecasters receive prompt feedback so they are good at estimating their probable accuracy.2. “Unpack a task” and estimate time required for each to reduce “planning fallacy” overconfidence.3. Force people to think of one good reason why judgments might be wrong and to evaluate disconfirming information.
What kind of thinking does depressive mood motivate?
Depressed mood motivates self-focused brooding and intense thinking, searching for information that makes one’s environment more understandable and controllable.
What is the camera perspective bias?
Confession focused on suspect is perceived as genuine.Confession focused on policeman is perceived as forced.Now confessions are filmed from side profiles.
How can “attitude” be defined?
An attitude can be defined as one’s favorable or unfavorable evaluative reaction toward something or someone exhibited in beliefs, feelings, or intended behavior.
What are the ABCs of behaviour?
A – affect (feelings)B – behavior (intentions)C – cognitions (thoughts)
What are the affective measures of attitude?
- heart rate- adjective ratings of positive and negative mood- Thurstone scale, “I feel anxious (happy,etc)”