Chapter 1- Introducing Social Psychology

Question 1

social psychology

Answer 1

• scientific study of the way in which people’s thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the real or imagined presence of other people
• influence by the entire social situation
• how situations and context influence what people do
• study of psychological processes people have in common that make them susceptible to social influence

Question 2

sociology

Answer 2

• study of groups, organizations, and societies

- as opposed to the study of individuals

Question 3

personality psychology

Answer 3

-study of the characteristics that make individuals unique and different from one another

Question 4

goal of social psychology

Answer 4

• to identify universal properties of human nature that make everyone susceptible to social influence
• regardless of social class or culture

Question 5

empirical questions

Answer 5

• answers can be derived from experimentation or measurement, rather than by personal opinion
• characteristic of social psychology

Question 6

scientific methods

Answer 6

• test assumptions, guesses, and ideas about human social behavior
• empirical or systematic
• don’t rely of folk wisdom, common sense, or opinions

Question 7

individual differences

Answer 7

-aspects of people’s personalities that make them different from others

Question 8

level of analysis for social psychologist

Answer 8

-INDIVIDUAL in the context of a SOCIAL SITUATION

Question 9

fundamental attribution error

Answer 9

• tendency to explain behavior entirely in terms of personality traits
• underestimate power of social influence
• don’t take possible situation into account
• oversimplifying problem
• gives feeling of false security

Question 10

false security

Answer 10

• write off undesirable people as flawed human beings

- gives feeling that it could never happen to us

Question 11

behaviorism

Answer 11

• human behaviors based on reinforcement
• behavior followed by reward is likely to continue
• behavior followed by punishment is likely to cease
• forgets to focus on interpretation of environment as key factor

Question 12

gestalt psychology

Answer 12

• we should study subjective way in which an object appear in a person’s mind
• look at the whole picture
• DON’T just look at some of parts

Question 13

naive realism

Answer 13

• perception of something is a direct copy of it
• if others see something differently, they are biased
• each side believes reasonable people see things the way they do

Question 14

motives

Answer 14

• underlie thoughts and behavior
• 2 primary
  1. ) need to feel good about ourselves
  2. ) need to be accurate

Question 15

self-esteem

Answer 15

-see oneself as good competent, and decent

Question 16

self-esteem approach

Answer 16

• the need to feel good about oneself
• people distort interpretation of reality so that they feel better about themselves
• motives and behavior often surprising

Question 17

construal

Answer 17

-interpretation of social environment

Question 18

Social cognition approach

Answer 18

-self-justification
-focus on good parts and distort bad parts as inconsequential
-put positive spin on experience
Ex: hazing into fraternity

Question 19

social cognition

Answer 19

-the ways in which human beings think about the world

Question 20

self-fulfilling prophecy

Answer 20

-expect that you or anohter personal will behave in some way, so you act in ways to make your prediction come true
Ex: teacher told who will be smart students -> unconsciously lead them to greatest success

Question 21

Human beings are often motivated to construe themselves and the social world accurately. The ________ approach is based on this assumption

Answer 21

social cognition

Question 22

In their approach to understanding social behavior, social psychologists are most similar to

Answer 22

gestalt psychologists

Question 23

Compared to social psychologists, personality psychologists are more likely to focus their attention on

Answer 23

individual differences

Question 24

Which of the following is an example of social influence

Answer 24

You feel guilty because you lied to your trusting professor about your assignment

Question 25

The fundamental attribution error can be described as

Answer 25

underestimate power of social influence

Question 26

The whole is different from the sum of its parts. This statement reflects a tenet of_______ psychology

Answer 26

gestalt psychology

Question 27

George just finished a poem, and is very proud of his work. He knows he should ask his instructor for some constructive feedback to improve it, but chooses not to because he is afraid of losing his sense of accomplishment. In this case, which basic motive did George give into

Answer 27

need to feel good about oneself

Question 28

Social psychology is set apart from other ways of interpreting social behavior such as folk wisdom or literature because it is

Answer 28

experimental science

Question 29

Like social psychologists, personality psychologists focus on

Answer 29

individuals rather than collectivist institutions

Question 30

Both social psychologists and sociologists are interested in aggression. Compared to sociologists, which of the following questions is a social psychologist most likely to ask

Answer 30

when does anger lead to aggression

Question 31

Why is a scientific approach preferable to reliance on folk wisdom and common sense

Answer 31

folk wisdom and common sense are filled with contradictions

Question 32

The definition of social psychology includes all of the following EXCEPT

Answer 32

role of individual differences

Question 33

Sheila shows up for a blind date with her hair disheveled and her clothes a mess. Her date, Patrick, thinks, “She must be a total slob!” Patrick’s thought about Sheila is an example of

Answer 33

fundamental attribution error

Question 34

Social psychologists differ from sociologists in that social psychologists

Answer 34

are concerned with people’s contruals of their environment

Question 35

Larry is a physician and is convinced that his patient, Mr. Mraz has cancer. However, after several diagnostic tests, and a biopsy come back negative, Larry re-thinks his original diagnosis. He admits that he was wrong and does more research to find the correct diagnosis. In this case, which basic motive did Larry give into

Answer 35

need for accuracy

Question 36

Social psychologists use the term _______ to describe the way in which people perceive, comprehend, and interpret their social worlds

Answer 36

construal

Question 37

Josh and his friends have just started up a new fraternity on campus, and want to recruit men who will be loyal and love it. Based on the self-esteem approach, which initiation strategy would you recommend to Josh

Answer 37

make them suffer a little

Question 38

Professor Kingsley believes that children learn to be polite when they are rewarded for saying things like “Please” and “Thank you.” Professor Kingsley is most likely a _____ psychologist

Answer 38

behavioral

Question 39

Social psychologists differ from philosophers in that philosophers

Answer 39

rely on arguments, social psychologists on research

Question 40

Last weekend, Paula smiled politely while Lance talked to her for several hours. Wow, thinks Lance to himself, she was so nice, Paula must really like me, she was so friendly! Lance’s interpretation of Paula’s behavior is an example of

Answer 40

construals