chapter 12 Flashcards
social psychology
study of the causes and consequences of sociality; how humans think about, relate to, and influence others.
social behavior
how people interact with each other; driven by context. subjective perceptions, not objective reality, guide our behavior
social influence
how people change each other
social cognition
how people think about each other
aggression
behavior whose purpose is to harm another and get the resources they desire
frustration-aggression hypothesis
suggests animals aggress when their desires are frustrated. ex: chimp wants banana (desire), pelican is about to take it (frustration) and chimp threatens with hand (aggression).
some argue hypothesis doesn’t go far enough and that actual cause of aggressive behavior is a negative affect (of feeling bad) and frustrated desire is just one of many things that can induce it.
biology plays a role in frustration-aggression
studies show men are more likely to be aggressive not only due to socialization but testosterone. one way to illicit aggression in men is to challenge their dominance (high esteemed men often view other’s actions as a threat to their dominance). women are way less likely to agree w/o provocation or aggress in ways that cause physical injury but are only slightly less to agress when provoked or aggress in ways that cause psychological harm (rumors).
culture plays a role in frustration-aggression
violent crime more common in south where trend of notions of honor require them to act aggressive when challenged (south man would act agressive vs north man who wouldn’t wen insulted).
cooperation
behavior by two or more individuals that leads to mutual benefit (but everyone has to cooperate or everyone else pays a price aka prisoner’s dilemma).
group
collection of people who have something in common that distinguishes them from others. generally trust each other to be honest, fair, and nice.
individual behavior is influenced by the presence of others; individual behavior may also influence the behavior of the group.
prejudice
positive or negative evaluation/attitude toward another person based on the person’s group membership. // unjustifiable, often unconscious, attitude toward a group and its members.
schema: beliefs, emotions, predisposition to act. can take implicit association test.
social inequalities and divisions increase prejudice.
discrimination
positive or negative behavior toward another person based on the person’s group membership.
group members
are positively prejudiced toward fellow members and tend to discriminate in their favor (even in simple groups like favorite color).
group decisions
rarely make better decisions than the best member would’ve done alone and generally their decisions are worse. groups often give too little weight to experts and more to those with status.
common knowledge effect
tendency for group discussions to focus on information that all members share (even though unknown info is usually more important and vital to the conversation).
group polarization (already like minded)
tendency for groups to make decisions that are more extreme than any member would have made alone (bc they are exposed to so many different arguments in favor of a single position). become more alike through interaction.
groupthink
tendency for groups to reach consensus in order to facilitate interpersonal harmony (groups often make poor decisions to achieve it).
deindividuation
when immersion in a group causes people to become less aware of their individual values/presence (don’t care what you look like). more likely to adapt to group values. can reduce personal inhibitions.
diffusion of responsibility
tendency for individuals to feel diminished responsibility or their actions when they are surrounded by others who are acting the same way. own contribution is less likely to be noticed.
bystander intervention/effect
act of helping strangers in an emergency situation - reveals people are less likely to help when there are many others present.
groups = happiness
groups are key to happiness and well being; being excluded makes us lonely, anxious, and depressed.
altruism
behavior that benefits another without benefiting oneself. behaviors often have hidden agendas though, such as alerting others to danger promotes the survival of its relatives and promotes the survival of it’s own genes.
kin selection
process by which evolution selects for individuals who cooperate with their relatives.
reciprocal altruism
coop w/ unrelated individuals isn’t truly altruistic. behavior that benefits another with the expectation that those benefits will be returned in the future. “cooperation extended over time”
humans & altruism
can only ever be truly altruistic, such as holding open a door.
selectivity
women tend to be more selective than men in picking mates. men produce billions of sperm and their ability to conceive a child has no significant physical costs while women produce only a small number of eggs and conception eliminates their ability to conceive for 9 months. pregnancy also increases nutritional requirements and puts them at a risk of illness and death.
