Chapter 12 Flashcards
Person perception
the process of forming impressions of others
Stereotypes
widely held beliefs that people have certain characteristics because of their membership in a particular group
Illusory correlation
occurs when people estimate that they have encountered more confirmations of an association between social traits than they have actually seen
Attributions
inferences that people draw about the cause of events, others’ behavior, and their own behavior
Internal Attributions
ascribe the causes of behavior to personal dispositions, traits, abilities, and feelings
External Attributions
ascribe the causes of behavior to situational demands and environmental constraints
Fundamental Attribution Error/Actor Observer Bias
refers to observers’ bias in favor of internal attributions in explaining others’ behavior
Self-serving bias
the tendency to attribute one’s successes to personal factors and one’s failure to situational factors
Attitudes
positive or negative evaluations of objects of thought
Implicit attitudes
covert attitudes that are expressed in subtle automatic responses over which one has little conscious control
Explicit attitudes
attitudes that one holds consciously and can readily describe
Dissonance theory
inconsistency among attitudes propels people in the direction of attitude change
Cognitive dissonance
when related attitudes or beliefs are inconsistent (contradict each other)
Conformity
occurs when people yield to real or imagined social pressure
Asch’s Research
CONFORMITY
Subjects asked to match lines, accomplices responded with obviously wrong answers and people conformed to the same answers
Informational influence
operates when people look to others for guidance about how to behave in ambiguous situations
Obedience
a form of compliance that occurs when people follow direct commands, usually from someone in a position of authority
Milgram’s studies
OBEDIENCE
Milgram used 40 diverse men and assigned roles of teacher and learner. Learner strapped to electric chair, zapped by teacher when they made a mistake. Teacher observed by experimenter, asked questions and increased the shock level. Teachers wanted to stop, experimenter insisted they go on. 65% of teachers administered all 30 levels of shock. Conclusion: obedience to authority was more common than he anticipated.
Bystander effect
people are less likely to provide needed help when they are in groups than when they are alone
Social loafing
a reduction in effort by individuals when they work in groups, as compared with when they work by themselves
Social psychology
The scientific study of how people think about and are influenced by other people.
Zimbardo’s Stanford Prison Study
In 1971, Zimbardo randomly assigned Stanford University students to be either ‘prisoners’ or ‘guards’ in a mock prison for a 2 week experiment.
Reasons for obedience
- legitimate authority figure
- proximity of victim and authority
Reasons for conformity
group size, group unanimity
