Chapter 13: Social Psychology - Key words

Question 1

study of how people influence others’ behaviour, beliefs and attitudes

Answer 1

Social Psychology

Question 2

theory that we seek to evaluate our abilities and beliefs by comparing them with those of others

Answer 2

social comparison theory

Question 3

outbreak of irrational behaviour that is spread by social contagion

Answer 3

mass hysteria

Question 4

process of assigning causes to behaviour

Answer 4

attribution

Question 5

tendency to overestimate the imapct of dispositional influences on other people’s behaviour

Answer 5

fundamental attribution error

Question 6

tendency of people to alter their behaviour as a result of group pressure

Answer 6

conformity

Question 7

tendency of people to engage in uncharacteristic behaviour when they are stripped of their usual identities

Answer 7

deindividuation

Question 8

empahsis on group unanimity at the expense of critical thinking

Answer 8

groupthink

Question 9

tendency of group discussion to strengthen the dominant positions held by individual group members

Answer 9

group polarization

Question 10

group of individuals who exhibit intense and unquestioning devotion to a single cause

Answer 10

cult

Question 11

approach to convincing people to change their minds about somehting by first introducing reasons why the perspective might be correct and then debunking them

Answer 11

inoculation effect

Question 12

adherence to instructions from those of higher authority

Answer 12

obedience

Question 13

error of assuming that no one in a group perceives things as we do

Answer 13

pluralistic ignorance

Question 14

reduction in feelings of personal responsibility in the presence of others

Answer 14

diffusion of responsibility

Question 15

phenomenon whereby individuals become less productive in groups

Answer 15

social loafing

Question 16

helping others for unselfish reasons

Answer 16

altruism

Question 17

learning about psychological research can change real-wolrd behaviour for the better

Answer 17

enlightenment effect

Question 18

behaviour intended to harm others, either verbally or physically

Answer 18

aggression

Question 19

form of indirect aggression, prevalent in girls, involving spreading rumours, gossiping, and nonverbal putdowns for the purpose of social manipulation

Answer 19

relational aggression

Question 20

belief that includes an emotional component

Answer 20

attitude

Question 21

personality trait that assesses the extent to which people’s behaviour reflects their true feelings and attitudes

Answer 21

self-monitoring

Question 22

unpleasant mental experience of tension resulting from two conflicting thoughts or beliefs

Answer 22

cognitive dissonance

Question 23

theory that we acquire our attitudes by observing our behaviours

Answer 23

self-perception theory

Question 24

theory that we don’t really change our attitudes, but report that we have so that our behaviours appear consisten with our attitudes

Answer 24

impression management theory

Question 25

persuasive technique involving making a small request before making a bigger one

Answer 25

foot-in-the-door technique

Question 26

persuasive technique involving making an unreasonably large request before making the small request we’re hoping to have granted

Answer 26

door-in-the-face technique

Question 27

persuasive technique in which the seller of a product starts by quoting a low sales price, and then mentions all of the “add-on” costs once the customer has agreed to purchase the product

Answer 27

lowball technique

Question 28

drawing negative conclusions about a person, group of people, or situation prior to evaluating the evidence

Answer 28

prejudice

Question 29

a belief, positive or negative, about the characteristics of members of a group that is applied generally to most members of the group

Answer 29

stereotype

Question 30

assumption that behaviours among individual members of a group are due to their internal disposition

Answer 30

ultimate attribution error

Question 31

evolutionary principle that creates a predisposition toward distrusting anything or anyone unfamiliar or different

Answer 31

adaptive conservatism

Question 32

tendency to favour individuals within our group over those from outside our group

Answer 32

in-group bias

Question 33

tendency to view all individuals outside our group as highly similar

Answer 33

out-group homogeneity

Question 34

negative behaviour toward members of out-groups

Answer 34

discrimination

Question 35

claim that prejudice arises from a need to blame other groups for our misfortunes

Answer 35

scapegoat hypothesis

Question 36

claim that our attributions and behaviours are shaped by a deep-seated assumption that the world is fair and all things happen for a reason

Answer 36

just-world hypothesis

Question 37

unfounded negative belief of which we’re aware regarding the characteristics of an out-group

Answer 37

explicit prejudice

Question 38

unfounded negative belief of which we’re unaware regarding the characteristics of an out-group

Answer 38

implicit prejudice

Question 39

educational approach designed to minimize prejudice by requiring all children to make independent contributions to a shared project

Answer 39

jigsaw classroom