Chapter 16 Flashcards
Social perception
The way we seek to know and understand other persons and events; also known as social cognition
Impression formation
The process of integrating various sources of information about a person into an overall judgement
Stereotypes
fixed sets of beliefs about people that put them into categories and does not allow for individual variation
Ingroup
A group to which we belong and that forms a part of our social identity
Outgroup
Any group with which we do not share membership
Physical attractiveness stereotype
The belief that physically attractive individuals possess socially desirable personality traits and lead happier, more fulfilling lives than less attractive persons
Prejudice
attitudes towards members of specific groups that directly or indirectly suggest they deserve an inferior social status
discrimination
a negative and/or patronizing action toward members of a specific social group
Realistic group conflict theory
a theory of prejudice contending that when 2 groups compete for scarce resources, this competition creates a breeding ground for prejudice
Ethnocentrism
A pattern of increased hostility toward outgroups, accompanied by increased loyalty to one’s group
Ambivalent sexism
Sexism directed against women based on both positive and negative attitudes rather than uniform dislike
Intergroup anixety
The tension and distress that is sometimes experienced when interacting with a person from different social group
Attribution
the process by which people use information to make inferences about the causes of behaviors or events
Internal attribution
an attribution that locates the cause of an event as factors internal to the person, such as personality traits, moods, attitudes, abilities, or effort
External Attribution
An attribution that locates the cause of an event as factors external to the person, such as luck, other people, or the situation
Covariation model
a theory of attribution asserting that people rely on consensus, consistency, and distinctiveness information when assigning causes for events
Fundamental attribution error
The tendency to make internal attributions rather than external attributions in explaining the behavior of others
Attitudes
positive or negative evaluations of objects
Mere exposure effect
The tendency to develop more positive feelings towards objects and individuals the more frequently we are exposed to them
persuasion
the process of consciously attempting to change attitudes through the transmission of some message
Elaboration likelihood model
A theory that there are two ways in which persuasive messages can cause attitude change, each differing in the amount of cognitive effort or elaboration they require
Cognitive dissonance
A feeling of discomfort caused by performing an action inconsistent with one’s attitudes
Social Influence
the exercise of social power by a person or group to change the attitudes or behavior of others in a certain direction
conformity
a yielding to perceived group pressure