Exam 2 Flashcards
attribution
inference we make about other’s behavior and what causes it
dispositional / internal attribution
infer something about actor + their personality
situational / external attribution
infer cause is situational; external circumstances cause behavior
explanatory styles
how you habitually explain events in your life
what are the three explanation styles?
- internal / external
- stable / unstable
- global / specific
pessimistic explanatory style
internal, stable, global; correlates with lower grades and worse health later in life
normative model
how we should make attributions
covariation principle
observers (should) systematically note what factors covary
what is the first C in Kelly’s Covariation Model?
consistency: does the person consistently perform this behavior?
what is the D in Kelly’s Covariation Model?
distinctiveness: in what situations does this occur?
what is the second C in Kelly’s Covariation Model?
consensus: do other people perform this behavior?
what are the weaknesses with Kelly’s Covariation Model?
- Implies we simply can’t make attributions in some situations
- More normative than descriptive
self-serving attribution error
our successes are based on internal factors, while our failures are based on external factors; we do this to self enhance.
fundamental attribution error (* important)
the tendency to favor internal attributions
perceptual salience
the information that captures the attention of the individual from a given situation or stimulus
just-world hypothesis
belief that people get what they deserve and deserve what they get
gilbert’s 3 stage model
- identify behavior
- characterize actor
- adjust for situation?
adjusting for situation / controlled processes require
both motivation and ability
actor-observer bias
the observer makes internal attributions about the actor, while the actor makes external attributions about themself
how do cultural differences affect the fundamental attribution error?
people in eastern cultures are less likely to commit the fundamental attribution error
attitude
summary evaluation of an object
3 components of attitudes?
affect, behavior, cognition
attitude measurements
direct: self-report scale
indirect: physiological measures (brain activity, heart rate) , behavioral measures (eye contact), implicit measures (computerized tasks based on response latency)
specificity principle
to predict behavior from attitudes, match level of specificity
elaboration likelihood model (ELM)
how likely you are to think deeply about something, and be persuaded as a result
elaboration
thinking carefully about something
according to the ELM, if both motivation and ability are high…
high elaboration = central route: focus on argument strength and quality
according to the ELM, if motivation or ability are low…
low elaboration = peripheral route:
focus on superficial cues
what is cognitive dissonance?
the discomfort a person feels when their behavior does not align with their values or beliefs
induced compliance
you do a behavior that doesn’t match your attitude due to an incentive
effort justification
post-decisional dissonance
when is dissonance worst?
- behavior freely chosen
- insufficient justification
- negative consequences…
- …that were foreseeable
dissonance and self-threat
