exam one Flashcards
Social psychology
the scientific attempt to explain how the thoughts, feelings, and behaviors of the individual are influenced by the actual presence of other human beings
Person-situation debate
What determines individual behavior?
Is it the person– personality, values, interests
Is it the situation– social norms, expectations
The person
Personality– long-standing traits and patterns that propel individuals to consistently think, feel, and behave in certain and consistent ways
Big 5 personality traits
you either have high or low levels of these characteristics
Openness to experience– open-minded, curios
Conscientiousness– thoughtfulness, organized
Extraversion
Agreeableness– willing to compromise, cooperative
Neuroticism– emotional stability
History of the person-situation debate
Key Figure: Walter Mischel
Topic: Personality and Assessment
Arguments:
- Lack of consistency in behavior
- Situations may be more predictive of behavior than personality traits
Correlation Findings:
Strongest correlation found: r = 0.30
r^2: Proportion of variance explained
Only 9% of behavior variation explained by personality (for r = 0.30)
Field Division
Trait theorists vs. situationists
Conclusion: Situations deemed more crucial than traits in explaining behavior
Correlations
Range from -1 to 1
Magnitude– strength of relationship
Direction is positive or negative
Positive– r > .5
Negative– r < -.5
Learning styles
Reflective (deep processing)
Synthesis analysis and elaborative processing– breaking down complex concepts to make them easier to understand
Agentic (shallow processing)
Methodical study and fact retention– more goal driven
Hypothesis of study
Openness to Experience:
Associated with reflective strategies
Deep engagement likely
Higher GPA expected
Conscientiousness:
Associated with agentic strategies
Timely completion of tasks
Higher GPA expected
H7:
Relationship between openness and GPA mediated by reflective strategies
Mediation:
DV-IV relationship influenced by a third variable
Article found that personality traits and learning styles together explained 17% of the variance in GPA
Fundamental attribution error
an individual’s tendency to attribute others actions to their character or personality, while attributing their own behavior to external situational factors outside of their control
we tend to attribute other people’s behavior to their personality or character traits, while overlooking the influence of situational factors.
Cognitive ease
(fundamental attribution error)
Takes more effort to consider circumstances that account for why someone did something
Information asymmetry
(fundamental attribution error)
We know much more about what’s happening in our lives than we do random strangers
Self-serving biases
(fundamental attribution error)
We want to protect our ego as much as possible to think well of ourselves so we give ourselves more grace than we do other people
Interactionism
Behavior influenced by both individual and situation
Lewin’s Equation: B f(P,E)
Behavior as a function of Person and Environment
Person-Situation Interactions: Personality effect on behavior depends on situational characteristics
Situational Strength: Environmental cues for desirable behaviors
Personality Influence: Guides individuals to enter or avoid situations
Situational Alteration: Situations changed based on individual behavior
Strong situation
knowing what’s expected of you, strong cues that make you know what you should be doing
Sitting in a classroom
Weak situation
fewer situational cues that signal what is expected of them
More room for personality to guide their behavior
Behavior is informed by both personal characteristics and situational factors
The impact of personality can depend on the situation, and vice versa
Deindividuation
Concept: Hiding identity reduces personal accountability
Article Focus: Illusory anonymity
Explanation: Feeling anonymous, but it’s just psychological
Result: More deviant behavior due to reduced accountability
Attitude
summary evaluation of an object
Person, place, event, etc
Relatively stable feeling/belief that is decided towards an object
Mood is more of a general state of feeling that doesn’t have a source of origin
Emotion is more a more intense reaction that is typically tied to an event that can disrupt your tasks throughout the day
Emotions can help us form our attitudes
Affect
feeling and emotion centered
Ex– eating ice cream makes me happy
Behavior
actions relevant to the object
Ex– i eat ice cream often
Cognition
thoughts and beliefs about the object
Ex– ice cream is sweet and has a smooth, satisfying texture
Understanding attitudes
The importance of an attitude, as assessed by how quickly it comes to mind
Stronger attitudes are more resistant to change, more predictive behavior
Influenced by attitude consistency
the degree of alignment between components of the tripartite model attitudes
Origin of Attitudes
Environmental vs. dispositional
Heritability: Attitudes that are highly influenced by genetics are harder to change.
Self-Perception Theory: People often look at their own behavior to figure out their attitudes.
Equifinality Issue: Behavior can have multiple causes, not just one.
Environmental Cues: Social interactions help shape our attitudes.
Cognitive dissonance
desire for consistency between thoughts, statements and behaviors
When inconsistent, feeling of tension and anxiety arise
Dissonance resolved though either behavioral or attitude change
Theory of planned behavior
attitudes lead to behavioral choices through people’s intentions
Attitude towards behavior, subjective norms, and behavioral control develop our intentions which leads to the attitudes and behavioral choices
Reciprocation
the normative expectation of mutual exchange
Helps build social relationships with others
Ex– free samples or gifts, door in the face technique
Door in the face technique
(reciprocation)
following larger request with a smaller request so the person feels more indebted to say yes to the smaller request because they said no to the first one
Consistent
tendency to seek alignment in behaviors, beliefs, and attitudes
Examples– foot in door technique, effectiveness of public commitment
Foot in the door– asking for a small request will more likely lead to a yes to a bigger request down the line
Social validation
desire to align behavior with the behavior engaged in by others
When other people engage in a behavior, we find it more acceptable to engage in that behavior
Liking
increased likelihood to be persuaded by those we like or admire
Factors that increase liking– similarity, familiarity, cooperation, praise/compliments
Authority
increased likelihood to comply based on perceptions of competence or expertise
Perception vs. true authority– more likely to listen to people that are better dressed or look smarter
Scarcity
tendency to assign higher values to items that are perceived as less available
“Act now, limited time offer, only one left”
Forewarning
reminder to individuals that they are likely to encounter a persuasive situation
Allows opportunity to develop counterarguments ahead of the influence attempt
Inoculation
build defenses against persuasion by mildly attacking the attitude position
Providing examples of arguments and defense prior to influence attempt
Prejudice
unfair negative attitude toward a social group
Stereotypes
overgeneralizations about a group or its members
Discrimination
unjustified negative behaviors towards members of outgroups based on outgroup membership
Behavioral manifestation
Explicit bias
attitudes and beliefs that we have about a person or group on a conscious level
We are fully aware of these, so they can be self-reported
openly expressed biases and actions
Implicit bias
unconscious attitudes that lie below the surface that we can consciously report
Measure via behavioral means like IAT
Implicit association test (IAT)– assessment intended to detect subconscious associations between mental representations of objects in memory
Traditional prejudice
explicit
Conscious statements, discriminatory acts
Strategies to reduce traditional forms– Emphasize norms that prejudice is wrong and direct persuasive strategies
Social validation– normalizing what behaviors are socially acceptable
Present counter-stereotypical or non-stereotypic information about outgroup members
Contemporary prejudice
implicit
People on the surface saying they don’t have a bias, but evidence suggest there is underlying prejudice
Strategies to reduce contemporary forms– Techniques that lead people to discover inconsistencies among their self-image, values and behaviors that may arouse feelings of guilt and tension
Cognitive dissonance
Strategies that emphasize intergroup processes like intergroup contact and social categorization and identity
Intergroup contact
Contact hypothesis– the prediction that increased intergroup contact will reduce prejudice
Intergroup contact is particularly successful when groups
Have equal status
Are under cooperation (vs competitive) conditions
Are allowed opportunities to interact socially
Operate under egalitarian norms
Social categorization
When we automatically sort people into groups based on certain characteristics like race, gender, or nationality.
Often results in us vs. them mentality
Decategorization
Making group differences less noticeable
Recategorization
Changing how groups are defined or categorized
Important to retain positive distinctiveness– positive self-concept or image related to one’s identity
Still valuing the different identities people hold while also saying we are united and inclusive
Close relationships
relationships between people that are characterized by loving, caring, commitment, and intimacy
Inclusive of romantic relationships, friendships, and family relationships
Interpersonal attractions
the level of attraction between people which leads to the development of platonic or romantic relationships
Not always physical attraction, but the feeling of being drawn to a person
Similarity attraction paradigm
tendency for people to be attracted to those who are similar to themselves
Similarity in
Status
If we feel like they have a higher status than us, insecurity happens because the person will feel like their partner will stray and be with someone that is more in their “league”
Liking levels
We like to invest in relationships when we feel like we are on the same page as the other person
Mere exposure effect– the tendency to prefer stimuli (including, but not limited to, people) that we have seen frequently
Benefits of Expressing Gratitude
impact on Relationship Quality
Communal Strength:
Felt responsibility for partner’s welfare
Conceptualization:
Personal sacrifice
Distress/guilt
Partner placement in communal hierarchy
Conditions for Causality
it should always be linked to the effect.
It must happen before the effect.
There shouldn’t be any other reasonable explanations for the relationship
Studies on Gratitude and Communal Strength
Study 1:
Cross-sectional survey
Positive correlation found
Study 2:
Longitudinal survey
Positive association over time
Study 3:
Experimental manipulation
Gratitude expression highest
Impacts self-perception and communal relationships
Self-concept
a knowledge representation of one’s beliefs about oneself
Cognitive and descriptive in nature
Measuring self concept– “I am (please fill in the blank)
Would best be considered as reflecting the cognitive component
Self-complexity
the extent to which individuals have different and independent ways of thinking about themselves
Complexity associated with more positive outcomes, as it acts as a buffer in times of threat
Self-esteem
positive or negative feelings we have about ourselves
how you feel about something with respect to your self-concept
Would be best considered as reflecting the affect component
Self-affirmation theory
feeling good about one part of ourselves can make it easier to handle criticism or challenges in other parts of our lives.
Self efficacy
individual belief in your ability to reach specific goals or accomplish particular tasks
ex– do I believe I have the ability to eat more fruits and veggies?
Response efficacy
whether we think doing something will actually have the effect we want it to have
Do I believe eating more fruits and veggies will actually benefit my health?
Altruism
doing good things for others without expecting anything in return
Kin altruism
behaving to benefit a genetic relatives change of survival at some cost to ones won changes
Reciprocal altruism
helping based on the normative expectation of mutual exchange
Pure altruism
helping someone from a place of empathy, knowing no self benefit will come
Bystander effect
phenomenon where individuals are less likely to help someone in need in the presence of others
Diffusion of responsibility– assumption that other will take action, leading to personal inaction
Kitty genovese
Good samaritan laws
legal protection to people who give reasonable assistance to those in need
Some form in all 50 states
Duty to rescue laws
impose penalty for those who do not help in circumstances of danger
Less frequent in the united states, more often duty to report
Big Five Academic Achievement article
Study: Examined 308 undergraduates’ personality traits, learning styles, and GPA.
Findings:
Two Big Five traits, conscientiousness and agreeableness, positively related to all learning styles.
Neuroticism negatively related to all learning styles.
Extraversion and openness positively related to elaborative processing.
Combined, Big Five traits explained 14% of GPA variance; learning styles added 3%.
Openness linked to GPA via reflective learning styles (synthesis-analysis, elaborative processing).
Conclusion: Personality and learning styles both impact academic performance; integrating intellectual curiosity with thoughtful processing enhances GPA.
Strategies for Reducing Prejudice article
Focus: Addressing both traditional and contemporary forms of prejudice.
Traditional Prejudice: Targeted via direct education and attitude-change techniques.
Contemporary Prejudice: May require alternative strategies.
Individual-Oriented Techniques: Identify inconsistencies in self-image, values, and behaviors to evoke negative emotions (e.g., guilt), motivating attitude change.
Intergroup Strategies: Aim to personalize interactions, redefine group boundaries, and foster inclusive representations.
Goal: Understanding prejudice’s nature informs effective interventions for both traditional and contemporary prejudice.
Benefits of expressing gratitude article
Objective: Investigate if expressing gratitude enhances perception of relationship communal strength.
Study 1: Cross-sectional survey (N = 137) showed expressing gratitude linked to higher perception of relationship communal strength.
Study 2: Longitudinal study (N = 218) found expressing gratitude predicted increased perception of communal strength over time.
Study 3: Experimental study (N = 75) showed participants who expressed gratitude had higher perceived communal strength compared to control conditions.
Conclusion: Expressing gratitude boosts perception of relationship communal strength.
Implications: Highlights importance of gratitude expression in fostering strong relationships.
Self-Affirmation Promotes Health Behavior Change article
Objective: Test if self-affirmation can increase fruit and vegetable consumption, exploring mediation by efficacy variables.
Procedure: Exposed to health message after task, efficacy measures taken immediately, followed by 7-day fruit and vegetable consumption diary.
Results: Self-affirmed participants ate significantly more fruit and vegetables (approx. 5.5 portions increase) compared to controls. Effect mediated by response-efficacy.
Conclusion: Self-affirmation interventions can effectively influence health-promoting behaviors.
Implication: Highlights the potential of self-affirmation in promoting positive health behaviors.
