L11: Social Psych Flashcards
Social Psych (def)
The scientific attempt to understand and explain how the thoughts, feelings, and behaviours of individuals are influence by the actual, imagined or implied presence of others
First Impressions
Initial judgments of the character of other people. Made quickly, with very little information, especially from faces.
Impression Formation
Based on trustworthiness/warmth and competence
Primacy Effect
Order matters, we remember earlier info and take it into account more than later info
Confirmation Bias
Attending to information that’s consistent with an initial impression, and ignoring information not consistent with these beliefs.
Accuracy of First Impressions
Generally, fairly accurate. The more we get to know someone, the more accurate we are. The better our motivation to be accurate, the more accurate we are likely to be
Attributions
Inferences we make about the causes of behaviour
Dispositional Attributes
Internal factors such as traits, values, attitudes, and beliefs
Situational Attributes
External factors, such as events and context
Fundamental Attribution Error
When people try to figure out the cause of another person’s behaviour in Western cultures, they tend to overestimate the impact of internal influences and underestimate the impact of external influences
Actor-Observer Bias
We are more likely to explain our own behaviour through external attributes, while explaining others’ behaviour through internal attributes
Self-Serving Bias
We are more likely to attribute our successes to internal explanations and our failures to external explanations
Affective forecasting
Estimating how we will feel in the future. Usually not very accurate, because we place too much emphasis on one quality
Attitude (def)
Positive, negative, indifferent, mixed reaction or orientation towards a person, object, or idea
Explicit Attitudes
Easy to report, conscious of it, can be updated with new info
Implicit Attitudes
Quick, automatic, unconscious, not aware of it difficult to update
Implicit Association Tests (IAT)
Very common method of testing for attitudes, uses reaction times and/or categorization tasks (faster responses presumably reveal bias
Behavior
Consequences of attitudes
When are attitudes most likely to predict behaviour?
When they are about specific issues & when they are strong attitudes
Persuasion
Changing people’s attitudes as a means to change their behaviour
Elaboration likelihood model
Dual process theory of persuasion: central and peripheral routes
Central route
High effort argument that results in a lasting change in attitude
Peripheral route
Low effort argument that results in a temporary change in attitude
Cognitive Dissonance Theory (Festinger)
We strongly desire cognitive consistency in which beliefs, attitudes, and behaviours are compatible. When there is discrepancy b/n beliefs and attitudes we experience dissonance, and act irrationally to reduce it.
Dissonance
A state of inner tension
Strategies to reduce dissonance
1) Change in belief
2) Change behaviour
3) Change perception of the original behaviour
Post decision dissonance (Brehm)
Decision can’t be undone, so after the discus one focusses on the positive features of the chosen option and the negative features of the option not chosen.`
Effort Justification
One devotes mental energy to justifying what they’ve done
Social Norms
Commonly shared beliefs about appropriate actions that vary across context, culture, and time
Individualistic vs. Collectivist cultures
Individualistic: tend to value independence, autonomy, self-reliance to a greater extent
Collectivist: tend to value interdependence, cooperation, and social harmony to a greater extent
Social influence
The automatic way people are affected by the real and imaged presence of others
3 ways we yield to social influence
Least to greatest pressure:
Conformity, compliance, obedience
Conformity
Changing our perceptions, opinions, or behaviour in ways that are consistent with group norms
Compliance
Changing our behaviour in response to direct requests
Obedience
Changing our behaviour in response to commands by perceived authority figures
Reasons for conforming
Informational & normative influence
Informational social influence
The need to be right and seek information
Normative social influence
We fear social ostracism, judgment, and social exclusion
Stanley Milgram Experiments
To what extent will people comply with requests/directives from a perceived authority figure to harm another person? 40 men @ Harvard university everyone went to at least 300 v and 65% went all the way
Factors that push around the obedience to authority effect
- having two participants
- study conducted off campus
- experimenter communicates by phone from another room
- teacher is in the same room as the learner (person receiving the shock)
Milgram Replication Study (Burger)
Same methodology: 70 men & women
Findings: 70% continued to 150 V (max allowed). although obedience diminished, it is by no means extinct today
Aggression (def)
Behaviour intended to harm another individual. Can be physical, verbal, emotional, direct, or indirect
violence
Extreme agression
Instrumental aggression (proactive aggression)
Harmful behaviour that has a purpose to it
Hostile Aggression (reactive aggression)
Motivated by hostility with the goal to harm someone
Theories of Aggression
Biological & environmental models
Genetic theory of aggression
heritability 0.3-0.6
specific genes, ex. MAO-A
Hormone theory of aggression
hormones like testosterone and cortisol can cause an increase in aggression
Executive functioning
cognitive abilities that allow people to plan & inhibit their actions
Brain physiology theory of aggression
amygdala and abnormalities in frontal lobe structures can disrupt executive functioning and lead to aggression
Environmental factors theory of aggression
- heat/hot weather
- crowding
- social provocation
- social learning
Social provocation
insults or social rejection
Social learning
- we learn to be aggressive via behaviour modelling
- we learn to be more/less aggressive via rewards and punishments
the BOBO Doll studies
- randomly assigned young children to different experimental conditions in each study
- watching modelled aggression led to more aggression in children
- modelled aggression led to more aggression when it was rewarded, less aggression when it was punished
General aggression model
a comprehensive model of aggression
person & situation factors can cause a person to act aggressively, or not act aggressively.
Prosocial behaviour
actions intended to benefit others. ex. helping, comforting, sharing, cooperating
altruism
refers to behaviours intended to benefit another without expectations of anything in return
reciprocal altruism
actions that benefit others, despite some immediate risk or cost that are repaid in the long run
reciprocity norm
give and take rule: if someone helps us, we should help them in return
people can get very dissatisfied when there is no reciprocation in return
short-term relationships
reciprocation is expected right away or soon
lasting relationships
no score keeping, reciprocation is expected over the long run
bystander effect
the presence of others inhibits helping
two explanations for the bystander effect
- diffusion of responsibility
2. pluralistic ignorance
diffusion of responsibility
people will help less, more slowly, the more bystanders there are
pluralistic ignorance
the tendency to misinterpret social cues and rely on the overt reaction of others in ambiguous situations, which leads to inaction
decision model of helping
- notice the event
- interpret the event as an emergency
- assume responsibility
- know the appropriate form of assistance
- provide help
stereotyping
beliefs, schemas, or automatic associations that link whole groups of people with certain traits or characteristics.
prejudice
learned attitudes or affective responses toward or about a group and its individual members. can be positive or negative, but usually discussed as being negative
discrimination
differential treatment/ behaviours directed against people because of their group membership
social categorization
we categorize people into different groups based on shared characteristics or common attributes. is adaptive (allows us to make predictions about individuals) , but has costs (often not accurate and can blind us to the reality that people are diverse)
modern/aversive racism
subtle form of racism, rejection of explicitly racist beliefs, but still feeling a dislike or having a negative implicit attitude towards a racial group which can surface in safe, socially acceptable ways
Robber’s cave study
- sought to examine how prejudice and discrimination might develop and how they might be reduced
- demonstrated realistic conflict theory: competition for resources increased prejudice
- prejudice reduced by forcing the groups to work together to reach common goals, but contact alone was not enough
Realistic conflict theory
Prejudice and conflict arise from competition for scarce resources among groups
social identity theory
a person’s self-concept and self-esteem are derived from the status and accomplishments of various groups to which the person belongs. prejudice and conflict arise from in-group favouritism and discrimination may make one feel better about their own group membership
Baumeister & Leary
The fundamental human need to belong. Need to form meaningful and repeated connections
Interpersonal attraction
Positive orientation towards someone. Not necessarily romantic/sexual
Main factors influencing initial interpersonal attraction
1) Proximity: we are more likely to get together with someone when they are physically nearby
2) Familiarity: we tend to like people who are known to us
3) Similarity: we tend to like similar others: personality, attitudes, values, interests
4) Reciprocity: we like those who like us; very validating
5) Physical attractiveness: a rewarding visible and immediate stimulus; bias for beauty
Mere exposure effect
the more you see a novel stimulus, the more you like it. easier to cognitively process familiar stimuli
Halo effect
belief that attractive people possess a bunch of other positive qualities
Romantic/Sexual Attraction
Physical attractiveness is the strongest predictor of romantic interest because it is biologically considered a sign of health
investment theory
women invest much more so they should be much more selective, while men should value fertility/ health (attractiveness)
attachment theory
Human infants develop intensely strong emotional bonds with caretakers as a survival strategy. Having these close emotional bonds increases survival, so children develop internal models giving rise to attachment styles.
Adult Attachment theory
Adults continue to develop attachment bonds with close others throughout life
Attachment styles
Characterized by intimacy avoidance and abandonment anxiety
1) Dismissive
2) Fearful
3) Secure
4) Preoccupied
Gottman’s 4 horsemen of the apocalypse
Communication patterns that destroy trust in relationships
Criticism, Contempt, Defensiveness, Stonewalling
Criticism
person attacks on a person’s character
Contempt
being hostile or dismissive. ex. eyerolling, scoffing
Defensiveness
denying personal responsibility, shifting blame
Stonewalling
withdrawing from conversation/ relationship to avoid conflict. turning out, ignoring, fear-based shutting down
motivations for prosocial behaviour
potentially motivated by egoism (one’s own self-interest) and altruism (genuine concern for others)
Cialdini
airport patrons who were given unwanted flowers often ended up begrudgingly giving $1-2 donations due to reciprocity norms
Two strikes study: Okonofua & Eberhardt
How irritated do real teachers about a black vs. white student misbehaving twice? findings: about the same for the first occurrence, but teachers were more irritated and provided more consequences the second time to the black child
Allport’s contact hypothesis
under appropriate conditions, interpersonal contact is one of the most effective ways to reduce prejudice between majority and minority group members
Dismissive attachment style
distrusting avoids intimacy, self-reliant
positive view of self and negative view of others
high intimacy avoidance
low abandonment anxiety
Fearful attachment style
distrusting of others, wants others to like them, but fears rejection
negative view of self and others
high intimacy avoidance
high abandonment anxiety
Secure attachment style
trusting, more relaxed, feels worthy of love
positive view of self and others
low intimacy avoidance
low abandonment anxiety
Preoccupied attachment style
dependent on others’ approval to feel good about oneself, fears rejection, jealous, clingy
negative view of self, positive view of others
low intimacy avoidance
high abandonment anxiety
Impression management
Strategies people use in an attempt to put their best face forward. Includes Self-promotion, Ingratiation, Exemplification, Intimidation, Supplication
False consensus effect
This tendency to use the self as an anchor and overestimate the extent to which other people’s beliefs and attitudes are similar to our own
social facilitation
the mere presence of others can boost arousal in a way that facilitates the dominant response
social loafing
the tendency for individuals to expend less effort on a task when they are doing it with others rather than alone
overcoming the bystander effect
if you need help and people are around, identify one person and ask them directly for help. when given responsibility, people are much more likely to help
in-group favouritism
We tend to like members of our group more
efficacy
beneficial results under ideal conditions
effectiveness
beneficial results under day-to-day circumstances
