lecture 1 - intro to social psychology

Question 1

what is the difference between personality and social psychology

Answer 1

personality psychology focuses on the PERSON as the locus of explanation

social psychology focuses on the SITUATION as the locus of explanation

Question 2

what is the definition of social psychology?

Answer 2

the scientific study of the effects of social and cognitive processes on the way people perceive, influence and relate to others

Question 3

what are some contemporary concerns surrounding cognitive psychology?

Answer 3

gaps in theory and method as well as in practice – replication “crisis”

Question 4

what is two of the core tenets from the Darmouth/Princeton “They saw a game”?

Answer 4

• people construct their own reality; our identities, beliefs, attitudes and values influence our perception of the world
• social influence is pervasive and powerful

Question 5

what are the key components of striving for mastery?

Answer 5

• understanding
• control
• seeking meaning

Question 6

what are the key components of seeking connectedness?

Answer 6

• belonging
• understanding
• trust

Question 7

what are the key components of valuing “me and mine”?

Answer 7

• self enhancement and positive self esteem

Question 8

what does conservatism refer to?

Answer 8

existing beliefs and opinions are slow to chance

Question 9

what does accessibility refer to?

Answer 9

accessible information has the most impact on thoughts

Question 10

what does processing depth refer to and what are the two key types of processing?

Answer 10

processing depth is the level at which information is processed.

automatic vs controlled processing

Question 11

if the goal of social psychology is to understand and explain human social thought, feeling and action, how do we go about that? (four key principles)

Answer 11

• introspection
• observation of others
• authorities
• reason from first principles

Question 12

what is construct validity and how is this achieved?

Answer 12

extent to which manipulations and measures correspond to theoretical constructs

achieve via: selecting appropriate measures/using multiple measures

Question 13

what is internal validity and how is it achieved?

Answer 13

extent to which causal inference (IV-DV) is justified

achieved via: manipulation and random assignment

Question 14

what is external validity and how is it achieved?

Answer 14

extent to which experimental results can be generalised to other
people, places, times and settings

achieve via: appropriate sampling and research design