Person Perception Flashcards
Why does perception seem passive?
It appears to be direct and immediate
In what five ways is perception active? Give an example of each
(Hint: S.C.G.E.CO)
- It is selective – when you are talking to someone you may not be listening to the conversation around you
- We perceive constancies - even when our perspective changes, we perceive things as still being the same shape and/or size
- We fill in gaps - we use context to perceive what is missing
- Expectation influence our interpretation of objects - if something doesn’t meet our expectations it’ll be more noticeable
- Categorize objects - in a kitchen, a table would be considered furniture while apples would be considered food
When we use summary categories, what is lost? What is gained?
- We lose specific details connected to the information - We gain misinformation
We categorize people in terms of what, and attach what to these?
- We categorize people in terms of social categories (age, gender, race/ethnicity etc)
- We attach cues (skin color, height, accent etc)
What other information do we use besides appearance and behavior?
(Hint : P.W.PI.R.DE)
- Presence in situation – church or Sunset Blvd at 3 AM
- Who with – such as a politician with a gangster
- Prior interactions with the person
- Reputation – what you have heard or read
- Documentary evidence – what kind of documents are people asked to provide?
What is a primacy effect?
It is when earlier information dominates our impression; we begin forming it when we get our first piece of information
When is a recency effect likely to occur?
Likely occurs when one is focusing on remembering information
What are central traits? Give two examples.
Traits that are influenced by our impressions
- Example: If we perceive someone as warm, this means that we attribute positive traits to their personality and behavior. If perceive someone as cold, we attribute negative traits instead
What four errors have been identified in person perception research? Give an example of each.
(Hint : H.Lo.Le.AS)
Halo Effect
- Example : judging someone based on whether they seem warm or cold
Logical Error
- Example : perceiving that all Latinos know how to speak Spanish
Leniency Effect
- Example : rating someone’s physical attractiveness
Assumed Similarity
- Example : perceiving that other people have the same opinions as we do
What are four reasons why people continue to use stereotypes?
(Hint : CP.E.RI.SP)
- Sometimes stereotypes make Correct Predictions
even if they are wrong - We allow Exceptions to the rule
- Restricted Information
- Self-fulfilling Prophecies can occur
What is the Stereotype Threat? Give two examples.
It is when we make quick judgements about people without having sufficient information about them to make said judgment
- Example : Stereotyping all people of color as lazy and uneducated; specifically stereotyping Latinos as drug dealers and gang members
Which reason was demonstrated by Rosenthal and Jaconbson’s research? What did they find and how did they study it?
Reason → Self Fulfilling prophecy
- Research was about teacher expectations
- Gave the teachers a list of students who were bloomers and would likely gain IQ over the school year.
- Discovered that the students who were on the list gained more IQ points compared to those who were not
- The difference between the two groups was the impact of the teacher’s expectations
When teachers have higher expectations, what four things do they do differently?
- Are warmer toward their kids
- Teach more – thinking those kids can handle more
- Give more feedback – thinking those kids will use it
- Give more opportunities for those kids to respond
