SCLOA SAQs & Studies

Question 1

Social Identity Theory / Social Groups

Answer 1

• individual’s sense of who they are developed on basis of group membership
• this identity is shared by other members of group
• conflict + discrimination in terms of PSYCH variables
• SOCIAL CATEGORISATION - perception of being part of group is enough to trigger in-group favoritism
• SOCIAL IDENTIFICATION - adopting identity of group
• SOCIAL COMPARISON - positive social identity & self-esteem linked to group distinctiveness
• leads to discriminatory behaviour
• MINIMAL GROUP PARADIGM (experimental procedure) –> trivial criterion

Tajfel et al (1971)

Question 2

Tajfel et al (1971)

Answer 2

• how social categorisation leads to intergroup behaviour
• 48 school boys, British, 2 groups
• distributing small sums of money b/w pairs of recipients
• 3 types of matrices - maximum joint profit, maximum ingroup profit, maximum difference in favour of group
• RESULTS: preferred 3rd matrix (MD)
• prefer to take less if it makes their group compare favourably w/ other group
• idea of positive distinctiveness - how easy it is to form social identity

Question 3

Social Cognitive Theory

Answer 3

• explains mechanism of cultural transmission
• how social / cultural norms transmitted b/w generations
• SCL (observational learning & role model) –> morphed into SCT
• observational learning in social context
• interactions b/w individual, social env., and behaviour
• RECIPROCAL DETERMINISM = behaviour influences & is influenced by personal factors + social env
• Identification, Modelling, Expectancies, Self-Efficacy

Becker et al (2002)

Question 4

Becker et al (2002)

Answer 4

• TV exposure on eating attitudes in Fijian girls
• naturalistic experiment
• interviewed in 1995
• again in 1998
• 2 separate samples (some overlap)
• questions about body-image, dieting
• 77% said TV influenced body image, 40% eat less
• conflicts in family
• identification w/ role models on TV –> enculturation

Question 5

Effects of Stereotypes

Answer 5

• stereotype = oversimplified + generalised belief about group of people
• widely held –> prejudice
• brain’s efforts to simplify complex world
• stereotype = schema of how members in group behave
• STEREOTYPE THREAT - changing behaviour to fit stereotype
• activation in mind
• applied to gender, SES, ethnicity
• connected to idea of BELONGING UNCERTAINTY –> undermines individual’s sense of social acceptance + identity
• basic human motivation
  members of stigmatised groups more uncertain of social bonds –> embarrassment

Steele & Aronson (1995)

Question 6

Steele & Aronson (1995)

Answer 6

• how stereotype threat affects test performance
• 144 black & white undergrad from Stanford Uni
• problem-soling test - 30 min test of verbal ability
• when told test would represent verbal skills, they performed bad
• when told test was just for studying how problems are solved, performed well
• stereotype threat –> emotional distress + pressure to perform well

Question 7

Formation of Stereotypes

Answer 7

• stereotype = oversimplified + generalised belief about group of people
• widely held –> prejudice
• brain’s efforts to simplify complex world
• stereotype = schema of how members in group behave
• Campbell’s grain of truth hypothesis + gatekeeper theory –> 2 sources: personal experience + gatekeepers
• small amt of evidence gets exaggerated + generalised
• gatekeepers use stereotypes to characterise groups + members (becomes part of culture)
• ILLUSORY CORRELATION –> human tendency to see relationship b/w unrelated variables
• cognitive process underlying it is triggered by CO-PRESENCE of fairly infrequent events/situations
• e.g. negative behaviours like crime are rare + minority groups = noticed disproportionately –> correlated –> stereotype forms

Hamilton & Gifford (1976)

Question 8

Hamilton & Gifford (1976)

Answer 8

• investigate illusory correlation of group size & negative behaviour
• participants told they were studying how people process + retain info shown to them visually
• 39 people (imaginary) 26 in A, 13 in B –> same proportion of positive + negative traits
• read descriptions about 2 made-up groups - based on positive & negative traits
• NO CORRELATION b/w group membership & type of behaviour
• RESULTS: illusory correlation as most undesirable traits attributed to minority group B
• distinctive info draws attention

Question 9

Acculturation

Answer 9

• process of social + psych change when 2 cultures meet
• experiences by immigrants, refugees, anybody taking extended stay in foreign country
• making choices CONSCIOUSLY & UNCONSCIOUSLY about cultural values
• Berry; 4 behaviours:
• Assimilation - leaving old culture
• Separation - sticking to old culture
• Integration - bicultural
• Marginalisation - discrimination
• Acculturative stress

Shah et al (2015)

Question 10

Shah et al (2015)

Answer 10

• acculturation & obesity
• 1375 South Asian male migrant workers in UAE
• drivers, laborers, construction workers
• had higher BMI than control
• the longer they stayed, the higher BMI was
• acculturation –> unhealthy eating –> culture promotes unhealthy eating
• assimilation –> leaving behind original culture (separation)

Question 11

Enculturation / Social Norms

Answer 11

• lifelong learning process - acquire social norms
• first culture + conscious / unconscious conditioning process
• gate-keepers + passing on norms / what is or isn’t acceptable
• cultural transmission –> passing on cultural norms to future generations
• enculturation –> internalising cultural values
• SCT –> observational learning + social context
• how social experiences can influence behaviour / enculturation
• 4 main stages in SCT (IMES)

Becker et al (2002)

Question 12

Cultural Dimensions

Answer 12

• culture = collective programming of mind
• values around which culture is organised
• allows cultures to be quantified + compared
• better understanding values of culture –> easing interpersonal / intergroup behaviour in multicultural situations
• reducing conflict
• INDIVIDUALISM VS COLLECTIVISM
• prioritising group / individual
• people belonging to different extremes of this continuum behave differently in similar situations

Berry & Katz (1967)

Question 13

Culture / Cultural Norms / Culture & Cognition

Answer 13

• culture = collective programming of mind
• set of ideas, behaviours, traditions w/n groups of people
• resistant to change + transmitted from one gen. to next
• through ENCULTURATION or ACCULTURATION = (internalising cultural norms of NEW cultures)
• dynamic culture constantly changing in resp. to env. / social changes – influencing behaviour or cognition
• surface vs deep culture
• deep culture related to cultural dimensions
  observing correlation b/w these underlying dimensions & a certain behaviour

Berry & Katz (1967)

Question 14

Berry & Katz (1967)

Answer 14

• compared Temne (collectivist) & Inuit (individualistic) people
• Tenme = farmers, work together
• Inuit people = hunters, rely on personal skills
• conformity tested - cards w/ lines (Asch paradigm)
• led to believe that most other members of their society had picked another line
• Tenme changed their answer to fit w/ perceived majority
• cultural dimension = differences in behaviour