Social Cognition Flashcards
Person Perception
Tendency to form impressions of other people. ( Can be based on second-hand information )
Physical Appearance
First impression usually.
The Halo Effect
Attractive people benefit from this. Cognitive bias where one quality of a person influences our beliefs and expectations about them having other good qualities.
Impressions of non-verbal communication
Facial expressions, eye gaze, posture, body language - facing up, looking while talking.
Eye contact
Most influential form of non-verbal communication.
Less= untrustworthy
Attribution Theory
Attributions we give for our own and others behaviours
TWO types of attributions
- Personal Attributions
- Situational Attributions
Personal / Dispositional Attributions
Due to characteristics of the person involved ( their internal factors )
- ability
- personality
- mood / effort
Situational attributions
Due to external factors;
- Actions of another person
- illness
- fate / luck
EXAMPLE of personal attributions
“he scored well on the exam because he is smart.”
EXAMPLE of situational attributions
“he scored well because it was an easy test.”
Fundamental Attribution Error
Tendency to overestimate the influence of personal factor ( a student is feral ) and underestimate the impact of situational factors ( kid had a bad first day ) on other people’s behaviour.
TEND TO ATTRIBUTE A PERSON’S BEHAVIOUR TO INTERNAL RATHER THAN EXTERNAL FACTORS.
Actor Observer Bias
One EXCEPTION of the fundamental attribution error occurs when it comes to explaining our OWN behaviour.
Tenancy to attribute our own behaviour to external situational causes, and others’ behaviour to internal factors.
Self-Serving Bias
We tend to take the credit for our successes and attribute failures to situational factors.
TRAITS of Collectivistic Culture
- Working as a group
- Doing what’s best for society
- Social rules focus on promoting selflessness
TRAITS of Individualistic Culture
- Uniqueness
- Independence
- Self-Sufficiency
Cognitive Dissonance
Cognitive Dissonance Theory
- People strive for consistency in their thoughts
- Seem simple, but is more complex
EXAMPLE
boring task - one paid $1 and another paid $20.
$1 enjoyed more by change of attitude “not adequate but pretty fun.”
Self-perception theory
People’s attitudes are developed by observing their own behaviour
Two groups $1 and $20
$20: I have to do the task cause I will get paid
$1: I’m doing this task because I must enjoy it.
Attributions
The process of attaching meaning to behaviour
by looking for a cause to explain the behaviour
four Attribution Error
- Fundamental Attribution Error
- Defensive Attribution
- Self-serving Bias
- Consensus
Defensive Attribution
A thought process that explains the
causes of an individual’s misfortune by blaming the victim
Consensus
affirming / agreement behaviour of others around
us
Attitude
Learned ideas we hold about ourselves, others and experiences.
Learned from MEDIA, DIRECT CONTACT, GROUP. MEMBERSHIP and CHILD REARING
Stereotypes
Oversimplified image of people who belong to a particular group, causing them to appear similar than they are. ( AGE, GENDER, ETHNICITY )
The Tri-component Model
Attitude consists of three components ABC
- Affective (emotions )
- Behavioural ( observable actions )
- Cognitive ( thoughts, beliefs )
FOUR Attitude Consistency
- Consistent Attitude
- Inconsistent Attitude
- Cognitive Dissonance
- Cognitive Dissonance Theory
Consistent Attitude
All three components lineup
Inconsistent Attitude
Not all components align ( such as behaviour is not consistent with beliefs )
Cognitive Dissonance
When the thoughts and actions of a person do not match their
attitudes, causing a clash
Cognitive Dissonance Theory: (ABC)
People feel a level of discomfort when all 3
components are inconsistent
Limitations of the Tri-Component Model
- No way to measure the strength of the attitude
- Does not include ambivalence or indifference
- Two components of the model are not observable, so we must rely on behaviour to
make a measure of attitude, but people could be lying on surveys about their
feelings or beliefs. - Attitudes may not be reliable predictors of behaviour
Factors which Influence our
Attitude Formation
- Classical Conditioning
- Placing neutral signal before a reflex
- Focuses on involuntary, automatic behaviours / precedes the response, after the stimulus / passive
- Operant Conditioning
- Involves applying reinforcement or punishment after a behaviour. - consequences
- Voluntary / before the stimulus / active
TWO GROUPS of stereotypes
- Ingroup - a group you identify with
- Outgroup - a group you do not identify with
Prejudice
Fear, suspicion or hatred of a particular group of people.
It is the BELIEFS a person hold about someone
Discrimination
ACT on your prejudice beliefs // unequal treatment // direct or indirect
-Sexism/Racism/Agesim
Scapegoating
Blaming a person or group of people for their reaction of others ( Jews etc )
Forming Prejudice
- Direct Experience: Person can hold neg experience or set of experiences with members.
- Personal and group prejudice.
- The prejudiced personality.
Reducing Prejudice
- Inter-group contact: Effective in reducing prejudice
- Education
- Direct Experience
Such as:
- Sustained Contact
- Superordinate goals
- Mutual Interdependence
- Equality
Superordinate Goal: are goals that are common to multiple groups, that require knowledge and understanding between them
Cognitive Interventions
Prejudice can be countered by reducing stereotyping through cognition (thinking)
- Provide info
- Address common held beliefs about people
Stanford Prison Experiment : Zimbardo
Zimbardo says it’s the situation that makes people act the way they do rather than their disposition ( our character )
Aim: To see how taking social roles would lead to excessive conformity to those roles.
Aim 2: Test the dispositional hypothesis.
IV: Conditions the participants were randomly assigned ( prisoner or guard )
DV: Resulting behaviour
UNIFORM
GLASSES : To help with role identification
PRISONER / deindividuation: humiliated
The study rejects the dispositional hypothesis…behaviour of the ‘normal’ students have been randomly assigned to each condition was influenced by the role they had been assigned to the extent that they seemed to believe in their assigned position.
Unethical?
- Distressed
- Felt they can’t leave
