Social Cognition - Week 3 Flashcards
Social Cognition
all processes used to remember & use it in social contexts
- to explain/predict our own behaviour & the behaviour of others
Facts about first impressions
- occur within less than 0.1 second
- lasting impact on our interactions & relationship
- some are accurate & some are not
Sterotypes
Over simplified generalization
- have influence even when we were unaware of the
- hard to avoid, often incorrect
ex. teens are bad employees
Prejudice
evaluating a group or person based on generalization
ex. “it’s because they’re lazy”
Discimination
Acting on prejudice
ex. not allowing someone to work somewhere
Types of first impressions
- Primary effect
- first impression bad, but gave a second chance - Confirmation bias
- overconfidence
Should you trust your first impression?
comparative rarity
- we expect there to be more good than bad
Factors that influence perception
- Idealization (e.g. positive illusion)
- explanations/attributions
(actor/observer effect, self-serving bias) - memories
- relationship beliefs
- expectations
- self-perceptions
Idealization (type of perception)
emphasizing positives & minimizing negatives
- positive illusions (i.e. portraying people in the best way)
Attributions (type of perception)
explanations we create for why something is the way it is
What can influence/cause events? (attributions)
- internal (we control) or external (outside of control)
- stable (ex. personality) or unstable (ex. mood)
- controllable or uncontrollable
Actor/observer effects - Type of Attributions (1/4)
give ourselves benefit of the doubt, not for others
self-servicing biases - Type of Attribution (2/4)
take credit for positive things
Relationship enhancing attributions - Type of Attribution (3/4)
person is purposefully doing nice things because they care about you
Distress-maintaining attributions - type of attributions (4/4)
focus on negative aspects, attributing it to the other person being lazy or bad partner
Memories - type of perception
current perceptions are influenced by past experiences
Reconstructive memory
memories are altered as we receive new information
Relationship beliefs - Disagreements are distructive
Socialized to think we shouldn’t get into disagreements
(our parents/caregivers rather avoid conflict than help child learn how to manage it)
Relationship beliefs - Mind-reading is essential
“if you knew me you’d now what I’m thinking”
Relationship beliefs - Partners cannot change
depends if person wants to change
Relationship beliefs - sex should be perfect every time
Porn industry makes it seem like this.
- Can be shocking for people who do not communicate about sex and what they want
Relationship beliefs - individual differences
gender differences, different personalities
Relationship beliefs - Great relationships just happen
out of your control
- like destiny mind set
relationship beliefs - Destiny vs. Growth
Destiny - they are the one, if its meant to be it should be easy
Growth - we have to put the work in to make it work
Or both together =
- I will put the work in, and if it happens it happens
- They are the one, so I’m gonna put the work in
self-fulfilling prophesies (expectations - perceptions)
false predictions that become true because they lead people to behave in a type of way
ex. manifesting destruction of your relationship
Things that influence self-fulfilling prophesies
1) Rejection sensitivity
- less likely to put real self out
2) Optimism
- less likely to engage in this behaviour
Self-concept (Self-perceptions)
beliefs & feelings about ourself
Self-esteem (self-perception)
our evaluation of ourself
Unconscious Social Cognitions
Implicit attitudes
transference
Transference
unconsciously bring past experiences into our reactions with current partners
Implicit attitudes
unintentional & automatic judgments that are evident when our partners come to mind
Self-promotion
show the things you like about yourself
“I just got a promotion… I’m good at this”
Ingratiation
being kind to people by doing things for them so they think positively about you
ex. complimenting, agreeing with them
Intimidation
act in ruthless way to manipulate someone
“fine don’t pick me up i’ll drive home drunk”
Supplication
pretend to be incapable of something so someone else does it for you
“I’m not taking the garbage out because my toe hurts”
“Can you grab that, I can’t reach”
Self-monitoring
Adjusting behaviour to match the situation
low self-monitoring (being yourself regardless of who you are with)
high self-monitoring (changing who you are to fit in_
