Social Influences and Motivation Flashcards
Social Psychology
Scientific field that seeks to understand the nature and uses of individual behaviour in social situations, where behaviour means feelings, thoughts and overt reactions
Social cognition
How we perceive, interpret and predict social behaviour
What is the important step in social cognition?
Attribution
Attribution
How people describe the cause of events of other peoples behaviour and of their own behaviour
What are the social influences on behaviour?
- Conformity
- Compliance
- Obedience
Conformity
“We freely choose to think and behave as others expect”
Merely observe the actions of group members and adjust their behaviour accordingly
Compliance
“We freely choose to behave (think) as others request”
E.g. you know it is bad to drink excessively but you do it to fit in
Obedience
“We respond to direct pressure to behave as others order”
Attribution Theory
Describing the ways the social perceiver uses info to generate causal explanations
How individuals interpret events and how this relates to their thinking
Dispositional attribution
The cause of the behaviour is found in the person (internal or dispositional causality)
A person is behaving in a certain way because of something about the person (attitude, character, personality)
Situational Attribution
The cause of the behaviour is found in the situation (external or situational causality)
Something about the situation they are in/circumstances are responsible
Attributional Factors
- Consistency
- Distinctiveness
- Consensus
Dimensions of causal attribution
Locus of control: internal-external
Stability: stable-unstable
Controllability: controllable-uncontrollable
Fundamental Attribution Error
Tendency of people to overestimate the influence of dispositional factors (blame or credit people) and to underestimate the impact of situational factors (blame or credit the environment) when searching for the cause of some behaviour or outcome
Attributional Biases
Assumptions made about others without having all the facts you need to be accurate
What are the Attributional Biases?
Actor-Observer
Self-serving
Modest
Actor-Observer Bias
Tendency to attribute one’s own actions to external causes, while attributing other people’s behaviours to internal causes
“You fell, I was bumped
Self-Serving Bias
Success is due to internal traits, failures are caused by variable outside of our control
“I fell because I was bumped; I stood up because I am tough”
Modesty Bias
Attribute success to external factors and failures to internal factors
“I did well on that exam because it was easy; I failed my other exam because I am not smart”
Attitude
Lasting impression - generally evaluating of people (including oneself, others, objects)
The learned relatively stable tendency to respond to people, concepts, in an evaluative way
Comprises cognitive and emotional components
How are attitudes formed?
Learning
Social Norms
Social Norm
The “preferred” attitudes of a community
Cognitive dissonance
Feeling of discomfort resulting from holding two conflicting beliefs
How can cognitive dissonance be reduced?
- Change one or more of the attitudes
- Acquire new info that outweighs the dissonant belief
- Reduce the importance of the cognition
Self-perception theory
“We infer our attitudes from our own behaviour in the same way that we infer other people’s attitudes from their behaviour”
(E.g. decided we like folk music based on the fact that we listen to it all the time)
Person Perception
An element of social psychology concerning how we process information about people
Social schemas
Cognitive structures comprising the presumed characteristics of a role, event, person or group
Stereotypes
Social schemas about a group, be it positive or negative
Prejudice
A negative attitude towards people based on their membership of a group about whom we hold a largely negative stereotype
Impression management
Deliberate effort to influence the impression that others form of us
Motivation
Process of starting, directing and maintaining physical and psychological activities; including mechanisms involved in preferences for one activity over another and the visor and persistence of responses
Theories of Motivation (TOM)
Evolution
Homeostasis
Incentive and Expectation
(TOM) - Evolution
Biological instincts we are born with such as sucking
(TOM) - Homeostasis
Fulfilling urges and drives such as hunger and addiction
(TOM) - Incentive and Expectation
Cognitive driven - intrinsic/extrinsic motivation
Intrinsic Motivation
Stems from the individuals desires and is ‘process’
“I want to do it”
“Im in the zone”
Extrinsic Motivation
Imposed from outside and is ‘results’ focused
“I’m only as good as my last success”
(TOM) - Psychodynamic and Humanistic Views
Our subconscious and free will
Maslow’s Hierarchy of need
Physiological Safety Love/Belonging (Attachment) Esteem Self-Actualisation
Expectancy theory
People put in time, effort and motivate themselves to complete an activity whether it be a task at work or study as they EXPECT they will get a desirable outcome
Group polarisation
Tendency for groups to make decisions that are more extreme than the decisions that would be made by the members acting alone
Groupthink
Tendency of a decision making group to filter out undesirable input so that a consensus may be reached, especially if it is in line with the leaders view point
Altruism
Prosocial behaviours a person carries out without considering his or her own safety and interests
Social Loafing
People exerting less effort to achieve a goal when they work in a group than when they work alone
Social Inhibition
Conscious/subconscious avoidance of a situation or social interaction - avoided because of the possibility of others disapproving of their feelings or expressions
Informational Influence
Group effects that arise from individual desire to be liked, accepted and approved of by others
Reciprocity Norm
Expectation that favours will be returned if someone does something for another person, that person should do something in return
