Social psychology

Question 1

Social Psychology

Answer 1

Social psychology is the scientific study of how people’s thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the actual,
imagined, or implied presence of others.

• In this definition, scientific refers to the empirical method of investigation. The terms thoughts, feelings, and behaviors
include all psychological variables that are measurable in a human being.

• The statement that others’ presence may be imagined or implied suggests that we are prone to social influence even when no other people are present, such as when watching television, or following internalized cultural norms.

Question 2

The History of Social psychology

Answer 2

Emerged during World War 2 In America
There was an Interest of the American Military to find ways for influencing soldiers and civilians based on persuasion and propaganda;

In the 1970 and 1980s, civil society in America protested against unethical laboratory experiments regarding manipulation of human minds for self
interest.

These Experiments were overtly stopped and a shift in social psychology resulted in a new focus in social psychology

Question 3

How do Social psychologists explain behavior all its causes?

Answer 3

Social psychologists typically explain human behavior as a result
of the interaction of mental states and immediate social
situations.

Social psychologists, therefore, deal with the factors that lead us to
behave in a given way in the presence of others, and look at the
conditions under which certain behavior/actions and feelings
occur.

Social psychology is concerned with the way these feelings,
thoughts, beliefs, intentions, and goals are constructed and how
such psychological factors, in turn, influence our interactions with
others.

Question 4

4 Levels of analysis in Social Psychology

Answer 4

1. Individual level of analysis
2. Interpersonal or situational level of analysis
3. Group or positional level of analysis
4. Ideological level of analysis

Question 5

Individual-level of analysis

Answer 5

–social actions are explained in terms
of internal states or processes comprising of 3 elements
i) Cognitive (thoughts)
ii) Affective (feelings & emotions)
iii) Conative (intention, motives, desires, and drives)

Question 6

Interpersonal or situational level

Answer 6

• actions are explained as a result of interaction among people.

Question 7

Group or positional level

Answer 7

• behavior is explained in terms of group membership or social status.

Question 8

Ideological level

Answer 8

– behavior is explained in terms of widely shared system of ideas and social
practices which serve to maintain the power one group hold over another, e.g. racism, sexism.

Question 9

Social psychology theory and Critism

Answer 9

• A social psychology theory has to consider all these levels to be considered adequate but this is not always possible and tends to result in individual-social dualism.

• Criticism- cultural dimension is excluded
which is often a core determinant of
behavior among African communities.

Question 10

How people become more sociable.

Answer 10

1. Perceiving others
2. Attributions
3. Attitudes
4. Social and Group influence
5. Culture

Question 11

Perception i.e. perceiving others.

Answer 11

1.1 Person perception cued by:
— Physical appearance
— Need to explain
— Influence on others

1.2 Physical Appearance
— Attractiveness, halo effect & self-fulfilling prophecy
1.3 Stereotypes
1.4 Schemas

Question 12

What are stereotypes?

Answer 12

• Stereotypes are widely held beliefs that people have certain traits because they belong to a particular group
• Stereotypes are often precursors to the development of Prejudice and Discrimination. What are those?
• Prejudice -an unfair, biased, or intolerant attitude towards another group of people (racial, religious)
• Discrimination – refers to specific unfair behaviors exhibited towards members of a group e.g. homophobia, xenophobia

Question 13

What are schemas?

Answer 13

• Schemas are cognitive structures that represent an organized collection of knowledge about people, events, and concepts. They influence what we perceive and remember and how we behave.
• Types - Person, Self, Event, Role

Disadvantages
• Restrict, bias, or distort
• Resistant to change
Advantages
• Information
• Guidelines

Question 14

Attributions

Answer 14

• Are things we point to as causes of events, other people’s behavior & own behaviors.
• Can be internal or external

Attribution biases or errors

i. Fundamental attribution error –when we usually focus on people instead of a situation i.e. making internal versus external attributions.
ii. Actor observer bias
iii. Self-serving bias

Question 15

Attitudes

Answer 15

• An attitude is any belief or opinion that includes an evaluation of an object, person, or event along a continuum from positive to negative and that causes
us to act in a certain way towards that object, person, or event.
• Attitudes are formed through socialization.
• Attitudes are central in social psychology.

Question 16

Characteristics of attitudes

Answer 16

• Stable and enduring
• Evaluative
• Guide behavior

Question 17

Changing attitudes: Persuasive communication

Answer 17

i. Source of message
ii. Content of message
iii. Medium of communication
iv. Characteristics of the audience
v. Context

Question 18

Changing behavior [chnging how one acts]

Answer 18

i. Cognitive dissonance - occurs when
people behave in a way that is different from their attitudes and beliefs.

ii. Self-perception
iii. Changing ideology
iv. Contact hypothesis

Question 19

Social and Group influences

Answer 19

• Conformity - shifting one’s actions to follow group norms.
• Obedience –respecting authority.
• Compliance – give in to social pressure but not change private beliefs.
• Ethnocentrism – favoring one’s own group.

Question 20

Group influence

Answer 20

• Group polarisation – it is when group discussions reinforce the majority’s point of view and shift that view to a more extreme position.
• Groupthink – refers to a group making a bad decision because the group is more concerned about reaching an agreement and sticking together than gathering the relevant information and considering all the alternatives.

Question 21

Behavior in crowds

Answer 21

• Social facilitation
• Social inhibition
• De-individuation –an increased tendency for individuals to behave in an irrational manner or perform antisocial acts when there is less chance of being personally identified.
• The bystander effect
• Diffusion of responsibility

Question 22

Culture

Answer 22

• In general culture refers to knowledge that is passed on from one generation to another within a given society, through which people make sense of themselves and the world.
• It incorporates language, values, assumptions, norms of behavior, ideas about illness and health, e.t.c
• Culture is however not static but constantly shifts and changes to produce new hybrid identities.

Question 23

A final word on Social Psychology

Answer 23

• Social Psychology is essentially a field of psychology that studies our everyday life.
• SP provides valuable insights about human interactions as well as understanding our behaviors in relation to other.