Social Psychology Flashcards
Social cognition
- Information processing affects social behaviour
- Attribution Theory: explanations of behaviour
- Attitudes: evaluations of people/things
- Cognitive dissonance: attitude/behavioural change
Implicit vs Explicit social conventions
Implicit social conventions: eg drinking on the right side; handshake (not written)
Exlplicit rules: eg drinking and driving prohibited (written)
- Norms vary by region and overtime
Descriptive norms
defines what is commonly done in a situation (what is done)
ex. binge drinking in universities
Injunctive norms
describes what is commonly approved or disapproved in situation (what should be done)
- Proscriptions: Should return favours (should do)
- Prohibitions: Shouldn’t steal (shouldn’t do)
- Reciprocity norm: return the favour
Social roles; what are they governed by
Social position governed by norms and expectations
- sex roles, family roles, occupational roles
Weiner’s two dimensional attribution model
Dispositional vs Situational: (1st dimension)
Stable vs. Unstable (2nd dimension)
Success vs. Failure
Dispositional vs Situational ; sources of behaviour
Internal attributions: individual’s disposition, traits, skills, feelings
External attributions: environmental demands and constraints
Stable vs Unstable: sources of behaviour
Temporary causes (change over time)
Permanent causes (do not change overtime)
Attributions of high achievers vs low achievers
High achievers: attribute success to internal stable causes and failures to external causes
Low achievers and those suffering from depression do the opposite (success external and failure internal)
Fundamental Attribution Bias
Tendency to overestimate internal factors and underestimate external factors when explaining other’s behaviour
- more likely to occur when cognitive load is high
Difference between dispositional and situational attributions
dispositional attributions are automatic; situational attributions require effort
self-serving bias
Tendency to attribute personal successes to dispositional factors but failures to situation factors
- more likely to occur when cognitive load is high
Defensive Bias
belief in “just world”: tendency to believe that people reap what they deserve
- Need for predictability (reduce uncertainty)
- Tendency to blame the victim
- Calamity threatens this belief: “bad things can happen to good people”
Cultural differences in attributions: Individualist cultures
personal goals are prioritized; unique identity; emphasize independance, self esteem (North America and Western Europe)
Cultural differences in attributions: Collectivist cultures
group goals prioritized; group identity; emphasize shared values, cooperation, and interdependence (Asia, South America, Africa)
Cultural differences in attributions: Self-serving bias
is weaker in collectivist cultures
- Self efficacy bias: external attributions of successes (cultural norm)
- Self criticism: Internal attributions of failures
Culture and the Self; Independent Self
autonomous and distinct
- defined by distinct traits and preferences (i like soccer, i am honest)
- “The squeaky wheel gets the grease”
- Individualistic insults: “You are a pig”
Culture and the Self: Interdependent self
connected and overlapping
- defined by shared traits and preferences; duties and roles (we are japanese, I am a father)
- “The nail that sticks up gets hammered down”
- Relational insults “Your mother is a pig”
Components of attitudes
- Cognitive (a thought): People on twitter are deceptive jerks
- Affective (feelings): Twitter makes me angry
- Behavioural (actions): Use twitter as an example for negative attitude
Attitudes predict behaviour
Attitudes predict behaviour when attitudes are strong, explicit and there is a vested interest
- Attitudes should be at the same level as behaviour (ex. people who don’t like smoking dont smoke)
Dissonance
unpleasant physiological arousal due to inconsistency in cognition/behaviour (motivates change)
Counter attitudinal action
behaviour inconsistent with existing attitudes
- changed their attitude to be consistent with their behaviour
Cognitive Dissonance
the discomfort a person feels when their behavior does not align with their values or beliefs.
Resolved when attitude is consistent with behaviour
Contradicts operational conditioning
Contradict expectations about cause and effect
Forbidden Toy experiment
Children given a warning not to play with a favoured toy
- Mild warning: “be annoyed”
- Severe warning: “would be very angry”
Children given the stern warning played with the toy more later than children given the mild warning
When children can finally play: (brings attitude and behaviour together)
- Mild ; less inclined to play
- Severe ; more inclined to play
