Social Psychology Flashcards
social cognition
how people think about themselves and the social world; more specifically, how people select, interpret, remember, and use social information to make judgments and decisions
attitude
set of beliefs and feelings
mere exposure effect
the more one is exposed to something, the more one will come to like it
LaPiere study
discovered that although people had bad attitudes towards Asians, they still treated them well
cognitive dissonance theory
the theory that we act to reduce the discomfort (dissonance) we feel when two of our thoughts (cognitions) are inconsistent. For example, when our awareness of our attitudes and of our actions clash, we can reduce the resulting dissonance by changing our attitudes
Festinger and Carlsmith experiment
Subjects asked to perform a boring task and then lie to the next subject that it was fun. One group was paid $1 and the other group was paid $20. The group paid $1 said that the boring task was fun, because they didn’t have much of an external motivation to lie.
compliance strategies
strategies to get others to comply with your wishes
foot-in-the-door
if you can get people to agree to a small request, they will become more likely to agree to a follow-up request that is larger
door-in-the-face
after people refuse a large reques, hey will look more favorably upon a follow-up request that seems, in comparison, much more reasonable
norms of reciprocity
if someone does something nice for you, you feel obligated to do something nice for them
attribution theory
how people determine the cause ofwhat they observe
dispositional/person attribution
personality traits; Charley did well on a math test because he is good at math
situation attribution
situational influence; Charley did well on a math test because the test was easy
Harold Kelley
put forth a theory that explains the kind of attributions people make based on three kinds of information: consistency, distinctiveness, and consensus
consistency
how similarly the individual acts in the same situation over time
distinctiveness
how similar this situation is to other situations in which we have watched the individual
consensus
how other people acted in the same situation
self-fulfilling prophecy
an expectation that causes others to act in ways that make that expectation come true
Rosenthal and Jacobsen’s experiment
Pygmalion in the Classroom
fundamental attribution error
people in individualist cultures systematically seem to overestimate the role of dispositional factors in influencing another person’s actions
false-consensus effect
the tendency of people to overestimate the number of people who agree with them
self-serving bias
the endency to take more credit for good outcomes than for bad ones
just-world belief
misfortunes befall people who deserve them
stereotypes
ideas about what members of different groups are like, and these expectations may influence the way we interact with members of these groups
prejudice
an undeserved, usually negative, attitude toward a group of people
discrimination
unfair treatment of a person or group on the basis of prejudice
in-group
people of their own group, seen as more diverse than people of out-groups
out-group
people of other groups, seen as more homogeneous than people of in-groups
in-group bias
people have a preference for members of their own group
contact theory
contact between hostile groups will reduce animosity, but only if the groups are made to work toward a goal that benefits all and necessitates the participation of all (superordinate goal)
superordinate goal
a goal that benefits all and necessitates the participation of all
SSherif’s camp study
Robbers Cave study
instrumental aggression
aggression as a means to some goal other than causing pain
hostile aggression
aggression stemming from feelings of anger and aimed at inflicting pain
frustration-aggression hypothesis
the feeling of frestration makes aggression more likely
Bandura, Ross, and Ross’s experiment
Bobo doll experiment
prosocial behavior
behavior in which you help others
bystander intervention
the act of helping strangers in an emergency situation
diffusion of responsibility
reduction in sense of responsibility often felt by individuals in a group; may be responsible for the bystander effect
pluralistic ignorance
no one believes, but everyone thinks that everyone believes
similarity, proximity and reciprocal liking
the three factors
implosive therapy
behavioral therapy
aversive conditioning
behavioral therapy
instrumental conditioning
behavioral therapy
token economy
behavioral therapy
modeling
behavioral therapy
attributional style
a person’s characteristic way of explaining outcomes of events in his or her life
Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT or RET)
Cognitive behavioral therapy developed by Albert Ellis. Therapists look to expose and confront the dysfunctional thoughts of their clients.
cognitive therapy
developed by Aaron Beck, usually used in treatment of depression, involves trying to get clients to engage in pursuits that will bring them success
cognitive triad
theorized by Aaron Beck
family therapy
a type of group therapy used to treat families
self-help groups
a type of group therapy that does not involve a therapist
psychopharmacology/chemotherapy
the use of drugs to treat psychological problems
antipsychotic drugs (neuroleptics)
block the receptor sites for dopamine, used to treat schizophrenia, may result in tardive dyskinesia
tardive dyskinesia
Parkinsonian-like, chronic muscle tremors
drugs used to treat unipolar depression
tricyclic antidepressants, monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitors, and serotonin-reuptake-inhibitor drugs (Prozac) which all tend to increase the activity of serotonin
lithium
a metal used to trea the manic phase of bipolar disorder
drugs used to treat anxiety disorders
barbiturates (Miltown) and benzodiazepines (Xanax and Valium)
electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)
when an electric current is passed through one (unilateral ECT) or both (bilateral ECT) hemispheres of the brain
psychosurgery
the purposeful destruction of part of the brain to alter a person’s behavior
prefrontal lobotomy
a type of psychosurgery
psychiatrists
medical doctors and are the only therapists permitted to prescribe medication
clinical psychologists
psychologists with a Ph. D. and specialize in research, assessment, and therapy
counseling psychologists
psychologists with a graduate degree in psychology and treat less severe problems than clinical psychologists do
psychoanalysts
people trained specifically in Freudian methods who may or may not hold medical degrees
paraphilia
the sexual attraction to an object, person, or activity not usually seen as sexual
fetishism
paraphilia
pedophilia
paraphilia
zoophilia
paraphilia
voyeur
paraphilia
masochist
paraphilia
sadist
paraphilia
antisocial personality disorder
little regard for other people’s feelings
dependent personality disorder
rely too much on the attention and help of others
paranoid personality disorder
feel persecuted
narcissistic personality disorder
seeing oneself as the center of the universe
histronic personality disorder
overly dramatic behavior
obsessive-compulsive personality disorder
overly concerned with certain thoughts and performing certain behaviors, but not to the point of obsessive compulsive disorder
anorexia nervosa
eating disorder
bulimia
eating disorder
substance use disorder
regular and negative use of alcohol or other drugs that alter behavior
substance dependence
addiction
autism
developmental disorder
attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
developmental disorder
Rosenhan Study
study in which healthy individuals were admitted into mental hospitals after saying they were hearing voices. Once in, they acted normally and still were not labeled as impostors.
preconventional
reasoning limited to how things affect themselves
conventional
choice based on how others will view them
postconventional
examines rights and values involved in choice
Criticisms of Lawrence Kohlberg
Carol Gilligan noted that his research was based on boys, her research showed that boys and girls had different moral attitudes, but was later disproved
biopsychological (neuropsychological) theory of gender development
studies demonstrate that biological differences do exist between the sexes
psychodynamic theory of gender development
gender development is a competition for your opposite sex parent, when you realize you can’t win, you imitate your same-sex parent
social-cognitive theory of gender development
effects of society and thoughs about gender on role development
