Social Theories Flashcards
What does the reinforcement theory say?
Behavior is motivated by anticipated rewards.
What is role theory?
The perspective that people are aware of the social roles they are expected to fill.
What does the consistency theory say?
People prefer consistency, and will change or resist changing attitudes based upon this preference.
What is the balance theory?
A theory concerned with three elements:
- The person you’re talking about
- Someone else
- An object, idea, or third person.
What is the cognitive dissonance theory concerning?
The conflict that you feel when your attitudes are not in synch with your behaviors.
What is the idea of self-perception theory?
When your attitudes about something are weak or ambiguous, you observe your own behavior and attribute an attitude to yourself.
What does the social comparison theory suggest?
We have a tendency to evaluate ourselves in relationship to other people.
What does the social exchange theory assume?
A person weighs the rewards and costs of interacting with another.
What does equity theory propose?
We consider not only our own rewards and costs, but also the costs and rewards of others.
What does the mere exposure hypothesis state?
Repeated exposure to a stimulus leads to enhanced liking for it.
What does pluralistic ignorance entail?
Leading others to a definition of an event as a nonemergency.
What does the frustration-aggression hypothesis suggest?
When people are frustrated, they act aggressively.
What does the social learning theory indicate about aggression?
Aggression is learned through modeling or reinforcement.
What does the attribution theory focus on?
The tendency for individuals to infer the causes of other people’s behaviors.
What does the value hypothesis say about risky shift?
The risky shift occurs in situations in which riskiness is culturally valued.
