Social Thinking and Behaviour Flashcards
What is Allports definition of social psychology?
How thoughts, feeling and behaviours of individuals are influenced by the actual, imagined or implied presence of other
What three areas of social psychology?
- social thinking- how we thnk about our social world, understandings of the social world and others in it
- social influence - how other people influence our behaviour
- social relations - how we relate toward other people
What i social cognition?
Concerns the social side of our mental processes and how people make sense of themselves and others around them
What are the three basic human needs?
- need to belong - feeling accepted in groups helps us feel safe and secure
- need for control - want for control in everyday activities - this may be illusory
- need for self-enhancement - motivates us to seek out and remember info that makes us feel good
Explain Asch (1946) work
- pts heard one of two identical but different order lists
- one list had more postivie words at the front - these people were more likely to evaluate the individual favourably
What is the primacy effect
Our tendency to attach more importance to the initial information we learn about a person. Later info can make an impact but it has to work harder
How can the first information we hear have an impact?
- may shape how we perceive subsequent information, eg always see an individual in a bad light
- may influence our desire to make further contact with individual
- may change the way you interact with them - the word they were described wiht (shy or cold)
What is a mental state?
A readiness to perceive the world in a particular way
What are schemas?
Mental frameworks that help us organise and interpret information
Define a stereotype
A shared belief about a persons attributes, usually personality trait, but often also behaviours, of a group or category of people. An example of a schema. Can be positive or VERY negative
Explain Darley and Gross’s (1983) research into social class biases
- pts were showed video of 9yr girl and they were asked to judge her academic performance
- they were either told she came from a middle class background or a w/c background
- m/c - rated her as having higher academic potential than w/c condition
What is a self-fulfilling prophecy
Our expectations affect our behaviour toward a person, which can cause the person to behave in a way that confirms our expectations e..g if told was cold, you may act reserved toward them whenn you first meet, but if told shy, you may try and engage with them instead - your behaviour may influence theirs
what are self-schemas?
Mental templates, made up of memory from past experience, that represent a person’s belief about the self. This may draw on complex/multipe view - student, mother, leader or follower
What are attributions?
Judgements about the causes of our won and other people’s behaviour
What are personal (internal) attributions?
Infer that people’s characteristics cause their behaviour e.g. did well in test because you are intelligent
What are situational (external) attributions?
\Infer that aspects of a situation cause a behaviour e.g. did badly in an exam because the test was hard/ well because it was easy
What are the three types of information that determine the type of attribution we make?
- consistency
- distinctiveness
- consensus
What is consistency when determining an attribution?
Is the behaviour consistent? Is a certain factor always present or does it change?
What is distinctiveness when determining an attribution?
Is a behaviour unique to a particular environment or situation?
What is consensus when determining an attribution?
Determined by what other people generally think, feel or how they behave in a certain situation
Explain the Art History example in what determines an attribution.
- if consistency, distinctiveness and consensus is high then we are likely to note it down to situational attributions - for example, Kim always says Art History is boring, Kim only says this class is boring, other students also find Art History boring
- If consistency is high, but distinctiveness and consensus is low then we are likely to note it down to personal attributions, for example, Kim always says it is boring but she says the same for all her classes, however, her classmates disagree with her
What factor decreases the likeliness of a man being convicted of the rape of a woman?
Whether the woman consumed alcohol
What is the fundamental attribution error?
We underestimate the impact of the situation and overestimate the impact of personal factors when explaining other people’s behaviour. FOr example, someone, when a driver almost causes an accident you are likely to put it down to them being a bad driver rather than thinking about what was going on in the car or the drivers head at the time. The individual may never have has a single incident in his life but you judge them of that one single action
How can the fundamental attribution error be reduced?
- if people have time to think about the behaviour
What is the self-serving bias?
The tendency to make personal attribution’s for one’s own successes and situational attributions for one’s own failures. For example, intelligent cos did well on exam, did badly so must be hard exam
What does the self-serving bias do?
It protects and enhances our self-esteem
Does the self-serving bias cover everyone?
It doesn’t expand to depressed people - almost vice versa - prolongs and maintains the depression
Does the FAE work for everyone?
It isn’t universal. Some culture, particularly Asian cultures, think more holistically
What is an attitude?
A positive or negative evaluation of a stimulus. These are relatively stable but can change.
Why do attitudes not always predict behaviour? - check the first answer in the book!!!
- attitudes influence our behaviour more strongly when situational factors that contradict our attitudes are weak
- attitudes have greater influence on behaviour when we are aware of them
- attitudes have greater influence when they are strongly held
- general attitude best predict general behaviours, whereas specific attitudes best predict specific behaviours
Explain why attitudes influence our behaviour more strongly when the situational factors that contradict our attitudes are weak
Ajzen expanded on this idea suggesting the idea of Theory of Planned Behaviour. It proposes that we are most likely to engage in a behaviour when:
- we have a positive attitue towards it
- the subjective norms support our attitudes
- when we believe the behaviour is under our control
Give an example of when attitudes have a greater influence on behaviour when we are aware of them and these attitudes are strongly held.
If you were offered meat - a lifelong vegetarian will profusely deny this, but someone who has only be vegetarian for a week may have it (due to forgetting as it isnt a strongly held attitude or other factors)
Explain the idea that general attitude predict general behaviours and specific attitudes predict specific behaviours. - Fishbern and Ajzen
They found that general religious attitudes or beliefs do not predict specific behaviours. For example, an atheist going to church over Christmas
Can behaviour also influence our attitudes?
Yes. It is a two way process. This can happen with cognitive dissonance or the self-perception theory
Explain the concept of cognitive dissonance.
Festinger proposed it. People strive for consistency in their cognitions - dissonance (inconsistency) creates disturbances
How do people overcome dissonance?
- change their cognitions
- add new cognitions
What is counter-attitudinal behaviour?
Behaviour that is inconsistent with our own attitudes
When may dissonance not occur, even if our behaviour is contradictory of our attitudes?
when we do not see our behaviours as freely chosen. For example, vegetarians eat meat when gun against their head. This isn’t seen as cognitive dissonance as it wasnt a free choice
What causes extreme dissonance?
- when behaviours produce foreseeable negative consequences
- when behaviours threaten our sense of self-worth
What is the self-perception theory?
We make inferences about our own attitudes by observing our own behaviours - what your attitudes must be in order for you to behave that way
What is an example of the self-perception theory changing our attitudes?
When we are tapping our foot along to a song. Someone questions us because previously we have announced that we didn’t like this band. We start to think we actually like the band
What does the cognitive dissonance theory mention that the self-perception theory doesn’t?
Cognitive dissonance mentions a heightened physiological tension when participating in counter-attitudinal
When can cognitive dissonance explain attitude change when self-perception theory can’t as easily?
When counter attitudinal behaviour threatens our self-worth or when the inconsistency is really high. Whereas, self-perception theory can explain attitude change in situations that are less likely to create significant arousal.
What do persuaders do?
They try to influence our beliefs and attitudes so we will behave as they want us to
What are the three main factors of persuasion?
- The audience
- The communicator
- The message
What is the central route to persuasion? (the audience) and why is this likely to occur?
When people think carefully about the message and are influenced because they find the arguments compelling. This usually happens when the topic is relevant or important to an individual
What is the peripheral route to persuasion? (the audience) and why is this likely to occur?
When people do not scrutinize the message but are influenced mostly by the other factors such as the attractiveness of the speaker or a message’s length or emotional appeal. Usually happens when we spend less time processing the information because we dont see the cause as being something relevant or important
What is different about attitude change from central rather than the peripheral route of persuasion?
It lasts longer and predicts future behaviour more accurately. The attitudes are more robust and resistant to counter influence attempts
What is communicator credibility?
How believable we perceive the speaker to be
When is communicator credibility more influential on someones attitude?
When the audience isn’t paying much attention to the messages- they may instead base their attitudes on the credibility of the source
What are the two major components of credibility?
- expertise
- trustworthiness
Explain expertise and credibility?
Someone who appears to be an expert is seen as credible. They can seem like an expert if they present the truth and an unbiased argument. Additionally, a title or item of clothing increases credibility
Explain trustworthiness and credibility?
Someone who advocates a view that is contrary to their own self interest is seen as trustworthiness
What is a message that covers both sides of the argument? And how is this perceived?
It is called a two-sided refutational approach (check this name). It is the most effective message as this will be perceived as less bias
When does fear arousal in a message work best?
When the fear is just moderate levels and this message should supply strategies to reduce the fear,
Explain what Triplett tested and found?
He tested whether the presence of others improves performance? HE found that when children performed a simple physical task alone compared to with another child who independently completed the task, performance improved when the other child was present
Why do people think that presence of others reduces performance?
- presence of others increases our arousal which may lead us to making more mistakes and our dominant responses are more likely to occur
- When a task is complex, our dominant responses are often incorrect so we make error
What is social facilitation?
An increased tendency to perform one’s dominant responses in the mere presence of others
What is compliance
.A surface change in behaviour which isnt reflected with the true underlying cognitions
What are compliance techniques?
Strategies that may manipulate you into saying yes when you want to say no
Explain the norm of reciprocity
The expectation that when others treat us kindly, we should respond in the same manner
Give an example of norm of reciprocity being used as a complaince technique
Offer something like a flower or a gift in hope that the individual will feel pressure to reciprocate the kindness later when they are presented with a small request, a donation request