Sociology: Social Processes, Attitudes, and Behavior Flashcards
Social Actions: Social Facilitation
Tendency to perform better on tasks when in presence of others.
Social Actions: Deindividuation
Individual behavior dramatically different in social environments; loss of individual identity in large groups.
Social Actions: Bystander Effect
Individuals do not intervene to help victims when others are present. Groups –> less likely to notice danger. Low degree of emergency/danger. Degree of responsibility due to in/competence. Tend to be [ignorant] of strangers.
Social Actions: Social Loafing
Social influence placed on individual by a group of people or another individual.
People tend to put in less effort when placed into a group.
Social Actions: Peer Pressure –> Identity Shift, Cognitive Dissonance
Identity shift effect: state of harmony disrupted by threat of social rejection –> conformity to norms of group –> internal conflict –> identity shift.
Cognitive Dissonance: simultaneous presence of 2 opposing thoughts or opinions.
Group Processes: Group Polarization
Tendency for groups to make decisions more extreme than individual ideas and inclinations of group members. Policy-making, jury deliberation, violence, terrorism.
Choice shift has same idea but for a group instead of an individual.
Group Processes: Groupthink
Desire for harmony or conformity results in a group of people coming to an incorrect or poor decision. Without much discussion or assessment.
Fad, mass hysteria.
Culture: Culture Shock
Cultural differences may seem quite dramatic.
Culture: Assimilation
An individual’s or group’s behavior and culture begin to resemble that of another. Immigrant assimilation: SES, geographic distribution, language attainment, intermarriage. Ethnic enclaves.
Culture: Multiculturalism
Communities or societies containing multiple cultures. “Melting pot.”
Culture: Subcultures; Counterculture
Groups of people w/in a culture that distinguish themselves from primary culture to which they belong.
Counterculture: subculture group gravitates toward an identity that is at odds with majority culture. Deliberately opposes prevailing social mores.
Types of Socialization (4) (Primary, Secondary, Anticipatory, Re-)
Primary (childhood): initially learn acceptable actions and attitudes in society by observing adults in close proximity
Secondary (adolescence, adulthood): learn appropriate behavior in smaller sections of larger society
Anticipatory: prepare for future changes in occupation, living situations, or relationships.
Resocialization: discard old behavior in favor of new ones to make a life change.
Forms of Socialization: Norms
Societal rules that define boundaries of acceptable behavior. Means of social control.
Folkways: norms that refer to “polite” behavior in specific social interactions
Mores: widely observed social norms
Forms of Socialization: Deviance and Stigma
Deviance: violation of norms, rules, expectations w/in society
Stigma: extreme disapproval/dislike of a person/group based on perceived differences from the rest of society
Forms of Socialization: Conformity (2) (Internalization, Identification)
Match attitudes, beliefs, behaviors to societal norms.
- Internalization: change behavior to fit w/ group while privately agreeing w/ ideas of group.
- Identification: outwardly accept others’ ideas w/o personally taking them on.
Forms of Socialization: Compliance (4 techniques)
Change behavior based on a direct request.
- Foot-in-the-door: small request –> yes –> big request.
- Door-in-the-face: big request –> no –> small request.
- Lowball: initial commitment –> raise cost of commitment.
- That’s-not-all: offer –> no decision yet –> better deal.
Forms of Socialization: Obedience
Change behavior in response to director order from authority figure.
Forms of Socialization: 3 Theories of Deviance
- Labeling –> affect person’s self-image and how others respond to them
- Differential association: deviance learned through social interaction; degree to which one is surrounded by ideals that adhere to social norms vs. ideals that go against them.
- Strain: deviance is a natural reaction to disconnect b/w social goals and structure.
Theories of Attitude: Functional
4 functions:
- Knowledge
- Ego expression
- Adaptation
- Ego defense
Theories of Attitude: Learning (4 methods)
- Direct contact w/ object
- Direct instruction from others
- Others’ attitudes
- Conditioning, observational learning
Theories of Attitude: Elaboration likelihood model
Separates individuals on continuum based on processing of persuasive info (central to peripheral).
- Central route: elaborate extensively, think deeply about info, scrutinize meaning/purpose, draw conclusions –> make decision based on those conclusions.
- Peripheral route: do not elaborate, focus on superficial details.
Theories of Attitude: Social Cognitive
People learn how to behave and shape attitudes by observing behaviors of others.
Bandura’s triadic reciprocal causation –> 3 types of factors: behavioral, personal, environmental.
