Topic 1: Social Flashcards
1
Q
Give the key question for social psychology.
Key question
A
What makes people commit acts of terrorism against fellow human beings?
2
Q
Explain what is meant by “terrorism”.
Key question
A
the use or threat of action to influence a government or intimidate the public for a political or religious cause.
3
Q
Why is this an important key question for today’s society?
Key question
A
On a social level, terrorism affects our public safety.
On an individual level, terrorism affects our quality and enjoyment of life.
4
Q
What is meant by the term obedience?
Obedience
A
Following direct orders from someone in authority. For example, obedience is a form of social influence/ people who are obedient may be in the agentic state.
5
Q
What was the aim of Milgram’s original study.
Milgram
A
to see if participants would be obedient to inhumane orders
6
Q
Where was Milgram’s experiment carried out?
A
Yale University
7
Q
What were ppt told the study was about?
Milgram
A
To see the effect of punishment on learning.
8
Q
What did the experimenter do to encourage the ppts to carry on in Milgram’s studies?
A
They had 4 promts:
“Please continue”
“The experiment requires that you continue”
“It is absolutely essential that you continue”
“You have no other choice, you must go on”
9
Q
What was the procedure of Milgram’s study?
Milgram
A
Learners and teachers were chosen, but it was rigged so that the confederate was always the learner. The teachers were instructed to increase the voltage by 15V for each wrong answer. Learners were given word pairs to remember, and the teacher would say the first word along with four possible endings.
10
Q
What were the results of Milgram’s study?
Milgram
A
All participants continued to 300V, 65% continued to 450V.
11
Q
What is the conclusion of Milgram’s study?
Milgram
A
Social influence is strong, and people tend to obey orders even when it causes them distress.
12
Q
how does agency theory explain milgram’s findings?
A
- Ppts went through the agentic shift as they were following orders given by an authority figure.
- They were also put under moral strain due to administering the shocks which is what caused the nervous laughter out of stress.
- They also deffered the responsibility to the experimenter as a defense mechanism to rationalise what they were doing.
13
Q
what is meant by ‘agency theory’
A
people will obey authority when they believe that authority will take responsibility for their actions
14
Q
What is the Autonomous State?
A
When we act as individuals and of our own free will. We make our own decisions and we follow our conscience .
We take responsibility for our actions.
15
Q
What is the Agentic State?
A
When we give up our free will in order to follow the orders of an authority figure.
We become an ‘agent’ of the authority figure and defer responsibility onto them.
16
Q
What is Moral Strain?
A
Negative feelings we experience when pressured to do something that goes against our values and moral compass. Conflict between autonomous and agentic state.
17
Q
Who proposed the Social Impact Theory?
A
Bibb Latané
18
Q
what is meant by ‘social impact theory’?
A
19
Q
define ‘source’
A
The person doing the influencing
20
Q
define ‘target’
A
The people who are being influenced
21
Q
what is social impact determined by?
A
strength
immediacy
numbers
22
Q
define ‘strength’
A
The perceived power/ authority of the source and the messages that they convey.
23
Q
define ‘immediacy’
A
The closeness of the source and the target in terms of space and time.
24
Q
define ‘number’
A
How many sources and targets are present.
25
what is the multiplicative effect?
Increasing strength, immediacy and number of sources can significantly increase the social impact of a source on a target.
26
what is the divisional effect?
The impact is divided by the number of targets and therefore the impact on each individual person is reduced.
27
what is the law of diminishing returns?
Once the source group is bigger than 3, each additional person has less of an influencing effect.
28
What is an Internal Locus of Control?
The belief that you are in control of what you do and what happens to you.
Take greater responsibility for their actions.
Less likely to be obedient as they believe they can control their own actions.
29
What is an External Locus of Control?
The belief that what happens to you is determined more by the situation and people around them, circumstances they believe are out of their control.
Take less responsibility for their actions.
More likely to be obedient as they believe behaviour is out of their control.
30
Which locus of control is likely to be more affected by authority figures?
external
31
Who proposed Social Identity Theory?
| Social Identity Theory
Tajfel and Turner (1979)
32
What does Social Identity theory propose about prejudice?
| Social Identity Theory
The mere existence of 2 groups can cause conflict.
33
What are the 3 processes in Social Identity Theory?
| Social Identity Theory
Social categorisation
Social Identification
Social Comparison
34
What is Social Categorisation?
| Social Identity Theory
The process of separating individuals into one of two groups: in-group or out-group.
SIT says this is a basic characteristic of human thought.
Does not need competition.
35
What is Social Identification?
| Social Identity Theory
It is the process of showing your identification with the group.
They might take on the beliefs, norms and attitudes of the in-group along with the way they dress or talk.
36
What is Social Comparison?
| Social Identity Theory
The individual’s identity becomes linked to the identity of the in-group. People start to see their in-group as better than the out-group.
37
What is In-group favouristism?
| Social Identity Theory
Showing preferential treatment to members of the in-group. Seeing in-group members as superior to out-group members.
Achievements are attributed to internal factors (eg because they are more intelligent)
Failures are attributed to external factors (eg situational factors)
38
What is out-group bias?
| Social Identity Theory
Discrimination towards members of the out-group. May react with fear, hostility, suspicion or contempt.
Achievements are attributed to external factors.
Failures are attributed to internal factors.
39
What did Realistic Conflict Theory propose about prejudice?
| Realistic Conflict Theory
That prejudice arises from conflict between groups.
40
What did RCT says created conflict?
| Realistic Conflict Theory
Competition for the same scarce/ valued resources.
41
What did Sherif believe could reduce inter-group hostility?
| Realistic Conflict Theory
Superordinate goals
42
What was the aim of Milgram Variation 7?
| Milgram
To see if having the experimenter in the room affected obedience.
43
What was the procedure of Milgram Variation 7?
| Milgram
The proximity of the experimenter was changed.
44
What were the results of Milgram Variation 7?
| Milgram
22.5% went to the highest voltage.
45
What was the aim of Milgram Variation 10?
| Milgram
To see if the environment affected levels of obedience.
46
What was the procedure of Milgram Variation 10?
| Milgram
Participants did the shock experiment in a rundown office block.
47
What were the results of Milgram Variation 10?
| Milgram
47.5% went to the highest voltage.
48
What is the conclusion of Milgram Variation 10?
| Milgram
Less reputable settings reduce the legitimacy of the study.
49
What was the aim of Milgram Variation 13?
To see if levels of authority affected obedience.
50
What was the procedure of Milgram Variation 13?
The person of authority left the room and the 'normal person' gave the participant instructions.
51
What were the results of Milgram Variation 13?
20% obeyed the orders.
52
What conclusion can be drawn from Milgram Variation 13?
The authority level or status of the experimenter affects obedience.
53
What evidence does Milgram's study provide for the agency theory?
It supports the concept of moral strain and provides evidence for the concept of displacement of responsibility.
54
What is a limitation of the agency theory?
It lacks direct evidence and is more of a description than an explanation.
55
What evidence supports the social impact theory?
Milgram's study variation 7 shows that proximity is an important factor in obedience and it has high scientific credibility.
56
What are the limitations of the social impact theory?
It ignores individual differences and doesn't explain why people are influenced by others.
57
What is the multiplication of impact?
Immediacy and number can have a multiplicative effect on social impact.
58
What is the division of impact?
Social influence becomes weaker.
59
What personality factor affects obedience related to locus of control?
Locus of control is the extent to which people feel that they're in control of their own lives.
60
What is the authoritarian personality?
A personality trait that is characterised by hostility to people who are different.
61
How does empathy affect obedience?
High levels of empathy lead to less obedience when asked to harm others.
62
How does gender affect obedience?
Women may be less obedient as they may be more empathetic.
63
What is the momentum of compliance in obedience?
The experimenter makes small requests that don't cause anxiety, leading to a duty-bound commitment to the experiment.
64
How does proximity affect obedience?
The closer the authority figure, the higher the level of obedience; the closer the victim, the lower the level of obedience.
65
What is the impact of the status of the authority figure on obedience?
Obedience is strongest when the authority figure is seen as legitimate.
66
How does personal responsibility influence obedience?
Obedience is strongest when participants feel that someone else is responsible for their actions.
67
How do individualistic cultures behave regarding obedience?
Individualistic cultures tend to behave more independently.
68
What is the characteristic of collectivist cultures in terms of obedience?
Collectivist cultures stress the importance of the whole group as a collective.
69
What was the aim of Burger's baseline condition?
To compare obedience levels to Milgram's original study - variation 5.
70
What was the procedure of Burger's baseline condition?
Same as Milgram's study, but if the participant was reluctant to continue, the study would be immediately stopped.
71
What were the results of Burger's baseline condition?
30% stopped after 150V.
72
What conclusions were drawn from Burger's baseline condition?
No statistical difference; seeing refusal to obey didn't affect obedience; no gender differences; lack of empathy doesn't explain obedience levels.
73
What was the aim of Burger's modelled refusal condition?
To see if people would be less likely to be obedient if there was social support.
74
What was the procedure in Burger's modelled refusal condition?
There were 2 confederates, one learner, one teacher, as well as the teacher participant.
75
What were the results of Burger's modelled refusal condition?
37% stopped after 150V.
76
What were the conclusions of Burger's modelled refusal condition?
No statistical difference; seeing refusal to obey didn't affect obedience; no gender differences; lack of empathy doesn't explain obedience levels.
77
What is prejudice?
To pre-judge someone before knowing anything about them as an individual.
78
What are the three negative components of prejudice?
Cognitive, affective, behavioural.
79
What is a stereotype?
A generalised belief about a group of people.
80
What is discrimination?
Behaving differently, usually unfairly, toward the members of a group.
81
What is realistic conflict theory?
Prejudice is a result of conflict between groups, arising due to competition between groups.
82
What are superordinate goals?
Shared goals.
83
What evidence supports the realistic conflict theory?
Credibility - supported by Sherif's study; cross-cultural relevance - supported by Ember & Ember's study; real-world applications.
84
What evidence goes against the realistic conflict theory?
Ignores individual differences; Sherif's writings suggest hostility existed before competition.
85
What was the aim of The Robber's Cave Experiment?
To investigate inter-group relations over a period of time when various situations were introduced.
86
What was the sample in The Robber's Cave Experiment?
11-year-old boys, white, American, middle class, and Protestant.
87
What was stage 1 of The Robber's Cave Experiment?
Two groups were kept separate and given tasks to build a team, with a group name to strengthen their identity.
88
What was stage 2 of The Robber's Cave Experiment?
The groups were told about each other, and conflict was encouraged; groups competed against each other, leading to immediate hostility.
89
What was stage 3 of The Robber's Cave Experiment?
Introduction of common goals to encourage cooperation between the two groups.
90
What were the results of The Robber's Cave Experiment?
Stage 1 - both groups had a leader and expressed dislike for the other group; Stage 2 - competition led to hostility; Stage 3 - joint tasks reduced hostility and increased friendships.
91
What were the conclusions of The Robber's Cave Experiment?
Strong in-group identities formed initially; competition led to negative out-group bias.
92
What are the strengths of The Robber's Cave Experiment?
High ecological validity.
93
What are the weaknesses of The Robber's Cave Experiment?
Low reliability due to confounding variables; low generalisability due to biased sample; unethical as parents were deceived.
94
What is social identity theory?
The idea that in-groups consist of individuals who perceive themselves as members of the same social category and discriminate against out-groups.
95
What are the three processes involved in becoming prejudiced according to social identity theory?
Social categorisation, social identification, social comparison.
96
What are three variables that contribute to in-group favouritism?
Extent of identification with the in-group; grounds for comparison with the out-group; relevance of the comparison group.
97
What was the aim of Tajfel's study?
To test whether merely being a member of a group was enough to create prejudice against another group.
98
What was the sample in Tajfel's study?
Bristol school boys.
99
What was the method used in Tajfel's study?
Boys were asked to allocate points to boys in their own group or another group.
100
What were the results of Tajfel's study?
Boys tended to allocate more points to their own group and maximise the difference between groups.
101
What were the conclusions of Tajfel's study?
There is discrimination against an out-group.
102
What are the strengths of Tajfel's study?
Cross-cultural confirmation; reliable due to standardised procedures; real-world applications; well-controlled lab experiment.
103
What are the weaknesses of Tajfel's study?
Artificial; lacked mundane realism.
104
What evidence supports the social identity theory?
Credibility - supported by Tajfel's study; well controlled; cause-and-effect links can be made.
105
What evidence goes against the social identity theory?
Tajfel's results could be explained by competition rather than favouritism; lacks generalisability; doesn't explain individual differences; demand characteristics.
