unit 2 aos2 Flashcards
person perception
refers to the different mental processes used to understand and form impressions of other people. this can be determined directly or indirectly.
direct person perception
info provided from the person we are judging for example through observing them or interacting with them.
indirect person perception
through hearing about the person we are judging from another person or source, for example through a friend or reading about someone online
attributions (+2 types)
is an evaluation made about the causes of behaviour and the process of making this evaluation. attributions are categorised into two types: internal and external
internal (personal) attributions
occurs when we judge behaviour as being caused by something personal within an individual
external (situational) attributions
occurs when we determine the cause of a behaviour as resulting from the situational factors occuring outside the individual
3 steps in the cognitive process of attribution
observation of an outward act of behaviour, conscious determination or acknowledgement of the behaviour, attribute causes to this observed behaviour
step 1 in the cognitive process of attribution
a person sees someone running down a busy street
step 2 in the cognitive process of attribution
a person actively decides the behaviour they observed was someone running down a busy street
step 3 in the cognitive process of attribution
a person infers that the cause of the other person running is that they are disorganised and running late.
fundamental attribution error
refers to our tendency to explain other people’s behaviour in terms of internal factors, while ignoring possible external factors. Leads to cognitive bias and has an effect on how we percieve that individual as well.
the just world belief
refers to the belief that the world is a just place in which people generally get what they deserve and deserve what they get.
actor observer bias
refers to our tendency to attribute our own behaviour to external or situational factors, yet attribute other’ behaviour to external factors. This is in comparison to other people
example of actor observer bias
if you fail an exam you may blame your failure on too many trick questions or an overcrowded exam room with too many distractions, but you might say Maria failed because she isn’t smart enough
self serving bias example
when the teacher hands back a test and they get a good result, it was because of their hard work. but if they got a bad result, it was because the questions were unfair.
attitudes
refer to an evaluation of something, such as a person, object, event or idea. An attitude can be positive, negative or neutral.
3 criteria for attitude formation
must be an evaluation of something, must be settled and stable, must be learnt through experience
The tri component model of attitudes (+ 3)
proposes that an attitude must have all three components present, interacting and contributing to the attitude. affective, behavioural, cognitive
affective component
refers to our emotions and intuitive feelings towards something, reflected in our attitude. EG: I like school
behavioural component
refers to our outward and observable actions that reflect our point of view about something EG: I try my best at school
cognitive component
refers to our thoughts and beliefs towards something. EG: I know working hard at school will help me get the results I need for my future
consistency of the components
many psychologists suggest that only the affective and cognitive components need to be present for an attitude to exist. behaviour may not align.