Unit 2- Research and Social Psych Flashcards
Hindsight bias
I knew it all along phenom- our tendency to want to be right (and don’t want to be wrong), so we say that after the event we knew that it would happen
Overconfidence
we tend to be more confident than correct (specifically to factual questions)
Wording effect
Changing the way to word questions or statements so they are more appealing
Correlate
how closely two things vary and how well they predict each other (test scores correlate to success of school)
Ethics code
a study/experiment must follow the ethics code
-Informed consent
-Protection from harm
-Confidentiality
-Debrief
positive correlation
two sets of scores tend to rise and fall together (people’s height and weight. taller people weigh more)
r= .8 strong positive correlation
r= .4 weak positive correlation
negative correlation
set of scores change in opposite directions (people’s height and their distance to the ceiling. taller shorter distance to ceiling, shorter longer distance to ceiling)
r= -.8 strong
r= -.4 weak
Skewed distribution
when a representation of scores are lacking symmetry around average value
Statistical significance
when comparing experimental & control groups, the difference must be large enough to be considered statistically significant
Gambler’s fallacy
we tend to try and connect order to random sequences to help us make sense of the world (when C is the correct answer, but the past 5 questions were also C we may switch our answer)
Normal curve
the bell shaped curve
(from left to right)
99% 95% 68% 95% 99%
2.1% 13% 34% 13% 2.1%
Cognitive dissonance
Happens when we feel guilty. It changes our attitude and behavior for the future
Fundamental attribution error
tendency to mistakenly attributing thoughts and feelings about a person rather than focusing on the situation (behind a really slow driver and get road rage, but maybe it’s an old person, or a new driver, or the person’s car is really old and doesn’t work well)
foot-in-the-door phenom
persuasive strategy; we first tend to agree to a small request and then bigger and bigger requests
peripheral route v. central route persuasion
peripheral is fast feelings (celebrities or influencers we like tell us to buy this product and we buy it)
central- changes our thinking with evidence (we might not think climate change is bad until we see stats on ice melting, the rising temps, etc)
door-in-the-face technique
persuasive strategy; asking for a larger request (unreasonable) then asking for a smaller, acceptable request.
Attribution theory
crediting someone’s behavior to their disposition or their situation (can only attribute to others)
Conformity
adjust our behavior to fit the group standard
Chameleon effect
observing someone’s behavior or actions to act like them and fit into our surroundings
Normative social influence
influence in wanting to gain approval or avoid disapproval (in a group)
Mood contagion
mimic those around us. we feel happier around happy people rather than sad people
Informational social influence
occurs when we think others know more than we do so we conform to them
Deindividuation
loss of self awareness & self control in group situations that create arousal
(happens in a crowd, new environment, wearing a costume, etc)
Social facilitation
we tend to have better performance on well-learned tasks in presence of others
Social loafing
tendency to exert less effort when with others to perform a task
Groupthink
when the desire for harmony in a group interferes with the outcome (bad outcome)
Group polarization
talking to someone with similar thinking, we add on and agree more with previous beliefs. don’t challenge our point of view.
Ingroup bias
tendency for people to favor their own group over other groups
Availability heuristic
tendency to estimate frequency of an event by how rapidly it comes to mind (saw a shooting in a specific neighborhood on the news. later, when someone asks you to come to that neighborhood, you think it’s dangerous because of the shooting that took place)
Bystander effect/diffusion of responsibility
tendency for a bystander to not help someone because there are other bystanders near by
Social exchange theory
theory that social behavior is an exchange process. we weigh rewards and costs - maximize the benefits and minimize the costs (more likely to help if we see more benefits)
Social traps
each party pursues their own self interest rather than focusing on the good of the group
Superordinate goals
shared goals that can only be achieved through cooperation
Altruism
unselfish regard for the welfare of others. (don’t care what happens to you; help others no matter what
Milgram obedience study
shocking study. “teachers” gave “students” questions, and the students had to answer them. if student wrong, they got shocked. the more they got wrong the high amount of shock the student would get. sounded painful, so when teacher wanted to stop, the experimenter told them to continue regardless. Most teachers obeyed.
Stanford prison experiment
Zimbardo created a simulation study of a prison using Stanford male students. Some were prisoners while some were guards. soon study became too real. proved role playing can train people to be tortures in the real world
Darley and Latane
seizure study. participants in a room with headphones on with a certain number of people in the room. someone had a seizure, and they study was to see how quickly people would react and help- depended on the number in the room
Asch’s conformity experiment
wanted to see if students would give the wrong answer because everyone else had given the wrong answer. (the measuring study) more than 1/3 of the time went along with the group
