Unit 4 Part 1 Flashcards
Solomon Asch
Conducted conformity experiments; main finding was that peer pressure can change opinions and perceptions
Attribution theory
The theory that we explain someone’s behavior by crediting either the situation (a situational attribution) or the person’s stable, enduring traits (a dispositional attribution)
Fundamental attribution error
The tendency for observers, when analyzing others’ behavior, to underestimate the impact of the situation and to overestimate the impact of personal disposition
Actor observer bias
The tendency for those acting in a situation to attribute their behavior to external causes, but for observers to attribute others’ behavior to internal causes. This contributes to the fundamental attribution error (which focuses on our explanations for others’ behavior)
Just-world phenomenon
The tendency for people to believe the world is just and that people therefore get what they deserve and deserve what they get
Social identity
The “we” aspect of our self-concept; the part of our answer to “Who am I?” that comes from our group memberships
Ingroup bias
The tendency to favor our own group
Scapegoat theory
The theory that prejudice offers an outlet for anger by providing someone to blame
Central route persuasion
Occurs when interested people’s thinking is influenced by considering evidence and arguments
Normative social influence
Influence resulting from a person’s desire to gain approval or avoid disapproval
Informational social influence
Influence resulting from a person’s willingness to accept others’ opinions about reality
Outgroup homogeneity bias
The tendency to assume that the members of other groups are very similar to each other, particularly in contrast to the assumed diversity of the membership of one’s own group
Stanley Milgram
Shock experiment. A social psychologist best-remembered for his now infamous obedience experiments. His research demonstrated how far people will go to obey authority
Social facilitation
In the presence of others, improved performance on simple or well-learned tasks, and worsened performance on difficult tasks
Social loafing
The tendency for people in a group to exert less effort when pooling their efforts toward attaining a common goal than when individually accountable
Deindividuation
The loss of self-awareness and self-restraint occurring in group situations that foster arousal and anonymity
Group polarization
The enhancement of a group’s prevailing inclinations through discussion within the group
Groupthink
The mode of thinking that occurs when the desire for harmony in a decision-making group overrides a realistic appraisal of alternatives
Mere exposure effect
The tendency for repeated exposure to novel stimuli to increase our liking of them
Foot-in-the-door phenomenon
The tendency for people who have first agreed to a small request to comply later with a larger request
Cognitive dissonance theory
The theory that we act to reduce the discomfort (dissonance) we feel when two of our thoughts (cognitions) are inconsistent. For example, when we become aware that our attitudes and our actions clash, we can reduce the resulting dissonance by changing our attitudes
Peripheral route persuasion
Occurs when people are influenced by incidental cues, such as a speaker’s attractiveness
Self-disclosure
The act of revealing intimate aspects of ourselves to others
Altruism
Unselfish regard for the welfare of others
John Darley
Conducted a series of studies that analyzed the causes of bystander apathy to people in need. Published extensively on altruism and bystander intervention, deviance and conformity, attribution theory, social comparison processes, and expectancy confirmation
Bibb Latane
Social impact theory was developed by Bibb Latane in the 1980s, based on the idea that social influence is a function of three variables: strength, immediacy, and number. Strength refers to how important, credible, or attractive the source of influence is to the target
Bystander effect
The tendency for any given bystander to be less likely to give aid if other bystanders are present
Social exchange theory
The theory that our social behavior is an exchange process, the aim of which is to maximize benefits and minimize costs
Social responsibility norm
An expectation that people will help those needing their help.
Social trap
A situation in which two parties, by each pursuing their self-interest rather than the good of the group, become caught in mutually destructive behavior
Mirror-image perceptions
Mutual views often held by conflicting parties, as when each side sees itself as ethical and peaceful and views the other side as evil and aggressive
Self-fulfilling prophecy
A belief that leads to its own fulfillment
Superordinate goals
Shared goals that override differences among people and require their cooperation
GRIT
In psychology, passion and perseverance in the pursuit of long-term goals
or
Graduated and Reciprocated Initiatives in Tension-Reduction — a strategy designed to decrease international tensions
Psychodynamic theories
Theories that view personality with a focus on the unconscious mind and the importance of childhood experiences
Passionate love
An aroused state of intense positive absorption in another, usually present at the beginning of a romantic relationship
Companionate love
The deep affectionate attachment we feel for those with whom our lives are intertwined
Equity
A condition in which people receive from a relationship in proportion to what they give to it
Collective unconscious
Carl Jung’s concept of a shared, inherited reservoir of memory traces from our species’ history
Terror management theory
A theory of death-related anxiety; explores people’s emotional and behavioral responses to reminders of their impending death
Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)
A projective test in which people express their inner feelings and interests through the stories they make up about ambiguous scenes
Projective test
A personality test, such as the TAT or Rorschach, that provides ambiguous images designed to trigger projection of one’s inner dynamics and explore the preconscious and unconscious mind
Rorschach inkblot test
A projective test designed by Hermann Rorschach; seeks to identify people’s inner feelings by analyzing how they interpret 10 inkblots
Humanistic theories
Theories that view personality with a focus on the potential for healthy personal growth
Carl Rogers
Known for developing person-centered therapy, also known as client-centered therapy. He was a founder of humanistic psychology and a pioneer in clinical psychological research
Unconditional positive regard
A caring, accepting, nonjudgmental attitude, which Carl Rogers believed would help clients develop self-awareness and self-acceptance. (Also known as unconditional regard.)
Self concept
All our thoughts and feelings about ourselves in answer to the question, “Who am I?”
Trait
A characteristic pattern of behavior or a disposition to feel and act in certain ways, as assessed by self-report inventories and peer reports
Personality inventory
A questionnaire (often with true-false or agree-disagree items) on which people respond to items designed to gauge a wide range of feelings and behaviors; used to assess selected personality traits
Psychoanalysis
(1) Freud’s theory of personality that attributes thoughts and actions to unconscious motives and conflicts; the techniques used in treating psychological disorders by seeking to expose and interpret unconscious tensions. (2) Sigmund Freud’s therapeutic technique. Freud believed the patient’s free associations, resistances, dreams, and transferences — and the analyst’s interpretations of them — released previously repressed feelings, allowing the patient to gain self-insight
Sigmund Freud
Best known for founding psychoanalysis, a theory of the mind and a method of treating mental distress
Unconscious
According to Freud, a reservoir of mostly unacceptable thoughts, wishes, feelings, and memories. According to contemporary psychologists, information processing of which we are unaware
Free association
In psychoanalysis, a method of exploring the unconscious in which the person relaxes and says whatever comes to mind, no matter how trivial or embarrassing
Id
A reservoir of unconscious psychic energy that, according to Freud, strives to satisfy basic sexual and aggressive drives. The id operates on the pleasure principle, demanding immediate gratification
Ego
The partly conscious, “executive” part of personality that, according to Freud, mediates among the demands of the id, the superego, and reality. The ego operates on the reality principle, satisfying the id’s desires in ways that will realistically bring pleasure rather than pain
Superego
The partly conscious part of personality that, according to Freud, represents internalized ideals and provides standards for judgment (the conscience) and for future aspirations
Empirically derived test
A test (such as the MMPI) created by selecting from a pool of items those that discriminate between groups
Big Five Factors
Five traits — openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism — that describe personality. (Also called the five-factor model.)
Social cognitive theory
A psychological theory that explains how people learn behaviors through social interactions and observations
Albert Bandura
Developing social cognitive theory (also known as social learning theory); the concept of self-efficacy – the idea that a person’s belief in their ability to succeed can shape how they think, act and feel; and his Bobo Doll experiments
Behavioral approach
Focuses on the effects of learning on our personality development
