Unit 4 Part 1- Social Psychology Flashcards
Dispositional Attribution
explaining someone’s behavior by attributing it to their internal characteristics, such as personality traits, abilities, or motivations, rather than considering external situational factors; essentially, blaming someone’s actions on their inherent nature instead of the environment around them.
Mere Exposure Effect
the psychological phenomenon where people tend to develop a preference for things or people they are repeatedly exposed to, simply because of familiarity, even if they initially had no strong opinion about them; essentially familiarity breeds fondness
Central Route Persuasion
attitude change path in which interested people focus on arguments and respond with favorable thoughts
Peripheral Route Persuasion
Attitude change path in which people are influenced by incidental cues such as a speaker’s attractiveness
Cognitive Dissonance
The tension we feel when our actions go against our attitudes so we often bring our attitudes into line with our actions
Foot in the door phenomenon
Tendency for people who first complied with a smaller request to later comply with a larger one
Door in the face phenomenon
Tendency for people to deny a large request right away
Attribution
People usually attribute others’ behavior either to their internal dispositions or to their external situations
Fundamental Attribution error
overestimating the influence of personality and underestimating the influence of situations
False-Consensus effect
Tendency of people to overestimate the level to which other people share their beliefs, attitudes, behaviors.
Self-serving bias
The common human tendency to attribute one’s successes to personal characteristics, and one’s failures to factors beyond one’s control
Just-world phenomenon/bias
Idea that good is rewarded and evil is punished
Stereotypes
a thought that can be adopted about specific types of individuals or certain ways of doing things
Prejudice
unjustifiable and usually negative attitude toward a group—often a different cultural, ethnic, or gender group
Discrimination
Action(s) performed because of a prejudice
Ethnocentrism
the belief that one’s own group (ethnic, social, cultural) is the most important and superior to that of others.
Out-group homogeneity bias
one’s perception of out-group members as more similar to one another than are in-group members. “they are alike; we are diverse”.
In-Group Bias
The tendency to favor “our group” (the group we share a common identity with)
Superordinate goals
Shared goals between two segregated groups that overrides their differences by creating a common goal
Frustration-aggression hypothesis
The principle that frustration creates anger and anger can lead to aggression
Bystander Effect
The tendency for bystanders to be less likely to aid the victim when other bystanders are present
Social Facilitation
An increase in performance of a well learned task in the presence of others
Conformity
Adjusting ones thoughts and/or actions to coincide with the groups standards
Obedience
Compliance with an order, request, law, or an authority figure
Social Loafing
When members of a group working together put in less effort due to distributed responsibility
Group polarization
Opinions and views of group members are strengthened through discussion
Groupthink
When group members censor their opinions or knowledge on a topic in favor of harmony within the group
Deindividuation
The loss of self-awareness and control when in a group experiencing arousal
Social trap
When both sides oppose each other and pursue their purpose, but become caught in mutually destructive behavior
Social Reciprocity Norm
The expectation that people will help others that have helped them
Social Responsibility Norm
The expectation that people will help those in dependent on them
Normative Social Influence
Where a person conforms to fit in with the group because they don’t want to appear foolish or be left out. Normative social influence is usually associated with compliance, where a person changes their public behavior but not their private beliefs
Informational Social Influence
Where a person conforms because they have a desire to be right, and look to others who they believe may have more information. When we don’t know an answer or how to act, we look to others assuming they know more than us.
Situational Attribution
explaining someone’s behavior by attributing it to external factors or circumstances in their environment, rather than their internal personality traits.
Optimistic explanatory style
a person’s tendency to explain negative events as being caused by external, temporary, and specific factors, essentially attributing setbacks to situational issues rather than personal flaws, and viewing them as fixable and not pervasive in their life
Pessimistic explanatory style
a tendency to explain negative events as being personal, permanent, and pervasive, meaning someone with this style attributes setbacks to internal factors, believes they will last a long time, and sees them as affecting many areas of their life, often leading to a more negative outlook on situations.
Actor observer bias
the tendency for people to attribute their own behavior to external factors (situational causes) while attributing the behavior of others to internal factors (dispositional traits)
Internal locus of control
the belief that a person’s actions and choices directly influence the outcomes in their life, meaning they attribute their successes and failures primarily to their own efforts and abilities, rather than external factors like luck or fate; essentially, they feel they have a strong sense of control over their own destiny
External locus of control
the belief that outside forces, like luck, fate, or other people, are primarily responsible for the events in one’s life, meaning individuals with this perspective feel they have little personal control over their outcomes and tend to attribute successes or failures to external factors rather than their own actions
Self-fulfilling prophecy
a psychological phenomenon where a person’s belief or expectation about something unknowingly influences their behavior in a way that makes that expectation come true, essentially causing the prediction to materialize simply because they believe it will happen
Social Comparison
the process where individuals evaluate their own abilities, opinions, and beliefs by comparing themselves to others, often to gain a better understanding of their own self-worth and position within a social group
Relative deprivation
the feeling of being deprived or lacking something compared to others in one’s social group, even if one’s objective situation is not necessarily poor; essentially, it’s the perception that one has less than what they believe they are entitled to based on comparisons to others, leading to feelings of discontent or injustice
Implicit attitude
an evaluation or feeling towards a person, object, or concept that occurs automatically and unconsciously, without conscious awareness, often influencing behavior and decisions despite the individual not being aware of holding such an attitude; essentially, an unconscious bias or preference towards something
Belief perseverance
the tendency for people to continue holding onto a belief even when presented with strong evidence that contradicts it, essentially sticking to their initial opinion despite proof to the contrary; it’s a cognitive bias where people maintain their beliefs despite disconfirming information
Confirmation bias
the tendency to actively seek out, interpret, and remember information that confirms one’s existing beliefs while ignoring or downplaying information that contradicts them, essentially reinforcing pre-existing opinions by selectively focusing on supporting evidence
Social norms
the unwritten rules and expectations about how individuals should behave in specific social situations, essentially acting as guidelines for acceptable conduct within a group or community
Social Influence Theory
the psychological concept that people tend to adjust their behaviors and attitudes to align with the perceived norms of the group they are in, meaning they are influenced by the actions and opinions of those around them, often changing their behavior to fit in or be accepted; this can manifest through conformity, obedience, and other social dynamics
Halo effect
the cognitive bias where a positive impression of one aspect of a person or thing leads to an overall positive perception of them, even if other aspects are not as positive, essentially judging the whole based on a single positive trait
Individualism
the principle of prioritizing one’s own goals and needs over the needs of the group, essentially, placing value on the individual rather than the collective
Collectivism
a cultural perspective where the needs and goals of the group are prioritized above the needs of the individual, emphasizing interdependence and group harmony within a collective like a family, community, or nation
Multiculturalism
the idea of a society where multiple cultures coexist and are equally respected, celebrating the diversity of ethnicities and cultural identities within a community, while allowing each group to maintain their own unique characteristics and traditions
I/O Industrial Organizational Psychology
a branch of psychology that studies human behavior within the workplace, applying psychological principles to improve employee selection, training, motivation, teamwork, and overall organizational effectiveness within a company; essentially, it focuses on how to optimize human performance in a work setting
Burnout
a psychological syndrome characterized by emotional exhaustion, feelings of cynicism and detachment from one’s work, and a reduced sense of personal accomplishment, typically resulting from prolonged exposure to high stress or excessive demands in a job or situation
Altruism
the selfless concern for the well-being of others, meaning an individual performs an action that benefits someone else without expecting personal gain or reward; essentially, putting the welfare of others before one’s own
Prosocial behavior
voluntary actions intended to help others or benefit society as a whole, often including acts of kindness, sharing, donating, volunteering, and cooperating
Social debt
an emotional meta state which accumulates guilt from unpleasant social interactions. This guilt is abusively used by the subconscious mind and globally influenced by social judgment. It manifests in uncontrolled behavior to generate relief from artificial self-fulfillment.
