AP Psych - Unit 9: Social Psychology

Social Psychology

Branch of psych concerned with the way individuals' thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by others

Attitude

positive or negative evaluations of social issues, institutions, products, people, etc.

Affective Component

(Emotional feelings)

Prejudice - a preconceived judgment or emotional feeling directed toward certain people based on their membership in a particular group 

Behavioral Component

(Predisposition to act (or not act) in certain ways)

Discrimination- the unjust treatment toward a person based on a particular group to which they belong

Cognitive Component

(Beliefs)

Stereotypes - an overgeneralized belief about a particular group of people

Explicit Attitudes

attitudes that we hold consciously and can readily describe

Implicit Attitudes

covert attitudes that are expressed in subtle automatic responses that people have little conscious control over

UNCONSCIOUS BIAS

Reference groups

a group that we compare ourselves to when evaluating our behaviors

Relative deprivation

perception by an individual that the amount of a desired resource (e.g. money, social status, etc.) he/she has is less than comparison to people in their reference group.  Leads to feelings of inferiority or entitlement.

*It is important to note that this is relative to someone else…. The ‘deprivation’ is not always perceived

Downward social comparison

when people compare themselves to those who are less proficient than they are (to make themselves feel better)

Spotlight effect

overestimating others' noticing and evaluating our appearance, performance, and blunders (as if we presume a spotlight shines on us)

False consensus effect

overestimating how much other people share our beliefs and behaviors

Self-Perception Theory (Bem)

people develop their attitudes by observing their own behavior and then concluding what attitudes must have caused it 

Effects of Physical Appearance

-Attractive people command more attention, are assumed to have desirable personality characteristics, and viewed as more competent….why?

Halo effect

when a general (positive) impression of a person in one area influences the impressions formed of that person in other areas (e.g. characteristics/abilities)

 Illusory correlation

When people estimate that they have encountered more confirmations of an association between social traits than they have actually seen (i.e. think there is a correlation when there really isn't)

ex. if an individual has a bad experience with a lawyer and they immediately assume all lawyers are bad people.

Outgroup Homogeneity Effect

the tendency to view an outgroup as homogenous, or as “all the same,” whereas the ingroup is seen as more heterogeneous or varied.

Self-fulfilling prophecy

own beliefs lead you to act in ways that fulfill our expectations

FR tip: must include all 3 parts (also, the fact that the belief influences the behavior should be relatively unconscious)

1. initial belief

2. change in behavior

3. confirmation of belief

Ethnocentrism

tendency to view one's own culture as superior and apply one's own cultural values when judging the behavior and beliefs of people raised in other cultures.

Social Identity Theory (Tajfel)

A person's sense of who they are & evaluation of themself is based on their group memberships

Ingroup

a group one belongs to and identifies with

Outgroup

a group one does not belong to or identify with

Ingroup bias

Tendency for humans to be more helpful and positive towards members of their own group over members of an out-group

Outgroup Bias

Negative categorizations, feelings, or ideas about people who are not part of our ingroup.

Effects of Categorization

Categorization can lead to prejudice & discrimination

Cognitive Dissonance (Festinger)

mental discomfort experienced by a person who holds two or more contradictory beliefs, ideas, or values. 

OR

when our Affect, Behavior, &/or Cognitions aren’t congruent….. This dissonance drives us to change either one of our beliefs &/or our behavior so that they realign.

Yale Attitude Change Approach

The study of the conditions under which people are most likely to change their attitudes in response to persuasive messages.

Elaboration Likelihood Model: Central Route to Persuasion

When attitudes are formed or changed as a result of carefully scrutinizing and thinking about the central merits of attitude-relevant information

Elaboration Likelihood Model: Peripheral Route to Persuasion

When persuasion depends on non-message factors, such as the attractiveness and credibility of the source, or on conditioned emotional responses

What factors influence which route someone is likely to take a Central Route or Peripheral Route to Persuasion?

• amount of personal interest

• amount of time

Compliance

(changing behavior in response to a request)

Foot-in-the-door technique

 getting a person to agree to a large request by first setting them up by having them agree to a smaller request

Door-in-the-face technique

making a large request of someone, that they will most likely  turn down, so they are more likely to agree to a second, more reasonable request.

Lowballing

gain agreement and then later on the agreement is made less desirable (by revealing hidden costs or requirements)

Norm of Reciprocity

the "rule" that we should pay back what we receive from others

Contact hypothesis

the idea that bringing people together who are in conflict will help the conflict to subside as they get to know and understand each other 

*must be done carefully

Superordinate goals

tasks that get people from opposing sides to come together and work toward a common end result (can’t succeed without all members contributing)

Attributions

inferences that people draw about the causes of events, others' behavior, and their own behavior

Internal Attributions

believe the causes of behavior are due to dispositional factors (internal traits) (e.g. personality, intelligence, abilities, feelings, traits) 

*these can be stable or unstable

External Attributes

believe the causes of behavior are due to situational demands and environmental constraints (external factors)

How does consistency & distinctiveness impact attributions?

• distinctiveness: Does this person always act this way?

• consensus: Do other people also act this way?

Actor-Observer Bias (AOB)

Negative behaviors: me (actor) = external, you (observer) = internal

Positive behaviors: me (actor) = internal, you (observer) = external

Fundamental Attribution Error (FAE)

ONLY FOCUSING ON OTHERS

Negative behaviors of others = internal

Positive behaviors of others = external

Self-serving Bias

ONLY FOCUSING ON YOURSELF

Own negative behaviors = external

Own positive behaviors = internal

Scapegoat theory

the theory that prejudice offers an outlet for anger and other negative emotions  by providing someone (or a group)  to blame (that is usually not at fault. )

Defensive Attribution & Just-World Hypothesis

tendency to blame victims for their misfortune so that one feels less likely to be victimized in a similar way

Social Loafing

exerting less effort when working on a task when in groups than when working alone (due to diffusion of resp.)

Social facilitation

presence of others = improves one's performance

Social impairment

presence of others = hinders one's performance

Group Polarization

tendency for groups to make more extreme decisions than the initial inclination of each individual member

Groupthink

when desire for harmony or conformity within a group leads to dysfunctional or irrational decision-making

Best to have a “devil’s advocate” to reduce this tendency

The Stanford Prison Experiment (Zimbardo): Description and Ethical Concerns

• only lasted 6 days (was supposed to be 2 weeks)

• supports the influence of social roles and powers

• ethical concerns: psychological well-being of participant harm.

Social Roles

A pattern of behavior that is expected of a person in a given setting or group

Social dilemma

a situation in which an individual profits from selfishness unless everyone chooses the selfish alternative, in which case the whole group loses (a.k.a. Social Trap)

Bystander Effect

people are less likely to provide needed help when they are in groups than when they are alone

Diffusion of responsibility

when others are present, a person is less likely to feel the obligation to take responsibility

*they assume others are responsible for taking action or have already done so.

Deindividuation

the loss of self-awareness/personal identity when in groups due to perceived lack of accountability

FRQ tip: [The response must indicate that the explanation of the behavior is]….. that the presence of other people diminishes one’s sense of self-awareness OR increases feelings of anonymity OR diminishes one’s sense of individual responsibility or inhibition

Altruism

selfless concern for the well-being of others

Aggression

any form of behavior that is intended to harm or injure another person

Frustration-Aggression Hypothesis *AP ONLY

states that we act more aggressively when frustrated

Factors that Influence Helping & Aggression

1. Situational Influences (ex: time pressure, # of people present)

2. Dispositional/Personal Influences (ex: personality traits)

3. Interpersonal Influences (ex: norm of reciprocity)

4. Sociocultural Influences (ex: norms/expectations, religious beliefs)

Conformity

when people change their behavior due to real or imagined social pressure (explicit or implicit)

Social Norms

The perceived informal, mostly unwritten, rules that define acceptable and appropriate actions. within a given group or community, thus guiding human behavior

Asch’s Conformity Study: DESCRIBE THE STUDY

• Asked which line matches original line (left) 

•  Each announces choice to group; all but one is an accomplice of the experimenter

•  Accomplices give incorrect answers during multiple trials

•  37% conformity (on majority of the trials); 75% conformed at least once

What factors influenced conformity?

Group size & group unanimity

Normative Influence

when people conform to social norms in a group for fear of negative social consequences  (or the desire to fit in/be accepted)

Informational Influence

when you conform to a group in ambiguous situations (because you are unsure what to do); you look to the behaviors of others who are also in the same or similar situation to see how they behave, typically because you believe they know 

Public Conformity

conform to fit in but do not change beliefs

Private acceptance

when someone's belief is different than others they question if their beliefs are wrong

Obedience

Form of compliance that occurs when people follow direct commands, usually from someone in a (real or imagined) position of authority 

Stanley Milgram’s Shock Experiment: BRIEF DESCRIPTION & FINDINGS

• NO Shocks were actually given

• Participants were told that the study was about impact of punishment on learning

• Shock generator set up w/descriptions for voltage

• Script for “learner” to express distress

• Findings: of 40 participants only 5 quit at 300 volts; only 14 participants defied the experimenter before the full series of shocks was completed; 65% gave all 30 levels of shock

Stanley Milgram’s Shock Experiment: ETHICAL CONCERNS?

deception, severe stress, knowledge that capable of harm to innocent victim; Milgram felt it was ethical due to debriefing (which included introduction)

Factors that influence obedience

seems to transcend culture; however, collectivist cultures encourage more conformity 

• Cultural variations

• Need for approval

• Social roles

Mere Exposure Effect

the finding that repeated exposures to a stimulus promotes greater liking of the stimulus (no cognition)

*Can also be a persuasion technique

Matching Hypothesis

males and females of approximately equal physical attractiveness are likely to select each other as partners

Similarity

Do "birds of a feather flock together" OR do "opposites attract?

-The answer is we tend to be attracted to those who have common interests and beliefs (more similar)

Proximity

tendency for individuals to form interpersonal relationships with those who are close by

-think about the mere-exposure effect & how many couples met while in school or at a job where they see each other often

How might culture influence types of relationships?

-Romantic love is not found in all cultures 

-Individualism: marriage for love, "passionate love"

-Collectivism: arranged marriages

What would be an example of an evolutionary explanation of attraction?

-Physical attraction = influential determinant of attraction

-Men seek youthfulness and physical attractiveness (to pass on their genes)

-Women seek ambition, social status, and financial potential (for protection)

Behavioral Approach

Behavior is learned through observation, rewards/punishments, and making associations

Cognitive Approach

An approach to psychology emphasizing the mental processes involved in knowing: how we direct our attention, perceive, remember, think, and solve problems (thoughts, memories, decision-making)

Sociocultural approach

society and culture affect your behavior (norms, family, peers, social media)

psychoanalytical approach (psychodynamic)

Unconscious urges/impulses and SIGNIFICANT repressed childhood memories affect behavior

humanistic approach

emphasizes that humans are all inherently good, a person's positive qualities, the capacity for positive growth, and free-will

Classical Conditioning

The learning of involuntary emotional &/or physiological reactions through (involuntary) association.

Stimulus Generalization

stimuli similar to the CS also elicit the CR

Stimulus discrimination

only the CS elicits the CR

Constructive memory

Using existing knowledge/schemas/experiences to fill in the gaps in info during encoding and retrieval. 

Ex. Mandela Effect
Note: ___________ memory is an involuntary & unconscious process (we don’t do it on purpose & don’t know it’s happening)

Context-dependent learning

remember info best in the same/similar physical location as where info was learned.

mood congruency

info processing/recall is facilitated if a person's emotional state is similar to the tone of the info; or same emotional state

Representative Heuristic

A mental shortcut where someone makes a decision based on how something fits their schema or prototype of a concept.

(basis for explaining stereotypes)

Availability Heuristic

A mental shortcut in decision making based on how readily (quickly) relevant instances come to mind (based on headlines, recent experiences, etc.).

framing

Decision making can be affected by how choices are structured. (i.e. wording of questions)

Representative Heuristic - PROTOTYPE

best example of a category (icon for the schema; allows for quick comparison)

Reliability

consistency of scores (Can you replicate results?)

Test-retest reliability

Measuring the stability/correlation of a test over time.

Simply, same test to same person at a different time (or giving the same test to two different groups)

Alternate (parallel) form reliability

Using 'parallel' measurements & comparing their correlation. Simply, different test (assuming same content & same difficulty) to same person.

Split-half (interval)

Measures the extent to which all parts of the test contribute equally (correlate) to what is being measured

More simply, looking within 1 test given at 1 time.

Inter-rater reliability

The degree to which (correlation) different raters give consistent measurements

Validity

Does the measurement tool assess what it is designed for?