Social Psychology: Cognitive Dissonance and Norms

A set of flashcards covering key vocabulary and concepts from the Social Psychology lecture, focusing on cognitive dissonance, social norms, and related behaviors.

Cognitive Dissonance Theory

A psychological theory proposing that people experience discomfort when holding conflicting beliefs or engaging in behavior inconsistent with their beliefs.

Dissonance

A state of tension or discomfort arising from holding two conflicting beliefs or behaviors.

Social Facilitation

The tendency for people to perform better on tasks in the presence of others.

Social Impairment

The tendency for performance to decrease when in the presence of others, particularly on tasks that are complex or unfamiliar.

Bystander Apathy

A phenomenon where individuals do not offer help in an emergency situation when other people are present.

Reciprocity Norm

The social norm that suggests when someone does something for you, you should return the favor.

Social Trap

Situations where individuals prioritize their own short-term gains at the expense of the collective good.

Tragedy of the Commons

A situation within a shared-resource system where individual users act according to their own self-interest, leading to the depletion of that resource.

Aggression

Behavior intended to harm another individual or group.

Milgram Experiment

A series of social psychology experiments conducted to examine the extent of obedience to authority figures when asked to perform actions that conflicted with personal conscience.

Ash Conformity Study

An experiment that demonstrated that individuals would conform to group opinions even when they were clearly incorrect.

Zimbardo's Stanford Prison Experiment

A psychological study meant to examine how individuals conform to their assigned social roles as either guards or prisoners.