Unit 4: Social Psychology + Personality

Dr. Eaker's AP Psych

Attribution Theory

explains how we understand the attributes of human behavior

Attributions

the action of regarding something as caused by a person/thing

Dispositional attributions

Explaining human behavior as who the individual is / their personality traits

Situational attributions

Explaining human behavior by the context / what is happening

Fundamental attribution error

tendency to overestimate dispositional trains and underestimate situational traits

Self-serving bias

how we explain our behavior depending on whether the outcome of our behavior is positive or negative

positive → dispositional

negative → situational

Explanatory style

how one explains good/bad events in life (optimistic or pessimistic)

Locus of control

belief of how much control one has over their life (internal or external)

Self-fulfilling prophecy

occurs when a person's expectations or beliefs influence their actions, which in turn make those expectations come true

Social comparison

When someone compares themselves to someone better (upward) or worse (downward) than them

Mere exposure

proximity breeds liking

Cognitive dissonance

when behavior/actions don’t match beliefs/values

Cognitive dissonance theory

people will change either their actions or beliefs to relieve the tension

Confirmation bias

tendency to look for evidence that supports one’s pre-existing beliefs

Belief perseverance

tendency to cling onto our beliefs in face of contrary evidence

Prejudice

unjustifiable and usually negative attitude (cognitive) toward a group; stems from stereotypes and a predisposition to discriminate

Discrimination

to behave in negative and unjustifiable ways toward members of a group, subtle or blatant

Stereotype

generalized beliefs about a group of people, often overgeneralized, misperceived, or exaggerated

Ingroup vs outgroup bias

pattern of favoring members of one's in-group over out-group members

Us vs them

Ethnocentrism

tendency to look at the world primarily from the perspective of one's own culture

Just-world phenomenon

tendency to believe that people get what they deserve

Social norms

shared standards of acceptable behavior by groups

Normative social influence

conforming to avoid rejection or gain social approval

Informational social influence

conforming to be accurate (accepting other’s opinions about reality)

Persuasion

process by which a person's attitudes or behavior are influenced by communications from other people

Elaboration likelihood model

how attitudes are formed and changed through different routes of persuasion

• central route

• peripheral route

Central route persuasion

persuasion using facts, figures, and statistics about the topic (elaboration likelihood model)

Peripheral route persuasion

persuasion using attractiveness, not related to the topic (elaboration likelihood model)

Foot-in-the-door technique

asking for a small favor first, in order to ease into a bigger favor

Door-in-the-face technique

asking for a too-big favor, in order for the subsequent, smaller favor to be more agreeable

Conformity

adjusting behavior toward group standard

Solomon Asch: Lines experiment

Solomon Asch

Conformity experiment

• Informational social influence

• Normative social influence

Obedience

compliance with an order, request, or law; submission to another’s authority

Stanley Milgram: Shock the learner experiment

Stanley Milgram

Shock the Learner experiment: Obedience

• 2/3 participants shocked the highest voltage

• People are more likely to do harmful and evil things when they are given orders and believe they will not be responsible for their actions

• … and there are no examples of defiance

Group polarization

one’s beliefs become more extreme when surrounded by like-minded group

Group think

the desire for social harmony causes group members to not speak out in support of a better solution/decision

Diffusion of responsibility / bystander effect

in social situations, people are less likely to take action because other people are not taking action

Social exchange theory

our social behavior is an exchange process, the aim of which is to maximize benefits and minimize costs

Reciprocity norm

an expectation that people will help, not hurt, those who have helped them

Social facilitation

improved ability in group setting

Social loafing

slacking or putting less effort in group setting, due to reliance on the majority

Deindividuation

losing self-awareness and self-restraint due to emotional arousal and anonymity

Social Trap

a situation in which actions are taken because of short-term benefits that lead to long-term consequences

Prisoner's dilemma

a situation where two parties, separated and unable to communicate, must each choose between cooperating with the other or not

> shows how, by making individual sacrifices, it benefits the community / the greater good

(Example of social trap)

Commoner's dilemma

in which individuals in a group each make decisions out of self-interest, eventually causing unintended harm to the entire group

(Example of social trap)

Superordinate goals

Goals that can only be achieved by two opposing parties working together

Muzafer Sherif: Robber's cave experiment w/ boys at camp

Prosocial behavior

positive behavior that benefits others

examples: helping, sharing, donating, cooperating, volunteering, obeying the rules, and conforming

Antisocial behavior

problematic and disruptive aggressive and rule-breaking behaviors

examples: hostility towards others, disregard for rules, impulsive behavior, manipulating others, feelings of superiority, irresponsibility

Social responsibility norm

an expectation that people will help those dependent upon them or those who need assistance, even if it may not offer any reward

examples: young, sick, elderly, disabled, poor

Psychodynamic theory

Personality is determined by unconscious urges and anxiety driven defense mechanisms, developed in childhood

• Relating to relationship with primary caregiver in the first 5 years of life

• Structures: Id, ego, and superego

• Assessments: Projective tests (Rorschach inkblot, Thematic Apperception test)

• Founded by Sigmund Freud

Projective tests

Ambiguous stimuli used by psychodynamic therapists to assess

Rorschach Inkblot: subjects' perceptions of inkblots are recorded and then analyzed using psychological interpretation

Thematic Apperception test: involves having people explain what is happening in ambiguous scenes.

Psychodynamic theory structures

id: pleasure (unconscious)

• gets basic needs met

ego: mediator/reality

• uses reasoning to make decisions

superego: judgment/conscience/morality

• morals of society

Sigmund Freud

founder of psychoanalytic theory:

had an emphasis on sexual and aggressive impulses

Neo-Freudians

Alfred Adler - birth order, inferiority complex

Karen Horney - feminist perspective, desires for love/security

Carl Jung - collective unconscious, archetypes, spiritual concerns, shared generational inherited experiences

Ego defense mechanisms

Unconsciously used to protect ego from threats

> denial, displacement, projection, rationalization, reaction formation, regression, repression, sublimation

Denial

refusing to believe a painful reality

Displacement

shifting tension to a less threatening target; act of lashing out to undeserving person

Projection

attributing unacceptable impulses onto someone else; saying someone else feels a way while denying it in ourselves

Rationalization

giving a logical reason to justify unacceptable behavior

Reaction formation

unacceptable impulses are replaced with their exact opposites

ex: giving lots of attention to an unwanted child

Regression

resorting to an earlier stage of development

Repression

pushing unwanted memories into the unconcious

Sublimation

aggressive drives are channeled into productive and socially acceptable behaviors

ex: sports or art

Humanistic theory

personality is focused on our growth, potential, and free will

Abraham Maslow + Carl Rogers

Abraham Maslow

wants us to ask ourselves how we grow to reach our full potential, to live a meaningful life (humanism - self-actualizing tendency)

Self-actualizing tendency

the concept regarding the process of how we grow to reach our full potential, to live a meaningful life (humanism - Abraham Maslow)

Carl Rogers

wants us to live up to our ideal self and understand we are basically good (humanism - unconditional positive regard)

Unconditional positive regard

involves showing complete support and acceptance of a person

Reciprocal determinism (Social-cultural)

personality is an interaction of our behaviors, cognitions, and environment interact

Self-concept

thoughts and feelings that answer: "Who am I?”

Self-efficacy

one's feelings of competency and effectiveness

Trait theories

People have certain basic traits, and it is the strength and intensity of those traits that account for personality differences

Big Five: OCEAN

Assessed by personality inventories / factor analysis

Personality inventory / fact analysis

Self-assessment method, often a standardized questionnaire, that reveals insights into an individual's character

Big Five theory

OCEAN: openness to experience, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, neuroticism

Openness to experience

Cautious and guarded - receptive to new ideas and experiences

Conscientiousness

Easy-going, disorderly - responsible, careful, moral

Extraversion

Low energy in crowds, loner - talkative, outgoing

Agreeableness

Selfish, lack of empathy - helpful, cooperative

Neuroticism

Poor self-regulation (anxiety, jealousy, worry) - mental stability

Individualism

giving priority to one's own goals over group goals and defining one's identity in terms of personal attributes

Collectivism

giving priority to the goals of one's group (often one's extended family or work group) and defining one's identity accordingly

Biological perspective

Understands human nature in a scientific or biological way

Behavioral perspective

Understands human nature by what is observable behavior and learning

Cognitive perspective

Understands human nature by how one thinks and how one processes information

Psychodynamic perspective

Understands human nature by unconscious thought and unresolved conflicts from early childhood

Evolutionary perspective

Understands human nature by how adaptation and survival traits are passed on

Social-cultural perspective

Understands human nature by one's culture and the groups they belong to

Motivation

a need or desire that energizes and directs behavior

can be intrinsic or extrinsic

Intrinsic motivation

the drive to do something for its own sake and because of inherent satisfaction

Extrinsic motivation

the drive to do for an external reward or pressure

Homeostasis

a tendency to maintain a balanced or constant internal state

→ connected to drive reduction motivation theory

Instinct theory

source of motivations are based on genetic predispositions

Drive-reduction theory

when a physiological (physical) need increases, so does the psychological drive to reduce it 

→ connected to homeostasis

Optimal arousal theory / Yerkes-Dodson law

need to maintain an optimal level of arousal motivates behaviors that meet no physiological need

> principle that performance increases with arousal only up to a point, beyond which performance decreases

Self-determination theory

Based on intrinsic or extrinsic motivation

Incentive theory

behaviors are motivated by the desire to attain rewards and avoid punishments

Lewin’s motivational conflicts theory

Three types of psychological conflicts:

Approach-approach: in which two attractive but incompatible goals pull us

Avoidance-avoidance: in which two undesirable alternatives must be chosen

Approach-avoidance: a situation involving a single goal or option that has both desirable and undesirable aspects

Facial feedback hypothesis

tendency of facial muscle states to trigger corresponding feelings such as fear, anger, or happiness

Primary/universal emotions

includes joy, anger, interest, disgust, surprise, and sadness

> considered primary because there is a basic understanding of facial expressions across different cultures