Social Perception and Attribution

Flashcards on social perception, nonverbal communication, recognizing deception, attribution, and theories of attribution.

Social Perception

The process through which we seek to know and understand other people.

Nonverbal Communication

Communication between individuals that relies on an unspoken language of facial expressions, eye contact, and body language.

Basic Channels of Nonverbal Communication

Facial expressions, eye contact, body language, touching.

Facial Expressions

Can display basic emotions: anger, fear, happiness, sadness, disgust. Universality is prevalent.

Eye Contact

Staring can be a sign of hostility. Gazing levels can indicate connection/intimacy (high) or brief, unconscious communication (low). Avoidance can also be a form of communication.

Body Language

Positions, postures, and movements that can suggest emotional arousal. Includes emblems with cultural significance.

Touching

The nature, context, and actor involved can suggest friendliness, affection, sexual interest, dominance, caring, or aggression. Appropriateness varies.

Recognizing Deception

Detecting lies through observing microexpressions, interchannel discrepancies, linguistic style, and exaggerated expressions.

Microexpressions

Fleeting facial expressions lasting only a few tenths of a second.

Interchannel Discrepancies

Inconsistencies between nonverbal cues.

Attribution

The process through which we seek information about why people act the way they do and draw inferences.

Theory of Correspondent Inference

Others' behaviors tend to indicate their stable traits and dispositional factors. Influenced by free choice, noncommon effects, and low social desirability.

Kelly's Covariation Theory

Attributes behavior to internal or external factors based on consensus, consistency, and distinctiveness.

Consensus

Extent others behave in the same way towards the stimulus as the person we are considering

Consistency

Extent person always behaves this way toward the stimulus

Distinctiveness

Extent person responds in the same way toward different stimuli