PSY 1.8 Social attitudes and behaviours

Michangelo phenomenon

concept of self is made up of both the intrapersonal self, the ideas that individuals have regarding their own abilities, traits, and beliefs, and the interpersonal self, the manner in which others influence creation of the ideal self

social action

which he defined as actions and behaviors that individuals are performing or modulating because others are around.

humans will behave in different ways based on their social environment and how their behavior will affect those around them.

to be contrasted against social interaction

social interaction

explores the ways in which two or more individuals can both shape each other’s behavior.

social facilitation

yerkes dodson law (also used to describe the relationship between stress or sympathetic arousal and performance,if there’s too much pressure, performance drops.)

a social psychology phenomenon where the presence of others enhances an individual's performance on a task, especially when it's simple or well-learned, but can also hinder performance on complex tasks

deindividuation

is a loss of self-awareness in large groups, which can lead to drastic changes in behavior. 

leads to anti-normative behaviour that is, behavior not socially acceptable in most social circumstances eg riots and violence

bystander effect

describes the observation that when in a group, individuals are less likely to respond to a person in need.

• degree of emergency or the perceived danger

• degree of responsibility felt by the bystanders

• cohesiveness of the group

social loafing

the tendency of individuals to reduce effort when in a group setting.

peers

individuals who are regarded as equals within a social group

peer pressure

refers to the social influence placed on individuals by others they consider equals. 

Group decision making may differ from individual decision making.

may lead to risky behaviour eg binge eating, reckless driving, and violent activities.

identity shift effect

Changes in beliefs or behavior due to peer pressure

When an individual’s state of harmony is disrupted by a threat of social rejection,he individual will often conform to the norms of the group. Upon doing so, however, the individual will begin to experience internal conflict because the behavior is outside the normal character of the individual. To eliminate the sense of internal conflict, individuals experience an identify shift wherein they adopt the standards of the group as their own. The identity shift effect also highlights a larger theme in psychology: cognitive dissonance

cognitive dissonance

the simultaneous presence of two opposing thoughts or opinions.

an internal state of discomfort, which may manifest as anxiety, fear, anger, or confusion

group polarization

is the tendency toward making decisions in a group that are more extreme than the thoughts of the individual group members.

can lead to risky shift and choice shift

risky shift

noted that groups tended to make riskier decisions than individuals.

choice shift

shift toward caution

groupthink

 is the tendency for groups to make decisions based on ideas and solutions that arise within the group without considering outside ideas. Ethics may be disturbed as pressure is created to conform and remain loyal to the group. 

8 factors indicative of groupthink

• Illusion of invulnerability

• Collective rationalization

• Illusion of morality

• Excessive stereotyping

• Pressure for conformity

• Self-censorship

• Illusion of unanimity

• Mindguards

Illusion of invulnerability

Members encourage risks, ignore possible pitfalls and are too optimistic.

Collective rationalization

Members ignore expressed concerns about group approved ideas.

Illusion of morality:

Members believe ideas produced by the group are morally correct, disregarding evidence to the contrary.

Excessive stereotyping

Members construct stereotypes of those expressing outside opinions.

Pressure for conformity

Members feel pressured not to express opinions that disagree with the group, and view opposition as disloyal.

self censorship

Members withhold ideas and opinions that disagree with the group.

illusion of unanimity

Members believe the decisions and judgments of the group to be without disagreement, even if it does exist.

mindguards

Some members may decide to take on a role protecting the group against opposing views.

fad

behavior that is transiently viewed as popular and desirable by a large community.

Fads can include owning certain objects (such as pet rocks in the 1970s, Rubik’s cubes in the 1980s, and pogs in the 1990s) or engaging in certain behaviors (using catchphrases, altering clothing in some way, or engaging in particular types of media such as viral videos)

mass hysteria

shared, intense concern about the threats to society.

features of groupthink—collective rationalization, illusion of morality, excessive stereotyping, and pressure for conformity, in particular—lead to a shared delusion that is augmented by distrust, rumors, propaganda, and fear mongering.

culture

describes the beliefs, ideas, behaviors, actions, and characteristics of a group or society of people. 

culture shock

traveling outside of one’s own society, these cultural differences can seem quite dramatic

assimilation

melting pot

is the process by which a group or individual’s culture begins to melt into another culture.

integrates new aspects of a society and culture with old ones, transforming the culture itself.

typically not an even blend. One group will generally have more power and influence than the other

ethnic enclaves

locations (usually neighborhoods) with a high concentration of one specific ethnicity

multiculturalism

cultural mosaic

refers to the encouragement of multiple cultures within a community to enhance diversity. 

subcultures

refer to a group of people within a culture that distinguish themselves from the primary culture to which they belong. 

counterculture

the subculture group gravitates toward an identity that is at odds with the majority culture and deliberately opposes the prevailing social mores.

socialisation

is the process of developing and spreading norms, customs, and beliefs.

categorised into

1. primary socialisation

2. secondary socialisation

cultural transmission

Beliefs, customs, and cultural norms are often passed down from one generation to another in a society

cultural diffusion

Spread of norms, customs, and beliefs from one culture to another can also occur

primary socialisation

occurs during childhood when we initially learn acceptable actions and attitudes in our society, primarily through observation of our caregivers and other adults in close proximity

secondary socialisation

process of learning appropriate behavior within smaller sections of the larger society. This type of socialization occurs outside of the home and is based on learning the rules of specific social environments.

associated with adolescents and adults and includes smaller changes and refinements to behavior that were established in primary socialization.

anticipatory socialisation

by which a person prepares for future changes in occupations, living situations, or relationships.

resocialisation

is another process by which one discards old behaviors in favor of new ones, typically through intensive retraining, and can have positive or negative connotations.

norms

 are what determine the boundaries of acceptable behavior within society. 

While norms are not laws, they do provide a mechanism for regulating the behavior of individuals and groups and thereby serve as a means of social control.

mores

are widely observed social norms.

sanctions

Penalties for misconduct or rewards for appropriate behavior

include formal and informal sanctions

formal sanctions

are enforced by formal social institutions like governments or employers and can include receiving a promotion (positive) or a jail sentence (negative)

informal sanctions

enforced by social groups.

Informal sanctions might include being allowed to sit at a particular table in the school cafeteria (positive) or exclusion from a social group (negative).

taboo

socially unacceptable, disgusting, or reprehensible.

folkways

are norms that refer to behavior that is considered polite in particular social interactions, such as shaking hands after a sports match

agents of socialisation

 include family, peers, school, religious affiliation, and other groups that promote socialization.

include the environment as well

popular culture

common trends and beliefs prevalent at a given point in time, is heavily influenced by the media.

stigma

is the extreme disapproval or dislike of a person or group based on perceived differences from the rest of society. 

deviance

 refers to any violation of norms, rules, or expectations within a society.

any act that goes against societal norms

labelling theory

posits that the labels given to a person affect not only how others respond to that person, but also affect that person’s self-image. Labels can lead to channeling of behavior into deviance or conformity.

role engulfment

Internalizing a label and assuming the role implied by the label may lead to the assumed role taking over a person’s identity

differential association theory

deviance, particularly criminal behavior, can be learned through interactions with others

intimate exposure to others who engage in deviant behavior lays the groundwork for people to engage in deviant behavior themselves.

strain theory

attempts to explain deviance as a natural reaction to the disconnect between social goals and social structure.

conformity

is changing beliefs or behaviors in order to fit into a group or society.

normative conformity

desire to fit into a group because of fear of rejection

internalisation

involves changing one’s behavior to fit with a group while also privately agreeing with the ideas of the group

identification

outward acceptance of others’ ideas without personally taking on these ideas without internalising it

compliance

occurs when individuals change their behavior based on the requests of others. Methods of gaining compliance include the

• foot-in-the-door technique

• door-in-the-face technique

• lowball technique

• that’s-not-all technique

foot in the door technique

begins with a small request, and after gaining compliance, a larger request is made.

door in the face technique

large request is made at first and, if refused, a second, smaller request is made.

low ball technique

requestor will get an initial commitment from an individual, and then raise the cost of the commitment.

thats not all technique

an individual is made an offer, but before making a decision, is told the deal is even better than expected.

We can offer you these earrings for the stunningly low price of $19.99. But wait! If you buy them, you’ll also receive our matching necklace, normal retail value $49.99, absolutely free

obedience

experiment by Stanley Milgram

is a change in behavior based on a command from someone seen as an authority figure. 

attitudes

are tendencies toward expression of positive or negative feelings or evaluations of something.

• affective

• behavioural

• cognitive components

affective

refers to the way a person feels toward something, and is the emotional component of attitude.

eg i have a fear of snakes

behavioural

way a person acts with respect to something

For example, avoiding snakes

cognitive

the way an individual thinks about something, which is usually the justification for the other two components. In the snake example above, knowing that snakes can be dangerous (and sometimes venomous) provides a reason to be afraid of snakes and to avoid them.

functional attitudes theory

states that attitudes serve 4 functions:

• knowledge

• ego expression

• adaptability

• ego defense. 

knowledge function

attitudes help provide organization to thoughts and experiences, and knowing the attitudes of others helps to predict their behavior

ego expression

allowing us to communicate and solidify our self-identity.

adaptive attitude

is the idea that expressed socially acceptable attitudes will lead to acceptance

ego defenses

if they protect our self-esteem or justify actions that we know are wrong

learning theory

states that attitudes are developed through forms of learning:

• direct contact

• direct interaction

• direct instruction

• conditioning.

elaboration likelihood model

theory of attitude formation and attitude change that separates individuals on a continuum based on how they process persuasive information.

includes central route processing and peripheral route processing

central route processing

high elaboration

strong arguments and logical reasoning to convince an audience, focusing on the content and facts

scrutinizing and analyzing the content of persuasive information

peripheral route processing

low elaboration

focusing on superficial details of persuasive information, such as appearances, catchphrases and slogans, and credibility

social cognitive theory

emphasizes the dynamic interaction between individuals, their behavior, and their environment, with a focus on observational learning, modeling, and self-efficacy 

albert bandura triadiac reciprocal causation

Reciprocal Determinism

posits that behavior, personal factors (like thoughts, emotions, and beliefs), and the environment all influence each other in a cyclical manner

Observational Learning

learn by observing the behaviors and outcomes of others, leading to the imitation and adoption of those behaviors. 

modelling

We are more likely to imitate behaviors modeled by people we perceive as similar to ourselves or as having high status. 

self efficacy

this refers to an individual's belief in their ability to successfully perform a specific task or achieve a particular outcome. 

cognitive factors

The theory acknowledges the role of cognitive processes, such as attention, memory, and judgment, in learning and behavior.