AP PSYCHOLOGY UNIT 4: Social Psychology and Personality

Attribution Theory

explains how people decide whether someone’s behavior is caused by their personality or situation

Dispositional Attributions

assuming a person’s actions are due to internal qualities, like intelligence, attitude, or personality

Situational Attributions

assuming a person’s actions are due to external, environmental factors, such as the weather or world events

Self-Serving Bias

the tendency to attribute one’s successes to internal factors and one’s failures to external factors

Actor-Observer Bias

the habit of blaming our own failures on the situation, but blaming other people’s failures on their personality

Fundamental Attribution Error

the tendency to overemphasize internal factors when judging others’ behaviors

Explanatory Style

how an individual explains or rationalizes different events or situations in life

Optimistic Explanatory Style

the tendency to explain good things as likely to happening again and bad things as temporary

Pessimistic Explanatory Style

the tendency to explain bad things as likely to happen again and good things as temporary

Internal Locus of Control

the belief that one’s own actions and decisions directly influence outcomes

External Locus of Control

the belief that external forces and events directly influence outcomes

Mere Exposure Effect

when an individual is repeatedly exposed to a stimulus, it results in the individual to like the stimulus more and more over time

Self-Fulfilling Prophecy

when a person’s expectations influence their behavior in a way that causes those expectations to come true; manifesting

Social Comparison

we constantly evaluate ourselves by comparing our circumstances, skills, and internal characteristics to other people

Upward Social Comparison

Comparing yourself to others who are better off or more skilled. It can motivate self-improvement, but may decrease self-esteem

Downward Social Comparison

Comparing yourself to others who are worse off or less skilled. It can boost self-esteem but may also reduce motivation

Relative Deprivation

feeling discontent when comparing oneself to others

Explicit Attitudes

beliefs that the individual is aware of

Implicit Attitudes

unconscious beliefs that influence a person’s behavior and perceptions without their awareness

Just-World Phenomenon

the tendency to believe that the world is just and that things, good or bad, are the way they are for a reason

Out-Group Homogeneity Bias

the tendency to perceive members of an out-group as more similar to each other than they actually are

In-Group Bias

The tendency to favor and support members of one’s own group over those in other groups. It can lead to preferential treatment and judgment

Ethnocentrism

the belief that one’s own culture or ethnic group is superior than others

Belief Perseverance

the tendency to maintain a belief despite new information or evidence that clearly contradicts it

Confirmation Bias

the tendency of a person to focus on information that confirms their pre-existing views and dismiss conflicting information

Stereotypes

generalized beliefs about a certain group of people, often oversimplified

Prejudiced Attitudes

negative attitudes toward a group

Discriminatory Behaviors

unfair treatment of individuals based on their group

Cognitive Dissonance

the mental discomfort or tension that comes from when an individual has two conflicting beliefs, attitudes, or behaviors

Social Norms

unwritten rules and expectations that guide people in a society

Conformity

the tendency of a person to align their behaviors, beliefs, or attitudes with the norms or standards of a group

Authority

individuals are more likely to confirm to situations or groups that have individuals with a higher status or have an authority figure in them

Obedience

following direct commands from authority, even if they contradict with personal beliefs or morals

Social Influence Theory

examines how and why people are persuaded by others

Normative Social Influence

the influence to conform to the positive expectations of others, driven by the desire to be liked or accepted by the group

Informational Social Influence

the influence to accept information from others as evidence about reality, often occurring in situations where the correct action or belief is uncertain

Elaboration Likelihood Model

explains how people are persuaded in two ways: central or peripheral

Central Route to Persuasion

uses facts to persuade someone, often taking more time and elaboration

Peripheral Route of Persuasion

relies on emotions to persuade someone

Halo Effect

a cognitive bias where a positive impression in one area leads to positive evaluations in other areas, regardless if they were positive or not; influences judgments

Foot-in-the-Door Technique

an agreement to a small, initial request increases the likelihood of compliance with a larger, subsequent request

Door-in-the-Face Technique

a large, unreasonable request is made knowing it will be refused, followed by a smaller, more reasonable request that is more likely to be accepted

Group Polarization

when people in a group talk about an idea, they often end up agreeing with each other, making their group opinion more extreme

Groupthink

the desire for conformity in a group leads to irrational or dysfunctional decision-making outcomes. members suppress dissenting opinions, leading to a loss of individual creativity and responsibility

Deindividuation

psychological state where people lose their self-awareness and sense of individuality in group settings, leading to impulsive and deviating behavior

Diffusion of Responsibility

the tendency for people to feel less responsible for taking action or helping in a situation when others are present, leading to a decrease in the likelihood of intervention

Social Loafing

the tendency for people to put less effort when working in a group rather than working alone

Industrial-Organizational (IO) Psychologists

psychologists who apply psychological principles and research methods to the work place to improve productivity, select and promote employees, and enhance organizational culture and structure

Social Facilitation

the tendency to perform differently when in the presence of others, typically showing improved performance on simple or well-practice tasks or worse on complex or new tasks

False Consensus Effect

a cognitive bias where people overestimate how much others actually agree with their own beliefs

Superordinate Goals

shared goals that require cooperation, overriding smaller or individual conflicts

Social Traps

situations in which individuals or groups act in their own short-term interest, disregarding the long-term negative consequences

Altruism

the selfless concern for the well-being of others, leading to behavior that benefits others at a personal cost

Social Responsibility Norms

social expectations that people should help those in need without regard to future exchanges

Social Reciprocity Norm

an expectation to receive something good when helping other people

Bystander Effect

where individuals are less likely to offer help to a victim when others are present. the more present, the less anyone will less likely help

Psychodynamic Theory

personality and behaviors are shaped by unconscious forces, internal conflicts, and defense mechanisms; developed by Sigmund Freud

Ego Defense Mechanism

unconscious strategies used by the ego to protect itself from anxiety and perceived threats

Preconscious Mind

contains thoughts and feelings that are not currently in conscious awareness, but can be easily accessed when needed

Denial

when an individual refuses to accept their reality, protecting themselves from uncomfortable truths

Displacement

when an individual redirects their reaction or emotional response to a safer or more acceptable substitute

Projection

when an individual project their feelings, thoughts, or motives to someone else

Rationalization

when an individual justify an uncomfortable thought or behavior to make it seem more rational

Reaction Formation

when an individual acts in the opposite way they feel

Regression

when an individual reverts to earlier stages of development when faced with heightened stress

Repression

distressing thoughts and feelings are unconsciously blocked from entering conscious awareness

Sublimation

negative urges and impulses are channeled into socially acceptable or constructive activities

Ego

plays a crucial role in personality by regulating impulses, interacting with external stimuli, and mediating between the id and superego

Superego

represents a person’s ideals, moral values, and judgments

Id

strives to satisfy a person’s most basic drives, focusing on pleasure or instant gratification

Projective Tests

tools used by psychodynamic personality psychologists to assess personality by eliciting response that reveal the contents of the pre-conscious and unconscious mind

Humanistic Psychology

Emphasized the study of the whole person and the uniqueness of each individual, focusing on self-growth, unconditional positive regard, and personal potential

Unconditional Positive Regard

support, love, and acceptance an individual gets from others without any conditions or judgments

Self-Actualizing Tendency

innate drive to grow and develop to reach potential

Social-Cognitive Theory

emphasizes the influence of cognitive processes, behaviors, and environment in understanding personality and human action

Reciprocal Determinism

an individual’s behavior, personal factors, and environment all influence each other interactively

Self-Esteem

how positively a person views themselves

Self-Efficacy

the belief in one’s own ability to succeed in specific situations or accomplishing a task

Self-Concept

an individual’s perception of themselves, encompassing self-awareness and the evaluation of their role in relation to others

Trait-Theories of Personality

personality is made up of stable characteristics, called traits, that consistently influence how a person thinks and behaves

Big Five Theory of Personality

suggests that five broad dimensions of personality describe the main traits of human personality; OCEAN

Openness

imagination, creativity, curiosity, and willingness to be open to new ideas

Conscientiousness

organization, dependability, discipline, and goal-direct behaviors

Extraversion

sociability, enthusiasm, assertiveness, and a strong preference for social interaction

Agreeableness

trustworthiness, altruism, kindness, and affection

Neuroticism (Emotional Stability)

a person’s tendency to experience emotional stability and remain calm under stress

Personality Inventories

specialized questionnaire that measures where they fall on each of the Big Five traits

Factor Analysis

statistical method that identifies clusters of related questions, helping researchers determine which items on the test measure the same underlying trait

Motivation

biological, social, and cognitive forces all of which influence an individual to take action

Primary Needs

basic biological needs, such as food, water, or sleep, that are innate and must be met to maintain a person’s well-being

Secondary Needs

psychological needs that help with a person’s well being and social fulfillment

Instincts

innate, fixed patterns of behavior that are triggered by specific stimuli, driving them to act in predictable ways; applies to animals

Drive-Reduction Theory

motivated by the need to reduce internal drives caused by physiological deficits, aiming to restore homeostasis

Ghrelin

hunger hormone that stimulates appetite

Leptin

satiety hormone that tells you you’re full

Arousal Theory

motivated by maintaining an optimal level of alertness, seeking to increase alertness when it is too low and decrease it when it is too high

Yerkes-Dodson Law

Performance increases with physiological or mental arousal, but only to a point. Performance decreases when arousal is too high

Self-Determination Theory

people are motivated by intrinsic and extrinsic factors

Intrinsic Motivation

driven by internal rewards, such as fulfillment

Extrinsic Motivation

driven by external rewards or pressures