AP Psych 4.1-4.3

Social psychology

the scientific study of how we think about, influence, and relate to one another

Social categorization

Organize people into groups based on common characteristics

Implicit personality theory

general expectations that we build about a person after we know something of their central traits

Person perception

The mental processes we use to form impressions of other people (characteristics of the person, context of the situation, own personal traits)

Mere exposure effect

The tendency to develop a preference for things merely because we are familiar with them

Social comparison

evaluating one's abilities and opinions by comparing oneself with others

Relative deprivation

the perception that one is worse off relative to those with whom one compares oneself

Attribution theory

the theory that we explain someone's behavior by crediting either the situation or the person's disposition

Internal locus of control

the belief that you control your own destiny

External locus of control

The belief that the environment has more control over life circumstances than the individual does.

Fundamental attribution error

the tendency for observers, when analyzing another's behavior, to underestimate the impact of the situation and to overestimate the impact of personal disposition

Actor-observer bias

the tendency to blame our actions on the situation and blame the actions of others on their personalities

Self-serving bias

the tendency for people to take personal credit for success but blame failure on external factors

Prejudice

preconceived opinion that is not based on reason or actual experience

Stereotypes

A generalized belief about a group of people

Implicit vs. Explicit Attitudes

implicit - automatic and non-conscious

explicit - controlled/conscious evaluative responses

Discrimination

unjustifiable negative behavior toward a group and its members

Just world phenomenon

the tendency for people to believe the world is just and that people therefore get what they deserve and deserve what they get

Out-group homogeneity bias

our tendency to see out-group members as being pretty much all alike

In-group bias

the tendency to favor one's own group

Ethnocentricism

judging other cultures by the standards of your own, which you believe to be superior.

Attitudes

feelings, often influenced by our beliefs, that predispose us to respond in a particular way to objects, people, and events

Foot-in-the-door technique

asking for a small commitment and, after gaining compliance, asking for a bigger commitment

Door-in-the-face technique

asking for a large commitment and being refused and then asking for a smaller commitment

Philip Zimbardo's Stanford Prison Experiment

A two-week experiment that simulated the prison life of both prisoners and guards that was ended in just six days because of what the simulation was doing to college students who participated

Belief perseverance

clinging to one's initial conceptions after the basis on which they were formed has been discredited

Confirmation bias

a tendency to search for information that supports our preconceptions and to ignore or distort contradictory evidence

Cognitive dissonance

the state of having inconsistent thoughts, beliefs, or attitudes, especially as relating to behavioral decisions and attitude change.

Elaboration likelihood method

the idea that persuasive messages lead to attitude changes in two ways: via the central route or via the peripheral route

Peripheral route persuasion

a method of persuasion that relies on peripheral factors like the personality of the speaker, or how the message was delivered

Central route persuasion

a method of persuasion that focuses on facts and the content of the message in order to convince the listener

Halo effect

the tendency to draw a general impression about an individual on the basis of a single characteristic

Social norms

expected standards of conduct, which influence behavior

Conformity

Adjusting one's behavior or thinking to coincide with a group standard.

Normative social influence

influence resulting from a person's desire to gain approval or avoid disapproval

Informational social influence

influence resulting from one's willingness to accept others' opinions about reality

Social facilitation

Better performance on simple or well-learned tasks in the presence of others

Social impairment/inhibition

the tendency for the presence of other people to have a negative impact on the performance of a difficult task

Social loafing

the tendency for people in a group to exert less effort when pooling their efforts toward attaining a common goal than when individually accountable

Deindividuation

the loss of self-awareness and self-restraint occurring in group situations that foster arousal and anonymity (crowd in a football game)

Group polarization

the enhancement of a group's prevailing inclinations through discussion within the group

Groupthink

the mode of thinking that occurs when the desire for harmony in a decision-making group overrides a realistic appraisal of alternatives

Individualism

giving priority to one's own goals over group goals and defining one's identity in terms of personal attributes rather than group identifications (US)

Collectivism

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

Multiculturalism

a condition in which ethnic groups exist separately and share equally in economic and political life

Altruism

unselfish concern for the welfare of others

Diffusion of responsibility

the tendency for individuals to feel diminished responsibility for their actions when they are surrounded by others who are acting the same way

Bystander effect

the tendency for any given bystander to be less likely to give aid if other bystanders are present

Social exchange theory

the theory that 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-responsibility norm

an expectation that people will help those dependent upon them (give and take)

Self fulfilling prophecy

a belief that leads to its own fulfillment

Superordinate goals

shared goals that override differences among people and require their cooperation

Industrial-organizational psychology

a subfield of psychology that studies and advises on workplace behavior. (help organizations select and train employees, boost morale and productivity, and design products and assess responses to them)

Elaboration likelihood model (ELM)

people are more likely to carefully process persuasive messages when they are motivated and capable of considering all available information

Cognitive load

the amount of mental resources required to complete a task. It's also known as mental load or mental workload

Upward & downward social comparison

Upward social comparison is when someone compares themselves to someone they think is better than them, while downward social comparison is when someone compares themselves to someone they think is worse than them

Burnout

This is an actual physical and emotional problem that results from excessive on-the- job hassles The symptoms of burnout include fatigue and physical exhaustion, depression, mental fatigue, sleeping problems, etc

Social debt

a feeling of guilt that builds up from unpleasant social interactions. It can also refer to the consequences of poor decisions on people, work environments, and society

Situational variables

environmental factors that can affect a person's behavior, decisions, or outcomes. They are also known as extraneous variables

Attentional variables

factors that affect how a person's brain processes information. These variables include the number and type of stimuli, a person's interest level, and any mental or medical conditions