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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
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