Psychology Interpersonal Relationships

Pre-IB 2025 T3 revision :) covers: social identity theory, social learning theory, enculturation, conformity, compliance techniques, acculturation, cognitive dissonance, cultural dimensions, etic, emic, methodology and ethics :)

What is social categorisation?

The process of classifying people into groups based on similar characteristics.

What is social identification?

Identifying with certain groups, adopting the group's norms, values, and behaviours as part of one's personal and social identity.

What is social comparison?

Comparing the benefits of belonging to the in-group versus the out-group.

people determine their individual value by comparing themselves to others

What is positive distinctiveness?

The need to achieve a favourable social identity by perceiving one's in-group as superior to out-groups.

Social Identity Theory + four interrelated concepts

Tajfel

•We are made up of many different "social selves" which are not all salient at once.

•We create in-groups and out-groups and prioritise and favour our in-group

•We discriminate against out-groups to increase our self-esteem

•We exaggerate the difference between in and out-groups

Social Categorisation

Social Identification

Social Comparison

Positive Distinctiveness

Social Learning Theory + who + 4 key elements

Bandura

We learn not only from our own experiences but also from observing and interacting with others. Bandura (1977) believes humans are active information processors and think about the relationship between their behaviour and its consequences. We think before we act or before we imitate behaviours we have observed depending on the results of that behaviour.

4 key elements:

attention

retention

reproduction

motivation

What is the first step in social learning theory?

Attention: The learner must pay attention to the model's behaviour and its consequences.

What is the second step in social learning theory?

Retention: The learner must be able to remember the observed behaviour.

What is the third step in social learning theory?

Reproduction: The learner must be able to physically and mentally reproduce the observed behaviour.

What is the fourth step in social learning theory?

Motivation: The learner must have a reason or incentive to reproduce the behaviour.

Enculturation: Gender roles

The gradual acquisition of the characteristics, norms, values and world-view of one's culture or group by a person, family, another culture, etc. Also known as socialisation.

We learn what is expected of us, such as, gender roles, how to dress, when to be independent, speak out, stay quiet, what and when to eat, respect for others etc.

What is conformity?

Conformity is the act of matching one's attitudes, beliefs, and behaviours to align with those of a group or social norms.

key terms:

informational social influence

normative social influence

positive-self-image

social identity theory 4 tenets

[ ] Social categorization: The process of classifying people into groups based on similar characteristics.

[ ] Social identification: Identifying with certain groups, adopting the group's norms, values, and behaviours as part of their own personal and social identity, feeling a sense of belonging and connection to that group.

[ ] Social comparison: Comparing the benefits of belonging to the in-group versus the out-group.

[ ] Positive distinctiveness: The need to achieve a favourable social identity by perceiving one's in-group as superior to out-groups

social learning theory 4 tenets

[ ] Attention: The learner must pay attention to the model to learn a behaviour. Certain factors, including its attractiveness, authority, or desirability, may influence whether attention is paid to the model.

[ ] Retention: The observer must be able to remember the behaviour that has been observed to produce that behaviour immediately or after some time.

[ ] Potential: To reproduce an observed behaviour, observers must be physically and/or mentally able to carry it out—that is, they need to have a certain level of self-efficacy.

[ ] Motivation: Learners must want to replicate the behaviour that they have observed. To do this, they must understand the potential outcome if they repeat the behaviour – what Bandura called outcome expectancies.

What is informational social influence?

leads people to conform, believing the group possesses competent and correct information, especially in ambiguous situations or tasks.

-social comparison to figure out how to behave

What is normative social influence?

Normative social influence occurs when individuals look to others to see how to behave in order to fit in and be accepted.

-fit in with others

How does conformity help maintain a positive self-image?

Conformity can help individuals feel accepted and maintain a sense of belonging.

conformity experiment

Asch Line Experiment

Aim: Investigate the extent that social pressure from a majority group could influence a person to conform, against their own perception.

Procedure: Eight male participants were arranged around a table, but 7 were confederates (there was only 1 real participant). The task was to identify which of the three lines was the same length as another fourth line. The subjects were asked to say which line they thought was the same size. Sometimes they all said the correct line, and sometimes they all said the incorrect line.

Findings & Conclusions: Participants conformed on 32% of the trials, and 26% of participants never conformed. Even in such an obvious situation there is strong group pressure to conform, especially if the pressure is unanimous.

Evaluation: Lacks ecological validity because of the task used. Only males of a specific age bracket and background were used. Demand characteristics could have been caused if the subjects knew they were in an experiment.

Compliance and Techniques

the result of direct pressure to respond to an explicit request.

Foot in the Door - a psychological persuasion tactic where a small, initial request is made to increase the likelihood that a person will later agree to a more significant, larger request. This works because of the principles of consistency and self-perception, where a person's initial "yes" makes them more likely to say "yes" again to justify their previous decision and maintain a consistent self-image.

Acculturation

According to Berry (2004), acculturation is the process of cultural and psychological change that takes place as a result of contact between two or more cultural groups. At the individual level, it involves changes in a person's behaviour.

battle between enculturation - maintaining one's cultural identity - and acculturation, changing one's culture to fit in.

We are social animals - need to belong,- not feeling part of a group can be very stressful. This tension is known as acculturative stress - the stress that may result from acculturation, often resulting in anxiety, depression, and other forms of mental and physical stress. Acculturative stress is often referred to as "culture shock."

key terms

assimilation

integration

separation

marginalisation

What is assimilation in acculturation?

Assimilation is when an individual abandons their original culture and adopts the cultural behaviours and values of their new culture.

What is integration in acculturation?

Integration is when there is an interest in adopting the behaviours and values of the new culture, while still maintaining the original culture.

What is separation in acculturation?

Separation is when migrants maintain their own culture and minimize contact with the new culture.

What is marginalization in acculturation?

Marginalization is when it is not really possible to maintain one's original culture, but because of exclusion or discrimination, it is not possible to assimilate into the new culture.

Cognitive Dissonance

Leon Festinger

attempts to explain how attitudes and behaviour can be changed

we experience dissonance when we act in a way that contradicts our knowledge and/or beliefs, this uncomfortable feeling motivates us to reduce negative emotions

what causes cognitive dissonance

•Contradictory beliefs - holding opposing beliefs simultaneously

•Behaviour conflicting with values - acting against personal beliefs

•Forced/induced compliance behaviour - being pressured to act against true beliefs

•Effort justification - putting time, energy, or effort into something disappointing or unpleasant

•Decision making - choosing between two or more attractive options

•New information - encountering facts that challenge deeply held beliefs

reducing cognitive dissonance

Reducing Cognitive Dissonance

•Change the behaviour

•Change the belief/rationalisation:

oDiscredit the belief

oJustify the behaviour

oReducing the importance of the belief

oIncrease the significance of the behaviour

cultural dimensions

individualism vs collectivism

Culture = learned, shared beliefs, values and behaviours passed from generation to generation

Cultural Dimensions = a framework for understanding cultural differences across nations

Individualism

prioritizes personal autonomy, self-reliance, and individual goals

Collectivism

emphasizes group cohesion, harmony, interdependence, and collective goals over personal desires

prioritising their community

Etic Approach

•Studies behaviour from an outside perspective, aiming to find universal laws or patterns across cultures.

•Uses the same standardised methodology.

•Uses deductive reasoning, deciding what to study and how to analyse it before arriving in the culture.

Emic Approach

•Studies behaviour from within a single culture (with researchers fully immersing themselves in that culture), using culture-specific methods to understand behaviour in that cultural context.

•Uses culture-specific methods (e.g., local language, concepts, traditions) to understand behaviour in that cultural context.

•Uses inductive reasoning, starting with observing the culture before moving towards a hypothesis,

Etic Approach Formula

Theory -> Hypothesis -> Observation -> Confirmation

Emic Approach Formula

observation -> pattern -> tentative hypothesis -> theory

acculturation methods (draw table)

experiments key factors

-manipulation of IV

measurement of DV

-control of extraneous variables

-randomly allocated IV

-qualitative data

-casual relationship between IV and DV

-statistical analysis possible

survey key factors

-closed questions - quantitative data

-open questions = qualitative data

-large samples

-easily analysed

-practical data collection method - quick and less expensive

Festinger et. Al. (1956)

cognitive dissonance

When Prophecy Fails

Aim: to investigate the existence of cognitive dissonance

Festinger joined a doomsday cult (The Seekers led by Dorothy Martin) to see what would happen when the world didn't end - followers left jobs and spouses and all possessions to leave Earth on a flying saucer

Cult needs to justify -why- spaceship didn't come down (to protect self-esteem) - decided that their prayers kept the disaster from occurring

Cognitive dissonance became apparent when believers made up reasons when their belief did not come true

The induced compliance paradigm (nd e.g.)

Festinger and Carlsmith (1959)

a lab situation in which participants are induced to engage in a behavior that runs counter to their true attitudes

Participants paid a small amount ($1) experienced high dissonance and changed their attitude to be more positive about a boring task to justify their behavior, while those paid a large amount ($20) experienced less dissonance and showed little attitude change, as they could easily justify the lie by the payment. 

cognitive dissonance example

belief

Drinking alcohol daily is not healthy and could lead to long-term negative health issues/consequences

action

I drink a glass of wine every night with dinner

self consistency

related to cognitive dissonance

• We see ourselves as good, moral, rational, competent.

• When we act in a way that clashes with that image (immoral, irrational, incompetent), it creates inconsistency.

• To reduce that, we try to restore consistency by rationalising or changing beliefs

Salient behaviour/identification

social identity theory term

most obvious behaviour at the time

salient

social identity theory term

prominent, obvious - when aspects of your identity become salient this is when your behaviour is impacted

Social Selves

social identity theory term

the selves he or she thinks others see, which, in turn, influence how the individual sees himself or herself

(hobbies, subjects, music food ect)

minimal group paradigm

arbitrary criteria (the minimal criteria to make a division)

a social psychology experimental method for studying intergroup bias by creating new, arbitrary groups based on minimal criteria

to demonstrate how mere social categorization can lead to ingroup favoritism

e.g. such as preferences for paintings could create in-groups

factors influencing imitation of a model

-consistency

-identification with the model - imitate models like us, e.g. age and gender, we show in-group bias whether to imitate a model

-liking the model - friendly models more likely to be imitated than cold

-behaviour is rewarded - if model's behaviour is rewarded, more likely to imitate model

why is social learning theory used

Albert Bandura Theory

people learn new behaviors by observing and imitating others, not just through direct reinforcement

provides framework for understanding how people learn new behaviors, skills, and beliefs by observing and imitating others, rather than solely through direct experience or punishmen

direct tuition

enculturation can occur through this-

learning new behaviors, attitudes, or skills through explicit, verbal instruction or guidance from others, rather than through observation or direct experience of reinforcement

enculturation term

(others are also vertical and horizontal learning)

strengths of etic approach

-replicable, increasing reliability

-less time consuming and less expensive

Findings may have global applications, improves situation for many people

limitations of etic approach

-imposed etic - sense of ethnocentrism that biases researcher toward what is 'correct' or 'normal' behaviour

-researcher adopts instruments for assessment rather than adapting or developing new ones that have meaning for the participants - may compromise research's construct and internal validity (instruments include tests, questionnaires, diagnostic tools, and treatments for disorders)

strengths of emic approach

-problem focused and produced solutions that can be directly applied to the studied community

-results confirmed by participants, so can know that interpretations of the research do reflect the reality of the culture

-researchers develop a relationship with the community so that there is sense of trust and openness that can be lacking in etic research

-has potential to be more objective

limitations of emic approach

-can take a long time

-can be very expensive

-instruments they are developing may not be very reliable and may not be yet available about the reliably of the instrument

Etic Approach e.g.

Universal Facial Expressions

-Paul Ekman studied whether emotions are expressed and recognised the same way across cultures. He identified 6 key expressions (happiness, sadness, anger, fear, disgust, and surprise). Participants had identify the emotion depicted

Early research of etic approach

-researchers decided what to study and how to analyse before arriving in field

-analysed and compared to research findings globally with assumption there was commonality of behaviour among all cultures

-analysed behaviour using established theories and data collection methods from their culture or 'mainstream' psychology

Universal behaviours

rules of human behaviour that could be applied to all cultures worldwide.

etic approach term

deductive approach

etic approach decides what to study and how to analyse it before arriving in the culture, this is a deductive approach.

Starts out with general statement or hypothesis, and examines possibilities to reach specific logical conclusion. Uses deduction to test hypothesis and theories

Theory -> Hypothesis -> Observation -> confirmation

repeated measures

an experimental procedure in which research participants are tested or measured more than once

independent measures

Different participants are used in each condition of the independent variable.

matched pairs design

A method of assigning subjects to groups in which pairs of subjects are first matched on some characteristic and then individually assigned randomly to groups.

quasi-experiment

An experiment in which investigators make use of control and experimental groups that already exist in the world at large.

aims to establish a cause-and-effect relationship between an independent and dependent variable.

true experiment

The only research strategy that can determine that something causes something else; involves randomly assigning people to different treatments and then looking at the outcome.

experiment in which every variable but the one being studied is controlled

case study

an observation technique in which one person is studied in depth in the hope of revealing universal principles

types of ethic things

consent, withdrawal, deception, debriefing, protection from harm

Case study strength

In-depth detail and rich qualitative data

Case study limitation

Small samples, hard to generalise

True experiment strength

Shows causation with high control (cause and effect)

True experiment limitation

Artificial setting lowers ecological validity

Quasi experiment strength

Uses natural conditions and existing groups

Quasi experiment limitation

No random allocation so limited causation (difficult to conclude the cause and effect relationship)

Matched pairs design strength

Controls participant variables by matching

Matched pairs design limitation

Time consuming and difficult to match pairs

Independent measures strength

No order effects since different groups

Independent measures limitation

Individual differences may affect results

Repeated measures strength

No participant variables as same group tested

Repeated measures limitation

Order effects such as practice or fatigue or find true purpose

enculturation

process which individuals learn and internalize values, beliefs and norms of their culture, shaping their identities and social behaviours

 

Cultural norm - shared expectation or rule for how individual should behave to be accepted in culture

 

Social norm - unwritten rule or expectation how people should behave in particular group, society or context

enculturation example

 expectations and behaviours culturally assigned to individuals based on their perceived gender. Children exposed to these roles through socializing agents, including family, education, media and peers. Not only teaches means to be masc or fem, but reinforces stereotypes that shape their aspirations, relationships and self-Perceptions