Learn: psych chapter 6 | Quizlet

person perception

the mental processes we use to evaluate and think about other people

physical cues

the physical characteristics and behaviours of people that influence our impressions of them

halo effect

the tendency to allow an overall positive impression of a person or a specific quality to influence beliefs and expectations about the person in other qualities

reverse halo effect

an incorrect assumption that a positive characteristic indicates the presence of negative characteristics.

horn effect

an incorrect assumption that a negative characteristic indicates the presence of one or more other negative characteristics.

body language

non-verbal communication involving expression of feelings and thoughts through facial expressions, eye gaze, posture, gestures or other movements

impressions

a mental image we create of someone based on the information and physical cues that are presented to us when we first meet someone

behaviour

actions that we personally observe or actions we learn about from others. It also includes their verbal communication — what people say and how they say it.

salience

in relation to person perception, any personal characteristic that is distinctive, prominent, conspicuous or noticeable and therefore attracts attention

social categorisation

the process of classifying people into different groups on the basis of common characteristics

ingroup

any group to which an individual belongs or with which an individual identifies; compare with outgroup

outgroup

any group to which an individual does not belong or identify; compare with ingroup

attribution

the process by which we explain the cause of our own or another person's behaviour; also used to refer to the explanation we come up with

internal attribution

an explanation of behaviour due to the characteristics of the person involved, such as their personality, ability, attitude, motivation, mood or effort

external attribution

an explanation of behaviour due to factors associated with the situation the person is in

3 types of bias effecting attribution

fundamental attribution error, actor-observer bias, self-serving bias

fundamental bias error

when explaining someone's behaviour, the tendency to overestimate the influence of personal factors and underestimate the impact of situational factors; behaviour is attributed to internal rather than external factors

actor observer bias

the tendency to attribute one's own behaviour to external or situational factors, while attributing others' behaviour to internal or personal factors

self-serving bias

when judging ourselves, the tendency to take the credit for our successes (internal factors) and attribute failures to external situational factors

attitude

an evaluation a person makes about an object, person, group, event or issue

tri-component model of attitudes

an explanation of attitudes, in terms of three related components — affective, behavioural and cognitive — that comprise any attitude

affective component

in the tricomponent model, the emotional reaction or feeling an individual has towards an object, person, group, event or issue

behavioural component

in the tri-component model of attitudes, the way in which an attitude is expressed through our actions (or how we might behave should the opportunity arise)

cognitive component

in the tricomponent model, the beliefs an individual has about an object, person, group, event or issue

social stigma

the negative attitudes and beliefs held in the wider community that lead people to fear, exclude, avoid or unfairly discriminate against people with a disorder

cognitive dissonance

an unpleasant psychological state that occurs when people become aware that there is an inconsistency among their various beliefs, or attitudes.

cognitive bias

a mistaken way of thinking that leads to systematic errors of judgment and faulty decision-making

Anchoring bias

cognitive bias influencing the tendency to rely heavily on the very first piece of information received (called the anchor) when making a decision and to not modify this anchor sufficiently in light of later information

Attentional bias

cognitive bias influencing the tendency to prioritise attention to certain information (or other stimuli) over other information

Confirmation bias

cognitive bias influencing the tendency to seek, recall or interpret information in a way that confirms existing beliefs or expectations, while dismissing or failing to seek contradictory evidence

False-consensus bias

cognitive bias influencing the tendency to overestimate the extent to which other people are like them in terms of sharing beliefs, personal characteristics or behaviours

Hindsight bias

cognitive bias influencing the tendency, only after an event has occurred, to overestimate the extent to which the outcome could have been foreseen

misinformation effect

cognitive bias influencing the tendency for information acquired after an event to influence the accuracy of the memory of the original event

Optimism bias

cognitive bias influencing the tendency to overestimate the likelihood of experiencing positive events and underestimate the likelihood of experiencing negative events in the future

Dunning-Kruger effect

cognitive bias whereby people overestimate their knowledge or ability, particularly in areas with which they have little to no knowledge or experience

heuristic

a strategy for solving a problem or making a decision that is based on experience with similar types of problems but cannot guarantee a correct outcome

availability heuristic

making a judgment based on how easy or difficult it is to bring specific examples to mind

representativeness heuristic

a strategy for solving a problem or making a decision that is based on experience with similar types of problems

affect heuristic

making a judgment that is influenced by the emotion being experienced at the time

prejudice

a negative attitude towards another person or social group, formed in advance of any experience with that person or group

old-fashioned prejudice

a form of prejudice in which members of the majority group openly reject minority group members and their views towards the minority group are obvious and recognisable to others; compare with modern prejudice

modern prejudice

a form of prejudice which tends to be subtle, hidden and expressed in ways more likely to be accepted within the majority group; compare with old-fashioned prejudice

Explicit prejudice

consciously held and usually deliberately thought about

implicit prejudice

prejudice that is unconsciously held so the individual is usually unaware of it; compare with explicit prejudice

Discrimination

when a person or a social group is treated differently than others

Direct discrimination

when someone treats another person unfavourably because of a personal characteristic protected by the law; compare with indirect discrimination

Indirect discrimination

unreasonable requirement, condition or practice that disadvantages a person, or a group of people, because of a personal characteristic; compare with direct discrimination

intergroup contact

involves increasing contact between groups who are prejudiced against each other in an attempt to reduce prejudice

contact hypothesis

in relation to reducing prejudice, proposes that certain types of contact between members of different groups can reduce prejudice between them

superordinate goal

a goal that cannot be achieved by any one group alone and overrides other existing goals which each group might have

aggregation

a collection of people in one location who have no obvious social structure or organisation, and who have minimal shared purpose

culture

the way of life of a particular community or group that sets it apart from other communities and groups

individualist cultures

that prioritise the needs and goals of the individual and value independence

Collectivist cultures

that prioritise the needs and goals of the group.

social identity theory

outlines the tendency for people to favour their in-group over the out-group in order to enhance their sense of self-esteem.

social loafing

refers to an individual's reduction in effort when work is performed in a group as compared to individually, due to the belief that others will put in the effort.

status

the importance of an individual's position in the group, as perceived by members of the group

power

an individual's (or group's) ability to control or influence the thoughts, feelings or behaviour of another person (or group)

social power

use of power in a social interaction to control or influence another person (or group)

reward power

groupthink

a way of thinking by individual members of a group characterised by a strong tendency to seek agreement when decision-making

group polarisation

the tendency of an individual group member to shift their initially held views to a more extreme position.

social comparison

the process of evaluating our attitudes and abilities by comparing ourselves to other people.

deindividuation

●Deindividuation is characterised by reduced self-consciousness, inhibition, feelings of personal responsibility and inner restraint that can occur when in a group or crowd.

obedience

following the commands of someone with authority, or the rules or laws of our society

constructive obedience

when there is compliance with the orders of an authority that results in a positive outcome

destructive obedience

when there is compliance with the orders of an authority that results in a negative outcome

conformity

the tendency to adjust one's thoughts, feelings or behaviour so that they become more consistent with those of others or with accepted standards about how a person should behave in certain situations (social norms)

factors affecting conformity

the size of the group

whether or not the group members are unanimous in their views

whether the group is viewed as being a valuable source of information

awareness of accepted standards about how one should behave (normative influence)

cultural background

social loafing.

unanimity

complete agreement among group members

informational influence

when conformity results from a need for direction and information on how to respond in a specific situation

normative influence

occurs when a response is guided by one or more social norms for a particular situation

factors effecting groupthink

high level of cohesiveness

strong leader

group lacks procedures

group is isolated from outside influences

group is under stress

factors affecting deindividuation

anonymity

shift in attention

factors affecting obedience

social proximity

legitmacy of authority

group pressure

anti-conformity

the deliberate refusal to comply with accepted standards in a society, it is often accompanied by the expression of ideas, beliefs, or judgments that challenge those standards

reactance

a response to a perceived threat to freedom that may cause an individual to rebel