Social Psychology Exam 3

What is cognitive dissonance?

Discomfort caused by recognizing a conflict between one’s actions, beliefs, or values, which can motivate a person to reduce the inconsistency.

Why might a small incentive produce more attitude change than a large incentive?

A small incentive may not sufficiently explain why someone acted against their beliefs, so they may change their attitude to reduce dissonance. A large incentive provides a stronger external justification.

How does self-perception theory differ from cognitive dissonance theory?

Self-perception theory says people infer their attitudes by observing their own behavior, especially when their attitudes are unclear. Dissonance theory focuses on discomfort caused by inconsistency between important beliefs and actions.

What is the central route to persuasion?

Careful consideration of a message’s arguments. It is more likely when people are motivated and able to think about the issue, and it can produce lasting attitude change.

What is the peripheral route to persuasion?

Persuasion based on cues such as a communicator’s attractiveness or confidence rather than close evaluation of arguments. It can produce temporary or less durable attitude change.

What is agenda setting?

The way the information environment can shape which issues people consider important by giving some topics more attention or prominence.

How can selective exposure influence attitudes?

People may seek information that supports their existing views and avoid information that challenges them, reinforcing those views over time.

What is the hostile media phenomenon?

People on opposing sides of an issue may each perceive the same balanced coverage as biased against their own side.

When are attitudes most likely to predict behavior?

When the attitude is strong and accessible, measured at a level of specificity that matches the behavior, and not outweighed by competing norms or practical barriers.

What are the cognitive, affective, and behavioral components of an attitude?

Cognitive is what someone believes, affective is how someone feels, and behavioral is how someone acts or intends to act toward the attitude object.

How can behavior come before attitude change?

People may adjust their attitudes to fit behavior they have already chosen, particularly when they have little external justification for acting that way.

What is the difference between conformity, compliance, and obedience?

Conformity is matching a group’s behavior or beliefs, compliance is agreeing to a request, and obedience is following a command from an authority.

What is normative social influence?

Influence driven by the desire to fit in, gain approval, or avoid rejection.

What is informational social influence?

Influence driven by the belief that other people have useful information about what is correct, especially in uncertain situations.

How can group unanimity affect conformity?

A unanimous group can increase pressure to conform, while even one dissenter can make it easier for someone to resist.

What is step-by-step involvement?

A process in which a person is drawn into increasingly demanding actions through small steps that may seem acceptable individually.

How did step-by-step involvement operate in Milgram’s study?

The shock level rose in 15-volt increments, making each increase seem small even as the sequence progressed toward an extreme level.

What did Burger’s 2009 near-replication examine?

It examined whether participants would continue after delivering 150 volts, when the learner began to protest.

What did participants do in Burger’s 2009 study after the learner protested at 150 volts?

Seventy percent were willing to administer the next level, 165 volts.

What is reactance theory?

The idea that people may experience an unpleasant state of arousal when they believe their freedom is threatened and respond by reasserting that freedom.

What can help someone resist social pressure?

Practice, having an ally, noticing when demands are escalating, and taking time to evaluate a request can all help.

Why can an ally make it easier to resist group pressure?

An ally shows that disagreement is possible and can reduce the sense that the person is alone against the group.

Why can delaying a response help someone resist pressure?

It allows a person to consider the request on its merits instead of reacting under intense emotion or a bad mood.

What is the thought polarization hypothesis?

The hypothesis that extended thought about an issue tends to make an attitude more extreme and entrenched.

How can knowledge help people resist persuasion?

People with more knowledge may have more and stronger counterarguments available to defend their attitudes.

Why can moral conviction make an attitude resistant to persuasion?

Changing an attitude tied to a sense of right and wrong can feel like violating an important moral principle.

How can moral framing make a message more persuasive?

A position may be more persuasive when it is connected to moral principles that matter to the target audience.

What is attitude inoculation?

Exposure to small challenges to an attitude that gives people practice defending it and can prepare them to resist a stronger persuasive attack.

How does public commitment sometimes strengthen an attitude?

Stating a position publicly can create pressure to remain consistent with it, making a person more likely to defend that position.

What is Terror Management Theory?

The theory that people manage anxiety about death by defending valued cultural worldviews and feeling that they meet their culture’s standards.

What is symbolic immortality in Terror Management Theory?

A sense that part of oneself will endure through connection to something lasting, such as family, culture, religion, or social institutions.

How can self-esteem help manage death-related anxiety in Terror Management Theory?

Feeling like a valued member of one’s culture can help buffer anxiety associated with awareness of death.

What is mortality salience?

Making thoughts of death especially noticeable, for example by asking participants to write about their own death.

How can mortality salience affect attitudes toward groups?

Some studies have found that it can increase commitment to ingroups and hostility toward outgroups.

What did the 2004 election study report about mortality salience and candidate ratings?

In the dental-pain control condition, John Kerry’s rating was 5.3 and George W. Bush’s was 2.3. In the mortality-salience condition, Kerry’s rating was 3.9 and Bush’s was 5.3.

What caution applies to evidence for Terror Management Theory?

A large-scale replication of 21 TMT studies failed to replicate the worldview-defense hypothesis, so more research is needed to identify which claims replicate and under what conditions.

How might a gradual series of small requests affect someone’s choices?

Each step may make the next one seem like a minor extension of what the person already agreed to, potentially leading to a choice they might have rejected at the outset.

What is the foot-in-the-door technique?

A requester begins with a small request and then makes a larger related request, often drawing on the person’s desire to be consistent with their earlier agreement.

What is the door-in-the-face technique?

A requester begins with a large request likely to be refused and then makes a smaller request, which can feel like a concession and encourage agreement.

How does reciprocity encourage compliance?

People may feel pressure to return a favor or concession, making them more likely to agree to a request.

How can a person recognize and resist a slippery slope?

They can pause to consider where a series of small steps is leading and decide whether they would agree to the final action if it were requested directly.

Exam-style application: A person agrees to a minor action and later faces a much more serious request. What concept could help explain their continued involvement?

Step-by-step involvement, because gradual escalation can make each new demand seem small compared with the previous one.

Exam-style application: A person hears a persuasive argument while distracted and decides based mainly on the speaker’s confidence. Which persuasion route is most likely?

The peripheral route, because the person relies on a source cue rather than carefully evaluating the argument.

Exam-style application: A person feels pressured to agree with a group but changes their mind after one member openly disagrees. What does this illustrate?

An ally or dissenter can make resistance easier by breaking the group’s unanimity.