AP psychology - unit 4

attributions

how people explain behavior and mental processes

• dispositional (internal qualities, ex. IQ)

• situational (external circumstances)

explanatory style

how people explain good and bad things

• optimistic (+) vs pessimistic (-)

actor/observer

when you’re the actor, you blame external factors but when you’re the observer, you assume that’s who a person is (ex. your bad mood is acceptable but another person’s bad mood is a problem with them)

fundamental attribution error

underestimate situation & overestimate dispersion (ex. thinking server is unfriendly when their behavior could be the result of a long day)

self-serving bias

take credit for the good but distancing from your responsibility for the bad (ex. good grade, YAY ME but bad grade, teacher hates me)

locus of control

• internal (I determine the outcome)

• external (outside forces determine the outcome)

mere exposure effect

tendency to like things the more we see/hear them (ex. songs on the radio)

self-fulfilling prophecy

living up/down other’s or your own expectations (ex. treating ‘gifted’ kids differently can led them to succeed)

social comparison

comparing oneself to others

• upward (motivator)

• downward (not motivator)

relative deprivation

when one feels worse in comparison to others, despite not feeling bad before

stereotype

generalized concept, group schema

• can be positive or negative

cognitive load

amount of mental effort required to process information, can decrease stereotypes

prejudiced attitudes

negative attitudes, hostility

discriminatory behaviors

unjust behaviors and actions

implicit attitudes

gut reaction

just-world phenomenon

“you get what you deserve” [ex. blame SA on yourself]

out-group homogeneity bias

when all people outside of your group are similar [ex. all ____ look the same]

in-group bias

believing your group > > > others

ethnocentrism

thinks one’s own culture is superior

belief perseverance

clinging to one’s belief despite evidence against said belief (think confirmation bias, seeing what you want to see)

cognitive dissonance

mental discomfort when you believe one thing but act oppositely (ex. loving the planet but overconsuming)

social norms

expectations and roles for society members

social influence theory

social pressure can be …

• normative (want to fit it, be ‘normal’)

• informational (want to be right, accept the opinions of others)

central persuasion

persuaded by evidence and agruement (more thinking)

peripheral persuasion

persuaded by looks and fame (less thinking)

halo effect

seeing one good quality and expecting all good qualities (ex. good at math to angel of a person)

foot-in-the-door

when one asks for a small favor to build up to a big favor (ex. $5 to $50)

door-in-the-face

when one asks for a big favor to make a small favor more appealing (ex. $500 to $5)

social reciprocity norm

expectation to behave similarly & repay favors

group polarization

when group discussion leads to extreme attitudes (ex. i don’t like this teacher → ugh i hate them so much too!)

groupthink

when the desire for group harmony overrides individual opinions

diffusion of responsibility

how responsibility is shared among people

• bystander effect - assumes other will carry more responsibility

social loafing

when one puts less effort because they are in a group

deindividuation

decrease of self-awareness, increase of anonymity (ex. student section)

social facilitation

when people are watching…

• increased performance for well-learned tasks

• decreased performance for difficult

superordinate goals

shared goals require cooperation, reducing prejudice

social traps

when one does what is best for themselves not others

social responsibility norm

expectation to help others

ego defense mechanisms

• denial (not accepting the truth)

• displacement (taking out your anger on uninvolved person)

• projection (accusing another of your emotions)

• rationalization (justifying your behavoir)

• reaction formation (reducing stress by adopting opposite belief)

• regression (using copy strategies from early development)

• repression (suppressing the pain)

• sublimation (channeling emotion into something socially acceptable)

preconscious

holds the information that we are NOT currently thinking BUT could be (ex. when asked about yesterday’s lunch, you will think of it despite not in mind before)

social-cognitive theory: reciprocal determinism

personality is shaped by the interaction between person/internal cognition, environment, and behavior factors

• self-concept (who you are, how others see you)

• self-efficacy (see own ability to do smth)

• self-esteem (see own value and worth)

big 5 trait theory

theory suggest personality is made up of

• agreeableness

• openness to experience

• extraversion

• conscientiousness

• emotional stability

drive-reduction theory

when (biological) need are NOT met, then motivation is geared to address this

arousal theory

when seeking the optimum level of excitement motivates one

self-determination

motivated to satisfy autonomy, competence, relatedness

Yerkes-Dodson Law

if low difficulty, high arousal

if high difficulty, low arousal

moderate preferred but varies with task

motivational conflicts theory

making a choice can be motivating

• approach-approach (+ and +)

• approach-avoidance (+ and -)

• avoidance-avoidance (- and -)

sensation-seeking theory

motivated by new experiences

• experience seeking (ex. traveling)

• thrill or adventure seeking (ex. skydiving)

• disinhibition (ex. social behaviors, party)

• boredom susceptibility (bored of routine)

leptin, ghrelin, orexin

3 hormones signal that we are hungry

pituitary gland

master gland of the endocrine system

facial-feedback hypothesis

your facial expressions influence your emotions (ex. those with lips pursued were more upset)

cognitive label

relating to the theory that says instead of arousal → emotion OR at the same time, arousal + cognitive label → emotion

(ex. pounding heart + “i’m scared” → fear)

broaden-and-bulid theory

your emotions have long-term effects

• + experiences open mind to growth

• - experiences stunts growth & awareness