Intro to Social Psych Exam 2

For Prof Molix's Spring 2024 class

natural selection

the evolutionary process by which heritable traits that best enable organisms to survive and reproduce in particular environments are passed to ensuing generations

evolutionary psychology

the study of the evolution of cognition and behavior using principles of natural selection

emotions

a complex reaction pattern, involving experiential, behavioral, and physiological elements

What are the 4 components of emotions?

• Cognitive

• Subjective

• Behavioral

• Physiological

face validity

the degree to which a procedure, especially a psychological test or assessment, appears effective in terms of its stated aims

What is Mesquita’s Sociocultural Theory of Emotions?

some aspects of emotions may be universal, other aspects vary across cultures

status

social standing or rank within the group

authority

power to enforce obedience

gender

the characteristics, whether biological or socially influenced, that we associate with males and females

sex

the two biological categories of male and female

transgender

someone whose psychological sense of being male or female differs from their birth sex

testosterone

a hormone more prevalent in males than females that is linked to dominance and aggression

androgynous

mixing both masculine and feminine characteristics

culture

the enduring behaviors, ideas, attitudes, and traditions shared by a large group of people and transmitted from generation to the next

epigenetics

the study of environmental influences on gene expression that occur without DNA change

norms

standards for accepted and expected behavior

personal space

the buffer zone we like to maintain around our bodies; size depends on our culture and our familiarity with whoever is near us

gender roles

a set of behavior expectations (norms) for males and females

conformity

a change in belief or behavior as the result of real or imagined group pressure

What is social dominance theory?

the tendency for humans to form social systems and to form group-based social hierarchies

just-world thinking

people get what they deserve; leads men and women to justify the existing social arrangements

What is role accumulation theory?

the strain from multiple roles may be compensated for by buffers against failure in other roles

acceptance

conformity that involves both acting and believing in accord with social pressure; when you genuinely believe in what the group has persuaded you to do

compliance

conformity that involves publicly acting in accord with an implied or explicit request while privately disagreeing

obedience

a type of compliance involving acting in accord with a direct order or command

mass hysteria

suggestibility to problems that spreads throughout a large group of people

cohesive

a “we feeling;” the extent to which members of a group are bound together, such as by attraction to one another; more cohesion, more power group gains oveer its members

normative influence

conformity based on a person’s desire to fulfill others’ expectations, often to gain acceptance; “going along with the crowd” to avoid rejection, to stay in people’s good graces, or to gain their approval

informational influence

conformity occurring when people accept evidence about reality provided by other people; stems from desire to be right; ex. using the same fork others are using at a dinner party

reactance

a motive to protect or restore one’s sense of freedom; arises when someone threatens our freedom of action; being told to do something because it is healthy and then being less inclined to do so

social influence

efforts by one or more individuals to change that attitudes, beliefs, perceptions, or behaviors of one or more others

descriptive norms

rules people feel they have to follow based on what the typical person may do

injunctive norms

rules people feel they have to follow based on what other people expect of them

What is the normative focus theory?

norms will influence behavior only to the extent that they are focal for the persons at the time the behavior occurs

chameleon effect

auto behavior done without conscious intention to conform

persuasion

the process by which a message induces change in beliefs, attitudes, or behaviors

central route to persuasion

occurs when interested people focus on the arguments and respond with favorable thoughts

peripheral route to persuasion

occurs when people are influenced by incidental cues, such as a speaker’s attractiveness

credibility

believability; a credible communicator is perceived as both expert and trustworthy.

sleeper effect

a delayed impact of a message that occurs when an initially discounted message becomes effective, such as we remember the message but forget the reason for discounting it

attractiveness

having qualities that appeal to an audience; an appealing communicator (often someone similar to the audience) is most persuasive on matters of subjective preference

foot-in-the-door phenomenon

the tendency for people who have first agreed to a small request to comply later with a larger request

lowball technique

a tactic for getting people to agree to something; people who agree to an initial request will often still comply when the requester ups the ante.

door-in-the-face technique

a strategy for gaining a concession; after someone first turns down a large request, the same requester counteroffers with a more reasonable request

primacy effect

other things being equal, information presented first usually has the most influence

recency effect

information presented last sometimes has the most influence; less common than primacy effects

two-step flow of communication

the process by which media influence often occurs through opinion leaders, who in turn, influence others

need for cognition

the motivation to think and analyze; prefer central routes of persuasion

attitude inoculation

exposing people to weak attacks upon their attitudes so that when stronger attacks come, they will have refutations available

What are Cialdini’s Six “Principles of Persuasion” and a quick explanation of each?

• Reciprocity —> we feel obligated to repay favors, so we agree to repay a person

• Consistency —> people want to be consistent with their past thoughts, behaviors, and commitments

• Social proof —> social influence

• Liking —> the communicator is likable

• Authority —> Communicator seems to possess greater expertise/experience/talent/assertiveness/power, so they probably know what they are talking about

• Scarcity —> If something is in limited supply, we tend to value it more

boomerang effect

unintended consequences of an attempt to persuade resulting in the adoption of an opposing position instead

What are the 4 influences on persuasion?

• Who (the source/communicator)

• What (the message content)

• How (the medium/channel)

• Who’s listening (the audience)

What characterizes a cult?

• distinctive ritual beliefs related to devotion to someone or something

• isolation

• charismatic leader

group

two or more people who, for longer than a few moments, interact with and influence one another and perceive one another as “us”

co-actors

co-participants working individually on a noncompetitive activity

social facilitation

the tendency of people to perform simple or well-learned tasks better when others are present

evaluation apprehension

concern for how others are evaluating us

social loafing

the tendency for people to exert less effort when they pool their efforts toward a common goal than when they are individually accountable

deindividuation

loss of self-awareness and evaluation apprehension; occurs in group situations that foster responsiveness to group norms, good or bad

group polarization

group-produced enhancement of members’ preexisting tendencies; a strengthening of the members’ average tendency, not a split within the group

pluralistic ignorance

a false impression of what most other people are thinking or feeling, or how they are responding

groupthink

the tendency of decision-making groups to suppress opposing views in the interest of group harmony

task leadership

leadership that organizes work, sets standards, and focuses on goals

social leadership

leadership that builds teamwork, mediates conflict, and offers support

transformational leadership

leadership that, enabled by a leader’s vision and inspiration, exerts significant influence

social inhibition

the tendency of people to perform complex or unfamiliar tasks worse when others are present

social compensation

tendency to work harder in a group to make up for the weakness of others in a group task; especially evident when task is important to person or motivation is high

How do you prevent social loafing?

group selection & task selection