social psych unit 2 exam

what is heuristics?

mental shortcuts that reduce complex judgements to simple rules of thumb

what is primacy heuristic?

tendency for first info received to carry more weight than later info on one’s overall impression

what is a representativeness heuristic?

tendency to judge the category membership of things based on how closely they match the prototype of that category

“If it looks like a duck and if it quacks like a duck, then it probably is a duck”

representativeness heuristic

if the representativeness heuristic is stereotyping operating in reverse, does that mean that stereotyping is also a heuristic?

yes, stereotyping is definitely a heuristic

what is an availability heuristic?

tendency to judge the frequency or probability of an event in terms of how easy it is to think of examples of that event (how easy it is to think of examples of that event)

what are the anchoring and adjustment heuristic?

tendency to be biased toward the starting value or anchor in making quantitative judgments

heuristics require reasonable accuracy

true

we are more likely to use heuristics if we are overloaded with information

true

people are more likely to use a heuristic if they feel the issue is not important

true

what is counterfactual thinking?

the tendency to evaluate events by imagining alternative versions or outcomes

what is attitude?

a positive or negative evaluation of an object

what is implicit attitude?

automatic affective reactions based on associations that are automatically activated encountering an attitude object; the gut

what is explicit attitude?

evaluate judgements based on logical inferences derived from reflective thinking; the head

what are dual attitudes?

when a person simultaneously holds conflicting implicit and explicit attitudes toward the same object

are implicit attitudes unconscious?

they can be, but aren’t required. sometimes people lack awareness of the source and direction of their implicit attitudes

what is mere exposure?

tendency to develop more positive feelings toward attitude objects the more we are exposed to them

what is festinger’s cognitive dissonance theory?

the idea that we feel a sense of internal tension (dissonance) when our beliefs and behaviors don't match. so we often change our attitudes to justify what we’ve already done

what is self-perception theory?

we don't always have "deep" attitudes. we act as observers of our own lives and look at our behavior and think, "I guess I like this, since I keep doing it."

what is dissonance?

attitude-behavior inconsistency creates unpleasant feelings and unpleasant feelings motivate a desire to restore a feeling of consistency

what is persuasion?

an attempt to change an evaluative orientation

what is the central route (high elaboration)?

we think deeply and critically about the arguments. if the arguments are strong, we are persuaded. attitudes formed here are "brick houses" and resistant to change

what is the peripheral route (low elaboration)?

we don't think much about the content. we are swayed by "cues" like the speaker’s looks or the number of arguments. these attitudes are "straw houses"—quick to build but easy to knock down

what is stereotyping?

generalized set of beliefs about the characteristics of social groups; tend to be culturally consensual

what is outgroup homogeneity effect?

the tendency to see members of an outgroup as "all the same," while seeing one's own group (the ingroup) as diverse and complex

what is illusory correlations?

believing a relationship exists between two variables when it doesn't

what is subtyping?

when we meet someone who defies a stereotype, we often label them as an "exception to the rule" rather than changing our overall belief about the group

what is prejudice?

evaluate reaction (typically negative) to a social group

what is contemptuous prejudice?

negative attitude toward groups perceived as both unfriendly/untrustworthy and incapable

what are contemptuous prejudice examples?

people with very low income, individuals experiencing homelessness, or undocumented immigrants

what is envious prejudice?

contains a mix of "positive" and negative beliefs. you recognize the group is capable and high-status, but you don't trust them

what is envious prejudice examples?

Asian Americans, Jewish people, or "the 1%" (the ultra-wealthy).

what is paternalistic prejudice?

often feels "nice" on the surface, but it’s actually patronizing and keeps the group in a lower social position

what is paternalistic prejudice examples?

older adults, people with disabilities, and traditional "housewives."

what is admiration prejudice?

the only one that yields purely positive emotional reactions, seen as both friendly (warm) and capable (competent), they aren't viewed with prejudice; the group you belong to or close allies

what is discrimination?

differential treatment based on group membership

what is social identity theory?

we boost our own self-esteem by perceiving our "ingroups" as superior to "outgroups."

what is realistic group conflict theory?

the theory that intergroup conflict develops from competition for limited resources

what is the social dominance theory?

societies naturally organize into hierarchies

what is explicit cognition?

deliberate judgments or decisions of which we are consciously aware

what is implicit cognition?

judgments or decisions that are under the control of automatically activated evaluations that occur without our awareness

what is social categorization?

forming categories about people based upon their common attributes

what is a protoype?

the most representative member of a category, a mental model that stands for or symbolizes the category

what is schema?

an organized structure of knowledge about a stimulus that is built up from experience and that contains causal relations; it is a theory about how the social world operates

what is a gender schema?

the cognitive structure for processing information based on perceived female or male qualities

what is a script?

describes how a series of events is likely to occur in a well-known situation

Once a schema is created, it is set in stone and does not change

false

what is primming?

recent exposure to certain stimuli or events increases the accessibility of certain memories, categories, or schemas is known

schemas are both situationally activated and chronically accessible

true