AP Psychology 4.3 Psychology of Social Situations

Conformity

Adjusting behavior or thinking to fit in with a group standard.

Social Script

culturally modeled guide for how to act in various situations.

Conformity

Adjusting behavior or thinking to fit in with a group standard.

Social Script

culturally modeled guide for how to act in various situations.

Chameleon Effect

In an experiment, a confederate/collaborator of the experimenter intentionally rubbed his/her face or shook a foot; this seemed to lead to greater likelihood of the study participant doing the same behavior.

Asch’s Line Study

Experiment on conformity

Normative Social Influence

Going along with others in pursuit of social approval or belonging (and to avoid disapproval/rejection).

Informative Social Influence

Going along with others because their ideas and behavior make sense, the evidence in our social environment changes our minds.

Milgram’s Obedience Study

test to see the effects of punishment on learning

Social Norms

Shared expectations and rules that guide behavior within a society or group.

Personal Control

our sense of controlling our environment rather than feeling helpless

Internal Locus of Control

the perception that we control our own fate

External Locus of Control

the perception that chance or outside forces beyond our personal control determine our fate

Social Facilitation

improved performance on simple or well-learned tasks in the presence of others.

Social Impairment

reduced performance on difficult or unpracticed tasks in the presence of others.

Social Loafing

the tendency for people in a group to exert less effort when pooling efforts toward a common goal than if they were individually accountable.

The Bystander Effect

is the tendency for any given bystander to be less likely to give aid if other bystanders are present.

Social Situation

Influences or even controls behavior

Multiculturalism

the coexistence or acceptance of multiple cultural traditions within a society, influences how individuals perceive themselves and interact with others.

Collectivism

people who live in cultures that focus on the group to a great extent.

Halo Effect

serves as a shortcut for judgement and decision making

Groupthink

referring to the tendency to make bad decisions because of the illusion that the plan of action is a good one and is supported by all members of the group.

Diffusion of responsibility

the phenomenon that someone witnessing a problem is less likely to take action when others are also present because they assume that others are taking on the responsiblity.

Deindividualism

the loss of identity as a result of participation in a larger group, which lessens the sense of personal responsibility for one’s actions and can lead to a higher degree of aggression.

False Consensus Effect

refers to the tendency of individuals to overestimate the extent to which their beliefs, opinions, preferences, and behaviors are common and shared by others.

Social Traps

When individuals, groups, organizations, or whole societies act in their own self-interest and make choices that, cumulatively, lead to negative outcomes.

Burnout

A state of chronic stress that leads to physical an emotional exhaustion, detachment, and feelings of ineffectiveness.

Altruism

selfless behavior performed out of concern for the well-being of others.

Social Debt

the implicit expectation that arises in social relationships when one individual performs an action that benefits another, creating a perceived indebtedness.

Social reciprocity norm

suggests that individuals are more likely to help those who have helped them in the past, thereby creating a cycle of mutual assistance.

Social responsibility norm

suggests that people act in prosocial ways out of a sense of moral obligation to support those who are in need and without any expectation of direct reciprocation.

Situational variables

the presence and behaviors of others in a situation

attention variables

others factors that explain people’s inaction in emergency situations.

Group Polarization

The tendency for people to hold even more extreme views on topics after a group discussion of like-minded people.

Mere Exposure Effect

the phenomenon that repeated exposure to novel stimuli increases liking of them.

Passionate Love

An aroused state of intense positive absorption in another, usually present at the beginning of a love relationship.

Companionate Love

A deep, affectionate attachment we feel for those with whom our lives are intertwined.

Social Exchange Theory

states that our social behavior is an exchange process, the aim of which is to maximize benefits and minimize costs.

Social Responsibility norm

an expectation that people will help those in need of help

Mirror-image perceptions

mutual views often held by conflicting people, as when each side sees itself as ethical and peaceful and views the other side as evil and aggressive.

Self-fulfilling prophecy

a phenomenon in which a belief in something causes it to come true.

Superordinate goal

shared goal that overrides differences among people and requires their cooperation.