APsych Unit 4

Attribution theory

Why behaviors happen

• Ours & others’

Explanatory style

EX→ How you feel(describe) about your chungus life

A persons general way of explaining the cuases of events in their life- usually negative events

Ex→ Either optimistic or pessimistic

Dispositional Attributions

Ex→ If a student does well on a test, they could attribute it to their intelligence.

Internal characteristics like personality & intelligence

Situational Attributions

Ex→ If a student does not do well on the test, they may blame an unfair test or bad luck.

External attributions, like environmental factors

Fundamental attributions

error

personality > situation

Underesimating the impact of the situational factors

overestimating the impact of dispositional factors when judging why other people acted the way they did

Actor- Observer Bias

EX→ when you come late to school and accept it however, when someone else makes you come late you think of them as lesser.

The tendency to attribute one’s own actions to external causes (actor) while attributing other people’s behaviors to internal causes (observers)

Self-serving Bias

Ex→ When food becomes burnt you dont take accountability while when the food is yummy you take full credit

Blaming external forces when something bad happens to us & giving ourselves credit when good things happen

• Happens when we look at our own behavior

External locus of control

• ex→ Things happen to you

Ex→ A dead animal is an omen of a bad day

Belief that outside forces, rather than internal factors, determine one’s fate & outcomes

• fate, luck, other circumstances ex→ Things happen to you

Internal Locus of Control

Ex→ studying knowing that it can impact me in the long run.

The belief that individuals have control over their own lives & the outcomes of their actions

Ex→ Personal decisions, efforts , abilities, hardwork

• you make things happens

Mere-Exposure Effect

Liking something b/c you see that person or thing often

Self-Fulfilling Prophecy

Ex→ Accepting that the day will be bad b/c you made a mistake and feeling like shit the whole day.

Expectations held by a person that alters their behaviour in a way that makes it become true

Social Comparison

ex→ Industry v Inferiority

The idea that individuals evaluate their own opinions & abilities by comparing themselves to others

Relative Deprivation

Ex→ nepobabies & hollywood

The feeling of discontent from the perception that one is worse off than other’s even if one’s situation is objectively good.

Stereotype

Ex: Asian woman being bad drivers

Illegals being criminals/stealing jobs

A generalized concept about a group

• prejudiced attitudes

• discriminatory behviours

Attitudes

A learned belief

Cognitive Dissonance

Ex: Smoking thinking → “DO I REALLY WANT THAT?”

but doing it anyway for the DOPAMINE boost

Discomfort, b/c your actions are not aligned with your belief

Peripheral Route Persuasion

Occurs when people are influenced by incidental cues, like a speaker’s attractiveness or repeated exposure

• Temporary attitude change

Central Route Persuasion

Ex: The audience engages in deep thinking, critically analyzing the messages content

Given a pamphelt about smoking rathern than → Smoking is very glamorous poster

Influenced by the quality of the argument presented rather than superficial cues

Halo Effect

Rich = smart

Poor = lazy

Generalizing positive qualities to other aspects, even , if there is no evidence to support it

Beauty bias- viewing someone who is beautiful as intelligent & kind even if you havent interacted with them

Foot-in-the-Door Technique

EX: Your parents agreed to let you go to your friend’s house. Later, in the evening, they are more likely to let you spend the night

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

Door-in-the-Face

EX: After saying, “no” to $100, your parents are more likely to say “yes” to your request for $20

After rejecting a large & unreasonable request a person is more likely to agree to a small & reasonable request

Role

A set of expectations about a social position, defining behavior

Social Influence Theory

People’s thoughts feelings, & behaviors are impacted by the presence & actions of those around them.

Normative Social influence

Ex:

Laughing at a joke

Skipping class, even if you dont want to

The pressure to conform to social norms to gain acceptance approval from others

Informational Social Influence

Ex→ learning a new skill at a job by asking coworkers

Conforming to what others sre doing b/c we view hem as a source of accurate information

Social Norms

Ex→ Jewish people being kosher free.

Unwritten rules that dctate acceptance behavior within society or a group

Social Responsability Norm

Ex: lending a pencil to a peer without any expectations

The societal expectations that people should help others who need assitance, without expectating anything in return

Social Reciprocity Norm

Ex→ You scrach my back, i’ll scratch yours.

The expectation that people feel to return favors, kindness, or help that they receive from others.

Bystander Effect

• The more bystanders present, the less likely one person is to help

The phenomenon wherein individuals are less likely to offer help to victim when other people are present

Conformity

The process by which individuals adjust their thoughts, feelings, or behaviour to align witha group

Obedience

The act of following direct commands, usually from an authority figure

• people will follow, even if they contradict personal beliefs or morals

Group polarization

When people from a more extreme group opinion after talking with people who already agree with them

• Incels

Groupthink

Suppressing differing opinions when making decisions in a group to prioritize the need for harmony or conformity

Social Loafing

The tendency for individuals to put in less effort when working in a group than when working alone

Deindividuation

A psychological state in which people lose their self-awareness & individuality in group settings

Social facilitation

When people perform differently when in the presence of others

• perform bette on simple/well-practiced tasks

• worse on complex or new tasks

Personality

Regina from Mean girls being born mean b/c she benefits from it

The enduring behaviours, thought, & emotional patterns that are formed from biological & environmental factors

Psychodynamic Theory

3 main things → Id, Ego, & Superego

by Sigmond Freud

Emphasizes early childhood experiences, unconscious processes, and inner conflict are what shape behaviour & personality

Id

“I want to do that now”

Basic instict

Ego

“Maybe, we can compromise”

Reality

Superego

“its not right to do that.”

Morals & virtues

Defense Mechanisms

Unconcious strategies our brain uses to manage anxiety & internal conflicts between the Id & the superego

Denial

Lemon→ “I’m not Bitter!” In denial

refusal to acknowledge something

Displacement

Transferring emotions or behaviour from one person or thing to another

projection

Cheating spouse accuses their partner of cheating

Accusing someone else of your feelings or behavior

Displacement

Transferring emotions or behaviour from one person or thing to another

reaction Formation

Oh My GOD, I love your bracelet. Where did you get it?

Acting the opposite of how you feel

Sublimination

Kid gets into fightsat a young age grow up to be a boxer

Satisfying an impulse in a socially acceptable way

Unconditional positive regard

Unconditional love acceptance, and nonjudgemental behaviour

Rationalization

i failed becuase my teacher HATES ME

Justification

Regression

when faced with stress

Reverting to child-like behaviour

Repression

unconsciously pushing away unwanted thoughts, feelings or emotions

Projective tests

A psychological test in which words, Images or stereotypes are presented to a person

Humanistic Psychology

Living your best life

A psychological perspective that emphasizes the study of the whole person & the uniqueness of the individual

• focus on human potential, self-fulfillment, & personal growth

Self actualization Tendency

The motivational force that derives people to improve themselves & become the best versions of themseleves

Social-cognitive Theory

Learning occurs in a social context & can happen through observation, imitation, & modeling

Reciprocal Determination

Ex: Students enthusiasm for learning (personal) & lead them to participate (behavior), which can encourage teachers to give them more engaging materials (environment)

Behavior, personal factors, & environmental influences all interact & influence each other

Self-Esteem

Broad evaluation of oneself

Overall sense of self-worth or personal value

Personality Inventories

A questionannaire used to assess traits

• About feelings & behaviours

• Generally self-report inventories

Agreeableness

Low= judgemetal & critical

How friendly or compassionate one is.

Extraversion

Low= solitary or reserved

How outgoing or energetic someone is

Emotional Stability

Low= sesitive or nervous

How resilient or confident one is

Self-Concept

Your description & evaluation of yourself

If your ideal self does not match your self-concept, you experience anxiety

For example, Mean girls Cady forgetting her true identity in the movie

Self-efficacy

Personal perception of your capabilities

• Task-specific

• Low self-efficacy In chem

• High self-efficacy in English

Traits

Personality characteristics

influence behaviour

Relatively stable over time

Openess to experience

Low = cautious or consistent

Hoe curious or invetive you are

Conscientiousness

Low = extravagent & careless

How efficient or organized one is

Factor Analysis

A mathematical procedure that reduces traits down to a manageable number