Chapter 11

Social Psychology

Social Psychology

The branch of psychology that studies the effects of social variables and cognitions on individual behavior and social interactions

• A combination of

  • People

  • The activities and interactions among people

  • The settings in which behavior occurs

  • The expectations and social norms governing behavior in that setting

stereotype

1. A generalization about a group’s characteristics that does not consider any variation from one individual to another.

self-fulfilling prophecy

1. expectations cause individuals to act in ways that serve to make the expectations come true.

Attribution Theory

1. The view is that people are motivated to discover the underlying causes of behavior as part of their effort to make sense of the behavior.

2. In attribution theory, the person who produces the behavior to be explained is called the actor. The person who offers a causal explanation of the actor’s behavior is called the observer.

   1. Actors often explain their own behavior in terms of external causes.

   2. Observers frequently explain the actor’s behavior in terms of internal causes

Internal Attribution

includes causes inside and specific to the person, such as his or her traits and abilities.

External Attribution

1. includes causes outside the person, such as social pressure, aspects of the social situation, and the weather.

Stable/unstable

1. Stable/unstable causes: Is the cause relatively enduring and permanent, or is it temporary? Did Aaron blow up at his girlfriend because he is a hostile guy or because he was in a bad mood?

Controllable/uncontrollable causes

1. We perceive that we have the power over some causes (for instance, by preparing delicious food for a picnic) but not others (rain on picnic day)

Fundamental Attribution Error

1. Observers’ overestimation of the importance of internal traits and underestimantion of the importance of external situation when they seek explanations of another person’s behavior

False Consensus Effect

1. is the overestimation of the degree to which everybody else thinks or acts the way we do

self esteem

1. the degree to which we have positive or negative feelings about ourselves.

The “Lake Wobegon” Effect

the idea that we think we are above average (positive illusion) and we tend to internalize successes and externalize failure. (self serving bias)

Positive Illusion

1. Favorable views of the self that are not necessarily rooted in reality

Self-serving bias

The tendency to take credit for one’s own successes and to deny responsibility for one’s own failure.

Stereotype threat

1. An individual’s fast-acting, self-fulfilling fear of being judged based on a negative stereotype about his or her group

social comparison

The process by which individuals evaluate their thoughts, feelings, behaviors, and abilities in relation to others

Leon Festinger

1. proposed the theory of social comparison positing that when individuals lack objective means to evaluate their opinion and abilities, they compare themselves with others

Attitude

• Our opinions and beliefs about how we feel about the world (people, objects, ideas)

• Our attitude can predict our behavior for strongly held beliefs, when we identify ourselves aws part of that belief, and when we have a vested interest in the belief

Cognitive Dissonance

• Discomfort when we have two inconsistent thoughts (wanting to be a vegetarian but loving bacon)

Self Perception Theory

• Self Perception Theory - When we make an interference with our attitudes by analyzing our behaviors

Persuasion

1. The communicator (source):

   1. Trust-worthiness and expertise are credibility characteristics that help a communicator change people’s attitudes or convince them to act

   2. Other source factors include power, attractiveness, and likability.

2. The medium:

   1. Another persuasion factor is the medium or the technology used to get the message across

3. The target (audience):

   1. Age and attitude strengths are two characteristics of the audience that determine whether a message will be effective. Younger people are more likely to change their attitudes than older individuals

4. The message

Elaboration Likelihood Model

1. Theory identifying two ways to persuade: a central route and a peripheral route.

   1. The central route to persuasion works by engaging someone thoroughly with a sound, logical argument.

      1. This is more persuasive when the people have the ability and motivation to pay attention to the facts

   2. The peripheral route involves non-message factors such as the source’s credibility and attractiveness or emotional appeals.

      1. This works better when people are not paying close attention or do not have the time or energy to think about what the communicator is saying

Foot in the door and Door in the Face

1. Foot-in-the-door technique relies on the notion that in agreeing to smaller offer, the customer has created a relationship with the seller, expressing some level of trust

2. Door-in-the-face - relies on the fact that the customer feels a sense of reciprocity and obligation: because you let him off the hook with that big request, maybe he should be nice and take the smaller offer.

Inoculation

Giving a weak version of a persuasive message and allow one to argue against it can avoid persuasion.

Altruism

Unselfish interest in helping another person

Egoism

• when we do something good for the future benefits (reciprocity) or because it’s expected of us

Evolutionary, Psychodynamic, and Sociocultural View of Altruism

• Evolutionary - We tend to help out our family members most, even in the animal kingdom (genetic survival)

• Psychodynamic - The better your mood (or to improve your mood), the more likely you are to be altruistic. More empathy to other = more altruism

• Socialcultural - Established religion (based on Golden Rule) and market economy (trust in others when using a credit card) can lead to higher levels of altruism

Gender, Bystander, and Media on Altruism

• Women are more likely to show altruism with existing relationships or nurturing. Men are more likely to show altruism in dangerous situations or when they have a skill that can help

• In an emergency, we are most likely to be altruistic when alone vs. with others (bystander effect). We think others will be altruistic so we do nothing to help (Kitty Genovese)

• Watching positive (altruistic) media often makes us replicate taht behavior

Agression

• When we want to harm someone physically, verbally or mentally

• Through evolution, aggressive animals and humans are able to reproduce and spread aggressive genes (survival of the fittest)

Neurobiological Factors of Aggression

• Overstimulation of the limbic system, damage to the frontal lobe, low levels of serotonin and high levels of testosterone can all lead to elevated levels of aggression

Psychological Factors of Aggression

• Fustration can lead to violence, as wekk as other aversive conditions (like weather, pain, insult, crowds, traffic)

• Unfair treatment, access to weapons, and other agitation can also lead to aggression

• We also learn aggression from others (“Bobo doll”) experiment

Frustration-aggression hypothesis

the blocking of an individual’s attempts to reach a goal –always leads to aggression

Sociocultural Factors of Aggression

• Using aggression to defend personal or family honor

• Media and video games can play a factor in aggression and altruism

• Men tend to be overtly aggressive (direct physical or verbal aggression) while women tend to be relationally aggressive (harming one’s social status)

• Culture of Honor

Overt Aggression

1. physical or verbal behavior that directly harms another person

Relational Aggression

1. Behavior that is meant to harm the social standing of another person

Comformity

Changing your behavior to go along with the rest of the group

Arch’s experiment

Informational Social Influence

The influence other people have on us because we want to be right

Normative Social Influence

The influence other people have on us because we want them to like us

Obedience

1. Behavior that complies with the explicit demands of the individual in authority

2. Sandford Prison

Deindividualization

• Removal of personal identity and responsibility and conforming to the actions of others

Social Contagion

• Imitating the behavior and ideas of others

Social Facilitation

1. improvement in an individual's performance because of the presence of others.

Social Loafing

1. Each person’s tendency to exert less effort in a group because of reduced accountability for individual efforts.

Risky Shift

Group decisions are riskier than individual decisions… blame can be spread

Group Polarization

1. The solidification and further strengthening of an individual’s position as a consequence of a group discussion or interaction

Groupthink

1. The impaired group decision-making that occurs when making the right decision is less important than maintaining group harmony

Social Identity

1. The way individuals define themselves in terms of their group membership

2. 5 types of social identity: ethnicity and religion, political affiliation, vocation and avocation, personal relationship, and stigmatized group

Social Identity Theory

1. The view that social idenity is a crucial part of self-image and a valuable source of positive feelings about oneself

2. we think of ourselves as in-group while others as out-group

Ethnocentrism

The tendency to favor one’s own ethnic group over other groups

Prejudice

An unjustifiable negative attitude toward an individual based on the individual’s membership in a group.

Mere exposure effect

1. The phenomenon that the more individuals encounter someone or something, the more probable it is that they will start liking the person or thing even if they do not realize they have seen it before.

2. Consensual validation - people are attracted to others who are similar to them

Attachment style

• Secure - Positive relationships style. Easily make close connections and not stressed about their romantic relations

• Avoident - Hesitant about romantic relations and don’t develop close relations with romantic partners. Same for platonic

• Anxious - Possessive and untrusting relations (romanic and platonic)

Romantic love

Love with strong components of sexuality and infatuation, often predominantly in the early part of a love relationship; also called passionate love.

Affectionate love

love that occurs when an individual has a deep, caring affection for another person and desires to have that person near; also called companionate love

Love

• Romatic/Passionate - Physical and intense. Total inatuation with the partner

• Consummate - Adds commitment to romantic

• Affectionate/ Companionate - Deep affection and strong commitment. Want to spend lots of time with your partner. Less physical

• Love often starts as romantic, then consummate, then becomes more affectionate over time.

Sternberg’s Triangular Theory of Love

intimacy, passion, commitment.