AP Psych U4A

psych u4 myers 4e

Person Perception

How we form impressions of people

Attribution theory

The theory that we explain someone’s behaviour by crediting the situation or their traits

Situational attribution

Explaining someone’s behaviour by crediting the situation

Dispositional attribution

Explaining someone’s behaviour by crediting their enduring traits

Fundamental attribution error

The tendency to underestimate the impact of the situation and overestimate the impact of personal disposition when analyzing others' behavior.

Actor-observer bias

As an actor, we explain our behaviour by external causes but as an observer, we blame internal causes.

Prejudice

Unjustifiable and negative attitude towards a group and its members

Explicit prejudice

Prejudice that we are aware of

Implicit prejudice

Unconscious prejudice that leaves us unaware of how our attitudes are influencing our behaviour

Just world phenomenon

The tendency for people to believe that the world is just and that people get what they deserve.

Social identity

Answer to 'who am I' in terms of group membership

Ingroup

The groups we are in

Outgroup

The groups we are not in

Ingroup bias

Bias to favour our own group

Scapegoat theory

Blaming an outgroup when something goes wrong as an outlet for anger.

Other-race effect

The effect of recognizing our own race faces better

Ethnocentrism

The tendency to view our own ethnic group as superior

Attitudes

Feelings that may impact our response to events or people

Foot in the door phenomenon

The tendency for people to first agree with a smaller request to later comply with a larger request.

Door in the face

When asked to do a large task, people will reject. But when asked to do a smaller task, people will say yes.

Cognitive dissonance

When our attitudes or actions clash, we reduce the dissonance by changing our attitudes or actions to match.

Elaboration likelihood model

When we mentally elaborate/process a message, we more often retain it.

Peripheral route persuasion

Attention-getting cues to trigger speedy emotion-based judgments.

Central route persuasion

Offers evidence/arguments that aim to trigger critical thinking.

Halo effect

When positive feelings attributed to a person or brand make us feel more positively towards a project/idea.

Social norms

Accepted behavior or rules.

Social contagion

Spontaneous spread of behaviors.

Conformity

Conforming to society with behaviour.

Normative social influence

Conform to avoid rejection or to gain social approval.

Informational social influence

Influence resulting from a person’s willingness to accept others' opinions about reality.

Obedience

Complying with an order or command.

Stanley Milgram

Conducted infamous experiments to study obedience using shock administration.

Minority influence

The power of one or two individuals to sway majorities.

Social facilitation

Strengthened performance in the presence of others.

Social loafing

The tendency to do less on a group project than on an individual task.

Deindividuation

Process of losing self-awareness in groups.

Group polarization

Beliefs grow stronger when discussed with like-minded others.

Groupthink

When overconfidence and conformity lead to poor decision-making.

Tight cultures

Cultures that strictly obey social norms.

Loose cultures

Cultures that loosely obey social norms and expect variability.

Aggression

Physical or verbal behavior intended to harm.

Frustration-aggression principle

Frustration increases the likelihood of aggression.

Social script

Culturally provided scripts of how to act in certain situations.

Prosocial behavior

Behavior that intends to help or benefit someone.

Attraction

Being attracted to someone or something.

Mere exposure effect

Increased attraction from repeated exposure to someone.

Reward theory of attraction

We like those whose behavior is rewarding to us.

Passionate love

An intense positive love typically experienced at the beginning of a romantic relationship.

Two factor theory of emotion

Emotions consist of physical arousal and cognitive appraisal.

Companionate love

A deep affectionate attachment felt after intimate involvement.

Equity

The principle that rewards should be proportional to contributions.

Self-disclosure

Revealing intimate details about ourselves.

Altruism

Unselfish regard for the welfare of others.

Diffusion of responsibility

When more people share responsibility, fewer take action.

Bystander effect

The belief that someone else will help in emergencies.

Social exchange theory

Social behavior as an exchange process to maximize benefits.

Reciprocity norm

The expectation to return help.

Social-responsibility norm

The expectation to help those in need.

Conflict

Incompatibility of actions, goals, or ideas.

Social traps

Mutually destructive behavior from self-interest.

Mirror image perceptions

Conflicting parties view each other as evil while seeing themselves as ethical.

Self-fulfilling prophecies

Beliefs that influence others to confirm those beliefs.

Superordinate goals

Shared goals achieved through cooperation.

GRIT

A method to reduce tensions through small conciliatory acts.

Personality

Unique and persistent patterns of thinking, feeling, and behaving.

Psychodynamic theories

Human behavior as an interaction between the conscious and unconscious mind.

Psychoanalysis

Freud's theory of personality and treatment techniques.

Unconscious

The part of the mind that houses thoughts and feelings we are not aware of.

Free association

A method in psychoanalysis where a person speaks freely.

Id

The part of the personality that is impulsive and demand-oriented.

Superego

The part of the personality that reflects social standards and morality.

Ego

The rational part of the personality that mediates between the id and superego.

Defense mechanisms

Strategies used by the ego to protect against anxiety.

Repression

Blocking thoughts from consciousness.

Reaction formation

Switching unacceptable impulses into their opposites.

Projection

Attributing one's threatening impulses to others.

Rationalization

Offering self-justifying explanations for actions.

Displacement

Redirecting emotions to a more acceptable target.

Sublimation

Transforming unacceptable impulses into socially acceptable actions.

Denial

Refusing to accept reality.

Collective unconscious

Shared unconscious memories and archetypes across cultures.

Terror management theory

Responses to existential threats that influence behavior.

Thematic apperception Test (TAT)

A projective test where people tell stories based on ambiguous images.

Projective test

Tests that trigger projection of one's inner dynamics.

Rorschach inkblot tests

A type of projective test using inkblots.

Maslow's hierarchy of needs

A pyramid of needs prioritizing from physiological to self-actualization.

Humanism

The belief in the inherent goodness of people and their potential for self-actualization.

Self-actualization

The process of fulfilling one's potential.

Self-transcendence

Finding meaning and purpose beyond oneself.

Unconditional positive regard

An accepting and nonjudgmental attitude towards clients.

Self-concept

The thoughts and feelings one has about oneself.

Trait

Character characteristics and conscious motives.

Personality inventory

Questionnaires assessing multiple traits.

Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)

A widely used personality test for identifying disorders.

Empirically derived test

Tests created from statistical analysis of responses.

Big Five Factors

Personality model measuring five dimensions: OCEAN.

Social-cognitive perspective

Focus on the interaction of traits with environments.

Behavioral approach

Emphasizes learning effects on behavior.

Reciprocal determinism

The interaction of behavior, cognitive, and environmental factors.

Self

The center of personality organizing thoughts and actions.