IV. Social Psychology Chapter 4: Choices and Actions: The Self in Control

Vocabulary terms for chapter 4 of social psychology textbook Social Psychology and Human Nature by Bushman & Baumeister, 6th ed.

capacity for change

the active phase of self-regulation; willpower

capacity for delayed gratification

the ability to make immediate sacrifices for later rewards

certainty effect

in decision making, the greater weight given to definite outcomes than to probabilities

decision fatigue

a state of depleted willpower caused by making decisions, which can affect subsequent decisions by causing people to fail to think and choose carefully

entity theorists

those who believe that traits are fixed, stable things (entities) that are not subject to change; i.e. fixed mindset

error management theory

the idea that both men and women seek to minimize the costliest type of error, but that men’s and women’s goals, and hence worst errors, differ. (e.g. men are more likely to misinterpret flirting or jump at sexual opportunities since there is less risk and more reward reproductively)

goal

an idea of some desired future state

goal shielding

occurs when the activation of a focal goal the person is working on inhibits the accessibility of alternative goals; i.e. they prioritize the focal goal and ignore others until it’s done

habits

an acquired behavior that, if followed regularly, will become almost automatic

incremental theorists

those who believe that traits are subject to change and improvement; i.e. growth mindset

learned helplessness

belief that one’s actions will not bring about desired outcomes, leading one to give up and quit trying (common among entity theorists/fixed mindset)

monitoring (in terms of goals & self)

keeping track of behaviors or responses to be regulated

omission bias (in terms of choices)

the tendency to take whatever course of action does not require you to do anything (also called the default option)

panic button effect (in terms of choices)

a reduction in stress or suffering due to a belief that one has the option of escaping or controlling the situation, even if one doesn’t exercise it

planning fallacy (in terms of goals)

the tendency for plans to be overly optimistic because the planner fails to allow for unexpected problems

reactance theory (in terms of choices)

the idea that people are distressed by loss of freedom or options and seek to reclaim or reassert them

risk aversion (in terms of choices)

in decision making, the greater weight is given to possible losses rather than possible gains

self-defeating behavior

any action by which people bring failure, suffering, or misfortune on themselves; often related to a desire to escape self-awareness or a negative self-concept (either public or private)

self-determination theory (in terms of choices & goals)

the theory that people need to feel at least some degree of autonomy and internal motivation

self-regulation (in terms of goals)

the self’s capacity to alter its own responses; enables one’s social conscience to prevail over selfish impulses & is a predictor of success or failure in many different spheres

status quo bias (in terms of choices)

the preference to keep things the way they are rather than change (because change is uncertain & takes effort, while status quo is known & effortless)

temporal discounting (in terms of choices)

in decision making, the greater weight is given to the present over the future (e.g. eating chocolate & not exercising, which feels good vs. making effort to achieve desired body, which can be uncomfortable)

TOTE (in terms of goals)

an acronym for the self-regulation feedback loop of test (see if you align with value/goal), operate (change behavior to better align), test (re-assess alignment), exit (if aligned, no more changing behavior).

Zeigarnik effect (in terms of goals)

a tendency to experience automatic, intrusive thoughts about a goal whose pursuit has been interrupted (tends to go away once a plan is made to resume achieving goal)