Social Psych

Attribution Theory

The idea that we give a casual explanation for someone’s behavior

* We credit that behavior to the situation or to the person’s disposition (a person’s qualities and character)
* Zimbardo’s Prison experiment–determined whether a person went evil due to the system (that didn’t give oversight) or because of the person themselves being evil
* *Was my friend a jerk because she had a bad day or is she just a bad person?*

Fundamental Attribution Error

We tend to underestimate the impact of a situation and overestimate the impact it has on someone’s internal qualities

* *How do you view your teacher’s behavior?* You probably view him on their personality rather than their profession
* Some teachers have things they are required to do. Something to take into consideration!
* Hecticness when traffic lights lost power yesterday and everybody thought they had the right of way. (They underestimated the danger that they could have potentially put on someone else.)
* We are likely to think “they are an evil person” when someone does something bad to us rather than say “oh they’re just having a bad day”

Situational Attribution

The reason why you did something was because of an **External Factor**, outside of the person in a situation.

* A student turns an assignment late, the teacher believes it is because her family is struggling to make ends meet.

Dispositional Attribution

The reason why you did something was because of an internal attribute that is observable. (ie personality)

* A student turns in an assignment late, the teacher believes it is because she is a lazy student who is not on top of her work.
* This idea of thinking can potentially create a dangerous situation.

First impression

Initially observing the features of someone / something.

* important because initial schema is recalled better and more vividly than any later correction to it. Actions based on this impression can elicit behavior that confirms it.

Actor-observer bias

We tend to attribute situational external causes to our own behavior, whereas other people observing the same behavior tend to justify it as a normal behavior.

* when you bomb a test, teacher usually gets the blame
* when you do well on a test, you get the credit, teacher doesn’t get credit.
* People are so inconsiderate for littering! But when you litter, there is no place to throw out the garbage!

Self-serving bias

we tend to attribute our successes to internal factors and our failures to external factors

* My successes are because of me, my failures are because of things I can’t control.

Unrealistic optimism

we tend to assume that positive events happen more frequently and negative events occur less frequently to ourselves than to others

* procrastinating preparing for the exam, thinking “oh I have enough time to study yada yada”

Murphy’s Law

Anything that can go wrong will go wrong

Attitudes

belief or feeling that predisposes one to respond in a particular way to something

* sometimes very uncommon to see successful relationship between a Yankees and Red Sox fan.
* Different ____ can respond uniquely to a picture

Central Route Persuasion

Going directly through the rational mind, influencing attitudes with evidence and logic

* *My product has been proven to be more effective*
* (Advertising a Car)–cost, insurance costs, safety rating, reliability, reviews, fuel efficiency.

Peripheral Route Persuasion

used when we try to hide something. Changing attitudes by going around the rational mind and appealing to fears, desires, associations.

* Trying to hit someone in a place where the haven’t paid attention
* *People who buy my product are happy AND attractive!*
* (advertising a car)–color, fluffy dice, speed, sex appeal, more expensive than neighbor’s shitty car, big and cool wheels.

Attitudes guide actions only if:

External pressure is minimal

We are aware of attitudes

Attitude is relevant to behavior

Door in the face phenomenon

you go for a bigger ask than you want, with the intention of getting shot down, then following up for something smaller. Chances are, you’ll get the smaller ask.

Foot in the door phenomenon

you go for a small ask, the you continue to add on more small tasks afterwards.

* Do the dishes! (after doing dishes) ok now do the laundry! (after laundry) ok now go make your bed!

Norms of reciprocity

if someone does something good for you, chances are you’ll do something good back.

* Set the table without being asked then ask for extra video game time. Do something without being asked, something out of the norm, and then ask for something from them.

\*\*\*Cognitive Dissonance Theory

People want to have consistent attitudes and behaviors. When they don’t, they experience tension

* THIS IS COGNITIVE PSYCH AND THOUGHT PROCESSES!
* Belief that cheating on tests is bad, but you cheated on a test.
* Teacher was bad, so it was okay that you cheated on the class.


* You know you did something wrong, but you don’t like being wrong. SO you have to either change your beliefs or change your actions.
* Belief: Smoking cigarettes is unhealthy
* Action: I smoke cigarettes
* Solution–can either change action or beliefs
* Action: Smoking cigarettes is unhealthy, I don’t smoke cigarettes anymore
* Belief: research on smoking isn’t conclusive. I’ll continue to smoke.
* BELIEF then TENSION, then changing ACTION.

Self perception theory

People’s attitudes are developed by observing their own behavior

* I love Frederick Backmann because I read a lot of his books
* “case of self-pereption”
* behavior THEN decision. Logical observations rise from this, not tension.

Ethnocentrism

tendency to believe your own culture is superior to other cultures and you use your own culture as the standard for judging other cultures.

* Your culture is better than others, based on your own culture and judging other people’s cultures
* Saying *The British drive on “The wrong side of the road” rather than the opposite / left hand side*
* Food preferences, religion, role of women in society, clothing choices, all can be influenced under this term.

In Group bias

we tend to favor our own group over others (in-group v. out-group, us v. them)

* Muzafer Sherif Experiment / Realistic Conflict Theory / Robbers Cave Experiment

Muzafer Sherif experiment / Realistic Conflict Theory / Robbers Cave Experiment

Found that two groups of boys will work together when they are prompted with a universal threat, but when they are put to compete, they will hate themselves, and when there is nothing to compete for, they will bond with their internal group members.

Superordinate Goals

shared goals that override differences among people and require cooperation

* Various groups come together to remove an oppressor, as colonial rule is removed, the groups will split back and begin fighting each other again.

Stereotypes

Widely held beliefs that people have certain characteristics because of a membership in a particular group (schemas about a group)

* can be positive or negative
* intensified by tendency to perceive “outgrip homogeneity”
* one race fits all, explains “other race effect” or “own race bias”
* Can become prejudicial which can become discriminatory

Discrimination

Action towards an individual

* Stereotypes lead to prejudice, which lead to _____, which leads to stereotypes (like a triangle!)

Just-world phenomenon

we tend to believe that the world is just and people get what they deserve

* Allows people to rationalize away injustice, often blaming the victim for downfalls
* Homeless people must be lazy! Wealthy people must be hard workers!

Scapegoat theory

we tend to blame someone else for our own problems.

* allows us to explain hardship or failure while maintaining self image
* Problems of Post WWI Germany pushed onto Jewish German citizens, not bad leadership with signing the Treaty of Versailles or the decision to go to the war in the first place
* Often results in prejudice and discrimination towards the group being blamed.