AP Psych Unit 4: Social Psychology and Personality

conformity

adjusting one’s behavior or thinking to coincide with a group standard

normative social influence

influence resulting from a person’s desire to gain approval or avoid disapproval

social norms

expected standards of conduct, which influence behavior

social comparison

evaluating one’s abilities and opinions by comparing oneself with others

relative deprivation

the perception that one is worse off relative to those with whom one compares oneself

informational social influence

influence resulting from one’s willingness to accept others’ opinions about reality

obedience

following direct commands, usually from an authority figure

social facilitation

improved performance on simple or well-learned tasks in the presence of others

group polarization

the enhancement of a group’s prevailing inclinations through discussion within the group

groupthink

the mode of thinking that occurs when the desire for harmony in a decision-making group overrides a realistic appraisal of alternatives

bystander effect

the tendency for any given bystander to be less likely to give aid if other bystanders are present

diffusion of responsibility

reduction in feelings of personal responsibility in the presence of others

social loafing

the tendency for people in a group to exert less effort when pooling theirefforts toward attaining a common goal than when individually accountable

deindividuation

the loss of self-awareness and self-restraint occurring in group situations that foster arousal and anonymity

attribution theory

the theory that we explain someone’s behavior by crediting either the situation or the person’s disposition

dispositional attributions

assigning the cuase of behavior to personal dispositions, traits, abilities, and feelings

situational attributions

assigning the cause of behavior to environmental factors

explanatory style

a person’s habitual way of explaining events, typically assessed along three dimensions:
-internal/external
-stable/unstable
-global/specific

optimistic explanatory style

explaining bad events as due to temporary, specific, external causes and good events as due to permanent, general, internal causes

pessimistic explanatory style

explaining bad events as due to permanent, general, internal causes, and good events as temporary, specific, external causes

fundamental attribution error

the tendency for observers, when analyzing another’s behavior, to underestimate the impact of the situation and to overestimate the impact of personal disposition

actor-observer bias

the tendency to blame our afctions on the situation and blame the actions of others on their personalities

self-serving bias

the tendency to perceive oneself favorably

internal locus of control

the perception that one controls one’s own fate

external locus of control

the perception that chance or outside forces beyond one’s personal control determine one’s fate

altruism

unselfish regard for the welfare of others

social responsibility norm

an expectation that people will help those needing help

stereotype

a generalized (sometimes accurate but often overgeneralized) belief about a group of people

confirmation bias

a tendency to search for information taht supports our preconceptions and to ignore or distort contradictory evidence

belief perseverance

clinging to one’s initial conceptions after the basis on which they were formed has been discredited

self-fulfilling prophecy

a belief that leads to its own fulfillment

prejudice

an unjustifiable (and usually negative) attitude toward a group and its members

discrimination

unjustifiable negativebehavior toward a group and its members

implicit attitudes

attitudes that influence a person’s feelings and behavior at an unconscious level

just-world phenomenon

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

out-group homogeneity bias

perception of out-group members as more similar to one another than are in-group members
“They’re all alike”

in-group bias

the tendency to favor one’s own group

mere exposure effect

the phenomenon that repeated exposure to novel stimuli increases liking of them

ethnocentricism

believing in the superiority of one’s own ethnic and cultural group, and having a corresponding disdain for all other groups

superordinate goals

shared goals that override differences among people and require their cooperation

social traps

a situation in which the conflicting parties, by each rationally pursuing their self-interest, become caught in mutually destructive behavior

persuasion

the process of creating, reinforcing, or changing people’s beliefs or actions

elaboration likelihood model

a theory of how persuasive messages lead to attitude changes

central route of persuasion

persuasion that involves high elaboration—where people pay attention to the arguments and respond with favorable thoughts

peripheral route of persuasion

persuasion that involves low elaboration—where people do not scrutinize the arguments but are swayed by surface

halo effect

the tendency for an impression creawted in one area to influence opinion in another area

foot-in-the-door technique

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

door-in-the-face technique

the tendency for people who won’t admit to a large task, but then agree when a smaller request is made

false consensus effect

the tendency to overestimate the extent to which others share our beliefs and behaviors

cognitive dissonance

the theory that we act to reduce the discomfort we feel when two of our thoughts are inconsistent

industrial-organizational (I/O) psychologists

professionals who apply psychological principles and research methods to the workplace in the interest of improving productivity and the quality of work life

instincts

fixed, inborn patterns of behavior that are biologically determined rather than learned

drive-reduction theory

the idea that a physiological need creates an aroused state that drives the organism to reduce that need by engaging in some behavior

homeostasis

tendency to maintain a balanced or constant internal state
-the regulation of any aspect of body chemistry, such as blood glucose, around a particular level

hypothalamus

a neural structure lying below the thalamus
-directs several maintenance activities (eating, drinking, body temperature)
-helps govern the endocrine system via pituitary gland
-linked to emotion and reward

pituitary gland

the endocrine system’s most influential gland
-under the influence of the hypothalamus, the pituitary regulates growth and controls other endocrine glands

belongingness

the human emotional need to be an accepted member of a group

arousal theory

the theory that people are motivated to maintain an optimal level of alertness and physical and mental activation

yerkes-dodson law

the principle that performance increases with arousal only up to a point, beyond which performance decreases

sensation-seeking theory

the search for experiences and feelings that are varied, novel, complex, and intense

thrill seeking

pursuing activities that provide a rush of adrenaline and excitement

adventure seeking

engaging in activities that are unusual, exciting, and risky

disinhibition

the tendency to transmit messages without considering their consequences, often found in high sensation-seekers

boredom susceptibility

the tendency to become easily bored by familiar, repeated experiences

incentive theory

a theory of motivation asserting that behavior is directed toward attaining desirable stimuli and avoiding unwanted stimuli

extrinsic motivation

a desire to perform a behavior to receive promised rewards or avoid threatened punishment

self-determination theory

a theory of motivation that is concerned with the beneficial effects of intrinsic motivation and the harmful effects of extrinsic motivation

intrinsic motivation

a desire to perform a behavior effectively for its own sake

lewin’s motivational conflicts theory

a theory that describes situations in which there are conflicts between different types of motivations

approach-approach conflicts

conflicts arising when a person must choose between two desirable goals

avoidance-avoidance conflicts

conflicts arising when a person must choose between two undesirable goals

approach-avoidance conflicts

conflicts arising when a single goal has both positive and negative aspects

emotion

a response of the whole organism, involving physiological arousal, expressive behaviors, and conscious experience

facial-feedback hypothesis

the idea that facial expressions can influence emotions as well as reflect them

display rules

culturally determined rules about which nonverbal behaviors are appropriate to display

elicitors

stimuli that trigger a physiological response, often an emotional one

broaden-and-build theory of emotion

theory proposing that happiness predisposes us to think more openly, allowing us to see the “big picture” we might have otherwise overlooked

universal emotions

basic emotions that are shared by all humans, including happingess, sadness, fear, disgust, anger, and surprise

psychodynamic theory

a view that explains personality in terms of conscious and unconscious forces, such as unconscious desires and beliefs

preconscious mind

in Freudian theory, thoughts and feelings that are not currently in consciousness but that can easily be brought into consciousness

unconscious mind

a reservoir of mostly unacceptable thoughts, wishes, feelings, and memories according to Freudian psychology

denial

defense mechanism by which people refuse to accept reality

displacement

defence mechanism that shifts sexual or aggressive impulses toward a more acceptable or less threatening object or person, redirecting anger toward a safer outlet

projection

defense mechanism by which people disguise their own threatening impulses by attributing them to others

rationalization

defense mechanism that offers self-justifying explanations in place of the real, more threatening, unconscious reason’s for one’s actions

reaction formation

defense mechansim by which the ego unconsciously switches unacceptable impulses into their opposite

regression

defense mechanism in which an individual faced with anxiety retreats to a more infantile psychosexual stage

repression

defense mechanism that banishes anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories from consciousness

sublimation

defense mechanism by which people re-channel their unacceptable impulses into socially approved activities

humanistic psychology

a perspective that emphasizes the growth potential of healthy people and the individual’s potential for personal growth

unconditional positive regard

an attitude of total acceptance toward another person

self-actualizing tendency

the human motive toward realizing our inner potential, as a major factor in personality

social-cognitive theory

view of behavior as influenced by the interaction between people’s traits (including their thinking) and their social context

reciprocal determinism

the interacting influences of behavior, internal cognition, and environment

self-concept

all our thoughts and feelings about ourselves, in answer to the question
“Who am I?”

self-efficacy

one’s sense of competence and effectiveness

self-esteem

one’s feelings of high or low self-worth

trait theories

theories that endeavor to describe the human personality in an effort to predict futrue behavior
“Personality descriptors”

big five theory

a trait hteory that identifies five main characteristics that account for most individual differences in personality
includes openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism

personality inventories

a type of questionnaire designed to reveal the respondent’s personality traits
“Personality assessment”