PSYCH- Unit 2- AOS 1

What is social cognition?

How we judge others in social situations by interpreting and analysing information

• mental processing of complex information

• due to overload of information leads to cognitive bias

what is cognitive bias?

A systematic error in thinking, generally due to oversimplifying the information.

e.g. paying attention to facts or opinions that align with yours

what is a schema?

Pre-existing mental ideas relating to a concept which helps us to organise and interpret information

• both abstract knowledge and specific examples about a person, situation etc.

• prior knowledge

what is person perception?

Refers to mental processes we use to form our impressions and opinions of other people

Identify and describe the 3 parts of person perception?

BPS!!

Physical cues, Body Language and social categorisation

Physical cues: the physical characteristics and behaviours of people, which influence our impression of them - e.g. clothes, hair, skin etc.

Body language: -non-verbal communication in which physical behaviour and movement rather than words are used to express a message -e.g. hunched, shy, awkward, crossed arms, turned away - through this mood, emotion or issues could be expressed without speaking

Social Categorisation: - categorise people in groups based on their shared characteristics - for example the groups from mean girls

What is a stereotype?

• A collection of fixed ideas about a certain group of people

• The process of creating stereotypes and assigning people to these collective groups is called stereotyping

what are the 3 components of attitudes

Affective Component (feelings)

• Your emotional reaction or feelings towards a topic e.g. I LOVEEE going to see live music or I HAAATEE cats

Conative Component (your behaviour)

• How you express your feelings/emotions through your actions e.g. buying tickets to lots of live music events

Cognitive Component (beliefs)

• Something you believe in regard to a topic e.g. I believe music is better live than the recorded form

what is cognitive dissonance

mental discomfort experienced when holding conflicting thoughts or behaviours

what is an ingroup?

Any group that a person belongs or identifies with

what is an out group?

An out group is any group that a person doesn’t belong or identify with

What is culture?

Culture refers to the way of life of a particular community or society that sets it apart from other societies or communities

What is a social group?

Individuals who interact, influence and have common goals

What is prejudice?

Prejudice involves having negative attitudes towards people purely based off their membership of certain group'

(prejudice is the belief component)

What are the 2 types of prejudice?

Old-fashioned prejudice and modern prejudice

What is old fashioned prejudice?

It is overt and deliberate!!!

e.g. ‘women shouldn’t be doctors, they belong at home’

What is modern prejudice?

It is subtle and insinuates rejection while displaying acceptance

e.g.

What is status?

- The importance of an individual’s position in the group as perceived by members of the group

what is power?

- An individual’s/groups’ ability to control or influence another, event when they try to resist this influence

what is groupthink?

- a phenomenon when a group of people makes decisions or adopts opinions without critically evaluating the alternatives or consequences

- often leads to conformity and a desire for consensus within the group, sometimes at the expense of making suboptimal or irrational decisions

what is group polarisation

- a phenomenon in which a group's attitudes and opinions become more extreme after discussion or interaction

- Like-minded individuals gather in a group, and their initial views are reinforced and amplified through group interaction, leading to a shift toward a more extreme position

what is deindividuation?

- a psychological phenomenon when individuals in a group feel less accountable for their actions and may exhibit behaviours they would avoid in a non-anonymous or individual setting

- often leads to a loss of self-awareness and a decreased sense of personal responsibility

what is obedience?

- the act of following instructions, orders, or commands, issued by an authority figure, institution or set of rules/laws. It involves complying with a direction or fulfilling a request, typically without questioning or challenging the instructions.

What 3 factors influence obedience?

1. Social Proximity

- The closeness between two or more people including physical distance and the closeness of their relationship

- More likely to obey if:

o Authority figure is closer

o Victim further away

2. Legitimacy of authority figure

- An individual is more likely to be obedient when the authority figure is perceived as being legitimate and having power

3. Group Pressure

- An individual is likely to be more obedient if there is group support for the authority figure

- An individual is likely to be more defiant if there is no group support for the authority figure

what is conformity?

- The tendency to adjust one’s thoughts, feelings or behaviours in ways that agree with those of a particular individual or group

What 5 factors influence conformity?

1. Group Size

   a. Greater size = more pressure to conform

2. Unanimity

   a. People less likely to say the correct answer when the rest of the group is united in their decisions

   b. If one confederate answers in the same way as the participant, amount of conformity is reduced by 80%

3. Informational Influence
   a. When individual conform to the views of group members when they want to provide the correct response but do not know what the correct response is

   b. If someone givyes you information about something you don’t know then you are likely to accept their answer even though originally you might not have thought that was the correct answer

4. Normative Influence
   a. when our response in a group situation is guided by one or more social norms.

   b. Explained by desire to be liked and accepted by others + the concern of being rejected by others

5. Culture

   a. An individual’s cultural background and/or the predominant culture of members of the group to which the individual belongs may influence the individual’s level of conformity.

   b. Collectivist cultures like (e.g. Asia and Africa) have more conformity than those of cultures where individuality is exemplified (e.g. USA and Australia