AP Psych Unit 4 VOCAB SUMMATIVE

These flashcards summarize key vocabulary terms and concepts related to social psychology and motivation, which are essential for understanding psychological theories and behaviors.

Dispositional Attribution

Attributing behavior to internal factors, such as personality traits.

Situational Attribution

Attributing behavior to external factors or circumstances.

Fundamental Attribution Error

The tendency to overemphasize dispositional factors while underestimating situational factors in others' behavior.

Actor-Observer Bias

The tendency to attribute one's own behavior to situational factors while attributing others' behavior to dispositional factors.

Locus of Control

The degree to which individuals believe they can control events affecting them, divided into Internal (belief in control) and External (belief in outside influences).

Mere Exposure Effect

The phenomenon where people develop a preference for things simply because they are familiar with them.

Self-Fulfilling Prophecy

A belief or expectation that affects a person's behavior in such a way that it makes the belief come true.

Social Comparisons

Evaluating oneself in relation to others, which can be upward (comparing to better) or downward (comparing to worse).

Relative Deprivation

The perception that one is worse off compared to others, leading to feelings of dissatisfaction.

Stereotypes

Oversimplified beliefs about a group of people, which can be implicit (unconscious) or explicit (conscious).

Just-World Phenomenon

The belief that the world is fair and people get what they deserve.

In-Group Bias

The tendency to favor one's own group over others.

Out-Group Bias

Negative feelings or attitudes towards those not in one's group.

Ethnocentrism

Evaluating other cultures according to the standards of one's own culture.

Belief Perseverance

The tendency to maintain beliefs even when evidence suggests they are wrong.

Cognitive Dissonance

The mental discomfort experienced when holding two conflicting beliefs or values.

Confirmation Bias

The tendency to search for, interpret, and remember information that confirms one's preexisting beliefs.

Social Norms

Expected standards of conduct within a group.

Social Influence Theory

The processes by which individuals adapt their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors to be consistent with those of others.

Normative Social Influence

Influence resulting from a person's desire to gain approval or avoid rejection.

Informational Social Influence

Influence that leads to conformity because a person believes others are correct.

Persuasion

The process by which a person or group influences others' attitudes or behaviors, involving Central (logical) and Peripheral (emotional) routes.

Halo Effect

The tendency to assume that if a person has one positive characteristic, they also have others.

Foot-in-the-Door Technique

A persuasion strategy that involves getting a person to agree to a small request and then to a larger request.

Door-in-the-Face Technique

A persuasion strategy that involves making a large request that is expected to be refused, followed by a smaller, more reasonable request.

Conformity

The act of matching attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors to group norms.

Obedience

The act of following direct orders from an authority figure.

Individualism vs. Collectivism

Cultural dimensions where individualism emphasizes personal goals and independence while collectivism emphasizes group goals and interdependence.

Group Polarization

The tendency for group discussion to enhance the group's prevailing attitudes.

Groupthink

The practice of thinking or making decisions as a group in a way that discourages creativity or individual responsibility.

Diffusion of Responsibility

A social psychological phenomenon where individuals feel less responsible to act when in a group.

Deindividuation

The loss of self-awareness in groups, leading to atypical behavior.

Social Facilitation

The tendency for people to perform differently when in the presence of others compared to when alone.

Social Loafing

The phenomenon where individuals exert less effort when working in a group than when working alone.

False Consensus Effect

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

Superordinate Goals

Shared goals that necessitate cooperation and can override differences among groups.

Social Traps

Situations in which individuals or groups pursue their own self-interest, leading to collective disaster.

Altruism

The selfless concern for the well-being of others.

Bystander Effect

The phenomenon where the presence of others discourages an individual from intervening in an emergency.

Psychodynamic Theory

Theoretical perspective that emphasizes unconscious mental processes and childhood experiences.

Id, Ego, and Superego

Freudian structures of personality; Id seeks pleasure, Ego mediates reality, Superego imposes morality.

Defense Mechanisms

Cognitive strategies used to protect oneself from anxiety or distress.

Projective Tests

Psychological tests that reveal hidden emotions and internal conflicts via ambiguous stimuli.

Humanistic Theory

A psychological perspective emphasizing personal growth and the concept of self-actualization.

Unconditional Positive Regard

An attitude of total acceptance toward another person.

Self-Actualization

The realization of one's potential, self-fulfillment, seeking personal growth and peak experiences.

Social-Cognitive Theory

The theory that emphasizes the role of observational learning, social experiences, and reciprocal determinism.

Reciprocal Determinism

The theory that a person's behavior is influenced by personal factors and the social environment.

Trait Theory

The perspective that personality consists of a set of traits, which are relatively stable over time.

Big Five Personality Traits (OCEAN)

A model representing five major traits: Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, Neuroticism.

Factor Analysis

A statistical method used to identify correlations among various traits and reduce data to simpler patterns.

Drive-Reduction Theory

The theory that motivation arises from biological needs that demand satisfaction.

Arousal Theory

The theory suggesting that people are motivated to maintain an optimal level of arousal.

Yerkes-Dodson Law

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

Intrinsic Motivation

The motivation to engage in an activity for its own sake, due to inherent satisfaction.

Extrinsic Motivation

The motivation to engage in an activity to earn rewards or avoid punishment.

Instincts

Innate patterns of behavior that are biologically driven.

Motivational Conflicts Theory

The theory explaining the conflicts arising from competing motivational needs.

Sensation-Seeking Theory

The theory proposing that individuals seek varied, novel, complex, and intense sensations and experiences.

Ghrelin and Leptin

Hormones that regulate hunger; ___ increases appetite, while ___ signals satiety.

James-Lange Theory of Emotion

The theory that emotions arise from the perception of physiological responses.

Cannon-Bard Theory of Emotion

The theory that emotions and physiological responses occur simultaneously.

Schachter-Singer Two-Factor Theory of Emotion

The theory that emotions are based on physiological arousal and cognitive labeling.

Facial-Feedback Hypothesis

The theory that facial expressions can influence emotional experiences.

Broaden-and-Build Theory

The theory that positive emotions broaden thoughts and behaviors, leading to social and psychological resilience.

Universal Emotions

Emotions that are recognized across different cultures, such as happiness, sadness, anger, surprise, fear, and disgust.

Display Rules

Cultural norms that dictate how and when emotions should be expressed.