CH 13 Social Psychology

Frustration-aggression hypothesis

the principle that frustration- the blocking of an attempt to achieve some goal- creates anger which can generate aggression

Proactive aggression

aggression that is planned and purposeful

Reactive aggression

aggression that occurs spontaneously in response to a negative affective state

Common knowledge effect

the tendency for group discussions to focus on information that all members share

Group polarization

the tendency of groups to make decisions that are more extreme than any member would have made alone

Groupthink

the tendency of groups to reach consensus in order to facilitate interpersonal harmony

Deindividuation

a phenomenon in which immersion in a group cause people to become less concerned with their personal values

Diffusion of responsibility

the tendency of individuals to feel diminished responsibility for their actions when surrounded by others who feel the same way

Social loafing

the tendency of people to expend less effort when in a group than when alone

Bystander effect

the tendency for people to be less likely to help a stranger in an emergency situation when other bystanders are present

Altruism

Intentional behavior that benefits another at a potential cost to oneself

K in selection

the process by which evolution selects for individuals who cooperate with their relatives

Reciprocal altruism

behavior that benefits another with the expectation that those benefits will be returned in the future

Homophily

when we receive expressions of liking or loving, we tend to reciprocate

Comparison level for alternatives

the cost-benefit ratio that a person believes they could attain in another relationship

Social cognition

the processes by which people come to understand others

Category-based inferences

inferences based on information about the categories to which a person belongs

Target-based inferences

inferences based on information that an individual's behavior

Behavior confirmation

the tendency of targets to behave as observers expect them to behave

Prejudice

a negative evaluation of another person based on their category membership

Stereotype threat

the anxiety associated with the possibility of confirming other people's stereotypes about one's group

Perceptual confirmation

the tendency of observers to see what they expect to see

Subtyping

the tendency of observers to think of targets who disconfirm stereotypes as "exceptions to the rule"

Attribution

an inference about the cause of a person's behavior

Situational attributions

explanations of people's behavior that refer to external events, such as the weather, luck, accidents, or other people's actions

Dispositional attribution

caused by relatively enduring tendency to think, feel or act in a particular way
Is the behavior consistent?
Is the behavior consensual?
Is the behavior distinctive?

Fundamental attribution error

the tendency to make a dispositional attribution when we should instead make a situational attribution

Actor-observer-effect

the tendency to make situational attributions for our own behaviors while making dispositional attributions for the identical behaviors of others

The hedonic motive

people are motivated to experience pleasure and to avoid experiencing pain

Overjustification effect

when a reward decreases a person's intrinsic behavior to perform a behavior

Reactance

an unpleasant feeling that arises when people feel they are being coerced

The approval motive

people are motivated to be accepted and to avoid being rejected

norms of reciprocity

the unwritten rule that people should benefit those who have benefited them

Normative influence

another person's behavior provides information about what is appropriate

Door-in-the-face technique

an influence strategy that involves getting someone to accept a small request by first getting them to refuse a large request

Central-route persuasion

the process by which attitudes or beliefs are changed by appeals to reason

Peripheral-route persuasion

the process by which attitudes or beliefs are changed by appeals to habit or emotion

Foot-in-the-door technique

making a small request and then following it with a larger request

Cognitive dissonance

an unpleasant state that arises when a person recognizes the inconsistency of their actions, attitude, or beliefs