AP Psych Unit 7 Terms

Social pyschology

How thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of others

Attribution theory

A social psychology concept that explains how people interpret the causes of events and behaviors → people are naturally inclined to assign causes to their own actions and the actions of others

Situational attribution

Assigning responsibility for an event or action to the environment or the situation

Dispositional attribution

Assigning responsibility for an event or action to the person involved

Fundamental attribution error

The tendency for people to overemphasize internal factors when explaining someone’s behavior, while underestimating the influence of external factors

Actor-observer bias

The tendency of individuals to attribute their own behavior to external factors, while attributing the behavior of others to internal factors

Self-serving bias

Success is attributed to internal factors, while failure is attributed to external factors

Blaming the victim

When someone holds a victim responsible for an incident, either partially or completely, instead of the person who caused it

Stereotypes

A generalized belief or oversimplified mental picture about a particular group of people

Prejudice

A preconceived, usually negative attitude towards an individual or group of people, often without adequate knowledge

Discrimination

The unfair treatment of people or groups based on their perceived or actual characteristics

Just-world phenomena

What happens to us happens for a reason

Ingroup bias

Us vs. them → a person’s own group is superior to others

Scapegoat theory

We are always looking for someone to blame for misfortunes

Other-race effect

We can identify physical features better in our own ethnic groups than in others

Ethnocentrism

Our ethnic or cultural group is superior to other groups

Outgroup homogeneity

We perceive outgroups as very similar and cannot perceive individual differences

Attitudes

Beliefs that can impact our behavior and responses

Persuasion

The act of intentionally convincing someone to change their behavior or thoughts

Central route persuasion

Appealing to thinking

Peripheral route persuasion

Appealing to emotions

Compliance

When someone changes their behavior in response to a request from another person

Foot-in-the-door

Small request first, then a larger request

Door-in-the-face

Larger request first, then a smaller request

Cognitive dissonance

The mental discomfort that results from cognition and actions that are inconsistent or contradictory with one another

Role-playing

The act of assuming a specific character to understand and experience different perspectives and behaviors

Stanford Prison Experiment

A controversial pyschology experiment to stimulate how situational factors affect people’s behaviors

• Zimbardo and his research team randomly assigned 24 male college students to be either guards or prisoners in a mock prison 

• The guards became cruel and sadistic towards the prisoners, while the prisoners became depressed and hopeless 

• The experiment showed how ordinary people can do terrible things when placed in certain situations 

Social contagion

The spread of behaviors, attitudes, and emotions through a group of people

Conformity

Changing one’s behavior to match their group or environment

Normative social influence

Causes people to change their behavior or beliefs to fit in

Informational social influence

Causes people to change their behavior or beliefs to align with others who they believe have accurate information

Factors that influence conformity

• Insecurity

• Larger groups

• Unanimity

• Status

• Visibility

• Culture

Obedience

Following the orders of an authority figure from direct pressure

Factors that influence obedience

• Proximity

• Status

• Authority figures

• Other dissenters

Social facilitation

People perform better on tasks when in the presence of others

Social loafing

People put in less effort when working with a group vs. alone

Deindividuation

When people lose their sense of individuality and act differently when in a group

Group polarization

When a group’s opinions become more extreme after discussion

Groupthink

When a group prioritizes harmony over individual beliefs

Culture

A shared set of beliefs, customs, and behaviors shared by a group of people

Norms

The informal rules that govern how people behave in a group

Individualistic vs. collectivistic cultures

• Individualistic cultures → Value the individual

• Collectivistic cultures → Value the group

Tight vs. loose culture

• Tight cultures → Rule-oriented and have strong social norms

• Loose cultures → Permissive and have weak social norms

Diffusion of responsibility

People are less likely to take action when in the presence of a large group of people

Social traps

A situation where individuals or a group act to gain short-term benefits, but their actions ultimately lead to negative long-term consequences for the group as a whole

Altruism

A motivational state where a person acts to help another person, even if it comes at a cost to themselves

Bystander effect

Individuals are less likely to offer help to someone in need if other people are present

Social exchange theory

People evaluate their relationships based on a cost-benefit analysis, essentially deciding to maintain relationships where the perceived rewards outweigh the perceived costs

Reciprocity norm

People should return favors and acts of kindness

Superordinate goals

Shared objectives that require cooperation and collaboration between multiple groups or individuals

Grit

Passion and perseverance for achieving long-term goals

Self-fulfilling prophecy

When a person's belief or expectation about an event or person leads to actions that make that expectation come true

Social responsibility norm

People should engage in positive social behavior to contribute to the welfare of their community as a whole