Social Psychology and Personality Theories

These flashcards cover key terms and concepts from social psychology and personality theories discussed in the lecture.

Social Psychology

Study of how the actual, imagined, or implied presence of others influences our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.

Attribution

An explanation for the cause of behavior.

Situational Attribution

Attribution of behavior to external causes, such as bad traffic.

Personal Attribution

Attribution of behavior to internal traits such as laziness or intelligence.

Fundamental Attribution Error (FAE)

The tendency to overestimate internal traits and underestimate situational factors in others.

Self-Serving Bias

The tendency to credit internal factors for our successes and external factors for our failures.

Attitude

Feelings shaped by beliefs that influence our behavior toward objects, people, and events.

Foot-in-the-Door Phenomenon

Agreeing to a small request increases the likelihood of agreeing to a larger one.

Cognitive Dissonance Theory

The tension from holding inconsistent attitudes or actions, which we reduce by changing beliefs or justifying behavior.

Conformity

Adjusting behavior or thinking to match a group standard.

Normative Influence

The influence of wanting to fit in with a group.

Informational Influence

The influence of believing others have accurate information.

Obedience

The act of following orders from an authority figure.

Social Facilitation

Improved performance on easy tasks and worsened performance on hard tasks in the presence of others.

Group Polarization

Discussion with like-minded people strengthens shared opinions, which can lead to extreme views.

Groupthink

Prioritizing group harmony over rational decision-making, ignoring alternatives, and withholding criticism.

Altruism

Helping others with no expectation of personal gain.

Bystander Effect

The phenomenon where people are less likely to help when others are around due to diffusion of responsibility.

Self-Esteem

Feelings of self-worth.

Defensive Self-Esteem

Fragile self-esteem that relies on external validation.

Secure Self-Esteem

Stable self-esteem based on self-acceptance.

Big Five Personality Traits

Clusters of behaviors that include Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism.

Reciprocal Determinism

The interaction between behavior, personal factors, and environment that shapes personality.

Personality

Characteristics that include patterns of behavior, thinking, and feeling.

Psychoanalytic Perspective

A perspective focusing on the unconscious mind and its influence on behavior.

Defense Mechanisms

Psychological strategies used by the ego to manage anxiety and conflict.

Humanistic Perspective

Focuses on individual potential and stresses the importance of growth and self-actualization.

Trait Theories

Focus on identifying clusters of behaviors (traits) that occur together in individuals.

Social-Cognitive Perspective

A view that personality is a collection of learned behaviors influenced by the environment.

Congruence

The alignment between the real self and ideal self leading to psychological health.