4.3- Psychology of Social Situations

Social Norms

The implicit or explicit rules a group has for the acceptable behaviors, values, and beliefs of its members

Stanford Prison Experiment

Philip Zimbardo's study of the effect of roles on behavior. Participants were randomly assigned to play either prisoners or guards in a mock prison. The study was ended early because of the "guards'" role-induced cruelty

Informational Social Influence

Influence resulting from one's willingness to accept others' opinions about reality

Normative Social Influence

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

Persuasion

The active and conscious effort to change an attitude through the transmission of a message

Central Route Persuasion

Uses facts and information, and logic to persuade potential consumers

Peripheral Route Persuasion

Occurs when people are influenced by incidental cues, such as a speaker's attractiveness

Halo Effect

The tendency to draw a general impression about an individual on the basis of a single characteristic

Foot-in-the-Door Technique

Asking for a small commitment and, after gaining compliance, asking for a bigger commitment

Door-in-the-Face Technique

Asking for a large commitment and being refused and then asking for a smaller commitment

Solomon Asch Study on Conformity

Participants were given an example line and 3 different sized lines and were asked to choose the one of the 3 other lines that was closest to the sample. When cohorts of Asch's gave obviously wrong answers more than 1/3 of the subjects conformed and agreed with the incorrect choice

Stanley Milgram Study

Experiment where participants ordered to give "painful electric shocks" to a "learner" when incorrect, explored how people respond to orders; conditions that facilitated conformity: remoteness of victim, proximity of commander, legitimate-seeming commander, conformity of other subjects

Individualistic Culture

A culture in which people believe that their primary responsibility is to themselves

Collectivist Culture

Culture that focuses on communal relationships with others such as family, friends, and community

Multiculturalism

The practice of valuing and respecting differences in culture

Group Polarization

Tendency of group members to move to an extreme position after discussing an issue as a group

Groupthink

The mode of thinking that occurs when the desire for harmony in a decision-making group overrides a realistic appraisal of alternatives

Diffusion of Responsibility

The tendency for individuals to feel diminished responsibility for their actions when they are surrounded by others who are acting the same way

Social Loafing

The tendency for people in a group to exert less effort when pooling their efforts toward attaining a common goal than when individually accountable

Deindividuation

The loss of self-awareness and self-restraint occurring in group situations that foster arousal and anonymity

Social Facilitation

Improved performance on simple or well-learned tasks in the presence of others

False Consensus Effect

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

Superordinate Goals

Shared goals that override differences among people and require their cooperation

Social Trap

A situation in which the conflicting parties, by each pursuing their self-interest rather than the good of the group, become caught in mutually destructive behavior

Burnout

A state of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion created by long-term involvement in an emotionally demanding situation and accompanied by lowered performance and motivation

Altruism

Unselfish regard for the welfare of others

Social Reciprocity Norm

An expectation that people will help, not hurt, those who have helped them

Social Responsibility Norm

An expectation that people will help those dependent upon them (elderly, disabled)

Bystander Effect

The tendency for any given bystander to be less likely to give aid if other bystanders are present