ch 3

These flashcards cover key vocabulary and concepts related to the perception of self and others as discussed in the lecture notes.

Perception

A cognitive process through which we observe people and events, interpret our experiences, and form unique understandings.

Cognitions

Thoughts that influence how and what we communicate to others and how we interpret others' behaviors.

First Impressions

Initial judgments we make about others based on limited information during our first interaction.

Function of Schemas

Schemas drive perceptions by affecting attention, behavior, and expectations in social interactions.

Mindlessness

A state of processing information passively, often leading to inaccurate or incomplete understanding.

Selective Perception

The process of choosing to pay attention to certain aspects of information while ignoring others.

Attributions

Judgments we make to explain the behavior of ourselves or others.

Internal Attribution

Assigning someone's behavior to personal traits or characteristics.

External Attribution

Assigning someone's behavior to situational factors outside their control.

Fundamental Attribution Error

The tendency to overemphasize internal factors and underestimate external factors in others' behaviors.

Self-Serving Bias

The tendency to attribute our successes to internal factors and our failures to external factors.

Negativity Bias

A tendency to focus on the negative aspects of experiences or situations.

Prejudice

A negative feeling or attitude toward a group based on preconceived notions or stereotypes.

Stereotyping

Assuming individuals have certain traits or behaviors based on their group membership.

Self-Concept

An individual's understanding of who they are, including their beliefs, values, and identities.

Self-Esteem

How one feels about their worth or value as a person, often influenced by self-concept.

Self-Efficacy

An individual's belief in their ability to perform effectively in a specific area or situation.

Identity Management

The process of managing how we present ourselves to others, including self-presentation and self-disclosure.

Self-Disclosure

Voluntary sharing of personal information with others to develop or enhance relationships.

Feedback

Information received from others that influences how we perceive ourselves.

Cognitive processing

How we gather, organize, and evaluate the information we receive. This includes thoughts and mental processes involved in understanding our experiences.

Social construction (of schemas)

Mental structures that categorize and organize related bits of information into predictable patterns, influencing attentiveness, expectations, social behaviors, and understanding of situations.

Interaction appearance theory

Explains how people change their perception of others' physical attractiveness based on the quality of their communication.

Distorted Perception

Bias in interpretation, a cognitive bias that can skew an individual’s reality, such as attributing events to personality traits rather than situational factors.

Self-Monitoring

The capacity to observe one's surroundings for cues that inform how to present oneself appropriately; can vary from high to low.

Self-Actualization

Positive feelings associated with success in communication situations.

Self-Fulfilling Prophecies

A prediction that causes individuals to act in a way that makes the prediction come true, thus reinforcing their self-concept.

Perceptual Barriers

Issues such as narrow perspectives, stereotypes, and prejudice hinder effective communication.

Direct evidence about the self

Explicit feedback about oneself from others (e.g., compliments, criticisms).

Indirect evidence about the self

Information about oneself from observing others' reactions or comparisons.

Social comparison theory

Evaluating one's opinions and abilities by comparing them to others, impacting self-esteem.

Mindfulness

Active engagement with information.