AP Psychology: Social Unit

social psychology

the scientific study of how we think about, influence, and relate to one another

attribution theory

the theory that we explain someone's behavior by crediting either the situation or the person's disposition

dispositional attribution

attributing behavior to the person's disposition and traits

situational attribution

attribution to factors external to an actor, such as the task, other people, or luck

Fundamental Attribution Error (FAE)

a failure to consider situational variables while making an attribution, leading to an overestimation of dispositional contributions when observing the behavior of others

attitude

feelings, often influenced by our beliefs, that predispose us to respond in a particular way to objects, people, and events

peripheral route persuasion

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

central route persuasion

occurs when interested people focus on the arguments and respond with favorable thoughts

foot-in-the-door phenomenon

the tendency for people who have first agreed to a small request to comply later with a larger request

door-in-the-face phenomenon

tendency for people who won't agree to a large task, but then agree when a smaller request is made

role

a set of expectations (norms) about a social position, defining how those in the position ought to behave

Stanford Prision Experiment (Zimbardo)

classic "experiment" where individuals were assigned to the guards / prisoners, within days they took their roles and went too far - unethical

power of the situation

idea that behavior is influenced by environmental factors, even though we focus on personal traits for explanation

Cognitive Dissonance (Festinger)

motivation to reduce discomfort (dissonance) caused by inconsistency in attitude and behavior

A Class Divided experiment

Prejudice experiment based upon eye color, lead to brown eyed individuals becoming arrogant, blue eyed subservient; test performing correlated to eye color by Jane Elliot first in an elementary classroom

Clark Doll Study (Kenneth and Mamie Clark)

aimed to examine the psychological effects of segregation on Black children, found that internalized racism, low self esteem, and identity confusion were common in Black children, evidence in Brown v. Board of Education

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

bystander effect

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

Kitty Genovese

woman whose murder in front of witnesses led to research on bystander effect

social facilitation

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

social inhibition

The tendency to perform tasks more poorly or more slowly in the presence of others

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, "mob mentality"

group polarization

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

Groupthink

the tendency of group members to conform, resulting in a narrow view of some issue

prejudice

A negative attitude toward an entire category of people, often an ethnic or racial minority.

Discrimination

Behaving differently, usually unfairly, toward the members of a group.

Bias

prejudice in favor of or against one thing, person, or group compared with another, usually in a way considered to be unfair- can be implicit (unconcious) & explicit (concious)

stereotype

a widely held but fixed and oversimplified image or idea of a particular type of person or thing.

Binet-Simon Test

calculated a child's mental age (level at which they operate) and compared it to his or her chronological age (actual age)

Alfred Binet

1857-1911; Field: testing; Contributions: general IQ tests, designed test to identify slow learners in need of remediation-not applicable in the U.S. because too culture-bound (French)

Lewis Terman

revised Binet's IQ test (average would be 100) and established norms for American children; tested group of young geniuses and followed in a longitudinal study that lasted beyond his own lifetime to show that high IQ does not necessarily lead to wonderful things in life

intelligence quotient (IQ)

defined originally as the ratio of mental age (ma) to chronological age (ca) multiplied by 100 [thus, IQ = (ma/ca) x 100]. On contemporary intelligence tests, the average performance for a given age is assigned a score of 100.

Charles Spearman

intelligence; found that specific mental talents were highly correlated, concluded that all cognitive abilities showed a common core which he labeled 'g' (general ability), also allowed for specific mental ability 's' two factor theory

general mental ability

an overall factor of intelligence, as suggested by the positive correlations among specific intellectual ability dimensions

specific mental ability

Abilities that are unique to each test

two-factor theory of intelligence

Spearman's theory suggesting that a person's performance on a test is due to a combination of general ability and skills that are specific to the test

Howard Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences

Defines intelligence as "the capacity to solve problems or fashion products that are valued in one or more cultural settings." 8 intelligences, everyone has all 8, but in different proportions. You can strengthen your weaker areas.

fluid intelligence (Gf)

our ability to reason speedily and abstractly; tends to decrease with age, especially during late adulthood

crystallized intelligence (Gc)

a type of intelligence that draws upon past learning and experience

Sternberg's Triarchic Theory

our intelligence is best classified into three areas that predict real-world success: analytical, creative, and practical

practical intelligence

the ability to use information to get along in life and become successful

creative intelligence

the ability to deal with new and different concepts and to come up with new ways of solving problems

analytical intelligence

the ability to break problems down into component parts, or analysis, for problem solving

individualistic culture

culture that focuses on individual achievement and autonomy

collectivistic culture

a culture that places a high value on collaboration, teamwork, and group achievement

fixed mindset

the idea that we have a set amount of an ability that cannot change

growth mindset

the idea that our abilities are malleable qualities that we can cultivate and grow

Bobo doll experiment

nursery school students observed an adult play aggressively (yelling & hitting) with an inflatable clown (Bobo); when children were later allowed to play with the Bobo, those children who witnesses the Bobo doll performed the same aggressive actions and improvised new ways of playing aggressively

Asch conformity experiment

subjects had to judge which line was longest, the only subject conforms and actually believes that they were right when the answer was clearly wrong, there is a need of social respect and conformity is the outcome

Milgram shocking experiment

Participants were instructed to administer electric shocks to a learner (actually an actor) for incorrect answers on a word learning test. The experiment revealed a disturbing tendency for people to obey authority, even when it meant causing potential harm to others

mere exposure effect

the phenomenon that repeated exposure to novel stimuli increases liking of them

social comparison

evaluating one's abilities and opinions by comparing oneself with others

relative deprivation

the perception that one is worse off relative to those with whom one compares oneself

Cognitive Load

The amount of a person's cognitive resources needed to carry out a particular cognitive task.

Out-Group Homogeneity Bias

one's perception of out-group members as more similar to one another than are in-group members

In-Group Bias

tendency to favor individuals within our group over those from outside our group

Ethnocentrism

evaluation of other cultures according to preconceptions originating in the standards and customs of one's own culture.

Normative Social Influence

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

Informational Social Influence

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

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

Prosocial Behavior

positive, constructive, helpful behavior. The opposite of antisocial behavior

Antisocial Behavior

behavior that either damages interpersonal relationships or is culturally undesirable

Social Responsibility Norm

an expectation that people will help those dependent upon them

informational social influence

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

social trap

a situation in which the conflicting parties, by each rationally pursuing their self-interest, become caught in mutually destructive behavior

superordinate goals

shared goals that override differences among people and require their cooperation