Unit 4 Social Psychology and Personality

Personality psychology

Study of consistent patterns thoughts feelings and behaviors

Social psychology

Study of how people think about influence and relate to others

Person perception

Forming impressions of others

Attribution theory

Explains how we determine causes of behavior (internal vs external)

Fundamental attribution error

Overestimating personality and underestimating situation when judging someone

Actor-observer bias

We blame situations for our behavior but personality for others behaviors

Stereotype

Overgeneralized belief about a group of people

Prejudice

Unjustified negative attitude toward a group

Discrimination

Unfair behavior toward a group

Just world phenomenon

Belief that people get what they deserve

Social identity

Sense of self based on group membership

Ingroup

Group you belong to

Outgroup

Group you don't belong

Ingroup bias

Favoring your own group

Scapegoat theory

Blaming others for your problems

Other race effect

Easier recognition of faces from your own race

Trait

Stable characteristic or tendency

Factor analysis

Statistical method to identify clusters of traits

Introversion

Preference for solitude and less stimulation

Personality inventory

Questionnaire assessing personality traits

MMPI

Widely used personality test for diagnosing disorders

Empirically derived test

Test developed through research and data

Big Five factors

Five main personality types (Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, Neuroticism)

Personality stability

Consistency of personality traits over time

Social cognitive perspective

Personality is shaped by interaction of traits, environment, and thoughts

Behavioral approach

Personality learned through conditioning

Reciprocal determinism

Interaction between behavior, environment, and personal factors

Self

Your sense of identify

Self esteem

Overall self worth

Self serving bias

Taking credit for success and blaming failures on outside factors

Individualism

Prioritizing personal goals of independence

Collectivism

Prioritizing group goals and harmony

Self efficacy

Belief in your ability to succeed