AP Psych Unit 9

Social Psychology

The scientific study of how individuals think, feel, and behave in social situations.

Attribution Theory

The theory that explains how individuals interpret and explain behaviors, either attributing them to internal dispositions or external situations.

Fundamental Attribution Error

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

Actor-Observer Bias

The tendency to attribute our own actions to external factors while attributing others' actions to internal factors.

Self-Serving Bias

The tendency to attribute positive outcomes to internal factors and negative outcomes to external factors.

False Consensus Effect

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

Halo Effect

The tendency to generalize a positive impression of a person to other aspects of their character.

Spotlight Effect

The belief that others are paying more attention to our behaviors and appearance than they actually are.

Attitude

A learned tendency to evaluate things in a certain way, which influences behavior.

Peripheral Route Persuasion

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

Central Route Persuasion

Persuasion that occurs when people are influenced by the content and logic of a message.

Foot-in-the-Door Phenomenon

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

Role

A set of expectations about a social position, defining how those in the position ought to behave.

Cognitive Dissonance Theory

The theory that we act to reduce discomfort when our thoughts are inconsistent with our actions.

Elaboration Likelihood Model

A model explaining how attitudes are changed and formed through different routes of persuasion.

Norms

Rules for accepted and expected behavior within a group.

Conformity

Adjusting one's behavior or thinking to coincide with a group standard.

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.

Social Desirability Bias

A tendency to give socially acceptable answers rather than honest responses.

Social Facilitation

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

Social Loafing

The tendency for individuals to exert less effort when working in a group.

Deindividuation

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

Group Polarization

The enhancement of a group's prevailing attitudes through discussion within the group.

Groupthink

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

Culture

The enduring behaviors, ideas, attitudes, values, and traditions shared by a group of people.

Prejudice

Unjustifiable and usually negative attitudes toward a group and its members.

Stereotype

A generalized belief about a group of people.

Discrimination

Unjustifiable negative behavior toward a group and its members.

Just-World Phenomenon

The tendency for people to believe the world is just and that people get what they deserve.

Ingroup

"Us" - people with whom we share a common identity.

Outgroup

"Them" - those perceived as different or apart from our ingroup.

Ingroup Bias

The tendency to favor one's own group.

Scapegoat Theory

The theory that prejudice offers an outlet for anger by providing someone to blame.

Other-Race Effect

The tendency to recall faces of one's own race more accurately than faces of other races.

Aggression

Any physical or verbal behavior intended to hurt or destroy.

Frustration-Aggression Principle

The principle that frustration creates anger, which can generate aggression.

Social Script

Culturally modeled guide for how to act in various situations.

Mere Exposure Effect

The phenomenon that repeated exposure to novel stimuli increases liking of them.

Passionate Love

An aroused state of intense positive absorption in another, usually present at the beginning of a love relationship.

Compassionate Love

The deep affectionate attachment we feel for those with whom our lives are intertwined.

Equity

A condition in which people receive from a relationship in proportion to what they give to it.

Self-Disclosure

Revealing intimate aspects of oneself to others.

Altruism

Unselfish regard for the welfare of others.

Bystander Effect

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

Social Exchange Theory

Theory that views relationships as transactions where individuals seek to maximize rewards and minimize costs in social interactions.