Person Perception, Cognition & Social Biases

Vocabulary flashcards covering key terms on person perception, attributions, attitudes, cognitive biases, heuristics, prejudice, discrimination, stigma, and mental wellbeing.

Person perception

The mental processes used to understand and form opinions of other people.

First impressions

Snap judgments made about someone in less than a second based on cues like body language and appearance.

Attributions

Evaluations about the causes of behaviour and the mental process of making those evaluations.

Internal attributions

Explanations that locate the cause of behaviour within the person (e.g., age, gender, personality).

External attributions

Explanations that locate the cause of behaviour in situational factors outside the person.

Fundamental Attribution Error

Tendency to overemphasise internal causes while ignoring external causes when explaining others’ behaviour.

Attitudes

Overall evaluations of a person, object, event, or idea.

Tri-component model of attitudes

Theory that attitudes consist of affective, behavioural, and cognitive components.

Affective component

The emotional or feeling part of an attitude.

Behavioural component

Observable actions that reflect an attitude.

Cognitive component

Thoughts and beliefs that underpin an attitude.

Consistent attitudes

Attitudes in which affective, behavioural, and cognitive components align.

Inconsistent attitudes

Attitudes in which the three components conflict or do not match.

Stereotypes

Widely held generalised beliefs about members of a group.

Cognitive dissonance

Psychological tension arising when thoughts, feelings, and behaviours are misaligned.

Cognitive biases

Unconscious, systematic tendencies that distort information processing away from rational objectivity.

Confirmation bias

Tendency to seek and accept information that supports existing beliefs while ignoring contradictions.

Actor-observer bias

Tendency to attribute our own behaviour to situational factors but others’ behaviour to internal factors.

Self-serving bias

Tendency to credit success to internal factors and blame failure on external factors.

False-consensus bias

Tendency to overestimate how much others share our beliefs and attitudes.

Halo effect

Tendency for impressions about one trait to influence overall judgments of a person.

Heuristics

Mental shortcuts that enable quick judgments, decisions, and problem solving.

Anchoring heuristic

Relying heavily on the first piece of information encountered when making a judgment.

Availability heuristic

Judging probability or frequency by how easily examples come to mind.

Representative heuristic

Categorising something based on its similarity to a typical case in that category.

Affect heuristic

Using current emotions as a guide for decisions or judgments.

Prejudice

Negative preconceived attitude toward members of a group.

Discrimination

Unjust treatment of individuals based on their group membership.

Direct discrimination

Overtly treating someone unfairly because of their association with a group.

Indirect discrimination

A neutral-seeming rule or practice that disproportionately disadvantages a group.

Stigma

Feeling of shame or disgrace attached to a characteristic that differentiates an individual from others.

Social stigma

Societal negative stereotyping that labels and marginalises members of a group.

Self-stigma

Internalised negative stereotypes leading to reduced self-efficacy and self-esteem.

Mental wellbeing

An individual’s current psychological state, including thinking, information processing, and emotion regulation.

Personal impacts on mental wellbeing

Effects such as damaged self-image, heightened stress, and increased rumination.

Group impacts on mental wellbeing

Outcomes like higher prevalence of mental disorders, social isolation, and substance abuse.

Education (prejudice reduction)

Providing knowledge and information to reduce ignorance and bias.

Intergroup contact

Open discussions and shared experiences that foster understanding between groups.

Social media advocacy

Using online platforms to spread awareness and challenge prejudice and stigma.

Anti-discrimination laws

Legal measures designed to protect minority groups and reduce discriminatory behaviour.