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Attributions
people's explanations for why events or actions occur
dispositional attribution
assuming that another's behavior is due to personality factors, not situational ones
Situational attribution
attribution to factors external to an actor, such as the task, other people, or luck
Explanatory style
One's habitual way of explaining life events. Can be optimistic or pessimistic
Optimistic
hopeful and confident about the future
Pessimistic
seeing the worst side of things; no hope
actor-observer bias
the tendency to blame our actions on the situation and blame the actions of others on their personalities
fundamental attribution error
the tendency for observers, when analyzing another's behavior, to underestimate the impact of the situation and to overestimate the impact of personal disposition
self-serving bias
the tendency for people to take personal credit for success but blame failure on external factors
Internal locus of control
the perception that you control your own fate
External locus of control
the perception that chance or outside forces beyond your personal control determine your fate.
Mere exposure effect
the phenomenon that repeated exposure to novel stimuli increases liking of them
self-fulfilling prophecy
an expectation that causes you to act in ways that make that expectation come true.
social comparison
evaluating one's abilities and opinions by comparing oneself with others
upward social comparison
comparing ourselves to people who are better than we are with regard to a particular trait or ability
downward social comparison
comparing ourselves to people who are worse than we are with regard to a particular trait or ability
relative deprivation
the perception that one is worse off relative to those with whom one compares oneself
stereotype
A generalized belief about a group of people
cognitive load
The amount of a person's cognitive resources needed to carry out a particular cognitive task.
prejudice
preconceived opinion that is not based on reason or actual experience
discrimination
unjustifiable negative behavior toward a group and its members
implicit attitudes
Attitudes that are involuntary, uncontrollable, and at times unconscious
just-world phenomenon
the tendency for people to believe the world is just and that people therefore get what they deserve and deserve what they get
Out-group bias
tendency to view all individuals outside our group as highly similar
In-group bias
tendency to favor individuals within our group over those from outside our group
Ethnocentrism
Belief in the superiority of one's nation or ethnic group.
Belief perseverance
tendency to stick to our initial beliefs even when evidence contradicts them
confirmation bias
a tendency to search for information that supports our preconceptions and to ignore or distort contradictory evidence
cognitive dissonance
Inner tension that a consumer experiences after recognizing an inconsistency between behavior and values or opinions
social norms
The implicit or explicit rules a group has for the acceptable behaviors, values, and beliefs of its members
social influence theory
theory that powerful social influences can produce a state of hypnosis
normative social influence
influence resulting from a person's desire to gain approval or avoid disapproval
informational social influence
the influence other people have on us because we want to be right
Persuasion
the process of creating, reinforcing, or changing people's beliefs or actions
elaboration likelihood model
theory identifying two ways to persuade: a central route and a peripheral route
central route persuasion
attitude change path in which interested people focus on the arguments and respond with favorable thoughts
peripheral route persuasion
occurs when people are influenced by incidental cues, such as a speaker's attractiveness
halo effect
tendency of an interviewer to allow positive characteristics of a client to influence the assessments of the client's behavior and statements
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 technique
persuasive technique involving making an unreasonably large request before making the small request we're hoping to have granted
conformity
Adjusting one's behavior or thinking to coincide with a group standard.
obedience
changing one's behavior at the command of an authority figure
individualism
a social theory favoring freedom of action for individuals over collective or state control.
collectivism
giving priority to the goals of one's group and defining one's identity accordingly
multiculturalism
The practice of valuing and respecting differences in culture.
group polarization
the enhancement of a group's prevailing inclinations 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
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
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
A phenomenon that occurs when immersion in a group causes people to become less aware of their individual values
social facilitation
improved performance on simple or well-learned tasks in the presence of others
false consensus effect
the tendency to overestimate the extent to which others share our beliefs and behaviors
superordinate goals
shared goals that override differences among people and require their cooperation
social traps
a situation in which the conflicting parties, by each rationally pursuing their self-interest, become caught in mutually destructive behavior
industiral-organizational psychologists
the application of psychological concepts and methods to optimizing human behavior in workplaces
burnout
a state of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion created by long-term involvement in an emotionally demanding situation and accompanied by lowered performance and motivation
altruism
unselfish regard for the welfare of others
prosocial behavior
positive, constructive, helpful behavior
social debt
offender's criminal history should be considered in sentencing
social reciprocity norm
an expectation that people will help, not hurt, those who have helped them
social responsibility norm
an expectation that people will help those dependent upon them
bystander effect
the finding that a person is less likely to provide help when there are other bystanders
situational variables
Elements of a situation may influence whether someone is likely to help another person
attentional variables
Elements of attention which may influence whether someone is likely to help another person
Psychodynamic theory
Freudian theory that unconscious forces determine behavior
Unconscious processes
thoughts and feelings outside of our awareness
Ego defense mechanism
according to psychoanalytic theory, strategies developed by the ego to control unacceptable id impulses and to avoid or reduce the anxiety they arouse
Denial
psychoanalytic defense mechanism by which people refuse to believe or even to perceive painful realities.
Displacement
psychoanalytic defense mechanism that shifts sexual or aggressive impulses toward a more acceptable or less threatening object or person, as when redirecting anger toward a safer outlet
Projection
psychoanalytic defense mechanism by which people disguise their own threatening impulses by attributing them to others
Rationalization
defense mechanism that offers self-justifying explanations in place of the real, more threatening, unconscious reasons for one's actions
Reaction formation
psychoanalytic defense mechanism by which the ego unconsciously switches unacceptable impulses into their opposites. Thus, people may express feelings that are the opposite of their anxiety-arousing unconscious feelings.
Regression
psychoanalytic defense mechanism in which an individual faced with anxiety retreats to a more infantile psychosexual stage, where some psychic energy remains fixated
Repression
in psychoanalytic theory, the basic defense mechanism that banishes from consciousness anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories
Sublimation
a mature type of defense mechanism, in which socially unacceptable impulses or idealizations are transformed into socially acceptable actions or behavior, possibly resulting in a long-term conversion of the initial impulse.
Projective tests
personality assessments that present ambiguous visual stimuli to the client and ask the client to respond with whatever comes to mind
preconscious mind
Freud's term for what is stored in one's memory that one is not presently aware of but can access
humanistic psychology
historically significant perspective that emphasized the growth potential of healthy people and the individual's potential for personal growth
unconditional regard
Respecting and accepting a patient as a unique individual.
self-actualizing tendency
the human motive toward realizing our inner potential
social-cognitive theory
The view of psychologists who emphasize behavior, environment, and cognition as the key factors in development.
reciprocal determinism
the interacting influences of behavior, internal cognition, and environment on personality
self-concept
all our thoughts and feelings about ourselves, in answer to the question, "Who am I?"
self-efficacy
one's sense of competence and effectiveness
self-esteem
how much you value, respect, and feel confident about yourself
Trait theories
Theoretical views stressing that personality consists of broad, enduring dispositions (traits) that tend to lead to characteristic responses.
Big Five Theory
a trait theory that identifies five main characteristics that account for most individual differences in personality
Agreeableness
how trusting, good-natured, cooperative, and soft-hearted one is
Openness to experience
how intellectual, imaginative, curious, and broad-minded one is
extraversion
dimension of personality referring to one's need to be with other people
Conscientiousness
A personality dimension that describes someone who is responsible, dependable, persistent, and organized
Emotional stability
the degree to which someone is not angry, depressed, anxious, emotional, insecure, and excitable
Personality inventories
a questionnaire (often with true-false or agree-disagree items) on which people respond to items designed to gauge a wide range of feelings and behaviors; used to assess selected personality traits.
Factor analysis
a statistical procedure that identifies clusters of related items (called factors) on a test; used to identify different dimensions of performance that underlie a person's total score.
drive-reduction theory
a theory of motivation stating that motivation arises from imbalances in homeostasis
homeostasis
A tendency to maintain a balanced or constant internal state; the regulation of any aspect of body chemistry, such as blood glucose, around a particular level
arousal theory
A theory of motivation suggesting that people are motivated to maintain an optimal level of alertness and physical and mental activation.
optimal level of arousal
Theory arguing that humans are driven to increase or decrease arousal to produce a comfortable level that is not over- nor under stimulating.
Yerkes-dodson law
the principle that performance increases with arousal only up to a point, beyond which performance decreases
self-determination theory
a theory of motivation that is concerned with the beneficial effects of intrinsic motivation and the harmful effects of extrinsic motivation
