psych 4.1-4.3

Attributions

Explanations for behaviors and mental processes

dispositional attributions

Relating to internal qualities

situational attributions

relate to external circumstances

explanatory style

how people explain good and bad events in their lives and others

optimistic explanatory style

attributing positive events to internal factors and negative events to external factors

pessimistic explanatory style

attributing negative events to internal factors and positive events to external factors

actor/ observer bias

tendency to attribute our own actions to siutational factors and others to dispositional factors

fundamental attribution error

overestimating dispositional factors in others behaviors

self serving bias

attributing our success to internal factors and failures to external factors

The mere exposure effect

people are exposed to stimulus repeatedly over time, increased liking

self fulfilling prophecy

people behave in ways that elicit behaviors from others that confirm their beliefs and perceptions

social comparison

when people evaluate themselves based on comparison to others

upward comparison

comparing oneself to those who are better off

downward comparison

comparing one to those who are worse off

relative deprivation

feeling deprived based on comparisons

attitudes

settled way of thinking or feeling about someone or something

stereotypes

a generalized concepts about a group

cause and result of bias

stern from and reinforce biased perceptions and experiences

prejudiced attributes

leads to forming unfair opinions about individuals based on group membership

discriminatory behaviors

acting unfairly towards individuals based on stereotypes

implicit attitudes

individuals hold that may be unaware of or may not acknowledge

just world phenemomon

belief that people get what they deserve, justifying inequality

out group homogeneity bias

perceiving members of an out group as more similar to each others than in group members

in-group bias

favoring members of one’s own group over others

ethnocentrism

believing one’s own culture or group is superior to others

belief perseverance

persistence of belief despite evidence suggesting it is not accurate

confirmation bias

seeking or interpreting evidence in ways that confirm existing beliefs

cognitive dissonance

mental discomfort that occurs when actions or attitudes are in conflict

changing attitudes

adjusting beliefs to align with actions

changing actions

modifying behaviors to align with beliefs

social norms

expectations and roles a society has for its members

social influence theory

the social pressure to behave or think in certain ways can be normative or informational

persuasion

convincing others

elaboration likehood model

central and peripheral route

central route

logical arguments and evidence

peripheral route

relies on superficial cues

halo effect

peripheral route where a positive trait influences overall perceptions

group polarization

tendency for group discussions to intensify group opinions

groupthink

desire for harmony leads to poor decision making

diffusion of responsibility

reduced sense of person responsibility in a group

social loafing

reduced effort by individuals in a group task

deindividuation

loss of self awareness and restr in group settings

social facilitation

improved performance on simple taste and worsed performance on complex tasks in front of others

false consensus effect

overestimating the extent to which others share one’s belief or behaviors

superordinate goals

goals that require cooperation and unite different groups

social traps

situations where individual self-interest leads to collective harm

altruism

refers to selfless behaviors

social reciprocity norm

exceptions to help others who have helped us

social responsibility norm

expectation to help those who depend on us

bystander effect

tendency for individuals to be less likely to help in an emergency when others are present