Social Psychology Lecture Notes

These flashcards cover key concepts and terminology from the Social Psychology lecture notes, focusing on prejudice, discrimination, and social identity.

Prejudice

An unjustified or incorrect attitude (usually negative) towards an individual based solely on their membership in a social group.

Discrimination

The behavior or actions, usually negative, towards an individual or group based on their perceived characteristics or social category.

Social Identity Theory

A theory proposing that a person's sense of who they are is based on their group membership(s) and affects their self-esteem.

Ingroup vs. Outgroup

Ingroup refers to the group with which an individual identifies, while outgroup refers to those outside the ingroup.

Minimal Group Paradigm

An experimental paradigm in social psychology, used to investigate the minimal conditions required for discrimination to occur among groups.

Optimal Distinctiveness Theory

A theory that states individuals seek to balance the need for inclusion in a group with the need for uniqueness.

Linguistic Intergroup Bias

A phenomenon showing that language differs in the way we describe ingroup versus outgroup behaviors, with ingroup actions being described in more abstract terms and outgroup actions in specific terms.

Bask in Reflected Glory

The phenomenon where individuals enhance their self-esteem by associating themselves with successful groups.

Self-Categorization

The cognitive process of defining oneself in terms of one's group membership.

Intergroup Conflict

A conflict that occurs between different groups, often due to competition for resources or differing values.