SOCY230

social psychology

systematic study of the nature and causes of human social behavior

middle-range theories

identify the conditions that produce specific social behavior

theoretical perspectives

broader scope than mid-range theories, offer general explanations for a wide array of social behaviors on a variety of situations

symbolic interaction theory

symbolic interactionism, human nature and social order are products of symbolic communication among people (meanings associated with interaction)

self

source and object of reflexive behavior consisting of “I” and “me”

role-taking

imagine yourself from the other person’s viewpoint

significant others

these people’s reflected views have the greatest influence on the self

reflexive self

the ability to act towards oneself, taking the role of subject and object

roles

consist of a set of rules tied to social positions that function as blueprints for behavior

identities

categories that specify the positions we hold in society and groups

role identities

meanings attached to social positions available to use in society

social identities

meanings attached to social groups we belong to

person identities

meanings we attach to adjectives we use to individuate ourselves

role theories

if we have info about the role expectations for a specified position, we can predict a significant portion of the behavior of the person occupying that position

social exchange

one of two main theoretical perspectives relevant to groups, actors who exchange resources using an exchange process while situated in an exchange structure

conditioning

learning as the result of positive or negative responses to behavior (drive decisions to max rewards and min costs)

equity

when participants in a relationship feel that the rewards they receive are proportional to the costs they bear

status

one of the two main theoretical perspectives relevant to groups, looks at status differences (levels of esteem and perceived competence)

cognitive theory

the mental activities of the individual are important determinants of social behavior

cognitive processes

mental activities including perception, memory, judgement, problem solving, and decision making

cognitive structure

any form of organization among cognitions (concepts and beliefs)

schema

specific cognitive structure used to make sense of complex information about other persons, groups, and situations

heuristics

cognitive shortcuts using readily accessible information based on experience that aid in info processing

social identity theory

individuals’ identification with societal structures guides cognitive processes

evolutionary psychology

locates the roots of social behavior in our genes, linking the psychological and social to the biological

differential susceptibility

our genes make some of us more susceptible to our environmental conditions than others

theory

a set of interrelated propositions that organizes and explains a set of phenomena

hypothesis

conjectural statement of the relation between two or more variables

independent variable

variable considered to cause or have an effect on some other variable

dependent variable

any variable caused by some other variable

extraneous variable

variable that is not expressly included in the hypotheses but that has a causal impact on the dependent variable

internal validity

free from contamination by extraneous variables

external validity

extent to which a causal relationship can be generalized to other populations, settings, or time periods

quantitative methods

collect info using numbers, statistical techniques to analyze

qualitative methods

rely on verbal or textual materials to represent the phenomena of concern

interview

a person serves as an interviewer and records the answers from the respondents

questionnaire

questions on paper or screen for respondent to read and answer at own pace

response rate

percentage of people contacted who complete the survey

reliability

extent to which an instrument produces the same results each time it is employed to measure a particular construct under given circumstances

validity

are you capturing what you think you’re capturing

face validity

content is manifestly similar to the behavior or process of interest

criterion validity

can be used to predict respondents’ standing on some other variable of theoretical or practical interest

construct validity

provides a good measure of the theoretical concept being investigated by the research

likert scale

attitudinal scale

population

set of people whose attitudes are of interest to the researcher

sample

representative subset from the population

convenience sample

sample that is readily available

simple random samples

select units from the population where every unit had an equal probability of being selected

stratified sample

divide the population into groups according to important characteristics, select a random sample of groups, and draw a sample of individuals within each selected group

panel study

longitudinal study in which a sample of respondents is surveyed at one point in time and resurveyed at a later point

experiment

manipulate independent variable, random assignment

random assignment

placement of participants in experimental treatments on the basis of chance

field study

making systematic observations about behavior as it occurs naturally in everyday settings

archival research

acquisition and analysis of information collected previously by others

content analysis

undertaking a systematic scrutiny of documents or messages to identify specific characteristics and then making inferences on their occurrence

meta-analysis

statistical technique that allows the researcher to combine the quantitative results from all previous studies on a question to determine what, collectively, they say

risk-benefit analysis

expose participants to no more than minimal risk (ordinarily encountered in daily life)

informed consent

participants agree willingly to participate in the research once informed by investigators what their participation will involve

socialization

the ways in which individuals learn and re-create skills, knowledge, values, motives, and role, appropriate to their positions in a group or society

reinforcement theory

looks at the processes by which children learn the verbal and interpersonal skills necessary to interact with others. Children can perpetuate the meanings that distinguish their social groups and even add to or modify these meanings by introducing innovations of their own (social learning perspective)

cultural routines

recurrent and predictable activities that are basic to day-to-day social life (interpretive perspective)

secure attachment

a warm, close relationship with an adult that produces a sense of security and provides stimulation (family agent of socialization)

mass media

agent of socialization including social media, television programs, videos, films, internet sites, and print articles

how agents socialize

instrumental conditioning (shaping, punishment, extrinsically motivated, intrinsically motivated, self-reinforcement), observational learning, and internalization, shift from extrinsic to intrinsic motivation

instrumental conditioning

process wherein a person learns what response to make in a situation in order to obtain a positive reinforcement or avoid a negative reinforcement

shaping

type of instrumental learning, learning in which an agent initially reinforces any behavior that remotely resembles the desired response before providing reinforcement, series of successive approximations closer and closer to desired response

punishment

presentation of a painful or discomforting stimulus or the removal of a positive stimulus (by a socializing agent) that decreases the probability that the preceding behavior (by the learner) will occur

extrinsically motivated

behaviors dependent on whether someone else will reward appropriate behaviors or punish inappropriate ones

intrinsically motivated

behaviors performed in order to achieve an internal state that the individual finds rewarding

self-reinforcement

learned performance standards for specific behaviors are used by the child to judge their own behavior (ex. writing neatly)

observational learning

acquisition of behavior based on the observation of another person’s behavior and of its consequences for that person (modeling)

internalization

the process by which initially external behavioral standards (ex. those held by parents) become internal and subsequently guide the person’s behavior. Considered internalized standard when the person engages in it without considering possible rewards of punishments

gender role

behavioral expectations associated with one’s gender

norms

beliefs about which behaviors are acceptable and which are unacceptable for specific persons in specific situations

moral development

process through which children become capable of making moral judgements (Piaget and Kohlberg)

career

part of life course, sequence of roles (each with own set of activities) that a person enacts during their lifetime, most important careers exist within the social domains for family and friends/education/and work

role identities

conceptions of the self in specific roles constructed through observations of our performance/other people’s reactions as we engage in career roles

self esteem

one’s sense of how good and worthy one is (gained or loss as we evaluate our performance of major roles)

life events

episodes that mark transition points in our lives and involve changes in roles

normative life stage

a discrete period in the life course during which individuals are expected to perform the set of activities associated with a distinct age-related role

normative transition

socially expected changes made by all or most members of a defined population (often marked by ceremony, ex. graduation)

birth cohort

group of people who were born during the same period

looking-glass self

person imagines how they appear to someone, how the other judges that appearance, and experiences pride or shame as a result

play

first of two sequential stages in social experience leading to the emergence of the self in children, young children imitate the activities of people around them

game

second of two sequential stages in social experience leading to the emergence of the self in children, children enter organized activities such as complex games of house, school, and team sports

generalized other

a conception of the attitudes and expectations held in common by the members of the organized groups with whom they interact

individualistic cultures

emphasize individual achievement and its associate identities such as president, team captain, idealist, and outstanding player

collectivistic cultures

emphasize values that promote the welfare of the group and its associated identities

reflected appraisals

our perception of what others think of us

situated self

subset of self-concepts chosen from our identities, qualities, and self-evaluations that constitutes the self we know in a particular situation

identity control theory

an actor uses the social meaning of an identity as a reference point for assessing what is occurring in the situation (thermostat example)

salience

relative importance to the self-schema, likelihood that you will enact an identity in a given situation

self-awareness

take the self as the object of our attention and focus on our own appearance, actions, and thoughts (“me”)

self-discrepancy

experience discomfort because a component of the actual self is the opposite of a component of the ideal self or ought self

self-esteem

the evaluative component of self-concept

contingencies

characteristics of self or categories of outcome on which a person stakes self-esteem

self-presentation

processes by which individuals attempt to control the impressions that others form of them in social interaction

tactical impression management

using self-presentation tactics calculated to manipulate the impressions formed by others

definition of the situation

an agreement about each other’s situated identities, goals, proper actions, and meanings associated with behaviors

frames

type of social occasion that people recognize themselves to be in, ground rules for interaction