Unit 4 AP Psych

Attribution

explanations individuals create for the causes of behaviors and events.

• They help people understand and predict others' actions, as well as their own, by attributing causes to internal dispositions or external situations.

Dispositional Attributions

also known as internal attributions, assign the cause of behavior to inherent qualities, traits, or characteristics of the individual.

• If a colleague consistently meets deadlines, we might attribute their behavior to their diligence and strong work ethic.

Situational Attributions

The situation was the primary influence

•  If someone is late to a meeting, attributing their tardiness to heavy traffic or public transportation delays

Fundamental Attribution Error

The tendency to overemphasize dispositional factors and underestimate situational factors when explaining others' behaviors.

• Person > Env

• Observing a server being rude might lead to assuming they have a bad attitude (dispositional) rather than considering they might be under stress from a busy shift (situational).

Actor/Observer Bias

The tendency for individuals to attribute their own actions to situational factors, while attributing others' actions to dispositional factors.

• Me: Sit. ; Others: Person

• If a person cuts someone off in traffic, they might justify it by needing to get to an important appointment (situational), but if someone else cuts them off, they might think the other driver is reckless (dispositional).

Self-Serving Bias

The tendency to attribute successes to internal factors and failures to external factors, enhancing self-esteem and protecting the self-concept

• A student who gets a good grade on a test might attribute it to their intelligence and hard work (internal), but if they get a bad grade, they might blame the teacher's unfair questions or a noisy environment (external).

Explanatory Style

refers to how people habitually explain the causes of events.

Locus of Control

An individual's belief about the extent to which they have control over the events that affect their lives. 

Internal Locus of Control

Individuals believe that they have significant control over the outcomes of their actions. They attribute success or failure to their own efforts, skills, and abilities

• A student with an internal locus of control believes that their academic success is due to their hard work and study habits. They are likely to seek additional resources and put in extra effort to improve their grades.

External Locus of Control

 Individuals believe that external forces, such as luck, fate, or other people, primarily influence the outcomes of their actions.

• They feel that their lives are controlled by factors beyond their control. An employee with an external locus of control might attribute a promotion to favoritism rather than their own performance. As a result, they might not actively seek professional development opportunities or put in extra effort.

Mere Exposure Effect

Repeated exposure to a stimulus increases our preference for that thing

• E.g. you start becoming friends with someone who you initially didn’t know because you two sat near each other in a particular class.

Social Comparison Theory

The process of evaluating one's abilities, opinions, and attributes by comparing them to those of others

Downward Social Comparison:

Comparing to someone perceived as worse off, which can boost self-esteem

Relative Deprivation

the feeling of being worse off than others in a similar social context, leading to discontent, resentment, or frustration

Fraternalistic Relative Deprivation

the feeling that one's own social group (ingroup) is at a disadvantage compared to other groups, driving social change through collective action

Ingroup

“us”—people with whom we share a common identity…

Outgroup

“them”—those perceived as different or apart from our in-group…

Self-Fulfilling Prophecy

Where an individual's expectations about another person or situation influence their behavior toward that person or situation, leading the expected outcome to occur.

BELIEF PERSEVERANCE

-You hold a belief

-You reject / ignore contradictory evidence

-You retain your belief

• Passive Rejection

Confirmation Bias

-You hold a belief

-You seek out information that supports your belief

-Retain belief

• Active search for affirmation

Cognitive Dissonance

The mental discomfort experienced when a person holds two or more conflicting beliefs, values, or attitudes, or when their beliefs are contradicted by their actions

Stereotype

False Assumptions or generalized beliefs about a group of people.

Prejudice

An unjustifiable (and usually negative) attitude toward a group and its members

Discrimination

the behavior or actions, often negative, directed towards an individual or group based on prejudice. It involves treating people unfairly because of their membership in a particular group.

Implicit Attitudes

unconscious, automatic evaluations towards a person, object, or concept that can differ from consciously held beliefs, or explicit attitudes

• unconscious, automatic evaluations towards a person, object, or concept that can differ from consciously held beliefs, or explicit attitudes

JUST-WORLD PHENOMENON

The cognitive bias that leads individuals to believe that the world is fair and that people get what they deserve.

• This belief can justify existing social inequalities and lead to victim blaming.

Victim Blaming

holding a victim responsible for the harm done to them, instead of the perpetrator

OUTGROUP HOMOGENEITY

Perceived uniformity of outgroup attitudes, personality, and appearance.  We tend to think that others, “them”, are all alike.

IN-GROUP BIAS

The tendency to favor one's own group and its members over other groups (out-groups)

Ethnocentrism

judging other cultures based on one's own cultural standards,

Cultural Relativism

Understanding and evaluating a culture on its own terms and in its own context

Cultural Relativism

Understanding and evaluating a culture on its own terms and in its own context

Social Norms

The implicit or explicit rules that govern the behavior of individuals within a group or society.

• These norms dictate acceptable and unacceptable behaviors, guiding how individuals interact with one another.

Social Influence Theory

Examines how individuals' thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are shaped by the presence, opinions, and actions of others.

• This theory encompasses various forms of social influence, including conformity, compliance, and obedience

Normative Social Influence

Occurs when individuals conform to a group’s expectations to gain social approval or avoid social disapproval.

• This type of influence is driven by the desire to fit in and be liked by others.

Informational Social Influence

occurs when individuals conform to the behavior of others because they believe those others have accurate knowledge and that conforming will help them make correct decisions.

• This type of influence is based on the desire to be right.

Persuasion

Involves changing someone’s attitudes, beliefs, or behaviors through argument, reasoning, or appeal.

Central Route Persuasion

logical and evidence-based arguments

• This route is used when the audience is motivated and has the ability to think about the message. It leads to more enduring attitude changes.

• Direct

Peripheral Route Persuasion

emotional appeals and superficial cues

• This route is used when the audience is either unmotivated or unable to process the message deeply, leading to temporary attitude changes.

• Distract

Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM

explains how people are persuaded and the different routes of persuasion. The model proposes two routes: the central route and the peripheral route.

Halo Effect

a cognitive bias where the perception of one positive trait (e.g., attractiveness) influences the perception of other unrelated traits (e.g., intelligence or kindness).

Foot-in-the-Door Technique

is a persuasion strategy that involves getting a person to agree to a small initial request, followed by a larger request. This technique leverages the principle of consistency.

Door-in-the-Face Technique

A persuasion strategy that involves making a large, unreasonable request that is likely to be refused, followed by a smaller, more reasonable request. This technique leverages the principle of reciprocity.

Conformity

 refers to the tendency of individuals to adjust their behavior, attitudes, or beliefs to align with those of a group or social norm.

Solomon Asch's classic conformity experiments

Participants were asked to match line lengths. Despite clear evidence of the correct answer, many conformed to the incorrect majority response, demonstrating the powerful impact of social pressure on behavior.

Obedience

Involves following orders or directives from an authority figure.

• Influence: hierarchical social structures.

Stanley Milgram's obedience experiments

revealed that individuals would administer seemingly harmful electric shocks to others when instructed by an authority figure, illustrating the extent to which people comply with authority, even against their moral judgment.

• One of the motivating forces behind Stanley Milgram’s work was the desire to understand why Nazi soldiers followed orders to kill millions of Jewish people in the Holocaust.

• The surface story was simple: “learners” would attempt to remember a series of paired words. “Teachers” would provide electric shocks to the “learners” when they incorrectly matched the pairs.

• Milgram very carefully walked the “teacher” through the details of the shock generator, even giving the “teacher” a small sample shock. Milgram also made certain to show the “teacher” how the “learner” in the adjacent room would be connected to the shock generator.

• The electric shock generator, with shock levels depicted all the way up to 450 volts, or XXX, was fake. NO ELECTRIC SHOCK WAS EVER GIVEN TO THE “LEARNER”

• The elaborate design of the experiment let the “teacher”, the real subject in the experiment, believe they were administering shock to the “learner” for incorrect answers. In reality, Milgram was researching just how far the subject would go in administering electric shock because they had been told to do so by an authority figure.

Individualism

is a cultural orientation that emphasizes personal goals, autonomy, and individual rights. In individualistic cultures, personal achievements and self-expression are highly valued.

Collectivism

a cultural orientation that emphasizes group goals, interdependence, and the importance of social harmony. In collectivist cultures, the well-being of the group takes precedence over individual desires.

Multiculturalism

A societal approach that values and promotes the coexistence of diverse cultural groups. It recognizes and respects cultural differences, encouraging integration and mutual respect.

Group Polarization

Refers to the tendency for group discussions to amplify the initial leanings of group members, leading to more extreme positions. This occurs when individuals in a group reinforce each other's viewpoints.

Group Think

a psychological phenomenon where the desire for group cohesion and consensus overrides realistic appraisal of alternative courses of action. It often leads to poor decision-making.

• Group cohesion

• Isolation

• Poor leadership

• Stress

Diffusion of Responsibility

occurs when individuals in a group feel less personally accountable for their actions because responsibility is shared among all members. This can lead to decreased motivation to act

Social Loafing

 tendency for individuals to exert less effort when working in a group compared to when working alone.

• This occurs because individuals feel their contributions are less noticeable. 

Deindividuation

Psychological state where individuals lose self-awareness and personal accountability in groups, leading to behavior that is uncharacteristic and often uninhibited.

Social Facilitation

refers to the tendency for people to perform tasks better when they are in the presence of others. This effect is particularly noticeable with simple or well-learned tasks.

social inhibition.

phenomenon where performance on complex or new tasks may worsen under observation

False Consensus Effect

a cognitive bias where individuals overestimate the extent to which their beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors are shared by others.

• This bias leads to the assumption that others think and behave similarly to themselves.

Superordinate Goals

Objectives that require cooperation between groups or individuals, transcending individual differences and promoting unity.

• These goals cannot be achieved by any single group alone and necessitate collaborative efforts.

Social Trap

occur when individuals or groups pursue short-term gains that ultimately lead to negative long-term consequences for the group as a whole.

• These situations often involve a conflict between individual interests and collective welfare.

Industrial-Organizational (I-O) Psychologists

Apply psychological principles and research methods to the workplace to improve productivity, work quality, and the well-being of employees. They study and address issues related to human behavior in organizational settings

Altruism

a form of prosocial behavior where an individual acts to benefit others without expecting any personal gain or reward.

• It is motivated by a genuine concern for the welfare of others.

Social Reciprocity Norm

 a social rule that encourages individuals to repay, in kind, what another person has provided.

• It is the expectation that people will respond to each other in similar ways, creating mutual benefit and cooperation.

Bystander Effect

a social phenomenon where individuals are less likely to offer help in an emergency situation when other people are present. The presence of others diffuses the sense of personal responsibility.

Situational Variables

refer to the environmental and contextual factors that influence prosocial behavior,

Attentional Variables

relate to where an individual's focus is directed in a given situation