Psychology Lecture Notes Review

Practice flashcards covering key psychological concepts and theories based on the lecture notes provided.

Self-serving bias

A tendency to credit oneself for positive outcomes and blame others for negative outcomes.

Cognitive dissonance

The mental discomfort experienced by a person who holds two or more contradictory beliefs, values, or ideas.

Fundamental attribution error

The tendency to overemphasize personality traits and underestimate situational factors when judging others' behavior.

Projection

A defense mechanism where individuals attribute their own unwanted thoughts, feelings, and motives to others.

Conformity

Changing one's behavior or beliefs to match those of others, often due to real or imagined group pressure.

Self-efficacy

An individual's belief in their own ability to succeed in specific situations or accomplish a task.

Mere-exposure effect

The psychological phenomenon by which people tend to develop a preference for things merely because they are familiar with them.

Groupthink

A phenomenon that occurs when a group of people reaches a consensus without critical reasoning or evaluation of alternatives.

Cognitive dissonance

The psychological discomfort experienced when one's beliefs are contradicted by their behavior.

Social loafing

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

Intrinsic motivation

Engaging in behavior because it is personally rewarding; performing an activity for its inherent satisfaction.

Just-world hypothesis

The belief that the world is fair and people generally get what they deserve.

Diffusion of responsibility

The phenomenon whereby a person is less likely to take responsibility for action or inaction when others are present.

Trait theory

A psychological theory aimed at describing the traits that make up human personality.

Optimistic explanatory style

A way of explaining events in a positive manner, focusing on the good and believing that bad events are temporary.