chapter 13 vocab

social psychology

the study of how people think about, influence, and relate to other people.

stereotype

a generalization about a group’s characteristics that does not consider any variables from one individual to another.

Attribution theory

the view that people are motivated to discover the underlying causes of behavior as part of their effort to make sense of the behavior.

fundamental attribution error

observers overestimation of the importance of internal traits and underestimation of the importance of external situations when they seek explanations of an actors behavior.

false consensus effect

observers overestimation of the degree to which everybody else thinks or acts the way they do.

positive illusions

positive views of the self that are not necessarily rooted in reality

self serving bias

the tendency to take credit for our successes and to deny responsibility for our failures.

self objectification

the tendency to see one self primarily as an object in the eyes of others.

stereotype threat

an individuals fast acting, self fulfilling fear of being judged based on a negative stereotype about his or her group.

social comparison

the process by which individuals evaluate their thoughts, feelings, behaviors, and abilities in relation to other people.

attitudes

our feelings, opinions, and beliefs about people, objects and ideas.

cognitive dissonance

an individual’s psychological discomfort (dissonance) caused by two inconsistent thoughts.

self perception theory

Bem’s theory on how behaviors influence attitudes, stating that individuals make inferences about their attitudes by perceiving their behavior.

elaboration likelihood model

theory identifying two ways to persuade: a central route and a peripheral route.

altruism

unselfish interest in helping another person

egoism

giving to another person to ensure reciprocity; to gain self esteem; to present one self as powerful, competent, or caring; or to avoid censure from oneself and others for failing to live up to society’s expectations.

empathy

a feeling of oneness with the emotional state of another person.

bystander effect

the tendency of individual who observed an emergency to less when other people are present than when the observer is alone.

aggression

social behavior whose objective is to harm someone, either physically or verbally.

conformity

a change in persons behaviors to coincide more closely with a group standard.

informational social influence

the influence other people have on us because we want to be right

normative social influence

the influence others have on us because we want them to like us.

obedience

behavior that complies with the explicit demands of the individual in authority.

deindividuation

the reduction in personal identity and erosion of the sense of personal responsibility when one is part of a group.

social contagion

imitative behavior involving the spread of actions, emotions, and ideas.

social facilitation

improvement in an individual’s performance because of the presence of others

social loafing

each persons tendency to exert less effort in a group because of reduced accountability for individual effort

risky shift

the tendency for a group decision to be riskier than the average decision made by the individual group members.

group polarization effect

the solidification and further strengthening of an individuals position as a consequence of a group discussion or interaction.

groupthink

the impaired group decision making that occurs when making the right decision is less important than maintaining group harmony.

social identity

the way we define ourselves in terms of our group membership.

social identity theory

tafjel’s theory that our social identities are a crucial part of our self image and a valuable source of positive feelings about ourselves.

ethnocentrism

the tendency to favor one’s own ethnic group over other groups.

prejudice

an unjustified negative attitude toward an individual based on the individual’s membership in a particular group.

discrimination

an unjustified negative or harmful action toward a member of a group simply because the person belongs to that group.

mere exposure effect

the phenomenon that the more we encounter someone or something, the more probable it is that we will start liking the person or thing even if we do not realize we have seen it before.

romantic love

also called passionate love; love with strong components of sexuality and infatuation, often dominant in the early part of a love relationship.

affectionate love

also called companionate love; love that occurs when individuals desire to have another person near and have a deep, caring affection for the person.

social exchange theory

the view of social relationships as involving an exchange of goods, the objective of which is to minimize costs and maximize benefits.

investment model

a model of long term relationships that examines the ways that commitment, investment, and the availability of attractive alternative partners predict satisfaction and stability in relationships.