Notes on Perception, Schemas, Culture, and Social Behavior (Overview)

We perceive things largely automatically, using two types of thinking: rational logic and automatic.
Gestalt psychology views perception as a whole (vs. Structuralism, which dissects it into elements).
Perception isn't unbiased; it's constructed with biases, inferences, and interpretations—our brain fills gaps.
Perception can be distorted (naïve realism); it's not a neutral registry but influenced by expectations.
Related: memory retrieval reconstructs reality, filling in gaps.

Schemas: Organized knowledge structures (mental file cabinets) that help understand the world (e.g., nurse schema).
Scripts: Sequences of expected events (a type of schema) that guide behavior in familiar situations (e.g., getting married).
Stereotypes: Schemas about group members, generalizing attributes based on membership.
Schemas and scripts save energy by enabling quick judgments but can bias perception and behavior.
Cultural/situational context activates different schemas/scripts; violations cause discomfort.

Priming: Activating an idea to influence later behavior/perception (e.g., Cinderella vs. Blair Witch imagery).
System 1 (automatic, intuitive, fast, energy-efficient, emotion-driven) vs. System 2 (controlled, explicit, logical, slower, effortful).
Implicit attitudes (System 1) influence behavior unconsciously; explicit attitudes (System 2) are conscious.
Nonconscious processing examples: priming word associations, mimicry (unconscious social alignment).

Evolutionary psychology: Traits enhancing survival/reproduction become common; similarities across cultures suggest evolved bases.
Universals: Female childcare, kinship, jealousy, marriage patterns—suggest evolution shapes social behavior.
Cultural perspectives: Emphasize social environment, learning, norms shaping behavior.
Naturalistic fallacy: Caution against deriving "ought" from "is" (e.g., evolved doesn't mean good).
Interplay: Culture and evolution both influence behavior; they are not mutually exclusive.

Social neuroscience: Maps brain regions to social processes (e.g., fMRI measures blood flow for neural activation).
Key brain regions:
- Amygdala: Fear/anxiety, rapid threat response.
- Prefrontal cortex: Planning, emotion regulation, future thinking.
- Nucleus accumbens: Reward processing, dopamine signaling.
Dopamine hypothesis: Positive/negative reinforcement affects reward circuitry; chronic exposure alters neurotransmitters.
Developmental neurobiology: Brain regions mature at different rates (amygdala/mesolimbic system earlier than prefrontal cortex), explaining adolescent risk-taking.

Independent (individualistic) cultures: Emphasize uniqueness, personal priority, achievement (Western Europe, U.S.).
Interdependent (collectivistic) cultures: Emphasize group harmony, relational roles, context (East Asia, some Indian contexts).
Differences: Individualistic societies show stronger fundamental attribution error; collectivistic value group expectations.
Income, economic cooperation, kinship: Correlate with interdependence.
Tight vs. loose societies: Tight societies enforce strict norms (e.g., China, Germany); loose societies have weaker norms (e.g., U.S., Australia).
Gender roles/sexuality: Vary widely across cultures (e.g., power, opportunities, extramarital affairs).
Research limitations: Much social psychology is WEIRD (Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, Democratic), limiting generalizability.
Culture is dynamic; independence/interdependence can shift by context.

Language evolution: Infants prewired to learn language; beneficial for social coordination.
Gossip theory: Language helps navigate complex groups by sharing social info, building alliances.
Theory of mind: Ability to understand others have different beliefs/perspectives; predicts others' thoughts/actions.
Empathy: Shared emotional experience; Sympathy: Understanding without sharing emotion.
Autism: Some autistic individuals may face challenges with social cues and perspective-taking (related to theory of mind).

Naturalistic fallacy: Don't derive "ought" from "is"; avoid misusing biology to justify harmful ideologies.
Nurture and environment are crucial; evolution offers possibilities, not strict scripts.

Happiness: Mindfulness and presence are strongly linked to happiness; money has a weak correlation (r \,=\, 0.02).
Media literacy: Avoid echo chambers; expose to multiple perspectives for rational decisions.

Critical thinking: Integrate evolutionary and cultural perspectives.
Apply concepts: Analyze social media, group dynamics, assumptions.
Levels of analysis: Neural processes (biology) and macro-level cultural dynamics.
Ethical dimension: Avoid naturalistic fallacy, stereotyping, seek diverse perspectives.