Unit 4 Social Psych & Personality

Learning Target CheckList

• Attribution Theory: Understand how it applies to behavior and mental processes.

• Locus of Control: Differentiate between internal and external locus and their impact.

• Person Perception: Explore how we form impressions of others and its implications.

• Stereotypes and Implicit Attitudes: Analyze their contribution to prejudice and discrimination.

• Belief Perseverance and Cognitive Dissonance: Explain their roles in attitude formation and change.

• Social Situation and Behavior: Examine how social contexts affect individual behavior.

• Group Influence: Understand how group dynamics impact personal behavior.

• Prosocial Behavior: Explore how it influences mental processes and actions.

• Theories of Personality: Discuss psychodynamic, humanistic, social-cognitive, and trait theories in personality assessment.

• Motivation and Behavior: Understand theories of motivation and their applicability.

• Emotion Theories: Examine how emotions influence behavior and expression.

Social Psychology Defined

• Social Psychology: The study of how individuals' thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by others.

Person Perception

• Definition: Process of forming impressions of others during interactions.

• Subjectivity: Ambiguous behaviors are often interpreted through expectations or biases.

• **Common Issues:

  • Illusory Correlation: Overestimating associations between social traits and actual encounters.

  • Evolutionary Bias: Tendency to categorize for reproductive success.

Attribution Theory

• Attribution: The process of explaining causes of behavior.

• Types of Attribution:

  • Internal (Dispositional): Attributing behavior to personal traits/abilities.

  • External (Situational): Attributing behavior to environmental factors or constraints.

• Example Scenario: Analyzing a friend's behavior at a dinner party.

Explanatory Style

• Definition: Tendency to explain life's events.

• Pessimistic vs. Optimistic Styles:

  • Pessimistic: Views setbacks as personal and permanent.

  • Optimistic: Sees failures as temporary and external.

• Impact on Feelings and Adaptation: How explanatory styles affect emotional responses and adaptability.

Fundamental Attribution Error

• Definition: The tendency to underplay situational factors while emphasizing personal factors for others' behaviors.

• Example: Differentiating reactions to other drivers based on internal vs. external attributions.

Actor-Observer Bias

• Definition: Attributing one's own actions to situational factors while attributing others' actions to their personality.

• Self-Serving Bias: Explains successes through internal factors and failures through external factors.

Perception of Control

• Types of Control:

  • Internal Locus: Belief in personal control over fate.

  • External Locus: Belief that outside forces control outcomes.

• Example of Locus of Control in Test Performance.

Other Influences on Person Perception

• Mere Exposure Effect: Increased liking through repeated exposure.

• Self-Fulfilling Prophecy: Expectations lead to behaviors that affirm those expectations.

• Social Comparison: Evaluating self against others can affect self-esteem.

• Relative Deprivation: Feeling worse off compared to others, impacting emotional state.

Attitudes and Their Influence

• Definition: Feelings influenced by beliefs, leading to reactions.

• Role of Advertising in Attitude Formation: Emotional appeals to connect people to products.

Prejudice and Discrimination

• Prejudice: An unjustifiable negative attitude towards a group.

• Stereotypes: Overgeneralized beliefs, can lead to discrimination.

• Example: Blonde stereotype as a basis for prejudice and discriminatory behavior.

Implicit vs. Explicit Prejudice

• Implicit Prejudice: Unconscious biases measured through tools like IAT.

• Explicit Prejudice: Acknowledged and expressed beliefs or attitudes.

Social Roots of Prejudice

• Just World Phenomenon: Belief in a just world leading to victim blaming.

• In-group vs. Out-group: Bias favoring one's own group.

• Ethnocentrism: Evaluating other cultures against one's own standards.

Cognitive Dissonance

• Definition: The discomfort experienced when actions conflict with beliefs.

• Cognitive Dissonance Theory: Strategies to alleviate discomfort include changing actions/attitudes.

• Example Scenario: Dissonance arising from the act of shoplifting vs. self-perception.

Norms and Social Influence

• Social Norms: Unwritten expectations of behavior in situations. Conformity can arise from social norms.

• Types of Social Influence:

  • Normative Influence: Compliance for social approval.

  • Informational Influence: Changing opinions based on new information.

Techniques of Persuasion

• Elaboration Likelihood Model:

  • Central Route: Deep processing of information.

  • Peripheral Route: Influence by superficial cues.

Conformity and Factors Influencing It

• Definition of Conformity: Adjusting behaviors/thoughts to group standards.

• Factors:

  • Feeling incompetent, group size, group agreement, and admiration can all increase conformity.

Obedience Studies

• Milgram's Experiment: To understand obedience to authority; many participants continued to administer shocks despite moral conflict.

Cultural Influences

• Individualist vs. Collectivist Cultures: Differences in values affecting personal identity and behavior.

Altruism and Helping Behavior

• Definition of Altruism: Selfless concern for others.

• Factors Influencing Helping Behaviors: Situational awareness, perceived need, and social exchange theory.

Theories of Motivation ‘

• Types of Motivation:

  • Instinct, Drive-Reduction, Arousal, and Hierarchy of Needs.

Emotion in Psychology

• Defining Emotion: Involves physiological arousal, behavior, and cognitive experience.

• Universal Emotions: Recognized across cultures and associated with facial expressions.

• Cultural Variations: Differences in emotional expression and gestures across cultures.

Summary of Theories of Personality

• Freud’s Psychodynamic Theory: Emphasizes unconscious influences.

• Humanistic Theories: Focus on personal growth and self-fulfillment, notably by Rogers and Maslow.

• Trait Theories: Characteristics and personality traits defined through consistent patterns.

End of Notes