Social Psychology
the scientific study of how people's thoughts, feelings, and actions are affected by others
Attitudes
evaluations of people, objects, ideas and behavior
persuasion involves changing attitudes - the ease with which attitudes can be changed depends on:
-message source
-characteristics of the message
-characteristics of the target
attitudes influence behavio
Central Route Processing
the type of mental processing that occurs when a persuasive message is evaluated by thoughtful consideration of the issues and arguments used to persuade
highly motivated people use
Peripheral Route Processing
type of mental processing that occurs when a persuasive message is evaluated on the basis of irrelevant or extraneous factors
unmotivated people used
Cognitive Dissonance
the mental conflict that occurs when a person holds two contradictory attitudes or thoughts (referred to as cognitions)
Social Cognition
the cognitive processes by which people understand and make sense of others and themselves
Schemas
sets of cognitions about people and social experiences; organize info stored in our memory
Central Traits
the major traits considered in forming impressions of others
Impression Formation
the process by which an individual organizes info about another person to form an overall impression of that person
Attribution Theory
theory that considers how we decide, on the basis of samples of a person's behavior, what the specific causes of that behavior are
Situational Causes of Behavior
causes of behavior that are external to a person
Dispositional Causes of Behavior
perceived causes of behavior brought about by a person's traits or personality characteristics
Halo Effect
a phenomenon in which an initial understanding that a person has positive traits is used to infer other uniformly positive characteristics
Assumed-Similarity Bias
the tendency to think of people as being similar to oneself even when meeting them for the first time
Self-Serving Bias
the tendency to attribute personal success to personal factors (skill, ability, or effort) and to attribute failure to factors outside of oneself
Fundamental Attribution Error
a tendency to over attribute others' behavior to dispositional causes and minimized the importance of situational causes
Social Influence
the process by which social groups and individuals exert pressure on an individual, either deliberately or unintentionally
Group
2 or more people who interact w/ one another, perceive themselves as part of a group, and are interdependent
Conformity
a change in behavior or attitudes brought about by a desire to follow the beliefs or standards of other people - subtle or even unspoken social pressure results in conformity
Compliance
behavior that occurs in response to direct social pressure
Foot-in-the-door Technique
first ask people to agree to small request - since the request is small, the likelihood that they will comply is high
later ask for a bigger request - the compliance increases significantly when they agreed to the small favor
Door-in-the-face Technique
make a large request, expect it to be refused, and follow it with a smaller one
That's-not-all Technique
sales person offers a deal at an inflated price then immediately offers an incentive, discount or bonus
Not-so-free Sample
the receipt of a free sample activates the norm of reciprocity and makes us feel that we should return the favor - in the form of a purchase
Stereotype
a set of generalized beliefs and expectations about a particular group and its members
can lead to prejudice
acting on leads to discrimination
Prejudice
a negative/positive evaluation of a particular group and its members
Discrimination
behavior directed toward individuals on the bases of their membership in a particular group
Observation Learning Approaches to Stereotypes/Prejudices
the behavior of parents, other adults, and peers shapes children's feelings about members of various groups - young children learn prejudice by imitating the behavior of adult models
Social Identity Theory
people tend to be ethnocentric, viewing the world from their own perspective and judging others in terms of their group membership - we may come to think that our own group is better than other groups to which we don't belong, and view those members as in
Interpersonal Attraction
close relationships; positive feelings for others; liking and loving
Factors that Contribute to Liking
-proximity
-mere exposure
-similarity
-physical attractiveness
Passionate/Romantic Love
state of intense absorption in someone that includes intense physiological arousal, psychological interest, and caring for the needs of another
Companionate Love
the strong affection we have for those w/ whom our lives are deeply involved
Robert Sternberg's 3 Types of Love
-Decision/Commitment: initial thoughts that one loves someone and the longer-term feelings of commitment maintain love
-Intimacy Component: feelings of closeness and connectedness
-Passion Component: the motivational drives relating to sex, physical close
Aggression
the intentional injury of, or harm to, another person
Instinct Approach
(Freud)
aggression is a primary instinctual drive; aggressive energy constantly builds up in an individual until the person finally discharges it
the longer the energy builds up, the greater amount of aggression is displayed at disharge
Cartharsis
the process of discharging build up aggressive energy
Frustration-Aggression Approach
frustration: the reaction to the thwarting/blocking of goals - frustration produces anger, which leads to a readiness to act aggressively
Observational Learning Approaches
emphasizes that social and environmental conditions can teach individuals to be aggressive; aggression is a learned response that can be understood in terms of rewards and punishments
Pro-social Behavior
helping behavior
Altruism
behavior meant to help another person without regard for self-interest
Diffusion of Responsibility
the belief that responsibility for intervening is shared, or diffused among those present