Psych Chpt 11

evolutionary approach to attraction

sexes different statuses in reproduction are the key to understanding how the evolution and pressures have made behaviors (procreate if the purpose)

Stanley Migram's Obedience Experiment

shocking someone for a wrong answer... would students obey the teacher no matter what? 2/3 did give the full 450 volts, p 422

aggression

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

social role view of gender

social, not evolutionary, experiences have led to differences in gender behavior; biological differences are played out differently in various cultures and societal contexts

inferences

taking information we have and coming up with a good guess about who someone is and what the person is likely to do in the future

stable/unstable causes:

temporary/permanent/ or because he was mad at the moment

reciprocity

the Golden Rule; do unto others as you would have them do to you

social cognition

the area of social psychology that explores how people select, interpret, remember and use social information

self-esteem

the degree to which we have positive or negative feelings about ourselves

groupthink

the impaired group decision making that occurs when making the rights decision is less important than maintaining group harmony; conformity and unanimity are more important than open discussion;

normative social influence

the influence other people have on us because we want them to like us; two factors 1) how well informed we perceive the group to be and how confident we are in our own judgement

informational social influence

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

observer

the person who offers a causal explanation of the actors behavior; often say there is an internal cause for the actors behavior

actor

the person who produces the behavior to be explained; usually say there is an external cause for their actions

mere exposure effect

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

social comparison

the process by which individuals evaluate their thoughts, feelings, behaviors and abilities in relation to others: Leon Festinger theory

person perception

the processes by which we use social stimuli to form impressions of others; faces, attactiveness

deindividuation

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

group polarization effect

the solidification and further strengthening of an individual's position as a consequence of a group discussion or interaction; influenced by the others persuasive discussions

social psychology

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

risky shift

the tendency for a group to be riskier than the average decision made by the individual group members; Ex: persuading or someone to quit his job to start a company is easier if a group tells him to

bystander effect

the tendency for an individual who observes and emergency to help less when other people are present than when the observer is alone; Genovese case/Darley & Lantane study; cues from others on how to behave decrease the likeliness you will do something

ethnocentrism

the tendency to favor one's own ethnic group over the other groups; asserting superiority over others groups

self-serving bias

the tendency to take credit for one's own successes and to deny responsibility for one's own failures

social exchange theory

the view of social relationships as involving exchange of goods, the objective of which is to minimize costs and maximize benefits; costs and benefits of a romantic partner; equity "fair share"

attribution theory

the view that people are motivated to discover the underlying cause of behavior as part of their effort to make sense of the behavior "why people do the things they do"

identity theory

the view that social identity is crucial part of self-image and a valuable source of positive feelings about oneself; Henry Taijfel jew; "in group or out group" comparisons of each other lead to conflict because of favortism

social identity

the way individuals define themselves in terms of their group membership (church,country,social organization, political party)

elaboration likelihood model

theory identifying two ways to persuade; a central route (by engaging someone thoughtfully with a sound logical argument) and a peripheral route (non-message factors like attractive/emotional appeal)

attibution

to understand the causes of others behavior and form and impression of them p. 403

altruism

unselfish interest in helping another person;

sexual harrassment

unwelcome behavior or conduct of a sexual nature that offends, humiliates ,or intimidates another person

controllable/uncontrollable causes:

we perceive we have power over some things but not other (rain)

Symptoms of groupthink:

1) Overestimating the power and morality of one's group 2) lack of willingness to listen to all sides of an argument 3) pressure for uniformity over accuracy

Three aspects of group decision making:

1)risky shift or group polarization 2)groupthink 3)majority and minority influence

self-perception theory

Daryl Bem's theory on how behaviors influence attitudes, stating that individuals make inferences about their attitudes by perceiving their behavior; "well I run every morning so I must like it"

Can attitudes predict behavior?

Ex. think you should recycle but still throw a can in the trash Sometimes: when the persons attitudes are strong, when the person shows a strong awareness of his or her attitudes and when the person rehearses and practices them, when the person has a vested interest

IAT Test

Implicit Associations Test; computerized survey that assesses the ease with which respondents can associate a Black or White person with good (flowers) or bad things (misery)

social facilitation

Improvement in an individual's performance because of the presence of others arousing us

Carl Harvland's elements of persuasion:

The communicator (source): are you a good persuader The medium: technology used to get the message across The target (audience): age and attitude to be effective The message: strong argument or do you need exciting emotion p408

Can behavior predict attitude?

Two explanations: Cognitive dissonance and self-perception theories

Stanford Prison Experiment

Zimbardo; anyone would do these vile things if put in the same situation, and good people will do evil things to other good people if the situation supports those deeds p.424

conformity

a change in a person's behavior to coincide more closely with a group standard ; Solomon Asch experiment on lines ; affected by culture and brain p. 419 Two main contributors to conformity: informational social influence and normative social influence

market economy

a decentralized system featuring the free exchange of products and services between producers and consumers; requires reciprocity/trust

empathy

a feeling of oneness with the emotional state of another person; a key social emotion in altruism

stereotype

a generalization about a group's characteristics that does not consider any variations from one individual to another (categorizing people)

cognitive dissonance theory

a individual's psychological discomfort (dissonance)cased by two inconsistent thoughts; feeling of being a "hypocrite"; when our attitudes and behavior are at odds, our behavior can influence our attitude ($1/$20 to lie) p. 406

investment model

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

conduct disorder

a pattern of offensive behavior that violates the basic rights of others

self-fulfilling prophesy

a stereotype where expectations cause individuals to act in way that server to make the expectations come true Ex. teachers were told certain kids were "late bloomers" but would later be great learners

effort justification

a type of dissonance reduction that means rationalizing the amount of effort we put into something; loyalty to a group because of what you had to do to gain admission to a group

avoidant attachment style

an attachment style that describes adults who are hesitant about getting involved in romantic relationships and once in a relationship tend to distance themselves from their partner; ambivilant

anxious attachment style

an attachment style that describes adults who demand closeness, are less trusting, and are more emotional, jealous, and possessive

secure attachment style

an attachment style that describes adults who have positive views of relationships, find it easy to get close to others, and are not overly concerned or stressed out about their romantic relationships; positive relationships

stereotype threat

an individual's fast-acting self-fulfilling fear of being judged based on a negative stereotype about his or her group; will underperform because they are living down to the expectations of others p.405

attitudes

an individuals opinions and beliefs about people, objectst and ideas- how the person feels about the world;

prejudice

an unjustified negative attitude toward an individual based on the individual's membership in a group

discrimination

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

established religions

another important factor in prosocial behavior; Golden Rule p411

obedience

behavior that complies with the explicit demands of the individual in authority; demand to comply

relational aggression

behavior that is meant to harm the social standing of another person; women; because they don't have physical power it requires social and cognitive skills

internal/external causes:

causes inside the person: traits/abilities causes outside the person: peer pressure/social situation/weather

heuristics

cognitive shortcuts that allow us to make decisions rapidly such as stereotypes (which lead to errors)

What causes prejudice:

competition between groups, cultural learning, when people feel bad about themselves (self esteem increases if you thing you're better)

Social influence on behavior:

conformity and obedience

social loafing

each person's tendency to exert less effort in a group because of reduced accountability for individual effort; less accountability

Kay Deaux 5 distinct types of social identity:

ethnicity and religion, political affiliation, vocation and avocations, personal relationships, and stigmatized groups

Biological influences on aggression:

evolutionary thought that survivors were aggressive, genetics, neurobiological (frontal lobes, limbic system,neurotransmittors, horemones mostly testosterone)

positive illusions

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

Psychological factors on aggression:

frustrating and aversive circumstances, cognitive deterinants (perceiving things are unfair and if there is a gun available) , observational learning (people/tv)

Ways to improve intergroup relations:

get to know each other better; contact with other people "task-oriented cooperation" or working together on something

inoculation

giving a persuasive message and allowing them time to argue against it to help avoid persuasion

egoism

giving to another person to ensure reciprocity; to gain self-esteem; to present oneself as powerful competent or caring; or to avoid social and self-censure for failing to live up to society's expectations

media influences

good, uplifting, wholesome TV/radio can affect your actions

social contagion

imitative behavior involving the spread of behavior, emotions, and ideas; laughing more when others are around (movies) or being meaner too

foot-in-the-door technique

in agreeing to the smaller (3 month subscription) you will be able to get them to upgrade to the larger

sociocultural factors to on aggression:

is your cultures violent or a culture of honor (reputation of honor), media violence (ex: porn on rape myth)

affectionate love

love that occurs when and individual has a deep caring affection for another person and desires to have that person near; also called compassionate love

romantic love

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

majority and minority influence

majority impacts group decision making through informational (opp to share their views) and normative influence (the set group norms); ousted if you don't agree; the minority but speak out and influence the majority or any other members that were ousted.

door-in-the-face

making the biggest pitch first then a smaller one after they reject it

brains reward centers:

nucleus accumbens and ventral tegmental area

fundamental attribution error

observers overestimation of the importance of internal traits and underestimation of the importance of external situations when they seek explanations of another person's behavior (Protestants attribute behavior to the person rather than the situation more than Catholics)

false consensus effect

observers' overestimation of the degree to which everybody else thinks or acts the way they do; Ex: racial remark in a group and no one responds so he thinks everyone agrees with him

consensual validation

our won attitudes and behaviors are supported when others who are similar to us, thus validating our attitudes and behaviors

explicit racism

person's conscious and openly shared racist attitudes

implicit racism

persons unconscious, deeper hidden level of racism

overt aggression

physical and verbal behavior that directly harms another person; more males

Reducing aggression:

reduce rewards, lesson exposure to aggression, encourage empathy