Social Psych Final Test Chapt 13

Describe the affective component of prejudice.

AFFECTIVE: Prejudice a biased (usually negative) attitude toward a group of people that is based solely on their membership in that group

Describe indications that prejudice has been reduced since the 1950s.

Changes reflected in the gradual increased selfesteem African American children have gradually become more content with black dolls than they were in the late 1940s People no longer discriminate against a piece of writing simply because it is attributed to a woman

Describe modern racism.

"Modern" Prejudice As the norm swings toward tolerance, many people simply become more careful —outwardly acting unprejudiced yet inwardly maintaining stereotyped views. People have learned to hide prejudice in order to avoid being labeled as racist, but when the situation becomes "safe," their prejudice will be revealed.

Explain how the belief in a just world leads us to "blame the victim" for his or her misfortune.

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Define prejudice.

A hostile or negative attitude toward people in a distinguishable group, based solely on their membership in that group

Describe the cognitive component of prejudice.

COGNITIVE: Stereotype a generalization about a group of people

Describe how in-group bias and out-group homogeneity contribute to the formation and perpetuation of prejudice.

In-group members tend to perceive those in the out-group as more similar to each other (homogeneous) than they really are, as well as more homogeneous than the in-group members are. In group bias: The tendency to favor members of one's own group and give them special preference over people who belong to other groups; the group can be temporary and trivial as well as significant. out group homogeneity: the perception that individuals in the out group are more similar to each other than they really are, as well as more similar than members of the in group are.

Discuss the findings of research on minimal groups and the motives underlying in-group bias.

In‐group/Out‐group Bias Research Minimal Groups (Tajfel et al., 1974; 1979; 1982) Complete strangers are formed randomly into groups using the most trivial criteria imaginable coin toss grouped by opinions of artists they had never heard of into "klee style" or "kandinsky style" red or blue t-shirts on the first day of class Rated members of in-group as more likeable and with more pleasant personalities Boys assigned more points to boys that were supposed to be in the same group as them as opposed to the other group, even though they were alone.

Discuss the effects of gender stereotypes on attributions for achievement of men and women.

It causes sexism in its most basic form. It causes achievement by women to be not as substantial as that of men.

Explain why logical arguments may not be effective at reducing prejudice.

It is primarily the emotional aspect of attitudes that makes a prejudiced person so hard to reason with LOGICAL ARGUMENTS ARE NOT EFFECTIVE IN COUNTERING EMOTIONS! An attitude tends to organize the way we process relevant information about the targets of that attitude Consistent information will be given more attention and remembered more often Inconsistent information may not receive attention, may be discounted and thus not remembered, or may be altered in processing to fit existing schemas

Discuss why even positively toned stereotypes are problematic.

It sets up expectations for people who may not have goals that correlate with the expectations people have.

Identify which aspects of people's identities are targeted for prejudice.

Many aspects of your identity can cause you to be labeled and discriminated against: nationality racial and ethnic identity gender sexual orientation religion appearance psychological state weight disabilities diseases hair color professions hobbies intelligence level

Describe the ubiquitous nature of prejudice.

Prejudice: A hostile or negative attitude towards people in a distinguishable group based solely on their membership in that group; it contains cognitive, emotional, and behavioral components.

Describe the nature of prejudice today.

Significant changes have happened since these earlier studies: Decrease in blatant acts of overt prejudice and discrimination Affirmative action Increased media exposure to women and minorities many white people are scared about the diversity in the united states and it has led to more prejudice. Other the other hand, black people, gay people, and others in groups that have faced discrimination have more rights in america than they have previously.

Define the contact hypothesis as stated by Allport (1954) and identify the six conditions necessary to reduce prejudice when there is contact between groups.

The Contact Hypothesis (Allport, 1954) Mere contact between groups is not sufficient to reduce prejudice. In fact, it can create opportunities for conflict that may increase it. Prejudice will decrease when two conditions are met: 1. Both groups are of equal status 2. Groups share a common goal When Contact Reduces Prejudice: Six Conditions 1. Equal status 2. Common goal 3. Mutual interdependence 4. Friendly, informal setting 5. Knowing multiple out-group members 6. Social norms of equality

Describe how illusory correlations perpetuate stereotypic thinking.

The Illusory Correlation Illusory Correlation When we expect two things to be related, we fool ourselves into believing that they are actually related New Yorkers are crazy rude drivers - aggressive drivers on the highway are New Yorkers. Most vicious dog attacks involve pit bulls. A football fan believes that every time he wears a specific jersey his team wins .........

Describe how contact between students in the jigsaw classroom differs from contact in traditional classroom settings.

The Jigsaw Classroom Jigsaw occurs in 6-person learning groups Each person holds one of 6 pieces of information Information must be shared for successful learning Reduces competition Fosters cooperation Fosters interdependence Fosters positive social interactions Fosters positive evaluations and feelings toward other group members Enhances achievement & self-esteem

Identify how affective and cognitive components of prejudice make prejudice resistant to change.

The Justification ‐Suppression Model of Prejudice (Crandall Eschelman, 2003) Struggle between urge to express prejudice and need to maintain positive self-concept (as a nonbigot) Energy required to suppress prejudiced impulses People are programmed to avoid the constant expenditure of energy seek information that can convince us there is a valid justification for holding a negative attitude toward a particular out-group Valid justification enables prejudice/ discrimination while avoiding cognitive dissonance. "justification undoes suppression..." .......

Describe Crandall and Eshleman's model of how the expression of prejudice works.

The Justification ‐Suppression Model of Prejudice (Crandall Eschelman, 2003) Struggle between urge to express prejudice and need to maintain positive self-concept (as a nonbigot) Energy required to suppress prejudiced impulses People are programmed to avoid the constant expenditure of energy seek information that can convince us there is a valid justification for holding a negative attitude toward a particular out-group Valid justification enables prejudice/ discrimination while avoiding cognitive dissonance. "justification undoes suppression..." .................

Identify why we develop stereotypes and what functions they serve.

What Causes Prejudice? The Way We Think Our first explanation for what causes prejudice is that it is the inevitable byproduct of the way we organize and process information. More specifically, we: categorize and group information are biased rely on potentially inaccurate heuristics selectively store and retrieve information

Describe Devine's two-step model of cognitive processing as it relates to stereotypes and prejudice.

What Devine's theory suggests is a two-step model of cognitive processing: the automatic processing brings up information - in this case, stereotypes—but the controlled (or conscious) processing can refute or ignore it. But what happens if you are busy, overwhelmed, distracted or not paying much attention? You may not initiate that controlled level of processing, meaning that the information supplied by the auto process - the stereotype - is still in your mind and unrefuted

Identify important consequences of social categorization that facilitate prejudice.

When we feel pride in our own social identity, it causes some people to feel superior to the other group that does not belong in the same category.

Discuss the consequences of prejudice for the targets of prejudice.

oppression is generally a consequence