Chapter 14
Social Psychology
the field of psychology that studies the nature and causes of behavior and mental processes in social situaations
Consummate love
the ideal form of love within Sternberg's model, which combines passion, intimacy, and commitment
A-B problem
the issue of how well we can predict behavior on the basis of attitudes
Social loafing
the process by which a person's performance decrease when other members of a group engage in similar behavior, apparently because the person believes that strenuous effort is unnecessary
Social facilitation
the process by which a person's performance increase when other members of a group engage in similar behavior
Deindividuation
the process by which group members may discontinue self-evaluation and adopt group norms and attitudes
Attribution process
the process by which people draw inferences about the motives and traits of thers
Cognitive-dissonance theory
the view that we are motivated to make our cognitions, or beliefs, consistent with each other and with our behavior
Attribution
a belief concerning why people behave in a certain way
Romantic love
an intense, positive emotion that involves sexual attraction, feelingso f caring, and the believe that one is in love
Triangular model of love
Sternberg's view that love involves combinations of three components: intimacy, passion, and commitment
Stereotype
a fixed, conventional idea about a group
Foot-in-the-door technique
a method for inducing compliance in which a small request is followed by a larger request
Commitment
a pledge or obligation
Groupthink
a process in which group members are influenced by cohesiveness and a dynamic leader to ignore external realities as they make decisions
Social perception
a subfield of social psychology that studies the ways in which we form and modify impressions of others
Fear appeal
a type of persuasive communication that influences behavior on the basis of arousing fear instead of rational analysis of the issues
Dispositional attribution
an assumption that a person's behavior is determined by internal causes such as personal traits
Prejudice
an attitude toward a group that leads people to evaluate members of that group negatively
Attitude
an enduring mental representation of a person, place, or thing that evokes an emotional response and related behavior
Situational attribution
as assumption that a person's behavior is determined by external circumstances such as the social pressure found in a situation
Attitude-discrepant behavior
behavior inconsistent with an attitude that may have the effect of modifying an attitude
Intimacy
close acquaintance and familiarity; a characteristic of a relationship in which partners share their inmost feelings
Evaluation apprehension
concern that others evaluating our behavior
Selective exposure
deliberately seeking and attending to information that is consistent with one's attitudes
Social norms
explicit and implicit rules that reflect social expectations and influence the ways people behave in social situations
Discrimination
hostile behavior that is directed against groups toward whom one is prejudiced
Effort-justification
in cognitive dissonance theory, the tendency to seek justification for strenuous efforts
Peripheral route
in persuasive arguments, associating viewpoints with tangential issues, such as endorsement, rather than the quality of the product itself
Central route
in persuasive arguments, providing substantive information about the issues involved
Attraction
in social psychology, an attitude of liking or disliking (negative attraction)
Polarization
in social psychology, taking an extreme position or attitude on an issue
Reciprocity
interpersonal attraction, the tendency to return feelings and attitudes that are expressed about us
Social decision schemes
rules for predicting the final outcome of group decision making
Passion
strong romantic and sexual feelings
Social influence
the area of social psychology that studies the way which people influence the thoughts, feelings, and behavior of others
Fundamental attribution error
the assumption that others act predominantly on the basis of their dispositions, even where there is evidence suggesting the importance of their circumstances
Diffusion of responsibility
the spreading or sharing of responsibility for a decision or behavior within a group
Actor-observer effect
the tendency to attribute our own behavior to situational factors but to attribute the behavior of others to dispositional factors
Primacy effect
the tendency to evaluate others in terms of first impressions
Recency effect
the tendency to evaluate others in terms of the most recent impression
Risky shift
the tendency to make riskier decisions as a member of a group than as an individual acting independently
Self-serving bias
the tendency to view one's success as stemming from internal factors and ones's failures as stemming from external factors
Affective shift hypothesis
the view that men and women tend to experience different shifts in the emotions following initiation of sexual activity, such that women feel more love commitment, and men experience less love and commitment
Attraction-similarity hypothesis
the view that people tend to choose persons similar to themselves in attractiveness and attitudes in the formation of interpersonal relationships
Elaboration likelihood model
the view that persuasive messages are evaluated on the basis of central peripheral cues
Conform
to change one's attitudes or overt behavior to adhere to social norms
Selective avoidance
turning one's attention from information that is inconsistent with one's attitudes
Altruism
unselfish concern for the welfare of others