PL100B WPR II
Affective component of attitude
includes the feelings or emotions associated with the belief
behavioral component of attitude
includes the motive to act in a particular way toward the person or object of the attitude
Effective ways to reduce aggression
intervention: reduce external causes early in development
Self-Serving Bias
making situational attributions for our own failures but dispositional attributions for our successes
Psycho-social basis of rape
many researchers view rape more as a product of socialization processes that occur within the fabric of a patriarchal society than as a product of the individual rapist's pathological condition
Self-understanding about sexuality
means learning more about yourself as a sexual being. What are your personal attitudes, beliefs, behaviors, and values when it comes to sexuality and sexual relationships?
communicator
person doing the persuading (are they credible?)
Bystander Effect
The tendency of an individual who observes an emergency to help less when other people are present than when the observer is alone.
Self-Perception Theory
asserts that people develop their attitudes by observing their own behavior and concluding what attitudes must have caused it; downplays the role of internal thoughts and emotions in attitude formation
Need to Belong
a pervasive drive to form and maintain at least a minimum quantity of lasting, positive, and significant interpersonal relationships; groups satisfy our need to belong
Altruism
a selfless concern for others and giving of aid to others
social identity theory
a theoretical analysis of group processes and intergroup relations that assumes groups influence their members' self-concepts and self-esteem, particularly when individuals categorize themselves as group members and identify with the group
companionate love
a type of love characterized by friendly affection and deep attachment based on extensive familiarity with the loved one; a less intense emotion than passionate love; often if you have this type of love, sexual interactions are much more open, based off of conversation between you and your partner, and more deeply fulfilling/comfortable; romantic and sexual attraction do not completely overlap; healthy relationships can exist without any sexual activity
3 Components of Attitude
affective, behavioral, cognitive
Relationship between alcohol and aggression
alcohol is sometimes used to promote aggression; there is a link between alcohol and aggression; alcohol reduces glucose, which provides energy to the brain for self-control; expectancy theories: alcohol makes us more aggressive because we expect it to
Single
not in a relationship; single adults are greater now than historically, partly due to men and women marrying at later ages
Stonewalling (Gottman)
occurs when a person concludes that any response to a partner's criticism or complaint will not be helpful or productive and therefore decides not to respond at all.
Social-learning theory
our identification with either masculine or feminine roles or gender neutrality can result from the social and cultural models and influences that we are exposed to during our early development
Sternberg's Triangular Theory of Love
passion (motivational component), intimacy (emotional component), commitment (cognitive component), various combinations of these three components yield eight different kinds of love
empathy-altruism hypothesis
people will offer selfless help only when they truly empathize with the victim (covers egoistic and empathic motivation)
What is the impact of delayed sexual intercourse?
positive relationship outcomes, higher quality of teenage sexual activity and high-quality parent-child relationships and communication
Social Comparison Effect
process by which we evaluate our thoughts, feelings, behaviors, and abilities in relation to others. Social comparisons tell us what our distinctive characteristics are and aids us in building an identity
the target
the audience/target can play a role is message persuasiveness: younger people are more likely to change their attitudes than older ones
Gender expression
the way that we outwardly express our gender identity as masculine and/or feminine
elaboration likelihood model
theory identifying two ways to persuade: a central route and a peripheral route
Forgivness
unresolved conflict can put couples at risk of developing the negative cycle of interaction that causes further harm to relationships; lack of forgiveness is linked to ineffective conflict resolution; forgiving is a way of achieving good conflict resolution; builds emotional capital in the relationship
Violence (versus aggression)
violence, rather than aggression, is intended to cause extreme physical harm (injury, death)
Editing (Gottman)
we do not say things that we know would be hurtful to our partners and we limit our comments to information relevant to the issue at hand
Marriage
- In 2013 married households represented less than 50% of all households in the United States. - Many governments across the globe regulate marriage based on characteristics such as age, gender, sexual orientation, and race. - The expectations of marriage to fulfill many needs and the reduced support networks for couples and their children are part of what makes marriage a challenge. - Research can predict with a high degree of success the probability that a couple will experience marital happiness and remain married. - Married couples are engaging in a wider variety of sexual behaviors than in the past.
Conformity
Changing one's attitude or behavior to match a perceived social norm.
Interactional model
acknowledges both biology and experience in the development of gender identity
Two different motivations underlying selfless behavior
Egoistic motivation and empathic motivation
Discrimmination
the preferential treatment of certain people that is usually driven by prejudicial attitudes
Gottman's constructive and destructive communication tactics
- Constructive communication tactics that contribute to relationship satisfaction and longevity include leveling and editing, validating, and volatile dialogue. - Destructive communication tactics include criticism, contempt, defensiveness, stonewalling, and belligerence. Such tactics lead to increased conflict and negativity, cause an escalation of hostility, and frequently result in relationship failure.
Groupthink
A set of negative group-level processes, including illusions of invulnerability, self-censorship, and pressures to conform, that occur when highly cohesive groups seek concurrence when making a decision.
Importance of context in sexual expression
A sexual interaction cannot stand on its own: it exists within the context of motivation and meanings of the individuals involved and the relationship as a whole. The context of the sexual expression is important in order to understand the sexual expression as a whole.
Sternberg's Triangular Theory of Love
A theory that sees love as having three elements: intimacy, passion, and commitment
What factors are related to early or late initiation of intercourse?
- an accelerated output of sex hormones increases sexual desire and arousability in both sexes - some are motivated by curiosity and a sense of readiness to experience intercourse - many consider sexual intercourse a natural expression of affection or love - a push toward "adult" behaviors, peer pressure, and pressure from dating partners are other reasons that adolescents engage in intercourse
How is pornography helpful?
- can increase sexual confidence and sense of community - can help partners get in the mood more easily - can help expand one's sexual repertoire
Ineffective way to reduce aggression
- catharsis: acting aggressive purges angry feeling - punishment: an "effective" way to deter aggression and violence
Describe how group size, age, public versus private responses, and culture influenced conformity in variations of Asch's study
- increase in conformity with more people testing - teenagers are more prone to conformity than adults - people conform significantly less when they believe that the others will not hear their responses - more conformity is found in collectivist countries (Japan & China) than in individualistic countries (USA)
Acquaintance Rape: the role of perceptions and communication
- males and females often learn gendered sexual scripts that encourage men to be aggressive and women to be passive - men can often interpret women's actions of cuddling or kissing as indicating a desire to participate in intercourse
Why are men less likely than women to report rape or harassment against them?
- men may fear that they will be judged harshly - they may also believe that law enforcement personnel will not believe that a crime occurred or may think that they instigated it - social norms of believing that men should never show weakness and should always be aggressive just perpetuate the issue - there is also a false assumption that men cannot function (cannot become aroused) in a state of extreme fear/anxiety, but this is not true
Early initiation of intercourse
- poverty - family conflict - marital disruption - teens living in single-parent homes - lack of parental supervision - substance abuse (especially alcohol) - low self-esteem - a sense of hopelessness - poor academic performance - low educational expectations - antisocial behavior - association with delinquent peers - high consumption of sexual media content, including pornography
Late initiation of intercourse
- strong religious beliefs - regular religious service attendance - spiritual interconnectedness with friends - higher socioeconomic status - good school performance - high parental expectations
How is pornography harmful?
- viewers can associate what they see as "normal behavior & representative of the sex they should be having - some can experience sexual problems related to extensive use of pornography - can impact norms by twisting perceptions as to what a "normal" sexual experience should resemble
Explain the evolution of divorce over the last seventy years and the potential reasons for the change
- Divorces increased dramatically from the 1950s to the late 1970s. Since the 1970s there has been about one divorce for every two marriages. - Some of the causes of the high divorce rate are the liberalization of divorce laws, a reduction in the social stigma attached to divorce, high expectations for marital and sexual fulfillment, and increased economic independence of women. - Divorce typically involves many emotional, sexual, interpersonal, and lifestyle changes and adjustments.
How to Reduce Social Loafing
- Reduce team size - Make individual contributions visible - Make assignments more interesting - Reward performance - Recognizing that each group member has an important part to play in the success of the group
Causes of extramarital affairs
- Sometimes nonconsensual extramarital relationships are motivated simply by a desire for excitement and variety. - Sometimes the reason for outside involvements is the unavailability of sex within the marriage. A lengthy separation or a debilitating illness of one partner can leave one vulnerable to an affair. - In other cases, people are highly dissatisfied with their marriages. If emotional and sexual needs are not being met within the marriage, having an affair may seem particularly inviting - With access to the Internet and websites designed specifically for those interested in extramarital affairs, the opportunity for an individual to develop intimate, secret relationships outside his or her committed relationship has taken on new dimensions and accessibility
Explain how the following factors affect group motivation & performance: - Teamwork - Shared Mental Model - Group Cohesion
- Teamwork: a group may include many talented individuals, and they must learn how to pool their individual abilities and energies to maximize the team's performance; two key components of effective teamwork are a shared mental representation of the task and group unity - Shared Mental Model: a shared understanding of the team and the tasks they are attempting; consensus must be reached - Group cohesion: the integrity, solidarity, social integration, or unity of a group; members of the group like each other and the group and they also are united in their pursuit of collective, group-level goals
Three Compliance Techniques
- The Foot in the Door: agreeing to a small request to increase the likelihood of agreeing to a second, larger request; initially make a small request so then once the person agrees to this request, they find it more difficult to refuse a bigger one - The Door in the Face: Initially making a big request which a person can be expected to refuse, then making a smaller request which the person finds difficult to refuse because they already said no once - The Low Ball: Initially you get the individual to agree to your request and then afterwards you increase the original terms. Trick them into agreeing more than they intended (if the person has already committed, they will find it difficult to back out)
How to decrease cognitive dissonance
1. Change the behavior 2. Justify the behavior by changing cognitions associated with it 3. Change cognitions so as to justify the behavior (ex: smoking)
Three Reasons why people engage in altruistic behavior
1. Kin selection: the evolutionary mechanism that prompts individuals to help their close relatives/kin so that they will survive and reproduce 2. Reciprocal Altruism: Helping others in the hope that they will help you in the future 3. Social Exchange Theory: we help others because such behavior can be rewarding, but we help only if the rewards outweigh the costs (non evolutionary explanation)
Suggested ways of communicating and interacting with a rape/assault victim
1. Listen (just talk to the person, it has been found that many victims just need to talk over and over again about their assault) 2. Let them know that you believe their account of what happened 3. Let them know that it is not their fault and they are not to blame 4. control your own emotions (do not interject with your own thoughts/feelings) 5. Give comfort (they need to be felt by someone they trust) 6. Allow the survivor to make decisions 7. Offer shelter 8. Continue to provide support 9. Be patient about resuming sexual activity 10. Consider counseling (have them see a professional/consider therapy)
Three ways people can break the prejudice habit
1. Noticing stereotypic thoughts and replacing them with more individualized information about the person 2. Think about individuals who do not fit the stereotype of various outgroups and consider things from the other person's perspective 3. Seek out contact with members of the outgroup
Consequences of exclusion/inclusion
1. We sometimes evaluate & treat people differently because of the group they belong to 2. Our actions are based on in-group/out-group distinctions ("us" versus "them") 3. It hurts to be excluded from our group
Seven false beliefs about rape
1. Women capped be raped if they really do not want to be (belief that women can always resist a rape) 2. Women say o when they mean yes (some believe that women want to be coerced into sexual activity) 3. Many women cry rape (some believe that most rape accusations are actually false) 4. All women want to be raped (some believe that women have rape fantasies and really want to be raped) 5. Rapists are clearly mentally ill (belief that all rapists "look the part") 6. The male sex drive is so high that men cannot control their sexual urges (justifies men's actions and suggests that women should not wear scandalous clothing) 7. Men cannot be sexually assaulted (less common, but it still occurs)
three bystander intervention strategies to reduce sexual assault
1. if you see something, say something (work to disrupt potentially dangerous situations) 2. do not act alone (when you intervene, get help from others as reinforcements) 3. confront the harasser (let the person who is doing the harassing know that their words and behavior are not acceptable)
tactics for making requests
1. taking responsibility for one's own pleasure 2. making sure requests are specific 3. using "I" language
Defensiveness (Gottman)
A person who feels personally attacked or victimized by a partner's criticism or contempt is likely to respond with defensiveness. This involves constructing a defense rather than attempting to discuss and resolve an issue. Defensiveness can take the form of self-protective responses, such as making excuses, denying responsibility, or replying with a criticism of one's own.
Prevalence of extramarital affairs
AKA cheating, adultery, infidelity, having an affair, fooling around; - The NHSLS, with its sample of 3,432 Americans ages 18 to 59, found reported rates of extramarital involvement at some time during marriage of 25% of married men and 15% of married women - More recent studies have reported rates of infidelity in 20%-25% of all marriages
Stereotype Threat
An individual's fast-acting, self-fulfilling fear of being judged based on a negative stereotype about his or her group. Individual experiences anxiety about living down to expectations and consequently underperforms.
Stereotype Threat
An individual's fast-acting, self-fulfilling fear of being judged based on a negative stereotype about his or her group; individual experiences anxiety about living down to expectations and consequently under-performs
passive destructive response
Ignoring the event; shifting focus to self or other topics
Attitude
a person's favorable or unfavorable feelings, beliefs, or actions toward an object, an idea, or a person
Rape
a narrower term; legal definitions vary from state to state, but most generally: nonconsensual sexual penetration that occurs through physical force, threat of bodily harm, or at a time when the victim is incapable of giving consent.
Conditions that can cause groupthink
Cohesion, isolation (group isolates themselves from outsiders and refuses to modify their beliefs to bring them into line with society's beliefs), biased leadership (if there is a biased leader who exerts too much authority over members then this can increase conformity pressures and railroad decisions) Decisional Stress: groupthink becomes more likely when the group is stressed, particularly by time pressures; they seek to minimize their discomfort by quickly choosing a plan of action with little argument or dissension
potential tactics to discover your partner's needs
Efforts to communicate with sexual partners are often hindered by why questions and yes/no questions, which can come across as blaming or encourage limited replies. Effective alternatives include open-ended and either/or questions. Self-disclosure can make it easier for a partner to communicate their own needs. Sharing fantasies, beginning with mild desires, can be a particularly valuable kind of exchange. Discussing sexual preferences either before or after a sexual encounter can be beneficial. Giving permission encourages partners to share feelings freely.
passive constructive response
Quiet, understated support, distracted.
Explain how Descriptive norms relate to informational social influence
Descriptive norms are similar to informational social influence, however, it is not always easy to get the correct information through descriptive norms as we do through informational (relying on a flawed notion of the norm when deciding how to behave; ex: drinking in college)
Chapman's Five Love Languages
Five ways of expressing love: receiving gifts, quality time, words of affirmation, acts of service (devotion), and physical touch; Chapman proposes that people have one primary and secondary language
active destructive response
Focusing on negative or downsides
How is our sense of being male or female based on both biological factors and social learning?
Gender identity usually (but not always) comes with the territory of having certain biological parts. Biological processes that begin shortly after conception and are completed before birth tell us our gender. But there is more to it than simply looking like a female or a male. Social learning looks to cultural influences during early childhood to explain both the nuances of gender identity and the personal significance of being male or female. From an early age, parents enforce certain notions and norms onto their children about what it means to be male or female.
Explain how the following factors affect decision making in a group: - Group polarization - Common knowledge effect - Groupthink
Group Polarization: judgments made after group discussion will be more extreme in the same direction as the average of individual judgments made prior to discussion (individual opinions become more extreme following a group discussion) Common Knowledge Effect: groups typically spend much of their time examining common knowledge (info that two or more group members know in common rather than unshared info); can result in a bad outcome if something known by only one or two group members is very important Groupthink: a mode of thinking that people engage in when they are deeply involved in a cohesive in-group, when the members' strivings for unanimity override their motivation to realistically appraise alternative courses of action (usually happens under certain conditions)
Impact of extramarital affairs
Involvement in an extramarital affair can have serious consequences for the participants, including loss of self-respect, severe guilt, stress associated with leading a secret life, damage to reputation, loss of love, and complications of sexually transmitted infections. It erodes the connection between spouses and amplifies emotional intensity and the illusion of closeness to the affair partner.
Significance of Groups
Joining groups satisfies our need to belong, gain information and understanding through social comparison, define our sense of self and social identity, and achieve goals that might elude us if we worked alone. Much of the world's work is done in groups.
Cohabitation
Living together without being married; increases in cohabitation rates may be partly due to an increased need to share expenses because of the economic downturn
Optimal Group Contact (also Equal Status Contact)
Particular aspects of the contact between groups could help to reduce prejudice: - think that they are of equal status - feel that an authority figure sanctions their positive relationships - believe that friendship might emerge from the interaction - engage in cooperative tasks in which everyone has something to contribute (may be optimal for reducing prejudice & promoting intergroup harmony) - task-oriented cooperation (working together on a shared goal) can reduce tensions between groups
Why is sexual communication important in a relationship?
Sexual communication often contributes to the contentment and enjoyment of a sexual relationship; infrequent or ineffective sexual communication is a common reason that people feel dissatisfied with their sex lives; an excellent basis for effective sexual communication is mutual empathy--the underlying knowledge that each partner in a relationship cares for the other and knows that care is reciprocated
Explain the Group Development Stages & Characteristics
Stage 1 - "Forming". Members expose information about themselves in polite but tentative interactions. They explore the purposes of the group and gather information about each other's interests, skills, and personal tendencies. Stage 2 - "Storming". Disagreements about procedures and purposes surface, so criticism and conflict increase. Much of the conflict stems from challenges between members who are seeking to increase their status and control in the group. Stage 3 - "Norming". Once the group agrees on its goals, procedures, and leadership, norms, roles, and social relationships develop that increase the group's stability and cohesiveness. Stage 4 - "Performing". The group focuses its energies and attention on its goals, displaying higher rates of task-orientation, decision-making, and problem-solving. Stage 5 - "Adjourning". The group prepares to disband by completing its tasks, reduces levels of dependency among members, and dealing with any unresolved issues
Milgram's study of obedience
Subjects were ordered to administer shocks to a fake participant (the learner) for each question that was answered incorrectly. The voltage went all the way up to 450 volts. As the voltage increased, the learner would beg the tester to stop the experiment, but the experimenter would order that the test continue and tell the participant that they could not stop the experiment early. It showed how ordinary people can be influenced by authority figures to do immoral things.
What are the effects of television, advertising, social media, cell phones, and Internet pornography on sexual views and behavior?
TV, advertising - sexual content appears in about 82% of all television programs, can encourage youth to be sexually active too early, however, TV can also promote positive ideas such as greater knowledge, tolerance and positive social change New media - can provide quick access to useful information related to sexuality and may already be the primary form of sex education for many, dating apps also allow people to find different partners
How do gender role expectations and stereotypes affect our sexual attitudes and behaviors in men and women?
The ascribing of gender roles leads naturally to certain assumptions about how people will behave. When these beliefs become widely accepted, they turn into stereotypes. Common stereotypes for men include being aggressive, dominant, and unemotional. Common stereotypes for women include being cooperative, nurturing, emotional, passive, and subordinate. These stereotypes can be confining and often untrue.
Four Elements of Persuasion:
The communicator, the medium, the target, and the message
How does the double standard affect adolescent social and sexual behavior?
The double standard is that there are different standards of sexual permissiveness for women and men, with more restrictive standards almost always applied to women. For boys the focus of sexuality may be sexual conquest. Boys who are non aggressive or sexually inexperienced may be teased, whereas peers often provide social reinforcement for stereotypically masculine attitudes and behaviors. For girls, the message and the expectations are often very different. Media promotes the message that girls must be sexy to attract partners, yet girls often experience ambivalence about overt sexual behavior. If she engages in sex, she may fear being labeled easy, but if she does not participate, then she may fear losing her partner. Society encourages virginity and innocence for females but sexual exploration and achievements for males.
Belligerence (Gottman)
The fifth destructive communication tactic involves a confrontational, "in your face" type of interaction that is likely to emerge as a relationship suffers from prolonged patterns of poor communication. Belligerence often entails a purposely provoking style of interaction intended to diminish or challenge a partner's right to influence patterns of interaction in the relationship.
Emotional bank account
The good and harmful things we do each day that represent deposits and withdraws in our relationships with others; we must make regular positive deposits in order to buffer the negatives that are bound to occur in relationships. Examples of positive deposits are: active-constructive responding, gratitude, forgiveness, and spending time together in meaningful ways (4 key ways to make positive deposits), (good ratio is 5:1 positive to negative deposits, although ideally, the relationship should be 8:1)
Descriptive Norm
The perception of what most people do in a given situation.
Teamwork
The process by which members of the team combine their knowledge, skills, abilities, and other resources through a coordinated series of actions to produce an outcome.
Social Loafing
The reduction of individual effort exerted when people work in groups compared with when they work alone
Group Polarization
The tendency for members of a deliberating group to move to a more extreme position, with the direction of the shift determined by the majority or average of the members' predeliberation preferences.
self-fulfilling prophecy
a belief or expectation that an individual holds about a future event that manifests because the individual holds it (example: waking up and immediately thinking that it will be a bad day, so then it is a bad day)
Prejudice
a biased attitude toward a group of people or an individual member of a group based on unfair generalizations about what members of that group are like
Sexual assault
a broad term used to capture a range of possible forced or coercive sexual experiences; nonconsensual sexual touching, verbally coerced sexual intercourse, and physically forced vaginal, oral, and anal penetration.
self-perception theory
The theory that when our attitudes and feelings are uncertain or ambiguous, we infer these states by observing our behavior and the situation in which it occurs
Sexual harassment
Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature in the workplace or academic setting.
enjoyable sex in a long-term relationship
Variety is often an important ingredient of enjoyable sex in a long-term relationship. For some couples, however, the security of routine is more satisfying.
Jealousy
an aversive emotional reaction evoked by a real or imagined relationship involving one's partner and a third person; jealousy is related more to injured pride or to people's fear of losing what they want to control or possess than to love; individuals who have lower self-esteem are more likely to feel jealousy; we rely on our partner to boost our self-esteem and sense of belonging so we can feel threatened and sense a potential loss of both reciprocity and a positive self-image if we perceive that our partner is considering a replacement for us
Aggression
any behavior that is intended to harm another person who does not want to be harmed; it is a behavior, not a response; it is intentional rather than accidental, and the victim wants to avoid the harm
Internal (dispositional) Attributions
ascribe behavior to something within the person, such as their personalities, motives, or attitudes
External (situational) Attributions
ascribe the causes of behavior to something outside of the person, such as situational demands and environmental constraints
Active-constructive responding
authentic, enthusiastic, supportive responses; to achieve intimacy we must respond positively to remarks our partner makes; associated with trust, satisfaction, commitment, and intimacy; these types of responses build stronger relationships!!!
consideration of the cultural and political contexts surrounding sexual issues
being aware of the cultural norms (including within our friend groups, families, communities, and broader society) influence our desires, shape our sexual attitudes, and impact our sexual behavior
interpersonal sexual skills
being sexually active, having the ability to talk openly about sexuality and sexual health, being assertive about your personal sexual limits and desires, and to be responsive to the sexual limits and desires of any sexual partners that you may have
Effects of workplace sexual harassment on the victim
can cause lack of concentration/focus; can erode a victim's financial status, job performance & satisfaction, career opportunities, overall health, and personal relationships
Sexual Consent
can refer to both an internal state of willingness to engage in sexual activity (sometimes called passive consent) as well as an active, explicit agreement to engage in sexual activity (active/affirmative consent)
Asch Experiment
card with lines of them and the test subject had to say which two lines were the same length although there were 4 other participants that answered before the true test subject answered, the fake participants would all agree on a clearly incorrect answer, and often the true test subject would conform to the wrong answer as well; experimented how people would rather conform than state their own individual answer even though they know the group's answer is wrong
Biological sex
characteristics associated with being male, female, or intersex (sex assigned at birth)
passionate love
characterized by intense, vibrant feelings that tend to be relatively short-lived
central route
cognitive route of persuasion based on the content and deeper aspects of an argument; works by engaging the audience thoughtfully with a sound, logical argument
peripheral route
cognitive route of persuasion that involves more superficial or secondary characteristics of an argument or an orator; involves factors such as the source's attractiveness or the emotional power of an appeal; most effective when people are not paying close attention or lack the time/energy to think about the message
How do gender differences influence people's views of sex and love?
common trope is that women want love and men want sex; men are more likely than women to define being in love, and to assess the quality of the romantic involvement, in terms of sexual satisfaction. It is easier for men than for women to have sex for pleasure without an emotional commitment.
What are the effective methods of listening and providing feedback?
communication is most successful between an active listener and an effective speaker; the listener can facilitate communication by maintaining eye contact with the speaker, providing feedback, expressing appreciation for communication efforts, and maintaining an attitude of unconditional positive regard
Quid pro quo
compliance with unwanted sexual advances is made a condition for securing a job or education benefits or for favorable treatment in employment/academic settings
normative social influence
conformity that results from a concern for what other people think of us
informational social influence
conformity that results from a concern to act in a socially approved manner as determined by how others act
cognitive component of attitude
consists of the rational thoughts and beliefs that make up the attitude
Spending time in meaningful ways
couples who engage in more challenging and novel activities felt more satisfied with their relationship immediately afterward than control couples; simply watching TV with one's romantic partner will not make nearly the magnitude of a deposit in a relational bank account as would a more engaging or challenging joint activity
Milgram's Study Lessons
decreased when the learner was in the same room as the tester. decreased even further when the tester had to physically touch the learner to administer the punishment, less likely to continue administering shocks after watching other participants refuse to go on
Contempt (Gottman)
degrades communication even more by adding insults, sarcasm, and even name-calling to the critical commentary
Criticism (Gottman)
expression of contempt and denigration that can harm a relationship; can be effective if it is registered with "I" language that focuses on the issue, whereas criticisms can sometimes involve attacking someone's character with "you" statements
Relationship between sex and love
feelings of being in love with and sexually attracted to another person are frequently intertwined, and these feelings are especially pronounced in the early stages of a relationship, however, many people engage is casual sexual relationships (hook-ups and friends with benefits
Gender diversity
flexibility in gender roles
Factors affecting decision making in groups
group polarization, common knowledge effect, groupthink
Identity & Membership
groups help us to answer the question "who am I?"; people are defined by their friendships, social roles, family connections, and group memberships; collective self-esteem
Affiliation
groups provide members with information, assistance, and social support; people join with others to evaluate the accuracy of their personal beliefs and attitudes; affiliating is seeking the company of others
Sexual intelligence
has four components: self-understanding about sexuality, interpersonal sexual skills, accurate scientific knowledge, and consideration of the cultural and political contexts surrounding sex
empathic motivation
helping because it springs from an altruistic desire to reduce the distress of the person in need
egoistic motivation
helping in order to relieve your own distress (fits with social exchange theory)
Gender Identity
how one psychologically perceives one's gender; each person's personal, subjective sense of their gender
Advantages of Living in Groups
humans seek out groups instinctively (we are biologically prepared to seek membership and avoid isolation); groups provide us with the means to reach goals that would elude us if we remained alone
Gratitude
important way to make positive relationship deposits; increases strength of the relationship, increases positive regard for that person and more comfort voicing relationship concerns; increases regard for the person expressing gratitude, which enhances relationship quality
Implicit Prejudice
indirect, perhaps even unconscious, prejudice; can be measured by the Implicit Associations Test (IAT)
Attributions
inferences that people draw about the causes of events, others' behavior, and their own behavior
Main challenges facing relationships today
infidelity, jealousy, presence of media/ease at which you can meet people
Validating (Gottman)
involves telling our partners that, given their point of view, we can understand why they think or feel the way they do
Persuasion
involves trying to change someone's attitude and often his/her behavior as well
accurate scientific knowledge
knowing what happens in the human body during arousal/sex and having accurate information about STIs and STDs
Hostile and Offensive Work Environment
less clear than quid pro quo but more common, someone (supervisor, coworker, etc.) engage in persistent, inappropriate behaviors that make the workplace/academic environment hostile, abusive, and generally unbearable
characteristics of female rape victims
more than 50% of US female rape victims reported that their first rape occurred before they were 18 years old; 18-24 age range is the most common; before 18, then the likelihood that it will happen again increases
Acquaintance Rape and Sexual Coercion
most rapes are committed by someone who is known to the victim (3/4 of reported rapes), most occur in dating situations (date rape), account for 90% of rapes in US colleges
Social Norms
rules about acceptable behavior imposed by the cultural context in which one lives
Ingredients of a long-lasting love relationship
self-acceptance, acceptance by one's partner, appreciation of each other, commitment, good communication, realistic expectations, shared interests, equality in decision making, and the ability to face conflict effectively; sharing similar attitudes, interests, and personality styles. Open, honest, and supportive communication and a willingness to talk about difficult issues and concerns is also important. Partners who place value on being friends may be more satisfied in the relationship over time.
Three types of adult relationship statuses
single, living with someone, married
Volatile Dialogue (Gottman)
some degree of conflict is usually essential to the long-term happiness of a relationship; couples who do not argue are likely ignoring important issues that should be addressed rather than left to fester and erode happiness
Social roles
specific roles that one adopts within a certain social group. Often the role that one is assigned/given/chooses within a group influences their behavior
Explicit Prejudice
statements are plainly and publicly stated
leveling (Gottman)
stating our thoughts and feeling clearly, simply, and honestly, preferably while using "I" language
Effective methods of talking about sex
talking about talking, reading about sex and discussing the material, and sharing sexual histories
Factors influencing performance in groups
teamwork, shared mental model, group cohesion
the medium
technology used to get the message across (print, TV, twitter, youtube, etc.); some mediums are more powerful
Intimacy (Sternberg's Triangular Theory of Love)
the emotional component of love that encompasses the sense of being bonded with another person; includes feelings of warmth, sharing, and emotional closeness
Social Facilitation
the enhancement of an individual's performance when that person works in the presence of other people
Impact of the media on rape
the media perpetuates the notion that women want to be raped; rape-prone societies glorify masculine violence, encouraging boys to be aggressive and competitive, and viewing physical force as natural and exemplary
the message
the message itself (is it persuasive? logical? rely strongly on emotions? which is more likely to work and when?)
Passion (Sternberg's Triangular Theory of Love)
the motivational component that fuels romantic feelings, physical attraction, and desire for sexual interaction; instills a deep desire to be united with the loved one
diffusion of responsibility
the presence of others lessens an individual's feelings of responsibility for his or her actions or failure to act
Fundamental Attribution Error
the tendency for observers, when analyzing another's behavior, to underestimate the impact of the situation and to overestimate the impact of personal disposition (people tend to explain other's behavior in terms of dispositional attributions rather than situational ones)
Out-Group Homogeneity
the tendency to view all members outside of our group as the same
social exchange theory
the theory that human interactions are transactions that aim to maximize one's rewards and minimize one's costs
cognitive dissonance theory
the theory that we act to reduce the discomfort we feel when two of our thoughts are inconsistent (the feeling of discomfort caused by information that is at odds with one's conception of oneself as a reasonable and sensible person)
Commitment (Sternberg's Triangular Theory of Love)
the thinking or cognitive aspect of love; refers to the conscious decision to love another and to maintain a relationship over time despite difficulties that may arise
Capatlization
when one person seeks out another person with the intent to share positive news
In-Group Bias
when we show positive feelings toward people in our own group and negative feelings towards those in other groups