Social Perception WHO ARE YOU?
Impression Formation (a.k.a., Social Perception) The process related to people’s attempts to know and understand other people
Impression Formation: Elemental Models Additive Model PAT JAMIE Sincere 5.73 5.55 Thoughtful 5.29 5.00 Ambitious 4.84 4.00 Persuasive 3.74 3.45 Total (sum) 19.60 18.00
Impression Formation: Elemental Models Additive Model Average Model PAT JAMIE Sincere 5.73 5.55 Thoughtful 5.29 5.00 Ambitious 4.84 Persuasive 3.74 Total (sum) 19.60 18.00 Average 4.9 5.28
Impression Formation: Elemental Models Additive Model Average Model Weighted Average Model
Weighted Average Models What traits are important? Central Traits Traits that exert a disproportionate influence on impression formation Primacy Effect The tendency for first information received to carry more weight in impression formation than later information
Implicit Personality Theory Assumptions people make about which personality traits and behaviors go together
What-is-Beautiful-is-Good Stereotype The tendency to associate positive qualities to beautiful people that have nothing to do with beauty
Evaluative Consistency A tendency (or psychological motive) to view others in a way that is internally consistent
Self-Perception Self-Verification Theory Proposes that people strive for stable, accurate beliefs about the self Selective Attention Identity Cues
Influences on Impression Formation Second-Hand Information Impressions formed on the basis of second-hand information tends to be relatively extreme