Social Psychology

What is Social Psych? Examines the way people think and act in certain situations Focuses on the impact group interaction has on the behavior and attitudes of individuals

Attitudes Beliefs & feelings about objects, people and events that can affect how people behave in certain situations Primary motivator for our behavior Linked to strong emotions Tend to remain stable, but can change

Attitudes Where do attitudes come from? Conditioning: Being reinforced for saying/doing things consistent with the attitudes of authority figures Observational learning: Watching the actions of others and imitating in hopes of acceptance or approval Cognitive Evaluation: Evaluating evidence from many sources and forming beliefs based on their evaluation Cognitive Anchors: Earliest attitudes, persistent beliefs that shape your views/opinions

Aggression Words or actions that are meant to hurt other people Social problem: murder, abuse, etc.

Aggression Why are people aggressive? Biological: Psychoanalytic: Hypothalamus stimulation, testosterone, survival Psychoanalytic: Unavoidable reactions to daily frustrations, often repressed but will find outlets Catharsis: venting aggressive impulses Cognitive: A person’s values, the choices they make and the way they perceive events – believe their actions are justified and necessary Learning: Repeat behaviors that are reinforced (tantrums, games) Sociocultural: Cultures that encourage competition ultimately encourage aggressive behaviors

Altruism Unselfish concern for the welfare of other people Sacrifice their own well-being to help others in need

Altruism Why are people altruistic? Their state of mind (good mood) Are sensitive due to their own problems Have empathy Competent in the situation (doctor/nurse) Need for the approval of others Feel responsible

Altruism Why aren’t people altruistic? Not aware there is a problem Don’t think they can do anything Fear making a mistake or being ridiculed Dangerous situation Others are present to observe Bystander Effect: people are less likely to give aid when others are present

Persuasion A direct attempt to influence other people’s views or attitudes Central Route: use evidence and logical arguments Peripheral Route: indirect, attempt to associate objects, people or events with positive or negative cues

Persuasion What techniques are effective? Sales Resistance: Two-sided Argument: People present their side of the argument and their opponents in an attempt to discredit their view Emotional Appeal: Persuade through arousing feelings like loyalty, desire or fear rather than evidence Sales Resistance: The ability to refuse a request or sales pitch Typically people with high self-esteem and low social anxiety are better at this ability

Prejudice A generalized attitude toward a specific group of people Literally means prejudgment Prejudice is based on stereotypes Prejudice leads to discrimination Stereotypes: unchanging, oversimplified, and usually distorted beliefs about groups of people Discrimination: the unfair treatment of individuals because they are part of a particular group

Prejudice What causes prejudice? Exaggerating differences Tend to view those different than us as more different than they really are Justifying economic status Higher economic groups tend to believe those in lower groups must be inferior in some way Social learning Learn the attitudes from others, like parents Victimization Victims of prejudice feel pride and power by being superior than others Scapegoating An individual or group is blamed for the problems of others Real problem is viewed as too complex, to powerful, or too remote to be resolved

Social Perception Primacy Effect: Recency Effect: Tendency for people to form opinions of others on the basis of first impressions Recency Effect: Occurs when people change their opinions of others on the basis of recent interactions, rather than having their first impression remain

Social Perception The ways in which people perceive one another Affects the attitudes people form towards you or that you form about others

Social Perception Attribution Theory: People tend to explain behavior in terms of either dispositional (personality) factors or situational factors. Ex: you meet someone at a party that is not talking to many other people Shy/conceited – personality Usually friendly, doesn’t know anyone – situational

Social Perception – Attribution Theory Actor-Observer Bias Tendency to attribute the behavior of others to dispositional (internal) factors and their own behavior to be situational (external) Fundamental Attribution Error Tendency to overestimate the effect of dispositional causes for another persons behavior and to underestimate the effect of situational causes Self-Serving Bias Tendency to attribute their own successes to dispositional factors and their failures to situational factors Ex: Job interview successful because of my talent and skill Ex: Job interview unsuccessful because the interviewer was crabby

Group Behavior People behave differently when part of a group than they do individually Group Polarization: The strengthening of a groups shared attitudes over time Can be positive or negative

Group Behavior Social Facilitation: Social Loafing: Risky Shift: People often perform better when other people are watching than they do when they are alone Evaluation Apprehension: the concern about the opinion of others Social Loafing: Tendency for people to exert less effort towards completing a task when they are part of a group Diffusion of Responsibility: tendency for people to feel less responsible for accomplishing a task when the effort is shared among a group Risky Shift: Tendency for people to take greater risks when part of a group than acting individually

Group Behavior Group Decision Making Being part of a group affects the decision making process Social Decision Schemes: Rules that govern group decision making

Group Behavior Social Decision Schemes: Majority-Wins Scheme: Decision is supported by the majority of the members Truth-Wins Scheme: Members of the group realize one option is better than the other choices once they have all information Two-Thirds Majority Scheme: Two-thirds of members agree on a choice First-Shift Scheme: Applies when a group is split 50-50, then one person changes their mind to break the tie

Group Behavior Types of Group Leadership: Authoritarian Leaders: Exert absolute control over all decisions for the group Ex: military leaders Democratic Leaders: Encourage group members to express and discuss ideas and to make their own decisions Ex: group voting to make a decision Laissez-Faire Leaders: Encourage group members to express and explore their own ideas, take a less active role in decision-making

Obedience Following the orders or directions of a person in authority Good: learn social rules and norms, create safe and orderly environments Bad: commit crimes – “just following orders”

Obedience Why do people obey? Socialization Foot-in-the-door Effect Learn through social rules it is correct to obey authority figures (teachers obeyed the researchers) Foot-in-the-door Effect People will give in to major demands once they have given in to minor ones (shocks) Confusion Distraction, disturbances or confusion may lead a person to lose focus on their beliefs and act against them (yelling, pounding) Buffers Protected from observing the consequences of their actions (wall between them)

Conformity To change or modify ones’ attitudes and behavior to make them match those of other people Social Norms: Standards of behavior people share (to do/not to do) Explicit Norms: spoken, written rules Traffic rules, student handbook Implicit Norms: unspoken, unwritten rules How to dress, how to greet someone

Conformity Why do people conform? Cultural influences Belonging to a specific group with expectations Need for acceptance Want to be liked or accepted by certain people Other factors Conforming increases as the groups size increases All other group members are unanimous

Attraction A kind of attitude – that of liking another person Love or friendship

Attraction What attracts us to others? Physical appearance Universals of beauty: large eyes, high cheekbones, narrow jaws, smiles Similarity & Reciprocity Matching hypothesis: people tend to choose friends and partners they think are similar to themselves in attractiveness Choose similar race, ethnicity, age, level of education, religion, etc. Reciprocity: the mutual exchange of feelings or attitudes