Social Cognition Molly Marshall

What is social cognition? How we think about other people How we process social information How we explain other peoples behavior How we explain our own behaviour

Prejudice and Discrimination Prejudice - Allport (1958) an antipathy based on a faulty and inflexible generalisation. It may be felt or expressed. It may be directed towards a group or toward an individual because he or she is a member of that group

Prejudice and Discrimination Prejudice can be seen as part of the process of ethnocentrism What is ethnocentrism

Prejudice and Discrimination Ethnocentrism --- the syndrome The tendency to undervalue the products of an OUT GROUP to which we do NOT belong Hostility & rejection of out group members

Prejudice and Discrimination Ethnocentrism --- the syndrome The tendency to overvalue the products of an IN GROUP to which we do belong Increased liking for in group members + pressure for conformity & group cohesion

Prejudice and Discrimination Ethnocentrism --- the syndrome Name some groups to whom we belong IN GROUPS to whom we do not belong OUT GROUPS

Prejudice and Discrimination THREE major theories of prejudice the psychoanalytic (within the individual) the interaction between groups theory the social categorisation theory

Prejudice and Discrimination the psychoanalytic (within the individual) locates prejudice within the individual personality - Adorno et al (1950) caused by unresolved childhood conflicts - but this cannot explain why entire societies may be prejudiced

Prejudice and Discrimination the interaction between groups theory locates the cause of prejudice in the struggle between social groups for scarce social resources (housing, jobs) Sherif (1956) describes competition between groups as the cause of prejudice

Prejudice and Discrimination the interaction between groups theory Sherif - the robbers cave experiment Famous study - USA teenagers in a summer camp The eagles & the rattlers

Prejudice and Discrimination Now let us do a VERY small experiment YOU will learn more about this in a minute You are all allocated a code number please memorise it!!

Prejudice and Discrimination You are about to be shown a screen covered with dots Very quickly - and IN SILENCE estimate the number of DOTS on the screen; write this down, fold up your answer, write your code number on the fold

Prejudice and Discrimination

Prejudice and Discrimination And again You are about to be shown two more screens covered with dots Very quickly - and IN SILENCE estimate the number of DOTS on each screen; write this down, fold up your answer, write your code number on the fold

Prejudice and Discrimination

Prejudice and Discrimination

Prejudice and Discrimination Sorting it all out !

Prejudice and Discrimination over estimators list TWO traits you think over estimators have in common then list TWO traits you think under estimators have in common

Prejudice and Discrimination under estimators list TWO traits you think under estimators have in common then list TWO traits you think over estimators have in common

Prejudice and Discrimination both groups note + for each positive trait or - for each negative trait Mark your slip O or U Put your list in the O or U heap

Prejudice and Discrimination We will look at our results at the end of the session …...

Prejudice and Discrimination the social categorisation theory TAJFEL (1970) The minimal group studies

Prejudice and Discrimination the social categorisation theory TAJFEL (1970) What does it take to make you believe you are a member of a group?

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies What Tajfel did - EXPERIMENT 1 A laboratory experiment

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies The participants 64 school boys from Bristol Age range All knew each other well

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies Came into psychology lab in groups of 8

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies They were told: That Tajfel was investigating visual judgements

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies 40 clusters of dots flashed onto a screen The boys asked to estimate how many dots they had seen each time

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies Experimenters then pretended to judge the boys answers BUT really The boys were randomly assigned to one of two groups

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies OVER ESTIMATORS OR UNDER ESTIMATORS How many were there in each group?

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies The boys were given 18 page booklets - indicating money (pence) Choice Number1234 Boy no Boy no

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies The boys were asked to make three types of choice Ingroup choices - both boys IN Out group choices - both boys OUT Inter group choices - one each

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies INTER GROUP CHOICES the important choice Most boys chose a ticket which would give their own group most

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies The second experiment Another lab experiment (Still Tajfel)

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies Groups of 16 boys tested Flashed up 12 paintings Klee or Kandinsky (abstract art) Afterwards randomly categorised as preferring Klee or Kandinsky

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies The boys again given 18 page booklets - indicating money (pence) Choice Number1234 Boy no Boy no

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies Which of THREE variables had the greatest effect Maximum joint profit largest reward to members of both groups

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies OR largest reward to member of in group …. regardless of size of reward for boy in out group

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies OR MAXIMUM DIFFERENCE - largest possible difference - in favour of the in group

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies For example … Boy (in group) Boy (out group) Max joint profit = blue row Largest reward to in group = blue Max difference = green

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies The results Most boys chose maximum difference Boys left the study with LESS money than they would have if they had awarded maximum joint profit

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies The independent variable (IV) The group of the participant Over estimator or under estimator

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies The dependent variable (DV) The boys reward decisions

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies Tajfel concluded Out group discrimination is very easy to trigger off mere categorisation is enough!

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies Ecological validity? Demand characteristics - Artificial setting - not like real life

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies The participants? Teenage boys are competitive (esp in western culture) Unrepresentative sample - all boys same age all from same school

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies Ethics !! No informed consent Right to withdraw?

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies How did our experiment go! Count up the +s and -s for each group Did the over estimators give more -s to under estimators and vice versa?

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies What to do now… Read a chapter on prejudice & discrimination

TAJFEL - The minimal group studies THE END