The Social-Cognitive Perspective Chapter 13, Lecture 5 “…we are both the products and the architects of our environment.” - David Myers

Social-Cognitive Perspective Bandura (1986, 2001, 2005) believes that personality is the result of an interaction that takes place between a person and their social context. Albert Bandura

Social-Cognitive Perspective Albert Bandura Reciprocal Determinism: The interacting influences of behavior, internal cognition, and environment

Individuals & Environments How we view and treat people influences how they treat us. Our personalities shape situations. Anxious people react to situations differently than relaxed people. Our personalities shape how we react to events. The school you attend and the music you listen to are partly based on your dispositions. Different people choose different environments. Specific ways in which individuals and environments interact

Behavior Behavior emerges from an interplay of external and internal influences.

Personal Control External locus of control refers to the perception that chance or outside forces beyond our personal control determine our fate. Internal locus of control refers to the perception that we can control our own fate. Social-cognitive psychologists emphasize our sense of personal control, whether we control the environment or the environment controls us.

Indicate the extent to which each of the following statements applies to you. Use the following scale: 1 = disagree strongly5 = agree slightly 2 = disagree6 = agree 3 = disagree slightly7 = agree strongly 4 = neither agree nor disagree 1. When I get what I want, it’s usually because I worked hard for it. 2. When I make plans, I am almost certain to make them work. 3. I prefer games involving some luck over games requiring pure skill. 4. I can learn almost anything if I set my mind to it.

Indicate the extent to which each of the following statements applies to you. Use the following scale: 1 = disagree strongly5 = agree slightly 2 = disagree6 = agree 3 = disagree slightly7 = agree strongly 4 = neither agree nor disagree 5. My major accomplishments are entirely due to my hard work and ability. 6. I usually don’t set goals because I have a hard time following through on them. 7. Competition discourages excellence. 8. Often people get ahead just by being lucky.

Indicate the extent to which each of the following statements applies to you. Use the following scale: 1 = disagree strongly5 = agree slightly 2 = disagree6 = agree 3 = disagree slightly7 = agree strongly 4 = neither agree nor disagree 9. On any sort of exam or competition, I like to know how well I do relative to everyone else. 10. It’s pointless to keep working on something that’s too difficult for me.

Learned Helplessness When unable to avoid repeated adverse events an animal or human learns helplessness.

Optimism vs. Pessimism An optimistic or pessimistic attributional style is your way of explaining positive or negative events. Positive psychology aims to discover and promote conditions that enable individuals and communities to thrive. “Success requires enough optimism to provide hope and enough pessimism to prevent complacency.” - David Myers

Positive Psychology and Humanistic Psychology Positive psychology, such as humanistic psychology, attempts to foster human fulfillment. Positive psychology, in addition, seeks positive subjective well-being, positive character, and positive social groups. Martin Seligman

Assessing Behavior in Situations Social-cognitive psychologists observe people in realistic and simulated situations because they find that it is the best way to predict the behavior of others in similar situations.

Evaluating the Social-Cognitive Perspective Critics say that social-cognitive psychologists pay a lot of attention to the situation and pay less attention to the individual, his unconscious mind, his emotions, and his genetics. The social-cognitive perspective on personality sensitizes researchers to the effects of situations on and by individuals. It builds on learning and cognition research.

Homework Read p AY Questions – p.576, 584 (10 pts) “Develop your self-discipline in one area of your life and your strengthened self-control may spill over into other areas as well.” - David Myers