Elements of Social Perception The situation and schemas Social comparison and saliency Schemas -- mental maps or blueprints for how familiar people, events or things usually work
Elements of Social Perception People and non-verbal cues Major visual cues Face cues Voice cues Movement cues
Causal Attribution The process by which we describe how people explain the causes of behavior Personal Attribution -- Attributing behavior to internal characteristics of an individual Situation Attribution -- Attributing behavior to external factors
Kelley’s Covariation Theory
Attribution Errors Fundamental Attribution Error -- The tendency to underestimate the impact of the situation on other people’s behavior and to overestimate the role of personal causes Actor-observer error -- The tendency to attribute our own behavior to situational causes and others to personal factors
Reflective Questions How do non-verbal cues help us form impressions of individuals? How do we arrive at motives or causes for behavior from impressions How accurate are our causal attributions?