Social Psychology
social psychology
the branch of psychology that studies persons and their relationships with others and with groups and with society as a whole
attribution theory
the theory that we explain someone's behavior by crediting either the situation or the person's disposition; studied by Fritz Heider
fundamental attribution error
the tendency for observers, when analyzing another's behavior, to underestimate the impact of the situation and to overestimate the impact of personal disposition
cognitive dissonance
The theory that we act to reduce the discomfort we feel when two of our thoughts are inconsistent. For example, when our awareness of our attitudes and our actions clash, we can reduce the resulting dissonance by changing our attitudes, often in a self-justifying way.
foot-in-the-door phenomenon
the tendency for people who have first agreed to a small request to comply later with a larger request
door-in-the-face phenomenon
tendency for people who won't agree to a large task, but then agree when a smaller request is made
central route to persuasion
occurs when people think carefully about the message and are influenced because they find the arguments compelling.
peripheral route to persuasion
Occurs when people are influenced by incidental cues, such as a speaker's attractiveness, emotional music or images.
normative social influence
influence resulting from a person's desire to gain approval or avoid disapproval
informational social influence
influence resulting from one's willingness to accept others' opinions about reality.
Solomon Asch
conducted an experiment where participants' estimates of line length were influenced by the presence of others giving incorrect answers
Philip Zimbardo
conducted the famous Stanford Prison Experiment; illustrated the powerful impact of role-playing
social facilitation
improved performance of tasks in the presence of others; occurs with simple or well-learned tasks but not with tasks that are difficult or not yet mastered
social loafing
the tendency for people in a group to exert less effort when pooling their efforts toward attaining a common goal than when individually accountable
deindividuation
the loss of self-awareness and self-restraint occurring in group situations that foster arousal and anonymity
group polarization
the enhancement of a group's prevailing attitudes through discussion within the group
groupthink
the mode of thinking that occurs when the desire for harmony in a decision-making group overrides a realistic appraisal of alternatives
stereotype
a generalized (sometimes accurate but often overgeneralized) belief about a group of people
just-world phenomenon
the tendency of people to believe the world is just and that people therefore get what they deserve and deserve what they get
blaming the victim
the tendency to blame an innocent victim of the misfortune for having somehow caused the problem or for not having taken steps to avoid or prevent it
frustration-aggression principle
the principle that frustration- the blocking of an attempt to achieve some goal- creates anger which can generate aggression
social trap
a situation in which the conflicting parties, by each rationally pursuing their self-interest, become caught in mutually destructive behavior
mere exposure effect
the phenomenon that repeated exposure to novel stimuli increases liking of them
passionate love
an aroused state of intense positive absorption in another, usually present at the beginning of a love relationship
companionate love
the deep affectionate attachment we feel for those with whom our lives are intertwined
equity
a condition in which people receive from a relationship in proportion to what they give to it
bystander effect
the tendency for any given bystander to be less likely to give aid if other bystanders are present
social exchange theory
the theory that our social behavior is an exchange process, the aim of which is to maximize benefits and minimize costs
superordinate goals
shared goals that override differences among people and require their cooperation
GRIT
Graduated and reciprocated initiatives in tension-reduction; strategy designed to decrease international tensions
Stanley Milgram
conducted experiments where "teachers" were made to shock "learners" under direction from an authority figure
approach-approach conflict
Conflict that results from having to choose between two attractive alternatives
approach-avoidance conflict
conflict occurring when a person must choose or not choose a goal that has both positive and negative aspects
avoidance-avoidance conflict
Conflict that results from having to choose between two distasteful alternatives
actor-observer effect
the tendency to make situational attributions for our own behaviors while making dispositional attributions for the identical behavior of others
self-serving bias
the tendency to assign oneself credit for successes but to blame failures on external forces
diffusion of responsibility
reduction in sense of responsibility often felt by individuals in a group; may be responsible for the bystander effect, social loafing, and related phenomena
social responsibility norm
an expectation that people will help those dependent upon them (especially those who cannot help themselves)
self-fulfilling prophecy
an expectation (about another person) that causes you to act in ways that make that expectation (of the other person) come true.
ethnocentrism
the tendency to view one's own cultural group as superior to others and as the standard for judging the worth of foreign ways
other race effect
the tendency to recall faces of one's own race more accurately than faces of other races
implicit bias
unconscious, automatic biases measured by IAT; impacts decision-making and impressions (e.g., of other racial groups) without the person's conscious awareness