Chapter 20: Social Cognition

1. Chapter 20: Social Cognition Introduction to Psychology Mrs. Wilson

2. Social Psychology • The study of the manner in which personality, attitudes, motivations, and behavior of the individual influence and are influenced by social groups • So in the study of social psych we must look at: • The individual • Relation between individual and others • Group behavior

3. The Individual • We think that we are awesome! • We think everybody notices us • We think that our beliefs and actions make sense

5. I’m Awesome • We systematically rate ourselves as better than average at things like: • Student • Friend • Lover • Driver • We aren’t sure why • Nature of Feedback? • Differing criteria for goodness? • Need to feel good about self

6. Everyone Notices Me • Spotlight effect – we tend to believe that the spotlight shined brighter on us than it really does. • The Ugly Shirt experiment

7. Transparency Effect • We think we are more transparent than we really are.

8. Have you been to London? Yes, I have been to London No, I have not been to London • Do you have a younger sibling? Yes, I have a younger sibling. No, I do not have a younger sibling • Do you like sushi? Yes, I like sushi No, I do not like sushi

9. We believe what we do makes sense. • We believe that our attitudes are reasonable and that our behaviors are in keeping with our beliefs

10. Social Cognition • The study of how information about people is processed and stored • Our thoughts, perceptions, and beliefs about people are influenced by the social context in which we interact with them

11. 20.1 Attitudes • Beliefs or feelings about objects, people, and events • Attitudes can affect behavior • Generally stable but can be changed

12. Attitude Development - Conditioning • Authority figures positively reinforce behaviors and beliefs that align with their own

13. Attitude Development – Observational Learning • We acquire attitudes by observing others

14. Attitude Development – Cognitive Evaluation • We evaluate information or evidence before forming our beliefs • We are especially likely to do this if we think we will have to justify our beliefs

15. Attitude Development – Cognitive Anchors • We form some of our beliefs early in childhood • These beliefs stay with us throughout our lives • Contrary attitudes may be rejected

16. Attitudes and Behavior • Sometimes align other times do not

17. When Behavior Follows Attitude • Behavior more likely to align with attitudes when the behavior is specifically tied to that attitude • Stronger attitudes = behavior more likely • More likely to act according to beliefs if there is a vested interest • More likely to act according to attitudes that you are aware of

18. When Attitudes Follow Behavior • Likely occurs when we behave contrary to our beliefs • Cognitive dissonance may cause a shift in beliefs

19. Cognitive Dissonance Theory • Leon Festinger • Internal inconsistency causes dissonance • We work to reduce dissonance • We avoid inconsistent info • We change attitudes to mesh with decisions

20. Cognitive Dissonance • Subjects did a boring task. • Subjects were then paid either $1 or $20 to tell the next subject that the task was enjoyable. • Subjects receiving $1 rated the task as more enjoyable than those receiving $20. • Why? They were less able to justify their action (lying to the next subject) than those receiving $20, so they had to change their attitude about the task.

21. 20.2 Persuasion • A direct attempt to influence other people’s attitudes

22. Methods of Persuasion • Central route • Uses evidence and logic • The message is most important factor • Peripheral route • Indirect approach • Associates objects, people, or events with positive or negative cues • Many factors are important

23. The Message • Repeated exposure leads to more favorable views • The way the message is presented is also important

24. The Message - Two Sided Arguments • Both sides of the argument are presented • The opposing views are discredited • More effective than one sided arguments

25. The Message – Emotional Appeals • Utilizes feelings of desire, loyalty, and fear to persuade

26. The Messenger • Employs people who are more persuasive: • Experts • The Trustworthy • Attractive People • People with similar qualities to the target audience • People without a vested interest

27. The Situation • Putting people in a good mood makes them more easily persuaded

28. The Audience • Different approaches work better with different audiences • Emotion works on kids • Logic on adults

29. Saying No • Sales resistance – some people have no trouble saying no others fall for any pitch • High resistance correlates with high self-esteem and low social anxiety • Low resistance correlates with low self-esteem and high social anxiety (they are also more likely to be persuaded to engage in behaviors that go against beliefs)

30. The Pitch • Your group is responsible for creating an advertising campaign for one of the three products provided. During your pitch you will present the following: • A tag line – Think about all the big brands and companies; each has an advertising phrase you remember. Come up with a great one sentence line to help the audience relate the product to something appealing. • A print ad – Using white butcher or poster paper, design a magazine ad. • 3. A radio or television ad – Create a written pitch for a media ad that includes a description of the set up and action as well as any important dialogue. Casting descriptions are also useful.

31. 20.3 Prejudice • Generalized attitude towards a specific group of people

32. First Impressions • We form first impressions quickly • They are important (confirmation bias) • They can actually have an effect on other • Self Fulfilling Prophecy • Pygmalion Effect

33. Stereotypes • Unchanging, oversimplified, usually distorted beliefs about a group of people • Developed to help us organize social information • We assume those different from us are similar to each other • Harmful because people aren’t judged as individuals • Can lead to incorrect interpretations of behavior

34. Discrimination • Unfair treatment of individuals because the are members of a specific group

35. Causes of Prejudice • Exaggerating Differences • Justifying Economic Status – successful believe that those less well to do are inferior • Social Learning – we acquire prejudicial ideas from parents and others

36. Causes of Prejudice • Victimization – some who are victims of prejudice try to regain a sense of power by belittling others • Scapegoating • Scapegoat – individual or group that is blamed for the problems of others • Usually too weak to defend themselves or don’t fight back

37. Overcoming Prejudice • Difficult • Increased contact • Speaking up • Being an example • Avoiding discrimination

38. 20.4 Social Perception • The ways we see other people

39. Primacy and Recency • We form opinions about people based on our first impressions (often influenced by looks) • These tend to have lasting effects • Recency effect occurs when we change our opinion about others

40. Attribution Theory • We explain the behavior of others differently than our own behavior • We can attribute behavior to: • Dispositional (personality) factors • Situational (external) factors Fritz Heider

41. Actor-Observer Bias • We tend to attribute others behavior to dispositional factors (they did it because they’re not nice) • We attribute our own behavior to situational factors (I am usually nice, the situation is to blame for my behavior)

42. Fundamental Attribution Error • Our tendency to overestimate dispositional causes for another’s behavior and to underestimate the situational causes

43. Self-Serving Bias • We attribute our own successes to dispositional factors (I won cause I’m the best!) • We attribute our failures to situational factors (I lost cause he cheated)

44. Nonverbal Communication • We are influenced by forms of unspoken communication like: • Facial expression • Gestures • Posture and distance • We are not always aware of using it

45. Physical Contact • Degree to which it is used varies between sexes and cultures • Can be effective and persuasive

46. Eye Contact • Can be revealing • Can be indication of truthfulness • Gazing – a steady intent look conveys liking • Staring – perceived as anger, makes people uncomfortable

47. 20.5 Interpersonal Attraction

48. What Contributes to Attraction So how do we find the person that we will love forever? Several factors contribute to attraction

49. Physical Appearance • Attractiveness varies from person to person, but there are some universals

50. Universals of Beauty • We tend to like large eyes, high cheekbones, and narrow jaws • Notions of beauty seem to be ingrained – babies show preference for looking at more attractive faces.