Advanced Placement Psychology

Social Psychology: The study of how people influence, and are influenced by, other people Social Cognition: The mental processes associated with the ways in which people perceive & react to other individuals & groups Advanced Placement Psychology Chapter 17: Social Cognition

Self-Concept – (noun.) Beliefs about who we are & WHAT CHARACTERISTICS WE HAVE Self-Esteem– (noun.) Evaluations of personal worth AS HUMAN BEINGS Two main theories about how we form our self-concept: - Social Comparison Theory - Social Identity Theory

Social Comparison TheoryWe know who we are by comparing ourselves to others • Objective Measures: Things that can be measured • Ex: height, weight, age, etc. • Non-objective Measures: Things that cannot be measured • Ex: attractiveness, athletic prowess, etc. • Social Comparison– Evaluation of the self by comparing to others • Reference Groups– Categories of people to which individuals see themselves as belonging & to which they compare themselves • Relative Deprivation– Occurs when a person’s relative standing is poor compared to a social reference group (no matter how much you’re getting, it’s less than you deserve)

Social Identity TheoryWe know who we are through our role in society (part of our self-concept) • Social Identity: our beliefs about the groups to which we belong • “I am _____________.” • Physical Attributes • Tall • Smart • Athletic • Social Attributes • a student • American • a [sport] player • Cultural Differences • Individualist Cultures – Tend to define themselves more by physical attributes • Collectivist Cultures – Tend to define themselves more by social attributes

Linkages:Social Cognition and Psychological Disorders • Self-Schemas • Unified Self-Schemas – Same characteristics across situations • Differentiated Self-Schemas – Different characteristics across situations • Those with unified self-schemas are more prone to developing mental disorders Parts of the Self-Schema • Actual Self – What the person is like • Ideal Self – What the person wants to be • Ought Self – Who the person should be (morals) • Perceived discrepancies between the parts of the self may be the trigger for distress & then mental disorders

Social PerceptionThe Role of Schemas, First Impressions, Attribution, & Self-Protective Functions • Social Perception: the process through which people interpret information about others, form impressions of them, & draw conclusions about the reasons for their behavior • Social perception influences our thoughts, feelings, & actions!

Role of SchemasGestalt principles of perception: Top-Down Processing“Filling in the Blanks” about other people • Attention • Schemas affect what we pay attention to & what we ignore • Attributes consistent with our schemas get more attention than those inconsistent with schemas • Processing speed is quicker for characteristics that confirm our schemas • Memory • Schemas influence what we remember • Attributes consistent with our schemas are easier to remember than those inconsistent with schemas • You will remember more about a random person if you knew their profession ahead of time. • Attribution • Schemas affect how we judge behavior of others • A man and a woman doing the same thing get different judgments of their behavior

First ImpressionsIs the first impression the most important? • Forming Impressions • Influenced heavily by schemas & top-down processing • Assumption: Others hold attitudes & values similar to your own • Negative information is more potent than positive information • Why? • There are many reasons for why someone might act positively • Only one reason for why someone might act negatively • Lasting Impressions • First impressions are very slow to change • New information is filtered by the existing framework through top-down processing • Self-Fulfilling Prophecies • Schemas that lead people to behave in line with our expectations

Explaining Perception: AttributionAttribution – Process of explaining the causes of behavior • Attribution helps to understand the causes of behavior, predict future behavior, & decide how to control the situation itself • Scenario: A student asks Ms. de Bari for an extension on an assignment • Internal Attribution • Behavior caused by characteristics of the person • “Sigh… laziness…” • External Attribution • Behavior caused by situational factors • “Something must have happened that prevented him/her from being able to work on the assignment.” • Similar to locus of control, but what’s the difference?

Sources of AttributionsKelley’s theory for understanding attributions • You ask Ms. de Bari for an extension on an assignment & she yells at you before refusing • Consensus • Degree to which other people’s behavior is similar to that of the actor •  Consensus = External •  Consensus = Internal • None of your other teachers ever give you extensions. • All your other teachers give you extensions when you ask. • Consistency • Degree to which the behavior is the same across time •  Consistency = Internal •  Consistency = External • Ms. de Bari has never given you an extensions before. • Ms. de Bari use to always give you extensions except this time • Distinctiveness • Degree to which similar stimuli elicit the same behavior from the actor •  Distinctiveness = External •  Distinctiveness = Internal • Ms. de Bari gives everyone extensions but you. • Ms. de Bari gives extensions to NO ONE!

Attribution Errors & Biases Fundamental Attributional Error Other Attributional Biases • Fundamental Attribution Error • Tendency to over-attribute the behavior of others to internal factors, such as personality traits • Ultimate Attribution Error • Tendency to attribute negative behaviors of out-groups to stable traits, & positive behaviors as exceptions • Actor-Observer Bias • Tendency to over-attribute the behavior of self to external factors • Self-Serving Bias • Success  Internal attribution • Failure  External attribution • Explanation: Self-esteem • Claims success & disowns failures

Self-Protective Functions • People are motivated to maintain their self-esteem • Ignoring negative information is one way to do it • Ex: If you just failed your last exam (hopefully not!) you are more likely to blame me as the teacher instead of painfully admitting that you got the grade you deserved • Unrealistic Optimism [Unique Invulnerability] • The tendency to believe that: • Positive events are more likely to happen to you than others • Negative events are more likely to happen others than you • Tends to persist even in the face of contradictory evidence • Can lead to unhealthy behaviors • Alcoholism • Reckless Driving • Drugs

AttitudesThe Tendency to Think, Feel, or Act Positively or Negatively toward objects in our environment • Three components of attitudes • Cognitive – Beliefs held about something (Ex: you believe drunk driving is bad) • Affective – Emotional feelings toward something (Ex: you feel angry when people drive drunk) • Behavioral – The way one acts towards something (Ex: you participate in demonstrations against drunk driving) • People will consciously or subconsciously try to maintain consistency between the components of their attitude • Factors Affecting Consistency [of behavior] • Cognitive & affective consistency [What you believe and how you feel are consistent] • In line with subjective norm [View of how people around us want us to act] • There is a degree of perceived control [Belief one can actually perform said behavior] • Having had direct experience [Having first-hand experience]

Forming AttitudesNo one is born with attitudes • Genetics • Inherited predispositions of temperament • Learning • Modeling & Social Learning – Children learn from parents not just what objects are, but also how they should feel about them • Classical / Operant Conditioning – Naturally associating positive or negative feelings with the object Mere-Exposure Effect • All else being equal, attitudes toward an object will become more positive the more frequently people are exposed to it • i.e. Spend enough time with the girl you like and maybe she’ll start liking you too.

Changing Attitudes Two Routes to Attitude Change • Three factors affecting attitude change • Characteristics of the person communicating • Content of the message • Audience who receives it • Elaboration Likelihood Model • Peripheral Route • Persuasion Cues are important • How confident or attractive the persuader is • Central Route • Content of message is important • How logical the argument is • Which Route Will Be Taken? • Personal Involvement – How personally important the information is [C] • Cognitive Busyness – Thinking about other things [P] • Need for Cognition – Need for thoughtful mental activities [C] • Need for Closure – Discomfort with uncertainty [P]

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Attitude ChangeFestinger’s Cognitive Dissonance Theory Procedure / Results Explanation • Participants did mundane peg-turning activity • Advertised the task to others as “exciting & fun” • Group 1: $1 reward • Group 2: $20 reward • Group 1 • More favorable attitude towards the task • Group 2 • Small increase in attitude towards the task Group 1 Group 2

Attitude ChangeFestinger’s Cognitive Dissonance Theory • People want their thoughts, beliefs, & emotions to be consistent with one another and with their behavior • In cases where the behavior & cognition can’t be changed, the attitude naturally shifts

Attitude Change Self-Perception Theory • You’re not quite sure yet how you feel about a particular boy or girl • You examine • How excited you get when you are on your way to spend time with him or her • How upset you get when others speak poorly about the boy or girl • How unhappy you get when you see him or her with others of the opposite gender • Does not presuppose internal tension when attitudes are inconsistent with behavior • Under ambiguous situations, people examine their behavior to infer their attitude. • Self-Perception Theory • Best when there is weak/no prior attitude • Cognitive-Dissonance Theory • Best when there is strong/clearly defined attitudes and internal consistency is important for self-esteem

First, some vocabulary • Some commonly interchange words • Stereotype –Perceptions, beliefs, and expectations about members of a group • Prejudice – Positive or negative attitude toward an individual because of his or her membership in a group • Discrimination – Differential treatment of individuals who belong to different groups • Group Dynamics • In-group – Group to which one identifies with and belongs to • Out-group – Everyone else

Theories of Prejudice and Stereotyping:Motivational Theories • Motivational Theories • Prejudice may enhance one’s sense of security • Prejudice is especially likely among those with an authoritarian personality trait • Acceptance of conventional or traditional values • Willingness to unquestioningly follow the orders of authority • Inclination to act aggressively towards those identified by these authority figures as threatening the values held by one’s in-group • Prejudice may enhance one’s self-esteem by affirming their social identity with their in-group

Theories of Prejudice and Stereotyping:Cognitive and Learning Cognitive Theories • Social relationships are so numerous and complex that we rely heavily on schemas • People are then sorted into social categories • Categories that replace the individual details of a person • Members of the same social category are perceived to be quite similar to each other [saves cognitive energies: less attention] • “All you ____________ people look the same.” Learning Theories • Children learn prejudice by watching parents, peers, and others • Children often know about the negative characteristics of groups before they ever meet a member

Reducing Prejudice • Contact Hypothesis • Stereotypes and prejudice toward a group will diminish as contact with the group increases • Lessons Since 1954 [Brown vs. Board of Education] How to make desegregation work • Members of the two groups had to be roughly the same social and economic status • Members of the two groups had to work together on projects that required reliance and teamwork for success • Contact has to happen on a one-on-one basis • Members of each group must be seen as typical

And now, what we’ve all been waiting for…

Keys to AttractionAka: The Love Manual • The Environment • Mere-Exposure Effect (forming attitudes section) • Classical / Operant Conditioning • Similarity • Attitudes, age, habits • Balance • Similar attitudes towards mutual acquaintances • “If you wanna be my lover, you gotta get with my friends, make it last forever, friendship never ends…” – Spice Girls • Conclusion: Opposites don’t actually attract • Why? • We don’t know which direction the causality arrow points • Physical Attractiveness • Matching Hypothesis – People tend to form committed relationships with others of similar attractiveness • Why? • Balance between attraction and likeliness of rejection

Analyzing LoveTriangular Theory of Love

Advanced Placement Psychology