Social Psych

Studies how we think about, influence, and relate to one another

Norman Triplett

Created the idea of social facilitation

Individuals reacting to other individuals

Tendency to exaggerate one's ability to have forseen how something turned out ("I knew it all along")

An integrated set of principles that explain and predict observed events

A testable prediction that describes corellations that may exist between events (allows us to test a theory)

The participants

Random study sent out with equal group opportunity

Number of participants

The way a question or issue is posed

Correlation and experimentation

Observing relationships between naturally occuring variables

manipulating one or more facts

As one factor goes up, the other factor goes up

Example: Better sleep quality is associated with improved cognitive function

As one factor goes down, the other factor goes up

Exmple: higher levels of stress can lead to a weakened immune system

Assigning participants to conditions such that all persons have the same chance of being in that condition

Repeats research study with different participants in different settings

Belief that others are paying more attention to you than they are

Illusion that our emotions are easily read by others

cognative framework that helps organize y interpret information

Mental shortcuts that help us face decisions

what a person believes themselves to be
(behavior, appearance, profession, personality)

Understanding of society (social rules and norms)

how we view ourselves based on specific parts of our identity
(such as being a member of a group)

Combines self-schema with our beliefs, opinions, and attitudes

Giving priority to ones own goals over group goals

Giving priority to a group's goals over the individual's

people have hard time predicting future

Overall evaluation and sense of self

Self protective responses when reminded of mortality

Sense that one is competant and effective in what they do

To see ourselves favorably (goes up and down)

Handycapping yourself to prevent future failure

Behaving or dressing to get a favorable impression

watching how we act to get more favorable reactions

Automatic y unconscious processing

Deliberate, controlled and conscious processing

Activates particular associations in memory

influence of bodily sensations effects you cognatively

Example: good experiences with body make good thoughts about body

Tendency to be more confidant more often than we are correct

Tendency to search for information that confirms one's perceptions (system 1)

biased or irrational thinking, leading to negative thoughts and feelings

Cognative rule that judges based on availability of memories

Simple terms: If you hear about something more often, we think they are more commonplace

Example: We hear about murder a lot, so we think murders happen a lot more than they do

Tendancy to unconsciously presume someone is a certain way because they resemble a typical member of a group

Example: We see a kind old lady, and we assume she is a grandmother

Broad generalization of groups/people that do not always apply (oversimplified and not entirely based on facts)

Imagining senarios that could have happened but didn't

seeing a relationship between variables where none exist

Example: Playing black jackambling thinking you are good at it, but it's just luck

Statistical tendency for extreem scores y behaviors to return to the average


Example: bad student gets really good scores, but it won't last

to continue to believe something (even after proven wrong)

Looking back in time and viewing it as better than it was (post rose-tinted glasses)

Example: Going to Austria and you are tired, but thinking back on the trip, you only remember the fun parts

Looking back in time and viewing a thing/person as worse than it was

Example: after breaking up with someone, only seeing the worst stuff/problems

How people explain other's behaviors

Attributes behaviors to a person's disposition or traits

Example: he got bad grades, and just thinks he's "just a bad student"

Attributes behavior to the environment or circumstances


Exampe: He got bad grades and thinks "I have a lot going on right now"

automatic influence of a trait after exposure to someone's behavior

Example: Hears about someone solving a really tough riddle and you think "wow, they are smart!"

tend to observe others differently then ourselves

Example: you are more likely to attribute a co-worker's lateness as them being a bad co-worker then thinking they were stuck in traffic

consciously or unconsciously building bias into an experiment to get desired results

A belief that leads to its own fulfillment

Example: you think you are bad at math, so you avoid math class and end up bad at math

people's interpretation of social expectations lead them to behave in ways that cause others to confirm their expectations

Example: You think no one likes you, so you try too hard to get them to like you, and now nobody likes you, thus confirming your belief

Feelings often influenced by beliefs cause responses

Assesses reaction time to determine how quickly people's association concepts (a test to see if we have biases)

Unconscious bias towards something

norms on how one should behave

You feel fake and your acomplishments don't feel like you did them

self presentation theory
self perseption theory
self justification theory

strategically expressing attitude makeing us apear consistant with behaviors


Example: Catholic guys like smoking pipes, and you want to be a Catholic guy, so you start smoking a pipe

(Using others as a gide to determine reality)

Example: Girl likes smoking cigarettes and others see that as cool, so now I'm cool

We force ourselves to make a facial expression and our feelings are influenced by that

incentivizing people to do what they already like doing.
We enjoy hobbies a little bit less when told to
Example: When you go to lean your room, then your mom tells you to do it, so now you don't want to

Outside source is motivating you
"I'm doing this cause I am paid to"

Internal source is motivating you
"I do it cause I like it"

Tendency to justify one's actions in order to maintain one's self esteem

(when we are depressed we tend to be more honest with ourselves)

occurs when one holds two cognitions (Ideaseliefs) that are psychologically inconsistent

(self concept is threatened)

Example: Likes eating meat, but also likes animals

1) Changing our attitudes

2) Changing perception

3) Adding cognitions to suport a belief

4) Minimizing conflict importance

5) Reducing percieved choice

Example: A vegan liking meat : It's okay, I'm sure the animals die humanly

Example: A vegan liking meat: "I eat meat, but not that often"

Example: a vegan liking meat: "Some people say it's healthy to eat meat"

Example: a vegan liking meat "not that big of a deal"

Example: a vegan liking meat "I have no choice, I get fed meat anyway"

When it hides important facts and important solutions

When its rational and true

Convincing somebody to agree to a lower price, they raise the price and you pay anyway

When we commit a little bit to something and you turn it into a big commitment

Example: Ask to sign safe driving then asking to sign on the long (more likely to say yes)

the process of identifying reasons outside of one's control to support one's behaviorseliefs/attitudes
(Blaming external sources)
Example: "I ony did it because I was paid to"

voluntarily changing a belief or behavior to reduce cognative dissonance


Example: Youth ministers don't get paid, but they commit cause they like the job (have internal justifications for doing it)

Example: student misremembering her academic level so that she is pleasantly surprised when she gets a good grade

When we think we are reasonable people, we think when we hurt people we are justified

When we are in a bad situation, we try to eliminate bad thoughts surounding it


Example: after kids eat a veggie they hate, we tell them they have to eat more. To reduce stress, they tell themselves "these veggies aren't that bad"

We accept reality enough to act on it

Self-esteem

change in behavior or belief as a result of behavior (real or not)

1) acceptance
2) complience
3) Obedience

Acting and believing with social preasure

Public acting in accord with social preasure even while disagreeing

Acting with direct order or command (social demand)

Mimic others for feelings of closeness

Brain cells that are activated when we perform an action and witness another do the action (biological "empathy")


Example: I see someone jumping up and down, and my neurons turn on so I could jump as well if I wanted to

Laugh tracks and use of rhetoric

Asks participants to tell him how for a light moved (it never actually moved). Each time it moved, they told the diff. when did alone, moved 4-6 inches. Then they did it in groups directions leaned towards the group average (due to hearing other's opinions) did again alone, and stayed close to what group answer was anyway.

Suggestability to problems that spread throughout a large group

Example: When one person gets sick, others start feeling that they might also get sick

Real symptoms with no physiological cause

1 participant, 6 "peers" lines experiment

To raise our self-esteem

The desire to be liked
(gain acceptance)

accepting the evidence other people give you (desire to be right)

Rule followers/people pleasers

unanimity, commitment, accountability, person/culture, the group

When opinions are unanamous you are more likely to conform

If you say your opinion first, you are more likely to stick with it

Accountability in groups increases conformity when you have to convince others

Those with low self esteem are more likely to conform
those with high self esteem are less likely to conform

You are more likely to conform if the group consists of "experts" or those of "high social standing"

The greater number of witnesses to an event, the less likely it is that anyone helps

Example: Throwing up around a group and no one helps vs throwing up around 1 person and they do help

The more people around during something, the less likely you are to feel responsible

Carried out for reward or to prevent punishment

Until the rewards or punishments stop

1) person giving orders-nearby
2) study supported by powerful institution
3) victims not seen
4) no roll models against complience