Psychology Chap 12-15

• Social Cognition


  The thoughts we have about the stimuli in our environment, which typically arise when a schema is activated.
• Social Cognitive Biases


  A reliance on schemas (which have solidified over time and become a bias) to make assumptions about social situations. They are often incomplete because they do not take into account numerous other factors.
• Attribution


  An assumption of why a person is acting the way they do.
• Fundamental Attribution Error


  Attributing a person's behavior to what we assume to be his or her personality rather than factors outside of that individual (E.g. the situation)
• Self-serving bias


  In order to maintain a positive view of ourselves we tend to take credit for our successes and blame failures on situational factors. In other words, we rely on the schema that we are generally skilled, capable, and good intentioned.
• Affiliation


  Connecting with others you identify with in some way (i.e. ethnicity, religiosity, political beliefs, or hobbies).
• In-group


  A group with which an individual is affiliated, that is, they identify with and believe they are part of that group.
• Out-group


  A group an individual believes he or she is not a part of or affiliated in some way.
• Intergroup Bias


  The tendency to favor in-groups (with which we identify) and undervalue out-groups (that we do not identify with),
• In-group favoritism


  Believing our in-groups are better than out-groups and favoring those in-groups through actions or thoughts.
• Group-serving Bias


  Accepting positive aspects of our in-group despite evidence contradicting these positive beliefs.
• Attraction


  Feeling interested or drawn to another person. Attraction can manifest itself through an individual's characteristics (i.e., physical, intellectual, or emotional) or social standing (i.e., popularity, power, or affiliation)
• Social Comparison


  Self-evaluation by comparison to others (i.e. "I'm smarter than they are" or "I'm more attractive than her/him")
• Homogeneity Effect


  The assumption that members of a particular out-group are "homogenous," or very similar to each other.
• Stereotypes


  Assumptions that members of a particular out-group share certain characteristics or behaviors.
• Halo Effect


  The tendency to make assumptions about a person based on a single characteristic This is best understood not in a religious sense but in terms of light - a "halo" radiating from a single source of light, like the sun.
• Prejudice


  Negative attitudes stemming from stereotypes.
• Intergroup Contract Theory


  A theory that states prejudice is based on a lack of information and more contract between groups will lead to greater understanding and less prejudice.
• Discrimination


  Negative actions stemming from stereotypes.
• Peripheral Route


  One of two paths to changing an attitude; route of attitude change attempts to intervene on beliefs that are not very strong.
• Central Route


  One of two paths to changing an attitude; attitude change attempts to intervene on core beliefs (e.g., personal values or other strongly held ideas)
• Reciprocity


  A feeling of obligation arising from the notion that we are in debt to someone when they do something to us.
• Ingratiation


  A conscious effort to get others to like us. This effort can take many forms, like complementing someone or taking acting more enthusiastic about their interests than you really are.
• Impression Management


  Actively managing the way you believe others perceive you. (e.g., buying clothes you cannot afford to convey an appearance of wealth).
• Self-monitoring


  Actively monitoring others' reactions and adjusting your actions to change the way you believe they perceive you.
• Consistency


  The pressure we feel to behave in ways which are in concert with our attitudes and beliefs or to behave in ways we know others expect us to behave.
• Cognitive Dissonance


  When an individual's attitudes and beliefs are not aligned.
• Self-perception theory


  Observing our behavior and inferring what our attitudes are based on the way we've acted.
• Foot-in-the-door


  Obtaining a small commitment in order to later achieve a larger request.
• Door-in-the-face


  Making a larger, often irrational, request in order to make the smaller request that follows seem much more reasonable.
• Psychological Reactance


  A reaction to fight outside influences we believe are attempting to undermine the authority we have over our own thoughts and behaviors ("you can't tell me what to do/think!")
• Scarcity


  An attempt to influence people by conveying the notion that something is rare, valuable, or will not always be available.
• Social Facilitation


  A performance boost stemming from the presence of other people - driven by feeling the need to perform well in front of others.
• Social Inhibition


  A decrease in performance stemming from the presence of others; when an individual performs worse because of perceived social pressures.
• Diffusion of Responsibility


  When responsibilities for a task within a group are unclear, and the success or failure of that group cannot be connected to any particular person's performance.
• Groupthink


  The tendency for the group to agree, resulting in conformity from individuals within the group who may hold a different view.
• Polarization


  The tendency for group members to become more rigid in their views when faced with a countering view from other group members.
• Risky Shift


  When groups make riskier decisions than any individual group member may make on their own, often resulting from diffusion of responsibility.
• Deindividuation


  A loss of individual identity within a group of people, which can lead to a disconnect with values and uncharacteristic behavior.
• Scripts


  A specific type of schema that tells us how to behave in situations we've encountered before.