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Chapter 13
Social Psychology
© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
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Social Cognition
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Social Behavior
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Social Influence
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Intergroup Relations
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Close Relationships
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Social Psychology and Health and Wellness
© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
Social Psychology
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the study of how people think about,
influence, and relate to other people
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social cognitions
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social influences
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social relations
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Social Cognition
How do people select, interpret, remember,
and use social information?
Person Perception
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physical attractiveness
-“Beautiful is good” stereotype
- self-fulfilling prophecy
- composite faces, symmetry, and youthfulness
first impressions
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Social Cognition
Attributions
…explanations for why people behave the
way they do
Attribution Theory
…attempt to discover underlying causes of
behavior
- internal/external causes
- stable/unstable causes
- controllable/uncontrollable causes
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Social Cognition
Attribution Errors
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observers often explain actors’ behaviors
incorrectly
fundamental attribution error
- overestimate the importance of internal traits
- underestimate the importance of external causes
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actors often explain own behavior in terms of
external causes
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Fundamental Attribution Error
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The Self as a Social Object
Self-Esteem
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positive illusions – views of ourselves that
are not necessarily rooted in reality
self-serving bias – tendency to take credit for
success and deny responsibility for failure
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Social Cognition
Stereotype Threat
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a self-fulfilling fear about being judged on the
basis of a negative stereotype about our group
Social Comparison
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process by which we evaluate our thoughts,
feelings, behaviors, and abilities in relation to
other people
social comparison theory
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Attitudes
Attitudes are beliefs about people, places,
and ideas.
Can attitudes predict behavior?
…when attitudes are strong
…when attitudes are rehearsed
…when person has vested interest
Can behavior predict attitudes?
…cognitive dissonance and self perception
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Cognitive Dissonance Theory
Discomfort caused by two dissonant thoughts
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thoughts of ones attitude v. ones behavior
Dissonance reduced by
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changing behaviors to match attitude
changing attitudes to match behavior
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Self-Perception Theory
Individuals make inferences about their own
attitudes by perceiving their own behavior,
especially if their attitudes are unclear.
Both cognitive dissonance and selfperception theory explain the connection
between attitudes and behavior.
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Attitudes and Behavior
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Social Behavior
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we behave in social ways toward the
people around us
two extremes of human social activity…
- altruism
- aggression
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Prosocial Behavior
Altruism
…an unselfish interest in helping
someone else
Egoism
…helping others for personal
enhancement (e.g., to ensure
reciprocity)
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Prosocial Behavior
Explanations of Altruism
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psychological factors
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mood
empathy
sociocultural factors
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gender
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Prosocial Behavior
The Bystander Effect
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Darley and Latané (1968)
individuals are less likely to help in an
emergency when others are present
diffusion of responsibility
Media Influence
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Aggression
Biological Influences
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evolutionary views
genetic basis
neurobiological factors
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limbic system and frontal lobes of brain
low levels of serotonin
testosterone
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Aggression
Psychological Influences
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aversive circumstances
- frustration
- weather, physical pain, crowding
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cognitive determinants
- priming
- perception of unfairness
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observational learning
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Aggression
Sociocultural Influences
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cultural variations
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culture of honor
media violence
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television
violent pornography
violent video games
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Aggression
Reducing Aggression
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decrease rewards
lessen exposure
encourage empathy
monitor adolescents’ activity
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Social Influence: Conformity
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Social Influence: Obedience
Milgram’s Experiments (1965, 1974)
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factors that contribute to disobedience
- disobedient models
- authority figure not legitimate or not close by
- victim made to seem more human
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ethical concerns regarding Milgram - deception
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Social Influence: Obedience
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Group Influence
Deindividuation
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erosion of personal identity and responsibility
anonymity
Social Contagion
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spread of behavior, emotions, and ideas
Group Performance
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social facilitation: arousal with well-learned tasks
social loafing: reduced accountability
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Group Decision Making
Social Facilitation
Improvement in individual performance due to presence
of others
Due to effects of arousal, only on well-learned tasks
Social Loafing
Tendency to exert less effort in group due to less
accountability for individual effort
Decreased by increasing identifiability, simplifying
evaluation, and making group task more attractive
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Intergroup Relations
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Group Identity
- us versus them
Social Identity
- define ourselves in terms of group membership
Social Identity Theory
- in-groups versus out-groups
Ethnocentrism
- favoring one’s own group over other groups
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Prejudice
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an unjustified negative attitude
toward a group and its members
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explicit versus implicit racism
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explanations for prejudice
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competition between groups
cultural learning
motivation to enhance self-esteem
limitations in cognitive processes
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Stereotyping and Prejudice
Stereotype
…a generalization about a group
Discrimination
…an unjustified negative or harmful action
How can relationships between
ethnic groups be improved?
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Close Relationships
Attraction
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proximity
- mere exposure effect
- promise of acquaintanceship
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we like those who like us
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similarity
- consensual validation
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Close Relationships: Love
Romantic Love
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passionate love
sexuality and infatuation
Affectionate Love
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companionate love
deep caring affection
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Close Relationships: Love
Social Exchange Theory
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fair exchange of “goods”
minimize costs, maximize benefits
Investment Model
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factors in stability of relationship
- commitment to partner
- investment in relationship
- lack of attractive alternatives
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