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PSYCHOLOGY
AN EXPLORATION
Second Edition
CHAPTER
10
social psychology
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
why study social psychology?
If people lived in total isolation from other people,
there would be no reason to study the effect that other
people have on the behavior of individuals and groups.
But human beings are social creatures—we live with
others, work with others, and play with others. The
people who surround us all of our lives have an impact
on our beliefs and values, decisions and assumptions,
and the way we think about other people in general.
Why are some people prejudiced toward certain other
people? Why do we obey some people but not others?
What causes us to like, to love, or to hate others? The
answers to all these questions and many more can be
found in the study of social psychology.
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Learning Objectives
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LO 10.1
LO 10.2
LO 10.3
LO 10.4
LO 10.5
LO 10.6
LO 10.7
LO 10.8
LO 10.9
LO 10.10
love
LO 10.11
LO 10.12
LO 10.13
Factors affecting conformity
Four ways to gain compliance
Obedience
Components, formation and change of an attitude
When attitudes do not match actions
Social categorization and implicit personality theories
How people explain others’ actions
Prejudice and discrimination
Why people are prejudiced and how to stop it
Factors that govern attraction and the different forms of
Biology and learning influences on aggression
Altruism and deciding to help others
Why people join cults
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Three Factors of Social Psychology
LO 10.1 Factors affecting conformity
• Social psychology
– Scientific study of how thoughts,
feelings, and behavior are influenced by
others
– Social influence
 The ways behavior can be affected by
other people
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Three Factors of Social Psychology
LO 10.1 Factors affecting conformity
• Social psychology
– Social cognition
 The ways people think about other
people
– Social interaction
 The positive and negative aspects of
people relating to others
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Social Influcence: Conformity
LO 10.1 Factors affecting conformity
• Conformity:
– Changing one’s own behavior to more
closely match the actions of others
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Social Influcence: Conformity
LO 10.1 Factors affecting conformity
• Conformity:
– Solomon Asch Study (1951)
 Would participant change response in
order to fit in with group response?
– Participants conformed to group answer
over one-third of time
– Conformity decreased if there was just
one confederate who gave the correct
answer
– Greater conformity in collectivist cultures
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Figure 10.1 Stimuli Used in Asch’s Study
Participants in Asch’s famous study on conformity were first shown the standard line. They were then shown the
three comparison lines and asked to determine to which of the three was the standard line most similar. Which
line would you pick? What if you were one of several people, and everyone who answered ahead of you chose line
3? How would that affect your answer? Source: Adapted from Asch (1956).
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Hazards of Groupthink
LO 10.1 Factors affecting conformity
• Groupthink
– Emphasis on maintaining group
cohesiveness
– Less focus on assessing
facts of problem
– Examples: decision to bomb Iraq,
Titanic lifeboat numbers
• Can minimize groupthink by seeking
opinions outside of group
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
On April 20, 2010, an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon oil drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico. Oil flowed into the
Gulf for three months, but the environmental impact will no doubt be felt for years. How might groupthink apply
in this situation?
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Table 10.1
Characteristics of Groupthink
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Compliance
LO 10.2 Four ways to gain compliance
• Consumer psychology
– Figuring out how to get people to buy
items
• Compliance
– People change behavior as a result of
another person or group asking or
directing them to change
• Person asking other to change has no
authority over other
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Four Ways to Gain Compliance
LO 10.2 Four ways to gain compliance
• Foot-in-the-door technique
– Asking for a small commitment
– After gaining compliance, asking for a
bigger commitment
• Door-in-the-face technique
– Asking for a large commitment and
being refused
– Next ask for a smaller commitment
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Four Ways to Gain Compliance
LO 10.2 Four ways to gain compliance
• Lowball technique
– Getting a commitment from a person
– Then raise the cost of that commitment
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Four Ways to Gain Compliance
LO 10.2 Four ways to gain compliance
• That’s-not-all technique
– Sales technique where persuader makes
offer
– Adds something extra to make offer
look better
– Done before the target person can make
a decision
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Four Ways to Gain Compliance
LO 10.2 Four ways to gain compliance
• That’s-not-all technique
– Technique relies on Norm of
reciprocity
 Assumes if someone does something for
a person, that person should do
something for the other in return.
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Obedience
LO 10.3 Obedience
• Obedience
– Changing one’s behavior
at the command of an authority figure
• Milgram study
– “Teacher” administered
shocks to “learner”
– In first experiments, 65% of “teachers”
went all the way to experiment’s 450volt shock level
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Milgram’s Experiment
In Stanley Milgram’s classic study on obedience, the participants were presented with a control panel like this
one. Each participant (“teacher”) was instructed to give electric shocks to another person (the “learner,” who
only pretended to be shocked). At what point do you think you would have refused to continue the experiment?
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Social Cognition: Attitudes
LO 10.3 Obedience
• Attitude
– Tendency to respond positively or
negatively toward person, object, idea,
or situation
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Social Cognition: Attitudes
LO 10.3 Obedience
• Three components of attitude:
– Affective component
 Emotional
– Behavioral component
 Action taken
– Cognitive component
 Thoughts about person, object or
situation
– Attitudes tend to be poor predictors of
actual behavior
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Figure 10.3 Three Components of an Attitude
Attitudes consist of the way a person feels and thinks about something, as well as the way the person chooses to
behave. If you like country music, you are also likely to think that country music is good music. You are also
more likely to listen to this style of music, buy this type of music, and even go to a performance. Each of the
three components influences the other two.
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Formation of Attitudes
LO 10.4 Components formation and change of an attitude
• Three ways to form attitudes:
– Direct contact
 With the person, situation, object, or
idea
– Direct instruction
 From parents or others
– Interaction with others
 Around other people who hold a certain
attitude
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Formation of Attitudes
LO 10.4 Components formation and change of an attitude
• Vicarious Conditioning
– Observation of others’ actions and
reactions
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Persuasion
LO 10.4 Components formation and change of an attitude
• Persuasion
– Attempt to change the belief, opinion,
position, or course
of action of another person
– Done through argument, pleading, or
explanation
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
How the jurors in this courtroom interpret and process the information they are given will determine the outcome
of the trial. Those who listen carefully to what is said by persons involved in the trial are using central-route
processing. There may be some jurors, however, who are more affected by the appearance, dress,
attractiveness, or tone of voice of the lawyers, defendant, and witnesses. When people are persuaded by factors
other than the message itself, it is called peripheral-route processing.
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Persuasion
LO 10.4 Components formation and change of an attitude
• Factors in persuasion:
– Source of the message
– Message itself
– Target audience
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Attitude Change: Persuasion
LO 10.4 Components formation and change of an attitude
• Elaboration likelihood model
– People elaborate on the persuasive
message or fail to elaborate on it
– Future actions of those who do
elaborate are more predictable than
those who do not
• Central-route processing
– Attending to the content of the message
itself
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Attitude Change: Persuasion
LO 10.4 Components formation and change of an attitude
• Peripheral-route processing
– Attending to factors not involved in the
message
– Such as: appearance of the source,
length of the message, and other noncontent factors
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Cognitive Dissonance
LO 10.5 When attitudes do not match actions
• Discomfort or distress that occurs when
one’s behavior does not correspond to
one’s attitudes
• Creates unpleasant tension and arousal
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Cognitive Dissonance
LO 10.5 When attitudes do not match actions
• Three choices for reducing dissonance:
– Change conflicting behavior to match
attitude
– Change current conflicting cognition to
justify behavior
– Form new cognitions to justify behavior
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Figure 10.4 Cognitive Dissonance: Attitude Toward a Task
After completing a boring task, some participants were paid $1 and some $20 to convince others waiting to do
the same task that the task was interesting and fun. Surprisingly, the participants who were paid only $1 seemed
to change their own attitude toward the task, rating it as interesting, whereas those who were paid $20 rated the
task no differently than a control group did. Source: Adapted from Festinger and Carlsmith (1959).
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Social Cognition and Impressions
LO 10.6 Social categorization and implicit personality theories
• Impression formation
• First knowledge a person has about
another person
– Primacy effect
 First impression one has
about a person
 Tends to persist even in the
face of evidence to the
contrary
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
At this job fair in Shanghai, China, thousands of applicants wait hopefully in line for an opportunity to get a job
interview. Making a good first impression is important in any job interview situation, but when the competition
numbers in the thousands, the people who will most likely get interviews are those who are neatly dressed and
well-groomed.
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Social Cognition and Social Categorization
LO 10.6 Social categorization and implicit personality theories
• Social categorization
– Automatic, occurs without conscious
awareness
– Is assignment of a person one has just
met to a category
– Based on characteristics person has in
common with other people experienced
in past
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Social Cognition and Social Categorization
LO 10.6 Social categorization and implicit personality theories
• Stereotype
– Set of characteristics believed to be
shared by all members of a particular
social category
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Social Cognition and Social Categorization
LO 10.6 Social categorization and implicit personality theories
• Implicit personality theory
– Assumptions about how different types
of people, personality traits, and actions
are related
– Formed in childhood
– Not necessarily true but form schemas
 Patterns representing believes about
types of people
 Can become stereotypes
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Attributions
LO 10.7 How people explain others’ actions
• Attribution
– Explaining one’s own behavior and the
behavior of others
– Looks are why certain explanations are
chosen
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Attributions
LO 10.7 How people explain others’ actions
• Attribution theory
– Situational cause
 Behavior attributed to external factors
 Such as: delays, the action of others
– Dispositional cause
 Behavior attributed to internal factors
 Such as: personality or character
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Attributions
LO 10.7 How people explain others’ actions
• Fundamental attribution error
– actor-observer bias
– Tendency to overestimate influence of
internal factors in determining behavior
of others
 Explain behavior by “What kind of person
he/she is”
– Underestimate situational factors in
determining behavior of others
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Prejudice and Discrimination
LO 10.8 Prejudice and discrimination
• Prejudice
– Negative, unsupported attitude
– About members of a particular group
– The attitude
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Prejudice and Discrimination
LO 10.8 Prejudice and discrimination
• Discrimination
– Treating people differently due to
prejudice toward their social group
– The behavior
– Forms of prejudice include:
– Ageism, sexism, racism
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
On September 6, 1957, this high school in Little Rock, Arkansas, became integrated, allowing African American
students to attend school with white students. The practice of segregating black and white school children was
discrimination, and the desegregation laws were aimed at stopping that discrimination. But the attitudes of
prejudice persisted even after the legal discrimination was stopped and to some degree still exist today. The
courts can make laws against discrimination, but changing prejudicial attitudes is much more difficult.
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Types of Prejudice and Discrimination
LO 10.8 Prejudice and discrimination
• In-groups
– Social groups a person identifies with
– “Us”
• Out-groups
– Social groups a person does not identify
with
– “They”
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
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Types of Prejudice and Discrimination
LO 10.8 Prejudice and discrimination
• Realistic conflict theory
– Prejudice and discrimination increase
between groups in conflict over a limited
resource
– Examples: land, jobs
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
These Korean demonstrators were protesting the riots that followed the 1992 not guilty verdict of the four police
officers who were videotaped beating Rodney King. The riots lasted six days, killing 42 people and damaging 700
buildings in mainly Korean and other Asian American neighborhoods. As the most recent immigrants to the area,
the Asian American population of Los Angeles, California, became the scapegoats for aggression.
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
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How People Learn Prejudice
LO 10.8 Prejudice and discrimination
• Social cognitive theory
– Prejudice is acquired through:
 Direct instruction
 Modeling
 Social influences
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
How People Learn Prejudice
LO 10.8 Prejudice and discrimination
• Social identity theory
– Formation of identity within social group
is explained by:
 Social categorization
 Social identity
 Social comparison
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Social Identity Theory
LO 10.9 Why people are prejudiced and how to stop it
• Social categorization
– Assign selves to social categories to
help determine behavior
• Social Identity
– Self concept
– View of self as a member of a social
group within the social category
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Social Identity Theory
LO 10.9 Why people are prejudiced and how to stop it
• Social comparison
– Compare self favorably to others to
improve own self-esteem
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Stereotype Vulnerability
LO 10.9 Why people are prejudiced and how to stop it
• The effect that awareness of
stereotypes associated with social
group has on behavior
• Often anxious that behavior might
support the stereotype
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Stereotype Vulnerability
LO 10.9 Why people are prejudiced and how to stop it
• Self-fulfilling prophecy
– Expectations affect behavior and make
the stereotype expectation more likely
• Stereotype threat
– Group member anxious about behavior
that might support stereotype
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Overcoming Prejudice
LO 10.9 Why people are prejudiced and how to stop it
• Equal status contact
– Groups have equal status
– Neither group has power over the other
• “Jigsaw classroom”
– Educational technique
– Each individual is given only part of the
information needed to solve a problem
– Individuals must work together to find
solution
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
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The Rules of Attraction
LO 10.10 Factors that govern attraction and the different forms of love
• Interpersonal attraction
– Desire for a relationship with identified
person
• Factors involved in attraction:
– Physical Attractiveness
 More important early in a relationship
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
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The Rules of Attraction
LO 10.10 Factors that govern attraction and the different forms of love
• Factors involved in attraction:
– Proximity
 Physical or geographical nearness
 Repeated exposure may increase
attraction
– Similarity
 We prefer being with those who are
similar
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
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Sternberg’s Triangular Theory of Love
LO 10.10 Factors that govern attraction and the different forms of love
• Three components of love:
– Intimacy
 Close emotional ties
 Psychological, not physical
– Passion
 Physical aspect of love, not just sex
– Commitment
 Decisions one makes about the
relationship
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Figure 10.5 Sternberg’s Triangular Theory of Love
This diagram represents the seven different kinds of love that can result from combining the three components of
love: intimacy, passion, and commitment. Notice that some of these types of love sound less desirable or positive
than others. What is the one key element missing from the less positive types of love? Source: Adapted from
Sternberg (1986).
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
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Aggression and Prosocial Behavior
LO 10.11 Biology and learning influences on aggression
• Aggression
– Behavior intended to hurt or destroy
another person
– Frustration, pain can lead to aggression
toward available target
– Freud – felt aggression was a basic
human instinct
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
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Aggression and Biology
LO 10.11 Biology and learning influences on aggression
• Human aggression has at least partially
a genetic basis
• Amygdala and limbic system trigger
aggressive responses when stimulated
• Testosterone
– Linked to higher levels of aggression in
humans
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
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The Power of Social Roles
LO 10.11 Biology and learning influences on aggression
• Social role
– Pattern of behavior expected of
in a particular social position
– Zimbardo Prison Experiment
 College students simulated prison
 Experiment terminated after five days
 Students in guard role became
aggressive
 Social roles have a strong influence on
behavior
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
This photograph shows a “guard” searching a “prisoner” in Zimbardo’s famous Stanford prison experiment. The
students in the experiment became so deeply involved in their assigned roles that Zimbardo had to cancel the
experiment after only five days—less than half the time originally scheduled for the study.
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
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Violence in the Media and Aggression
LO 10.11 Biology and learning influences on aggression
• Methodological problems present in
media violence research
• Earlier studies failed to consider the
type of video games:
– Difficulty level, pace, and competitive
level
• Measures of aggression in studies could
be measuring competitiveness
– Problem with operational definitions
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
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Violence in the Media and Aggression
LO 10.11 Biology and learning influences on aggression
• Presence of depression and depressive
symptoms
– More relevant predictor of violent
aggression than playing violent video
games
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Altruism
LO 10.12 Altruism and deciding to help others
• Pro-social behavior
– Socially desirable behavior that benefits
others
• Altruism
– Prosocial behavior done with no
expectation of reward
– May involve the risk of harm to oneself
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
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Bystander Effect
LO 10.12 Altruism and deciding to help others
• Bystander effect
– Effect the presence of other people has
on the decision to help or not help
– Help becomes less likely as the number
of bystanders increases
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
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Bystander Effect
LO 10.12 Altruism and deciding to help others
• Diffusion of responsibility
– Individual fails to take responsibility for
actions or inaction
– Presence of other people are seen as
sharing the responsibility
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
Saundra K. Ciccarelli • J. Noland White
Figure 10.6 Elements Involved in Bystander Response
In a classic experiment, participants were filling out surveys as the room began to fill with smoke. As you can see
in the accompanying graph, the time taken to report smoke and the percentage of people reporting smoke both
depended on how many people were in the room at the time the smoke was observed. If a person was alone, he
or she was far more likely to report the smoke and report it more quickly than when there were three people.
Source: Latané & Darle (1969).
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
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Five Steps in Making a Decision to Help
LO 10.12 Altruism and deciding to help others
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Noticing
Defining an emergency
Taking responsibility
Planning a course of action
Taking action
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
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Table 10.2
Help or Don't Help: Five Decision Points
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
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Cults
LO 10.13 Why people join cults
• Who joins?
– Those under stress, dissatisfied with
life, unassertive, gullible, dependent,
and idealistic
• Young people are likelier to join cults
than are older people
• Techniques of persuasion used
• Leaving is difficult, often requires
“deprogramming”
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
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In 1978, the Reverend Jim Jones, leader of the People’s Temple in Jonestown, Guyana, ordered his followers to
drink poisoned drinks or shoot each other. Of the cult members, 640 adults died and 274 children were either
killed by their own hands or those of their parents.
Psychology: An Exploration, Second Edition
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