SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY

What’s Social Psychology?

How we form our beliefs and attitudes about the world around us.

How the world around us influences our beliefs and attitudes.

Often unconscious & influenced by our environment

Imagine This…

You walk into an elevator full of people what do you do?

Why do you take this action

Attribution Theory

How we explain human behavior based on an assumption that their actions are driven by either:

a. an internal disposition or b. the situation. Internal Disposition: this is how the person is

(inner trait) Situational: behavior is dictated by the current

circumstance We often tend to attribute behaviors to disposition

rather than situation. Inaccurate labeling can be referred to as:

fundamental attribution error

Attribution or Situational?

Fundamental Attribution Error

Culture affects attribution Based on our set of cultural norms when

people deviate from them we think they’re mean, weird, different, etc.

I reach out to shake a woman’s hand wearing an abaya…she refuses. I think to myself “man that was rude.” What just happened?

Attitudes & Actions

Attitude: a belief or feeling that makes you respond in a particular way to people, events, & objects

Internal Attitude + External Influences = Behavior

Behaviors do not always match attitudes…Why? Outside influences can be stronger i.e. peer

pressure We aren’t keenly aware of our attitudes i.e.

women aren’t as smart as men The attitude and behavior are incompatible

i.e. I don’t like running

What does this mean?

Behavior & Attitude

Sometimes behavior influences attitude. Consider the following examples below:

Foot in the Door Phenomenon: tendency for people who have agreed with small things to agree with later larger requests.

Role Playing: After you perform a certain role long enough it becomes normal. Ex. Zimbardo experiment and brown eye/blue eye experiment

Cognitive Dissonance

Readjusting or Repositioning The way we behave in order to reduce

discomfort(dissonance) when our beliefs are inconsistent/compromised

Cognitive Dissonance = attitude and actions clash; so we change the attitude

For Example: Attitude: It is important to take care of the

environment Dissonance: I drive an SUV, which is not eco friendly Adjustment: I can’t save the world OR I recycle

Conformity

Conformity: adjusting behavior or thinking in order to fit in with a group idea or standard

Conformity increases when: You feel incompetent on insecure You’re in a group of 3 or more There is uniformity in the rest of the group You’re impressed by the status of the group

members & they’re watching You have made no prior commitments to a

response Asch Conformity Experiment

Your Thoughts Are Not Your Own?

Are Your thoughts wholly yours?

If not, why aren’t they?

Obedience

Obedience: the tendency to comply with orders from someone perceived as authority.

Why do we follow rules? Milgram's Experiment

Group Influence

Group Influence: how behavior changes when an individual is in/observed by group(s).

Social Facilitation: improved performance when in the presence of others; we do better when someone’s watching b/c more aroused. Arousal increases performance of tasks we’ve mastered.

When the task is not mastered…then we perform worse.

Other Ways Groups Impact Behavior

Social loafing: the tendency of individuals within a group to do less work than when held individually accountable. My work isn’t needed…someone else will do it.

Deindividuation: Loss of self-restraint and self-awareness when in a group. An individual does things in a group they’d never do individually. i.e. sports

Mob Attacks News Crew

Other Ways Groups Impact Behavior

Group Polarization: the enhancing of ones already present attitudes by exposure to others who share same views. i.e. political, religious, racist groups Pushes moderates toward extremist beliefs/actions Racism In America

Group Think: Go along with the group in order to maintain peace.

Self-Fulfilling Prophecy: You believe something to be true so you behave in that way causing the belief to become actuality.

Minority Influence: Influence of minority groups is rare but possible when they are unyielding. i.e. civil rights or women’s movments

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