PSY 124 – Social Psychology Lecture 1

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Questions and Answers

What is the primary focus of social comparison theory?

Evaluating abilities and opinions by comparing oneself to others (correct)

Determining self-worth based on social status

Understanding personal history through autobiographical memory

Comparing one’s achievements with past performances

Which of the following best describes upward social comparison?

Evaluating yourself in relation to someone more successful (correct)

Using personal achievements to gauge self-esteem

Assessing your abilities against a peer with similar outcomes

Comparing yourself to someone less successful

What is a characteristic of autobiographical memory?

It is always an accurate reflection of personal history.

It follows a linear chronological order.

It can be distorted to enhance perceived achievements. (correct)

It disregards the recency effect in memory retrieval.

How do individualistic cultures generally view the self-concept?

They value personal achievements and uniqueness. Signup and view all the answers

According to self-discrepancy theory, which aspects of self are compared?

Who you are, who you ought to be, and who others expect you to be Signup and view all the answers

What is the term for the degree to which a study is designed to support a cause-effect conclusion?

Internal reliability Signup and view all the answers

Which concept describes unintended factors that may influence study results alongside the independent variable?

Confound Signup and view all the answers

What does 'double blind' mean in an experimental context?

Neither participants nor experimenters are aware of the conditions. Signup and view all the answers

What is the term for specific beliefs about oneself that guide thinking?

Self-schema Signup and view all the answers

Which phenomenon occurs when intrinsic motivation decreases due to the introduction of external rewards?

Overjustification effect Signup and view all the answers

Which type of realism questions if the study's environment resembles real-world settings?

Mundane realism Signup and view all the answers

What do we call the process of predicting how one would feel in response to future events?

Affective forecasting Signup and view all the answers

What refers to the ethical consideration where a participant is informed about the nature of the study before it begins?

Informed consent Signup and view all the answers

What is the primary effect of self-awareness according to self-awareness theory?

Reduces self-esteem Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following describes the self-serving bias?

Taking credit for successes and blaming external factors for failures Signup and view all the answers

What outcome occurs when an individual withdraws from self-awareness?

Engages in self-medicating behaviors Signup and view all the answers

What is self-presentation primarily concerned with?

Shaping others' perceptions of oneself Signup and view all the answers

How do high self-monitors differ from low self-monitors?

They have a flexible range of selves to choose from Signup and view all the answers

What is the concept of 'thin slices' in person perception?

Making inferences about personality traits based on brief interactions Signup and view all the answers

What is self-handicapping?

Deliberately sabotaging one's own performance Signup and view all the answers

What motivates self-verification?

The need for others to confirm one’s self-perception Signup and view all the answers

What is a primary benefit of having social connections?

Enhanced mental and physical health Signup and view all the answers

How does social psychology primarily differ from macro-level studies?

Study of individual thoughts, feelings, and behaviors Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following statements represents a significant misconception related to social influence?

People are often resistant to social pressures. Signup and view all the answers

What defines a collectivist culture in social psychology?

Valuing group cohesion and societal harmony Signup and view all the answers

Which phenomenon indicates a common misconception about social interactions?

The idea that opposites attract in relationships Signup and view all the answers

What has influenced the recognition of cultural contexts in social psychology research since the 1990s?

Incorporation of diverse cultural meanings and practices Signup and view all the answers

What does the social brain hypothesis suggest about human evolution?

Social connections were a survival advantage Signup and view all the answers

Which concept best describes the potential effects of reading on social skills?

Reading enhances the ability to understand social dynamics. Signup and view all the answers

What are the two dimensions of mind perception?

Agency and experience Signup and view all the answers

Which of these is an example of a situational cue that can affect person perception?

The culture in which a person was raised Signup and view all the answers

According to attribution theories, what does an internal attribution suggest?

The behavior results from the person’s internal traits Signup and view all the answers

What does the Correspondent Inference Theory explain?

The tendency to assume behavior reflects internal dispositions Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following is NOT considered a basic emotion recognized worldwide?

Jealousy Signup and view all the answers

What does the Covariation Model by Kelley focus on?

Understanding how individuals respond to stimuli Signup and view all the answers

How accurate are people in detecting deception according to the material provided?

They are no better than chance at detecting deception Signup and view all the answers

What role does non-verbal behavior play in communication?

It can indicate feelings without words Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Social brain hypothesis posits that human brains evolved for social connectivity, aiding survival and success.
Strong social ties enhance mental and physical health, contribute to longevity, and delay aging.
Social psychology examines how individuals think, feel, and behave in social contexts, employing scientific methods over folk wisdom.

Folk Wisdom

Reading improves empathy and understanding of social interactions; belief that reading enhances people skills is true.
Pay can shift motivation from internal satisfaction to external incentive, impacting task enjoyment.
Social pressures can lead individuals to act against their moral beliefs, illustrated by Milgram and Stanford Prison Experiment.
Both "birds of a feather flock together" and "opposites attract" are true, highlighting the complexity of social relationships.

Cultural Psychology

Research in social psychology is embedded within cultural contexts, recognized more prominently post-1990s.
Culture encompasses shared meanings, values, and practices within large groups.
Individualistic cultures prioritize personal achievements and independence, while collectivist cultures emphasize group cohesion and interdependence.

Self Concept

Self-concept comprises the total beliefs about one’s attributes and is flexible.
Influenced by introspection, affective forecasting (often inaccurate), and self-perception—understanding oneself through behavior observation.
Intrinsic motivation fosters engagement in activities for enjoyment, whereas extrinsic motivation is driven by rewards or punishments.

Overjustification Effect

Overjustification occurs when intrinsic motivation diminishes due to external rewards, demonstrated in Lepper et al. (1973) study on children and markers.

People assess abilities and opinions by comparing themselves to others.
Upward social comparison involves comparing with more successful peers, while downward comparison involves less successful ones.

Autobiographical Memory

Memory of personal history can be biased to inflate achievements, with tendencies towards recency effects and notable flashbulb memories.

Self-Esteem and Theories

Self-esteem encompasses how individuals evaluate themselves, showing stability across life with eight domains.
Sociometer theory links self-esteem to social acceptance and approval.
Self-discrepancy theory contrasts current self with ideal and ought selves, affecting self-esteem.
Self-awareness theory triggers self-comparison against standards, potentially lowering self-esteem leading to behavior modification or avoidance.

Self-Regulation and Presentation

Self-regulation involves controlling thoughts and behaviors to meet personal and social goals, which can be a depletable resource.
Self-presentation, or impression management, is the effort to shape others’ perceptions, motivated by goals of gaining approval or influence.

Self-Verification and Monitoring

Self-verification seeks consistency between others' perceptions and one's self-concept, potentially clashing with self-enhancement motives.
Self-monitoring varies; high self-monitors adapt behavior for social situations, while low self-monitors are more principled, focusing less on social feedback.

Person Perception

Thin slices refer to making quick judgments about others based on minimal information, demonstrating near-instantaneous accuracy.
Context influences perceptions; cultural and situational cues shape interpretations of others’ behaviors.
Mind perception involves attributing human-like mental states to entities, depending on perceived agency and experience.

Non-Verbal Behavior

Non-verbal cues include body language and facial expressions, revealing feelings without words; six basic emotions recognized globally.

Deception Detection

Accurately identifying deception is challenging, often no better than chance; auditory cues may offer insights.

Attribution Theories

Attribution theorizes how individuals interpret behavior causes through internal (dispositional) or external (situational) lenses.
Correspondent Inference Theory suggests a bias to link behavior to internal traits, accounting for factors like choice and expected behaviors.
Covariation Model identifies three sources—consensus, distinctiveness, consistency—to analyze behavior sources.

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Description

Explore the foundational concepts of Social Psychology in this first lecture of PSY 124. Discover the social brain hypothesis and its implications for human connections, health, and longevity. Understand how our social interactions shape our survival and success in various aspects of life.