Social Psychology Midterm Review Quiz

Social Influence and Relationships

• Social influence is exemplified when a person's opinions or behaviors are affected by others, such as conforming to group norms.
• A direct relationship in social psychology exists when there is a cause-and-effect connection between two variables, like a teacher's praise affecting a student's self-esteem.

Attribution Theory

• The primary effect in social perception refers to the tendency to place greater emphasis on initial information when forming impressions of others.
• Dispositional attribution attributes an individual's behavior to their internal characteristics or personality, whereas situational attribution attributes behavior to external circumstances.

Research and Thinking

• Conducting experiments in social psychology allows researchers to establish cause-and-effect relationships and isolate variables to better understand human behavior.
• A key component of social thinking is recognition of the fundamental attribution error, which involves overestimating the role of personality and underestimating the impact of situational factors in shaping behavior.
• Social perception involves the processes by which we form impressions and make judgments about others, such as attributing causes to their behavior.

Additional Key Points

• A correct understanding of social psychology recognizes that people's behavior is influenced by both dispositional and situational factors, rather than solely by internal characteristics.
• A direct relationship in social relations exists when there is a clear cause-and-effect connection between two variables, like a teacher's feedback affecting a student's motivation.