Psych 100 - F24 Lecture 9 - Social Psychology PDF

Psychology 100: Social Psychology  All Psychology is Social Psychology Our behavior is almost always influenced by our social surroundings and directed at other humans!  Questions Social Psychologists Ask Who are we? Do ‘we’ exist independently of others? How...

Psychology 100: Social Psychology  All Psychology is Social Psychology Our behavior is almost always influenced by our social surroundings and directed at other humans!  Questions Social Psychologists Ask Who are we? Do ‘we’ exist independently of others? How do other people influence our thinking? How do we explain other people’s behavior? What makes us attracted to certain people? What makes us repulsed by certain people? How is our behavior influenced in a group setting? What conditions create conflict between groups? How can we promote harmony between groups?  The Self: Who Are We?  Self & Society Does the ‘self’ exist independently of other people? Can it? “Hell is other people” - Jean Paul Sartre  Questions for the Self What sort of person am I? What do I believe? What are my strengths and weaknesses? What do others expect of me? What do I truly want for myself? To which groups do I belong? How do I compare with others? The ‘self’ is a bridge between the social world and the ‘inner world’ of each person  The Self & Impression Management We pay attention, often unconsciously, to how other people react to us and try to control (e.g., actively manage) the way we appear to others We do this, in part, to ensure that we are being ‘ourselves’ (or the selves we want to be)!  The Self & Social Media Is that profile really you? Or are you that profile?  The Defense of Self The self is constantly making self-evaluations – e.g., “How do I compare?” We are driven to maintain our sense of self worth (or ‘self-esteem’) The self must therefore be able to defend against its own negative judgments or avoid them altogether We achieve this through the use of cognitive biases!  Social Thinking (Social Cognition)  The ‘Self-Serving Bias’ The self-serving bias is a tendency to make errors in judgment that are always in our own favor – We overestimate our own contributions – We attribute our successes to our own efforts or characteristics, and our failures to circumstances, bad luck, or to other people – We overestimate our positive attributes relative to other people, always seeing ourselves as ‘above average’ By definition, we can’t all be above average!  “Yes” “No” “Are you safer than the 22.6% average driver?” 77.4% “Are your parking skills 34.2% “No” better than the “Yes” average driver?” 65.8% Average “How would you rate your (28%) leadership skills relative 28% to your peers?” Average Above 70% Below Average (2%) (70%)  Positive Illusions Positive illusions are false beliefs that have beneficial consequences – We have uncritically positive views of ourselves – We have illusions of control – We have unrealistic optimism Cognitive strategies such as these correlate with psychological well-being!  Attribution Theory How do we explain our own behavior? The behavior of others? An attribution is a conclusion about the cause of an observed behavior, event or thing Attribution Theory argues that we explain other people’s behavior in 2 ways: – Situational attributions: Based on factors outside or independent of the person – Dispositional attributions: Based on the person’s assumed traits, personality, abilities, etc Attributions are typically made very quickly; they are an example of ‘fast thinking’!  A ‘Dual System’ Daniel Kahneman of Thinking System 1 = Fast, effortless and automatic – Our default system! – Often used for quick “decisions” and judgments System 2 = Slow, effortful and deliberate – Demands concentration and attention – Physiologically arousing The Fundamental Attribution Error The fundamental attribution error is the tendency to attribute other people’s behavior to their (internal) dispositions, while ignoring situational (external) factors Information about possible situational influences is often invisible to the observer If an immediate attribution is required, it is easier to attribute someone else’s behavior to dispositional (internal) causes Examination of situational factors, if they are not readily apparent, requires ‘slow thinking’!  The Actor-Observer Bias In social situations, we are either an ‘actor’ or an ‘observer’ If we are the actor, we attribute our good behavior to dispositional causes and our bad behavior to situational causes If we are the observer, we tend to find a way attribute others’ good behavior to situational causes and their bad behavior to dispositional causes There are usually always situational causes for both our own and others’ behavior! “Humans are not a rational animal, but a rationalizing one.” Leon Festinger  Group Dynamics Candid Camera, “Face The Rear”, 1962  The ThePressure to Conform Asch Experiment “Are we all on the same page???” THREE!!!? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYIh4MkcfJA  The Asch Experiment Solomon Asch Asch (1951), Groups, Leadership & Men (A) (B) (C) Standard Line Comparison Lines Over 12 trials, 75% of participants conformed at least once On average, ~32% of participants conformed every time In the absence of social pressure, the error rate on this task is