PSYC 121 Social Psychology Summaries PDF

lOMoARcPSD|41290601 PSYC 121 - Summaries of all class notes, slides and extra resources. - Social Psychology Social And Community Psychology / Sosiale En Gemeenskappsigologie (North-West University) Scan to open...

lOMoARcPSD|41290601 PSYC 121 - Summaries of all class notes, slides and extra resources. - Social Psychology Social And Community Psychology / Sosiale En Gemeenskappsigologie (North-West University) Scan to open on Studocu Studocu is not sponsored or endorsed by any college or university Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 SOCIAL AND COMMUNITY PSYCHOLOGY Casey Venter PSYC121 2019 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 Study Unit 1: Introduction to social psychology and the self Study Unit 1.1: Introduction: Social psychology and the influence of nature on culture Definition of social psychology Social psychology is the scientific study of how people affect and are affected by others. What do social psychologists do? ¥ They aim for a broad understanding of the social factors that influence how people think, feel, and act. ¥ They focus mainly on adult human beings. The ABC triad of social psychology ¥ Affect How people feel about themselves, others, and various issues. ¥ Behaviour What people do, their actions. ¥ Cognition What people think about themselves, others, and various issues in the social world. A brief history of social psychology ¥ The 1st studies in social psychology Norman Triplett ¥ 1897 ¥ People worked harder in the presence of others. Max Ringelmann ¥ 1880’s ¥ As group size increased, individual effort decreased. Casey Venter 1 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 ¥ Two major ideas from the early 20th century which had a lasting influence on social psychology Gordon Allport ¥ 1954 ¥ Attitudes “were the most distinctive and indispensable concept in contemporary American social psychology”. ¥ Said to be one of the founding figures of personality psychology. Kurt Lewin ¥ Behaviour is a function of the person and the situation. ¥ Known as one of the modern pioneers of social, organizational, and applied psychology in the United States. How do culture and nature work together to affect choices and behaviour and make culture a better way of being social? ¥ The psyche o It is a broader term for the mind, encompassing emotions, desires, perceptions, and all other psychological processes. ¥ Nature and culture o These combined made the psyche the way it is. o Both have real influences. ¥ Nature explanations o People are born a certain way (genes etc.) ¥ Culture explanations o What people learn from their parents, society, and their own experiences. Frans de Waal ¥ Nature vs. nurture isn’t a fair fight, because without nature, you have nothing. ¥ Is a particular behaviour a direct result of nature, or is it a combination of nature and culture? ¥ Nature has prepared humans specifically for culture. ¥ Characteristics that have set humans apart from other animals: o Language o A flexible self that can cold multiple roles o An advanced ability to understand each other’s mental states ¥ These characteristics are mainly there to enable people to create and sustain culture. Casey Venter 2 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 ¥ The Theory of Evolution (Charles Darwin) Natural selection Those members of a species that survive and reproduce most effectively are the ones that pass along their genes to future generations. The criteria is survival and reproduction. Survival Living longer. Reproduction Producing babies that survive long enough to also reproduce. Mutation A new gene or combination of genes. ¥ People are social animals o We seek connections with others. ¥ The social brain o A bigger brain doesn’t mean more intelligence. o People with bigger social networks are found to be bigger in the orbital prefrontal cortex. ¥ Why did the social brain evolve? o To enable humans to have rich, complex social lives. Inner processes serve interpersonal functions Social or cultural animal? ¥ Social animals o Term doesn’t fully acknowledge what’s unique about humans. ¥ Cultural animals o Makes humans special. Casey Venter 3 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 o Culture is the essence of what makes us human. ¥ Cultural animal theory o The view that evolution shaped the human psyche so as to enable humans to create and take part in culture. Culture defined ¥ There is no definite definition. ¥ It is what a large group of people have in common. ¥ Consists of: o Shared ideas o Social system o Praxis (a practical way of doing things) o Use language to encode and share information ¥ Culture is an information-based system, involving both shared understandings and praxis, that enables groups of people to live together in an organised fashion and to get what they need. Culture and nature interacting ¥ Nature shapes culture and culture shapes nature. ¥ One function of culture is to help people satisfy their biological needs. ¥ Individualistic cultures o More common in places where disease is low. o E.g. Western cultures ¥ Collectivistic cultures o Found in areas where there are many pathogens. o Maintaining relationships with others is more important than what you want. ¥ ‘Co-evolution’ o Nature and culture changed together and shaped each other. ¥ Nature provides the foundation and culture builds on top of that. ¥ In essence, nature and culture work together as a ‘team’ to shape not only a person’s psyche, but also their behaviour. The duplex mind ¥ The idea that the mind has two processing systems. ¥ Automatic system (a.s.) o The parts of the mind outside of consciousness that perform simple tasks. o Interprets, organises, and categorises all the information that comes in through your eyes and ears. o Impulsive system o Intuition ¥ Deliberate system (d.s.) o Mostly operates in consciousness. o Also called the conscious system. Casey Venter 4 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 o Turns on when you wake up and switches off when you go to sleep. o Reflective system o Reasoning ¥ Main differences: d.s. a.s. Slow Fast Controllable Outside of conscious control Guided by intention Unintentional Flexible Inflexible Good at combining information Poor at combining information One thing at a time Many things at once Reasoning Intuition Effortful Effortless Full-blown emotions Quick feelings of like/dislike, good/bad Depends on a.s. Can be independent of d.s. Daniel Kahneman ¥ Influential psychologist. ¥ Reasoning vs. Intuition ¥ Advantages of the d.s. o When the a.s. confronts something complex or unfamiliar, it doesn’t know how to deal with it. Therefore, when something like this appears, the d.s. is better at dealing with it. o It is able to combine information in complex, rule-driven ways. ¥ The d.s. and a.s. work together. ¥ Conscious override o When the two systems work against each other. § E.g. When the d.s. overrides the automatic impulse. ¥ When you feel like doing something, but you restrain yourself. o Vital to life in culture. Study Unit 1.2: The Self What are the three main parts of the self? Self-knowledge ¥ Also known as self-concept. ¥ Information about oneself. ¥ Self-awareness ¥ Self-esteem ¥ Self-deception ¥ A set of beliefs about oneself. Casey Venter 5 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 Interpersonal self ¥ Also known as the public self. ¥ Self-presentation ¥ Member of groups ¥ Relationship with partner ¥ Social roles ¥ Reputation ¥ The image of the self that is conveyed to others. Agent self ¥ Also known as the executive function. ¥ Decision making ¥ Self-control ¥ Taking charge of situations ¥ Active responding ¥ The part of the self that is involved in control, including both control over other people and self-control. ¥ What is self-presentation? o How people attempt to present themselves to control or shape how others view them. ¥ What is self-esteem? o It is confidence in one's own worth or abilities. o How one feels about themselves. ¥ What is the main purpose of the self? o To gain social acceptance and play social roles. ¥ Independent self-construal o A self-concept that emphasises what makes the self different and sets it apart from others. ¥ Interdependent self-construal o A self-concept that emphasises what connects the self to other people and groups. Ralph Turner ¥ Sociologist ¥ Different cultures may differ in their ideas about the true self by placing emphasis on one of two approaches: o Emphasises the inner feelings as the true self. o Focuses on the way the person acts, especially in official roles. Casey Venter 6 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 ¥ The self comes from an interaction of inner biological processes and the sociocultural network. What is the role of self-awareness? ¥ It is attention directed at the self. ¥ The self-awareness theory o Self-focused attention lead people to notice self-discrepancies, motivating either an escape from self-awareness or a change in behaviour. o Suggests that there are two ways of coping with discomfort: § ‘Shape up’ ¥ Behaving in ways that reduce self-discrepancies. § ‘Ship out’ ¥ Withdrawing from self-awareness. ¥ Private self-awareness o Attending to one’s inner states. ¥ Public self-awareness o Attending to how one is perceived by others. ¥ When people are self-aware, they are more likely to behave in ways that are consistent with their own personal values or with socially accepted ideals. ¥ Self-awareness is vital for self-regulation and adopting others’ perspectives. Self-regulation The process that people use to control and change their thoughts, feelings and behaviour. Where does self-knowledge come from? ¥ It comes from our interactions with other people. Charles Horton Cooley ¥ Looking-glass self o The idea that people learn about themselves by imagining how they appear to others. o 3 components: § You imagine how you appear to others. § You imagine how others will judge you. § You develop an emotional response as a result of imagining how others will judge you. Casey Venter 7 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 George Herbert Mead ¥ Most self-knowledge comes from feedback received from other people, whether particular people or what he called the generalised other (a combination of other people’s views). ¥ Introspection o The process by which a person examines the contents of his or her mind and mental states. Richard Nisbett and Timothy Wilson ¥ 1977 ¥ When people look inside, they simply make mistakes, guess, or give what they assume are plausible or socially desirable answers. ¥ Failure of introspection. ¥ Socialcomparison o Examining the difference between oneself and another person. o ‘Putting people first’ o Upward social comparisons § Comparing yourself to people better than you. § Discouraging o Downward social comparisons § Comparing yourself to people worse off than you. ¥ Types of motivation o Intrinsic motivation § Wanting to perform an activity for its own sake. § Leads to best goal outcomes. o Extrinsic motivation § Performing an activity because of something that results from it. o Overjustification effect § The tendency for intrinsic motivation to diminish for activities that have become associated with rewards. ¥ Self-perception o Opposite of the introspection theory. o Self-perception theory § Proposed in 1965 § People observe their own behaviour to infer what they are thinking and how they are feeling. ¥ Phenomenal self (working self-concept) o The image of self that is currently active in the person’s thoughts. Casey Venter 8 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 Three reasons for wanting self-knowledge ¥ Appraisal motive o The simple desire to learn the truth about oneself, whatever it is. o May motivate people to start out with tasks of medium difficulty because these offer the most information. o Favoured by the deliberate system. § Strives towards a more balanced, accurate appraisal of facts. ¥ Self-enhancement motive o The desire to learn favourable or flattering things about oneself. o Can exert a strong bias, driving people to dismiss or ignore criticism while exaggerating or inflating any signs of their good qualities. o Strongest motive. o Strong emotional appeal. o Favoured by the automatic system. § Automatic egotism ¥ Response by the a.s. that ‘everything good is me, and everything bad is not me.’ o Consequences: § Lack resilience in the face of personal difficulties. § Poor marks § Lack social skills § Become narcissistic ¥ Consistency motive o The desire to get feedback that confirms what the person already believes about himself or herself. o Also called the self-verification motive. o Second-strongest motive. o Cognitive appeal. ¥ Consequences of inflated views of self: o Poor performance. o Defensiveness. o Failing to study and prepare for upcoming challenges. Self and information processing ¥ Self-reference effect o The finding that information bearing on the self is processed more thoroughly and more deeply, and hence remembered better, than other information. o A word in connection with the self leads to better memory. ¥ Endowment effect o The finding that items gain in value to the person who owns them. Casey Venter 9 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 Can the self-concept change? ¥ Yes. ¥ A change in behaviour results in a change in self-concept. Self-esteem ¥ Refers to how favourably someone evaluates himself or herself. ¥ Conclusions about people with low self-esteem: o They don’t want to fail. o Their ideas about themselves are conflicted and uncertain, a pattern called ‘self-concept confusion’. o They focus on self-protection (trying to avoid loss of esteem) instead of self-enhancement. o They are more prone to emotional highs and lows, so they are more vulnerable to mood swings and other emotional overreactions. Solomon and Pyszczynski (1997) ¥ Terror Management Theory o Humans are biologically programmed for life and self- preservation and are terrified of the inevitability of death. o To provide meaning and combat anxiety, people tend to get world views on the creation of the earth, religious explanations on the purpose of existence and a sense of history. ¥ Self-esteem thus works as a protective shield against terror and anxiety. ¥ Gender differences o In adults and adolescents, males tend to have higher self-esteem than females. ¥ Racial differences o There tends to be a lower self-esteem in minority groups and victims of prejudice and discrimination. ¥ Benefits of high self-esteem o Provides confidence that one can do the right thing. o More willing to meet new people and speak up for oneself. o More likely to experiment with sex and drugs. o Good feelings, even in the face of failure. ¥ Drawbacks of high self-esteem o Narcissism § Excessive self-love and a selfish orientation. o Prejudice o Relates to a person’s relationships with others. Casey Venter 10 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 Reality and illusion ¥ Depression is linked to low self-esteem. Shelley Taylor and Jonathon Brown (1988) ¥ Positive illusions o Non-depressed people overestimate their good qualities, claiming that they are better than average. o Those who aren’t depressed overestimate their control over events. o Non-depressed people are unrealistically optimistic. ¥ How people fool themselves: o Self-deception strategies § Mental tricks people use to help them believe things that are false. o Self-serving bias § A pattern in which people claim credit for success but deny blame for failure. Mark Leary ¥ Sociometer theory o A measure of how desirable one would be to other people. Self-presentation ¥ Any behaviour that seeks to convey some image of self or some information about the self to other people. ¥ Self-presentation creeps into many behaviours that might not at first seem to have an interpersonal aspect. ¥ Dieting is also guided by self-presentation. ¥ Some people engage in risky behaviour to make a good impression. Study Unit 1.3: The self in control Making choices ¥ Two steps: o Moving from many to a few choices. o Careful consideration of the remaining choices. ¥ Influences on choice o Risk aversion § In decision making, the greater weight is given to possible losses rather than possible gains. o Temporal discounting Casey Venter 11 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 § In decision making, the greater weight is given to the present rather than the future. o Certainty effect § In decision making, the greater weight is given to a definite outcome rather than to probabilities. o Keeping options open § Some people prefer to postpone hard decisions and keep their options open for as long as possible. ¥ Error management theory o The idea that both men and women seek to minimise the costliest type of error, but that men’s and women’s goals, and so their worst errors, differ. Why people don’t choose ¥ Status quo bias o The preference to keep things the way they are rather than change. ¥ Omission bias o The tendency to take whatever course of action does not require you to do anything. o Also called the default option. Jack Brehm ¥ Reactance theory o The idea that people are distressed by loss of freedom or options and seek to reclaim or reassert them. ¥ Main consequences of reactance: o Makes forbidden things more attractive and more greatly desired. o Motivates you to take action to reclaim the lost option. o Makes you feel or act aggressively toward the person who has restricted your freedom. Casey Venter 12 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 Freedom to change Carol Dweck ¥ Entity theorists o Those who believe that traits are fixed, stable things (entities) and thus people should not be expected. o Prefer to do things that they’re good at, that success can gain them credit and admiration. o They dislike criticism or bad feedback; this is due to the fact that they think that bad traits are permanent. o More likely to choose the easiest task because they want to be guaranteed success. o When entering a new, challenging environment, they are often discouraged and overwhelmed, and their performance decreases. o Learned helplessness § A belief that one’s actions will not bring about desired outcomes, leading one to give up and quit trying. o Interpret other people’s behaviour as reflecting their traits. ¥ Incremental theorists o Those who believe that traits are subject to change and improvement. o More likely to enjoy learning and challenges. o They don’t mind criticism or initial failure as much because they expect to improve. o Prefer harder, more challenging tasks where they can learn. o When entering a new, challenging environment, they keep striving to improve and often show gains in performance. o When they fail, they simply try harder to improve. o Interpret other people’s behaviour as being caused by temporary states and external factors. Freedom of action ¥ Relative freedom is important to social behaviour. ¥ Belief in free will is valuable for society. o Helps cultural animals act in more prosocial ways, therefore helping the social system function better. Casey Venter 13 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 Ed Deci and Richard Ryan ¥ Self-determination theory o The theory that people need to feel at least some degree of autonomy and internal motivation. o Builds on intrinsic vs. extrinsic motivation. o People may be motivated to perform well out of a deep passion for excellence or because of a bribe. o They may be motivated to behave modestly out of an inner moral sense or because they fear that others are watching them. o They may be motivated to work hard because they love what they are doing or because they feel pressured to meet a looming deadline. o People who act on belief derive more satisfaction, have better confidence, and often perform better, persist longer and show greater creativity. § Contributes to vitality, self-esteem and general well-being. ¥ Panic button effect o A reduction in stress or suffering due to a belief that one has the option of escaping or controlling the situation, even if one doesn’t exercise it. Goals, plans, intentions ¥ Individuals may choose from a variety of goals offered by their society based on personal factors. ¥ Goal o An idea of some desired future state. ¥ Two major steps in goal pursuit: o Setting goals § Time to be open minded, evaluate whether it’s realistically feasible to reach the goal. o Pursuing goals § Focus on how to complete the goal, being optimistic rather that realistic is helpful. Goal setting Goal pursuit/striving Function Deciding what to do Deciding how to do it and doing it Attitude Open-minded Closed-minded Mental focus Feasibility and desirability Means and obstacles Core question Why should I do it? How do I do it? Style of thought Realistic thinking Optimistic thinking Casey Venter 14 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 ¥ Zeigarnik effect o A tendency to experience automatic, intrusive thoughts about a goal whose pursuit has been interrupted. o The a.s. reminds the individual of unmet goals. Hierarchy of goals ¥ We often have long term goals with interlinked short-term goals. o Without short-term goals, we are unlikely to meet our long-term goals. ¥ The a.s. can keep track of the goals and initiate behaviour while the d.s. takes care of issues along the way. ¥ Goal shielding o Occurs when the activation of a focal goal the person is working on inhibits the accessibility of alternative goals. ¥ Common mistakes in planning o Planning fallacy § The tendency for plans to be overly optimistic because the planner fails to allow for unexpected problems. o Individuals are more realistic in providing estimates for others. o Unrealistic optimism is more likely when the goal is far into the future. Self-regulation and habits ¥ Self-regulation o The self’s capacity to alter its own responses. o Self-control o It enables humans to live in a culture and adapt to new circumstances. o It is a factor in success in many areas of human life. ¥ Monitoring o Keeping track of behaviours or responses to be regulated. o TOTE § The self-regulation feedback loop. § Test ¥ Comparison of self against the standard. § Operate ¥ Exert conscious control to change. § Test ¥ Have I changed? § Exit ¥ If you have changed, you can proceed to exit the loop. § Borrowed from the cybernetic theory (World War II) o Key ingredient in self-regulation. § Presents the best opportunity for immediate improvement in self-regulation. o Dieting is a good example of the importance of monitoring. o Eating binges have been linked to failures in monitoring. o Factors that interfere with monitoring: § Emotional distress Casey Venter 15 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 § Distraction § Alcohol intoxication ¥ Capacity for change o The active phase of self-regulation. o Willpower ¥ Decision fatigue o A state of depleted willpower caused by making decisions, which can affect subsequent decisions by causing people to fail to think to think and choose carefully. ¥ Habits o An acquired behaviour that, if followed regularly, will become almost automatic. o Self-control is often needed to break habits. Irrationality and self-destruction ¥ Self-defeating behaviour o Any action by which people bring failure, suffering or misfortune on themselves. o Two main reasons: § People accept a negative outcome to gain the positive outcome that comes from the same behaviour. § Faulty knowledge and reliance on strategies that don’t work. o Capacity to delay gratification § The ability to make immediate sacrifices for later rewards. o Suicide seems to be the ultimate in self-destructive behaviour § Involves a trade-off between continued suffering and immediate cessation of those feelings. § More common in richer countries, at nicer times of the year. § Individuals who commit suicide were often highly self-aware. § Suicidal people tend to be more emotionally numb rather than distressed. § Those who commit suicide often focus on the immediate numbing misery rather than the possibility of a better future. They focus more on the present than the future. § Suicidal people feel that they are a burden to those around them. Casey Venter 16 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 § One theory cannot account for all suicides. Individuals have other reasons to commit suicide, such as the reasons held by suicide bombers. Study Unit 2: Social Cognition, Emotion and Social Influence Study Unit 2.1: Social Cognition What is social cognition? ¥ A movement in social psychology that began in the 1970s that focused on the thoughts about people and about social relationships. ¥ Cognitive miser o A term used to describe people’s reluctance to do much extra thinking. Automatic and deliberate thinking James Ridley Stroop ¥ Stroop effect o The finding that people have difficulty overriding the automatic tendency to read the word rather than name the ink colour. o 1935 ¥ Stroop test o A standard measure of effortful control over responses, requiring participants to identify the colour of a word (which may name a different colour). ¥ Automatic thinking o Relies on knowledge structures § Organised pockets of information that are stored in memory. o Not guided by intention. ¥ Deliberate thinking o Relies on conscious control. o Deliberate thinkers are better at knowing what they know. Schemas ¥ Knowledge structures that represent substantial information about a concept, its attributes and its relationships to other concepts. Scripts ¥ Knowledge structures that define situations and guide behaviour. Casey Venter 17 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 Priming ¥ Activating an idea in someone’s mind so that related ideas are more accessible. ¥ William James ¥ Research has often used priming as a technique to trigger automatic processes. Framing ¥ Whether messages stress potential gains (positively framed) or potential losses (negatively framed). ¥ Gain-framed appeal o Focuses on how doing something will add to your health. ¥ Loss-framed appeal o Focuses on how not doing something will subtract from your health. ¥ Makes less favourable activities more palatable. Thought suppression and ironic processes ¥ When people want to suppress a thought, their mind sets up two processes: o One process keeps a lookout for anything that might remind the person of the unwanted thought. § An automatic process that checks all incoming information for danger. o A deliberate process redirects attention away from the unpleasant thought. ¥ Counterregulation o The ‘what the heck’ effect that occurs when people indulge in a behaviour that they are trying to regulate after an initial regulation failure. ¥ The paradoxical effects of thought suppression have been linked to a variety of psychological disorders, especially anxiety disorders. Casey Venter 18 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 Attributions and explanations: Why did that happen? ¥ Attributions o The causal explanations people give for their own and others’ behaviours, and for events in general. Fritz Heider ¥ First to propose that differentiating between seeing behaviour caused by internal factors and seeing behaviour caused by external factors has shaped a generation of social psychologists. Explaining success and failure ¥ One early aim of attribution theory was to map out how people interpret success and failure. ¥ Internal, stable attributions o Involves ability. § Ability attribution is important because they appeal to relatively permanent aspects of the self. § Individualistic cultures emphasise ability. ¥ Internal, unstable attributions o Involves effort. § Effort is unstable because it can change. § Collectivist cultures emphasise effort. ¥ External, stable attributions o Point to the difficulty of the task. § Success means that the task was easy. § Failure means that the task was difficult. ¥ External, unstable attributions o Involves luck. § If you attribute someone’s success or failure to luck, there is very little credit or blame due to the person, nor is there any reason to expect the same result next time. Casey Venter 19 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 ¥ Self-serving bias o The tendency to take credit for success but deny blame for failure; or internal attributions for success, external attributions for failure. o Occurs for several reasons: § Interpreting events in that way helps people believe they have high ability and makes people feel good. o Self-serving bias is especially strong when people are explaining their successes and failures to others. o Important feature of self-presentation. § The self-presentational nature of the self-serving bias reflects that inner processes serve interpersonal ends. ¥ Actor/observer bias o The tendency for actors to make external attributions and observers to make internal attributions. o Can produce many misunderstandings and disagreements. o Fundamental attribution error (correspondence bias) § The tendency for observers to attribute other people’s behaviour to internal or dispositional causes and to downplay situational causes. § Several explanations: ¥ Behaviour is more noticeable than situational factors. ¥ People don’t gibe enough weight to situational causes even when they are made aware of them. ¥ People are cognitive misers; they often take quick and easy answers rather than thinking long and hard about things. § More common in individualistic cultures than collectivistic cultures. Bertram Malle ¥ Challenged the attribution theory. ¥ There was no consistent tendency for observers to make more dispositional attributions than actors. ¥ Says the actor/observer bias is wrong. Heuristics: Mental shortcuts ¥ Heuristics o Mental shortcuts that provide quick estimates about the likelihood of uncertain events. ¥ Representativeness heuristic o The tendency to judge the frequency or likelihood of an event by the extent to which it resembles the typical case. o E.g. Sipho is a 41-year-old who reads non-fiction books, listens to talk radio stations rather than music, and plays golf in his spare time. Which is more likely? Casey Venter 20 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 § (a) Sipho is a university professor. § (b) Sipho is a truck driver. § Most people would answer (a) because Sipho seems like a typical professor. People fail to consider that there are a lot more truck drivers than there are professors. Thus, in making that judgement, people rely on one kind of information (representativeness, which means how well Sipho resembles the category of professors) instead of another (how many people are in the category). o Related to the base rate fallacy. ¥ Availability heuristic o The tendency to judge the frequency or likelihood of an event by the ease with which relevant instances come to mind. o E.g. People overestimate the frequency of dramatic deaths and underestimate the frequency of less dramatic deaths. o Might help explain extrasensory perception (ESP). ¥ Simulation heuristic o The tendency to judge the frequency or likelihood of an event by the ease with which you can image (or mentally simulate) it. o E.g. Mr Crane and Mr Tees were scheduled to leave the airport on different flights, at the same time. They travelled from town in the same taxi, were caught in a traffic jam, and arrived at the airport 30 minutes after the scheduled departure time of their flights. Mr Crane is told that his flight left on time. Mr Tees is told that his flight was delayed and just left 5 minutes ago. Who is more upset, Mr Crane or Mr Tees? § Most people would think that Mr Tees would be more upset than Mr Crane. The reason is that it would be easier for people to imagine how Mr Tees could have made his flight (if only the plane had waited a little longer, if only the traffic jam had cleared a few minutes earlier, etc.). § Mr Crane would’ve missed his flight even if all of those things had happened. ¥ Anchoring and adjustment heuristic o The tendency to judge frequency or likelihood of an event by using a starting point (called an anchor) and then making adjustments up or down. o E.g. If one party in a negotiation starts by suggesting a price or condition, then the other party is likely to base its counter offer on this anchor. Errors and biases ¥ Confirmation bias o The tendency to notice and search for information that confirms one’s beliefs and to ignore information that disconfirms one’s beliefs. Casey Venter 21 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 Francis Bacon ¥ “It is the peculiar and perpetual error of the human understanding to be more moved and excited by affirmatives than by negatives” Study Unit 2.2: Emotion and Affect What is emotion/affect? ¥ Emotion o A conscious evaluative reaction that is clearly linked to some event. ¥ Affect o The automatic response that something is good (positive affect) or bad (negative affect). ¥ Mood o A feeling state that is not clearly linked to some event. ¥ Conscious emotion o A powerful and clearly unified feeling state, such as anger or joy. ¥ Automatic affect o A quick response of liking or disliking toward something. James-Lange theory of emotion ¥ The theory that the bodily processes of emotion come first, and the mind’s perception of these bodily reactions then creates the subjective feeling of emotion. ¥ Facial feedback hypothesis o The idea that feedback from the face muscles evokes or magnifies emotions. ¥ Researchers tried for many years to prove this theory, but they were generally unsuccessful. Schachter-Singer theory of emotion ¥ The idea that emotion has two components: o A bodily state of arousal. § It determines that there’s going to be an emotion, and how strong it’ll be. o A cognitive label that specifies the emotion. § It determines what emotion will be felt. Some important emotions ¥ Happiness o Feeling good right now. o Affect balance Casey Venter 22 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 § The frequency of positive emotions minus the frequency of negative emotions. o Life satisfaction § An evaluation of how your life is generally and how it compares to some standard. o Hedonic treadmill § A theory proposing that people stay at about the same level of happiness regardless of what happens to them. o Emodiversity § The degree to which a person experiences the variety and relative abundance of human emotions. ¥ Anger o An emotional response to a real or imagined threat or provocation. o Testosterone contributes to anger. o Often linked to aggression. o Widely recognised as a problem. o Dealing with it § Don’t show it. ¥ Can be detrimental. § Vent one’s anger. ¥ Catharsis theory o The idea that expressing negative emotions produces a healthy release of those emotions and is therefore good for the psyche. ¥ Worsens interpersonal conflicts. ¥ Linked to higher risk of heart disease. ¥ Intense physical exercise. § Try and get rid of one’s anger. ¥ Relax and count to 10 before responding. ¥ Guilt and shame o Guilt § An unpleasant moral emotion associated with a specific instance in which one has acted badly or wrongly. § Associated with acts that could damage a relationship that you care about. § “I did a bad thing.” § Usually constructive. § Interpersonal emotion. § More linked to relationships than other emotions. o Shame § A moral emotion that, like guilt, involves feeling bad but, unlike guilt, spreads to the whole person. § “I am a bad person.” § Usually destructive. o Effects of guilt § Guilt motivates people to do good acts, such as apologising. § Apologies can help repair damage to relationships because they: ¥ Convey the implicit agreement that the act was wrong. Casey Venter 23 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 ¥ Suggest that the person will try not to do it again. ¥ Counteract any implication that the bad action meant that the person doesn’t care about the relationship. o Survivor guilt § An unpleasant emotion associated with living through an experience during which other people have died. § Taken from World War II. ¥ Forgiveness o A process that consists of a change in emotion and attitude toward an offender. o Reconciliation or the restoration of a relationship can be viewed as an aspect of forgiveness. o Benefits: § It fosters psychological healing through positive changes in affect. § It aids physical and mental health. § It restores a victim’s sense of personal power. § It helps to bring about reconciliation between the offended and the offender. § It encourages hope for the resolution of real-world intergroup conflicts. ¥ Disgust o A strong negative feeling of repugnance and revulsion. o It is especially important among humans because our constitution is delicate compared to most other animals, and there are many things we shouldn’t eat. o Women seem to have stronger disgust reactions than men. o Can be considered part of a ‘behavioural immune system’ that supports health. Why do we have emotions? ¥ They promote belongingness. ¥ They communicate social information. ¥ Traditionally it has been assumed that emotion causes behaviour. ¥ Emotions guide thinking and learning. o Affect-as-information hypothesis § The idea that people judge something as good or bad by asking themselves ‘How do I feel about it?’. ¥ Emotions that are anticipated, guides decisions and choices. o Affective forecasting § The ability to predict one’s emotional reactions to future events. ¥ They help and hurt decision-making. o Risk-as-feelings hypothesis § The idea that people rely on emotional processes to evaluate risk, with the result that their judgements may be biased by emotional factors. ¥ Positive emotions counteract negative emotions. Casey Venter 24 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 o Broaden-and-build theory § The proposition that positive emotions expand an individual’s attention and mindset and promote increasing one’s resources. Group differences in emotion ¥ Most emotions may be quite similar across cultural boundaries. Paul Ekman ¥ Six basic emotions that can be seen in facial expressions: o Anger o Surprise o Disgust o Happiness (or joy) o Fear o sadness Arousal, attention and performance ¥ The relationship between arousal and performance is U-SHAPED. o Increasing arousal first makes for better performance, then for worse. Robert Yerkes and John Dodson ¥ 1908 ¥ Yerkes-Dodson law o The proposition that some arousal is better than none, but too much can hurt performance. J.A. Easterbrook ¥ One major effect of arousal is to narrow attention. ¥ Explains both slopes of the U-shaped curve of Yerkes-Dodson law. ¥ The effects of stress on thinking go along with this theory. o Under stress, people focus more narrowly on the task at hand, so up to a certain point, stress makes people perform better, after that point, it makes people Casey Venter 25 ignore relevant information. Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 Emotional Intelligence (EI or EQ) ¥ Definition o The ability to perceive, access and generate, understand and reflectively regulate emotions. ¥ Has 4 parts: 1. Perceiving emotions 2. Facilitating thought ¥ The ability to recognise how you and ¥ The ability to generate an emotion those around you are feeling. and then to reason with this emotion. ¥ Also involves perceiving emotions in objects, art, stories, music and other 4. Managing emotions stimuli. ¥ The ability to be open to feelings, 3. Understanding emotions and to modulate them in oneself ¥ The ability to understand complex emotions and how emotions can transition from one stage to another. ¥ Emotional intelligence seems especially important in the business world. ¥ Emotional intelligence is positively related to job performance in both Western and Eastern cultures, to leadership skills, and to mental and physical health. ¥ People with high emotional intelligence have fewer alcohol-related problems than other people, possibly because they know how to manage their emotions without getting drunk. ¥ Emotional intelligence is positively related to romantic relationship satisfaction, academic success and constructive conflict management in leaders. Lubbe ¥ Found that an emotional intelligence programme for teachers in Free State schools was associated with improved emotional maturity. ¥ This allowed the teachers to manage their emotions effectively, handle conflicts in the classroom and teach creatively and effectively. Pillay, Viviers and Mayer ¥ Reported positive relationships between emotional intelligence and transformational leadership, in terms of their models of conduct and inspiring their followers. ¥ People who’ve suffered brain damage provide extreme examples of diminished emotional intelligence with high general intelligence. Casey Venter 26 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 Antonio Damasio (1994) ¥ Neuroscientist. ¥ Described Elliot, who had a brain tumour removed. o “I never saw a tinge of emotion in my many hours of conversation with him, no sadness, no impatience, no frustration.” ¥ Elliot was shown disturbing pictures of injured people, destroyed communities and natural disasters, yet he showed, and realised that he felt, no emotion. ¥ He knew that he couldn’t feel nor take into consideration others’ feelings and adjusted his response accordingly. ¥ Recent research suggests that there’s a dark side to emotional intelligence. ¥ There is a dark triad of personality. o Consisting of: § Narcissism ¥ Selfish individuals with inflated egos. § Psychopathy ¥ Show a pervasive disregard for, and violation of, the rights of others. § Machiavellianism o People with these dark personality traits tend to be high in emotional intelligence, but they use their emotional intelligence to manipulate others. o This dark triad of personality is also related to aggression. Niccolo Machiavelli ¥ Italian philosopher and writer. ¥ Where the term ‘Machiavellianism’ comes from. ¥ He advocated using any means necessary to gain raw political power, including aggression and violence. Affect regulation ¥ One reason that emotional intelligence is beneficial is that it can help people control and regulate their feelings. ¥ When emotions run out of control, they can wreak havoc on inner and interpersonal processes. ¥ People who’re poor at controlling their own emotional reactions are more likely to fall victim to mental illnesses that are characterised by severe emotional problems. ¥ Emotion control is a special case of self-regulation, and generally people have to rely on indirect strategies. o They often try to control emotions but encounter an added difficulty. § For the most part, emotions cannot be directly controlled. § E.g. If you are feeling bad, you can’t just decide to be happy and succeed by a simple act of will. Casey Venter 27 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 How to cheer up ¥ Simply to do things that produce good feelings. o Eating something tasty. o Exercising. o Listening to music. o Shopping (especially buying oneself a gift). ¥ Simply do something to take one’s mind off the problem. o Overlaps with the abovementioned strategy. o Watching TV. o Changing one’s location. o Avoiding the source of the problem. o Taking a shower. ¥ Note that none of these strategies addresses the original problem or source of bad feelings, but instead, people seek to create a positive, pleasant state to replace the unpleasant one. ¥ For many people, raising or lowering their arousal is a promising strategy for affect regulation. o Remember, physical arousal is an important part of emotion. o Arousal control strategies include: § To increase arousal: ¥ Exercising. o It first increases arousal, but then decreases it. ¥ Drinking coffee or other caffeine product. § To decrease arousal: ¥ Drinking alcohol. ¥ Taking a nap. ¥ Using other relaxation techniques. ¥ Seeking social support is another common strategy for controlling emotion. o This fits the theme of putting people first. § Even to deal with their own problem emotions, people turn to other people. o This doesn’t solve the original problem that made you feel bad, but it does help you stop feeling bad. ¥ A very different set of affect regulation strategies is based on trying to deal directly with the problem in some way. o Some people try to reframe the problem by putting it into perspective or try to see a conflict from the other person’s side. o Some people try to use humour to make light of the problem and cheer themselves up. o Some people try to vent their feelings by punching a pillow, screaming or crying. § Venting may feel good, but it usually just makes things worse. ¥ Religious activities, such as praying, has been found to be an effective way to reduce angry feelings and aggressive behaviours. Best strategies ¥ Exercise. o If you’re feeling sad or depressed, exercise can energise you and lift your mood. o However, exercising to get rid of anger might backfire because it keeps arousal levels high rather than reducing them. ¥ Casey Venter Listening to music. 28 ¥ Seeking social support. Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 Affect regulation goals ¥ People often seek to cultivate neutral moods before social interactions. o People get ready for social interaction with a new partner by trying to get out of either a good or bad mood and into a neutral state. ¥ People often seek to cultivate anger. o People prefer to listen to angry music rather than other types of music when they’re expecting a social interaction that requires confrontation or assertion. ¥ People seek out emotions partly on the basis of what will be useful and helpful in their social interactions. ¥ Many strategies of emotion control are simply aimed at the goal of getting out of a bad mood or into a good one. Gender differences ¥ General research shows that men and women are more similar than they are different. ¥ One general theory: o When women feel depressed, they frequently respond with rumination, as in thinking about the problem, whereas men more commonly try to distract themselves with other thoughts or activities. § This may contribute to the higher rate of depression among women because thinking about why you’re depressed is more likely to prolong the bad feelings than shifting your attention onto something more cheerful, such as a sports event or hobby. ¥ Another difference can be found in what people consume. o Women are more likely than men to turn to food when they feel bad. o In contrast, men turn to alcohol and drugs to cope with the same feelings. ¥ Other gender differences exist in mood regulation strategies. o When seeking to feel better, men are more likely than women to use humour to make light of the problem. o Men are also more prone to report that sexual activity is a good way to improve their emotional state. o Women are more likely to go shopping or to call someone to talk about the issue. Putting the cultural animal in perspective ¥ In humans, emotion is tied to meaning. Casey Venter 29 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 Study Unit 2.3: Attitudes, beliefs and consistency What are attitudes and why do people have them? ¥ Attitudes can be important in that they predict behaviours. ¥ Attitudes are necessary and adaptive for humans. o They help us adjust to new situations and to seek out those things in our environment that reward us and to avoid those things that punish us. Attitudes versus beliefs ¥ Beliefs o Pieces of information (facts or opinions) about an object, person or issue. o For explaining. ¥ Attitudes o Global evaluations toward some issue or objects. o For choosing. ¥ Attitudes and beliefs both serve interpersonal functions. o People need to influence how others choose (E.g. Advertising or parents), and people also need to explain things to others (E.g. Religion). Dual attitudes ¥ Different evaluations of the same attitude object held by the same person. o Perhaps one deliberate, the other automatic. ¥ Automatic attitudes o Very fast evaluative, ‘gut-level’ responses that people don’t think a great deal about. ¥ Deliberate attitudes o Reflective responses that people think more carefully about. Why people have attitudes ¥ Attitudes are mainly used to sort things into ‘good’ and ‘bad’ categories. John Bargh ¥ “We have yet to find something the mind regards with complete impartiality, without at least a mild judgement of liking or disliking.” ¥ People have attitudes about everything. ¥ Attitudes are helpful in making choices. ¥ Research has shown that possessing an attitude increases the ease, speed and quality of decision making. Casey Venter 30 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 How attitudes are formed ¥ Mere exposure effect o The tendency for people to come to like things simply because they see or encounter them repeatedly. o The advertising industry is built on this principle. o The mere exposure effect can also influence attitudes towards yourself. o However, if you initially dislike something, being exposed to it repeatedly will not make you like it more. Robert Zajonc (1968) ¥ He proposed that ‘mere repeated exposure of the individual to a stimulus is a sufficient condition for the enhancement of his attitude toward it’. ¥ Simply or just seeing something over and over again and nothing else (no contact, no closer inspection like touching or smelling) is enough to make you like it. ¥ Embodied attitudes o Bodily movements shape people’s attitudes. Charles Darwin ¥ Thought attitudes were evident in the way we move and in our body language, such as leaning toward or away from something. ¥ Classical conditioning o A type of learning in which, through repeated pairings, a neutral stimulus starts to evoke a conditioned response. o Unconditioned stimulus § A stimulus that naturally evokes a particular response. o Unconditioned response § A naturally occurring response. o Conditioned stimulus § A neutral stimulus that, through repeated pairings with an unconditioned stimulus, comes to evoke a conditioned response. o Conditioned response § A response that, through repeated pairings, is evoked by a formerly neutral stimulus. Ivan Pavlov ¥ Developed the theory of classical conditioning and famously demonstrated it in his experiments with dogs. ¥ Meat powder (unconditioned stimulus) makes the dog’s mouth water (unconditioned response). ¥ The first time a researcher rings a bell (neutral stimulus), the dog’s mouth doesn’t water. However, if the researcher rings the bell every time the dog gets meat powder (when the unconditioned stimulus is paired with the neutral stimulus), the dog begins to expect that every time it hears the bell it’ll be fed. Casey Venter 31 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 ¥ The bell then becomes a conditioned stimulus. ¥ Eventually, the sound of the bell alone will make the dog’s mouth water (conditioned response), even if there’s no food around. o Classical conditioning may help explain the development of prejudice against social groups that’re frequently associated with negative information from the media, such as Muslims being associated with terrorism in the popular press. ¥ Operant conditioning o Also instrumental conditioning. o A type of learning in which people are more likely to repeat behaviours that have been rewarded and less likely to repeat behaviours that have been punished. Edward Thorndike and B.F. Skinner ¥ Social learning o Also observational learning, imitation, vicarious learning. o A type of learning in which people are more likely to imitate behaviours if they’ve seen others rewarded for performing them, and less likely to imitate behaviours if they’ve seen others punished for performing them. Albert Bandura ¥ He showed that young children imitated specific aggressive acts they observed in aggressive models, for example, hitting a ‘Bobo’ doll (a large inflatable toy) that they had seen an actor hit. ¥ He developed the concept of vicarious learning of aggression by showing that children were especially likely to imitate other people who had been rewarded for behaving aggressively. ¥ He argued that this imitation was the key to social learning. ¥ The idea is that people don’t just imitate the specific social behaviours they see, but they make cognitive or mental deductions based on their observations. ¥ Polarisation o Research suggests that as people reflect on their attitudes they become more extreme. § This effect is known as attitude polarisation. o This has to do with the way that the nerves operate and function in our brains. o People who hold strong attitudes on certain issues are likely to evaluate relevant evidence in a biased manner. o The attitude polarisation effect is especially likely to occur in people who have strong initial attitudes. o Attitude polarisation also occurs sometimes because people are reluctant to admit they are wrong. o People are more accepting of evidence presented by ingroup members (members of one’s own group) than by outgroup members (members of a different group). o This reflects another theme, putting people first. Casey Venter 32 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 Consistency of attitudes ¥ The drive for consistency between different thoughts (cognitions) and between thoughts and behaviour, is a central component for several theories in social psychology. ¥ If any form of inconsistency or dissonance is experienced within a person, people feel some inner tension or lack of harmony. ¥ People experience dissonance especially when their beliefs and behaviours are inconsistent with each other. ¥ Most consistency theories have 3 things in common: o They specify conditions that’re required for consistency and inconsistency of cognitions, behaviours and beliefs. o They assume that inconsistency is unpleasant and that it therefore motivates people to restore consistency. o They specify the conditions that’re needed to restore consistency. Cognitive dissonance and attitude change ¥ Cognitive dissonance o The uncomfortable feeling people experience when they have two thoughts or cognitions that conflict with one another. ¥ Cognitive dissonance theory o States that inconsistencies produce psychological discomfort, leading people to rationalise their behaviour or change their attitudes. o People want to maintain consistency; so when they catch themselves being inconsistent they feel bad or uneasy inside. § People rationalise or justify their behaviour so as to bring their attitudes into line with their actions or vice versa. Justifying effort ¥ Effort justification o The finding that when people suffer or work hard or make sacrifices, they’ll try to convince themselves that it’s worthwhile. o If we have to expend an effort (and possibly even suffer) to join a group, the more we will value, like, be dedicated to and appreciate this closely knit group. Justifying choices ¥ If you perform an action but don’t have any choice, you don’t have to rationalise or justify it. ¥ Post-decision dissonance o Cognitive dissonance experienced after making a difficult choice, typically reduced by increasing the attractiveness of the chosen alternative and decreasing the attractiveness of rejected alternatives. Casey Venter 33 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 Advances in dissonance theory ¥ Another step forward came when researches began to ask themselves what dissonance felt like. o Dissonance resembles an emotional reaction. o Only people who felt discomfort and attributed it to their inconsistent behaviour, were driven to rationalise what they’d done. ¥ Another advancement in dissonance theory linked the reaction to the interpersonal sphere. o People may have some desire to be consistent in the privacy of their minds, but they have a much stronger desire to be seen by other people as consistent. o This interpersonal dimension brings up the importance of self- presentation. ¥ Consistency may be yet another case where inner processes serve interpersonal relations. o On the road to social acceptance, people learn that other people expect them to be consistent and may reject them if they’re inconsistent. Dissonance theory and the media ¥ Selective exposure o Refers to the tendency of individuals to select information that supports their pre-existing views and to avoid information that contradicts their pre-existing views. o Filter bubbles § Are algorithms used on the internet to selectively guess what information a user would like to see based on information available about that use (E.g. Previous web pages viewed, click behaviour). ¥ Education causes dissonance in students’ minds and produces motivation for people to change their thinking and eventually their attitudes. Do attitudes really predict behaviour? ¥ Attacking attitudes o Once you set aside the assumption that people are generally consistent, it isn’t hard to find evidence that attitudes can differ from behaviour. o The A-B problem is the problem of inconsistency between attitudes (A) and behaviour (B). Alan Wicker ¥ Argued that attitudes were a trivial, peripheral phenomenon. ¥ He concluded that attitudes didn’t cause behaviour or even predict it very well. ¥ He suggested that social psychology abandon the concept of attitude, and that researchers should study more important things instead. Casey Venter 34 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 ¥ Defending attitudes o Wicker’s 1969 critique provoked a crisis in the field. o Researchers looked for ways to defend themselves, trying to show how attitudes actually might have a closer link to behaviour. General attitudes and specific behaviours ¥ The gap between general attitudes and specific behaviours was too big. ¥ Researchers might ask what someone’s attitude was toward helping people and then measure whether the person was willing to donate blood. o The problem is that someone might be in favour of helping people generally but might be afraid of needles. Behaviour aggregation ¥ Combining many different behaviours on different occasions. ¥ A person’s attitude towards helping others might do better if we didn’t measure behaviour by a single test, such as giving blood. ¥ Instead, we could add up whether the person gives blood, plus whether the person donates money to charity, plus whether the person volunteers to work with homeless people, plus whether the person stops to help a disabled person cross the street, and so on. ¥ A person with a more positive attitude toward helping others will perform more of these behaviours. Broad attitude in context ¥ General attitudes can help cause behaviour, but only if they’re prominent in the person’s conscious mind and influence how the person thinks about the choices he or she faces. ¥ When asked to give blood, the person might say ‘no’ despite having a favourable attitude toward helping others, because the person might not think of the question in terms of helping others. ¥ The broad attitude can influence specific behaviour, but only if it has a chance to shape how the person interprets and understands the specifics of the here-and-now situation. Attitude accessibility ¥ Accessibility refers to how easily the attitude comes to mind. ¥ Highly accessible attitudes can be quite influential because they come to mind very easily. ¥ An attitude that doesn’t come to mind easily will have little opportunity to influence thought, emotion and behaviour. ¥ Attitudes that’re certain, stable, consistent, accessible and based on direct experience are especially effective in predicting behaviour. Casey Venter 35 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 Behavioural intentions ¥ Consider the role of behavioural intentions on the link between attitudes and behaviours. ¥ Behavioural intentions are a key component of the theory of planned behaviour. ¥ Behavioural intentions o An individual’s plans to perform the behaviour in question. o If a person intends to do a behaviour, then it’s likely that he or she will actually do it. o A person’s behavioural intentions aren’t only determined by the person’s attitude but also by subjective norms and perceived behavioural control. ¥ Subjective norms o An individual’s perceptions about whether significant others think he or she should or shouldn’t perform the behaviour in question. ¥ Perceived behavioural control o An individual’s beliefs about whether he or she can actually perform the behaviour in question. Believing versus doubting ¥ Doubting/disbelieving is separate from understanding, but believing immediately automatically accompanies understanding. ¥ Believing and disbelieving aren’t the same. o It is very difficult to take in information while withholding all judgement about whether it’s correct. o The first impulse is to believe what you hear or read. o The duplex mind may be implicated here. § The a.s. automatically believes the information it’s given. § The d.s. can override this belief by deciding that it’s false. ¥ Distraction prevents people from taking the second step of thinking something like, ‘Wait a minute, this can’t be right!’ ¥ When you understand something, believing it is automatic, but doubting and questioning it may require controlled, conscious thought. Casey Venter 36 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 Belief perseverance ¥ The finding that once beliefs form, they’re resistant to change, even if the information on which they’re based is discredited. ¥ We tend to stubbornly persevere in our beliefs and determinedly resist any dissonance pressures. ¥ If you’re open-minded, explaining the opposite theory reduces or eliminates belief perseverance. Belief and coping ¥ Coping o How people attempt to deal with stressful traumas and go back to functioning effectively in life. ¥ Assumptive worlds o The view that people live in social worlds based on certain beliefs (assumptions) about reality. o 3 main types of assumptions help people live healthy and happy lives, but any of these can be shattered when having become a victim of a crime: § The world is benevolent ¥ Basically, people are nice, life is safe, and no one can count on good things happening most of the time. § The world is fair and just ¥ The world is fair, so people generally get what they deserve and deserve what they get. If you follow the rules and treat others with fairness and kindness, you can expect to be treated that way yourself. § I am a good person ¥ I am someone of value and therefore I deserve good things to happen to me. ¥ Blaming oneself is often a good way to cope. o It can help people achieve a sense of control. o If people believe that their own foolish actions caused their misfortunes, it helps them feel that they can avoid future misfortunes by not repeating those mistakes. o People who can’t explain their misfortunes to themselves are more likely to think that something bad could happen to them again, regardless of what they do. They feel much more vulnerable and have a hard time getting over what happened. ¥ Not all self-blame is good, of course. o There is an important distinction between blaming oneself for one’s actions versus blaming oneself for being a bad person. Shelley Taylor ¥ Theory of cognitive coping. o The idea that beliefs play a central role in helping people cope with and recover from misfortunes. ¥ Downward comparison Casey Venter o The act of comparing oneself to people who are worse off. 37 o It allows people to feel better about themselves. Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 ¥ Upward comparison o The act of comparing oneself to people who are better off. ¥ Other beliefs in cognitive coping relate to self-esteem and control. o Victims of trauma and misfortune often need to find some way to restore their belief that they’re good people and that they can exert control over what happens to them. ¥ Another helpful type of belief is that all things have some useful or higher purpose. Religious belief ¥ The appeal of religion throughout history has been partly its ability to explain or make meaning of the world, especially those things that can’t be explained by science. ¥ Religious beliefs can help people cope with stress. ¥ People who rely on religion to help them cope are also less likely to fall back on ineffective coping strategies, such as drinking alcohol. ¥ At a cognitive level, people may have trouble dealing with inconsistent belief systems or resolving existential questions. ¥ At an emotional level, some religious doctrines and practices can bring forth feelings of fear and guilt. ¥ Religion offers great benefits to many believers, but maintaining faith isn’t always easy. Irrational belief ¥ People believe many unfounded things, even though they have no rational basis for these beliefs. o These include paranormal beliefs about UFOs, spirits of the departed or witches. ¥ People also have beliefs that’re logically and statistically flawed, such as the belief that you can influence the outcome of a sports match that you’re watching on TV, or the belief that random events even out in the short run. ¥ When it comes to irrational beliefs, the disadvantages probably outweigh the advantages. o People who hold irrational beliefs are more anxious, cope less well with terminal illnesses, are more likely to become depressed over time and have lower levels of self-esteem. o People who think they’re lucky are more likely to gamble and may therefore lose their money trying to beat long odds or to regain large amounts of money that they’ve already lost. Study Unit 2.4: Social influence and persuasion Two types of social influence ¥ Normative influence o Going along with the crowd in order to be liked and accepted. o Humans have a fundamental need to belong to social groups. o There is a long road to acceptance within a group, and to live together, people usually need to agree on a set of common beliefs, attitudes, Casey Venter 38 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 values and behaviours that reduce ingroup threats and act for the common good. § Therefore, people learn to conform to their group’s rules. Solomon Asch ¥ Conformity experiment ¥ He found that participants went along with the group even when the group made obvious errors. ¥ To be accepted by the group was more important to participants than to be correct. ¥ He found that conformity increases as group size increases up to a point, then it levels off. ¥ People feel considerable pressure to conform to a group of everyone agrees, but if group members disagree about even the smallest point, then people become willing to stand up for what they believe. o When people deviate from group norms, they may pay a heavy price, including social rejection. ¥ Informational influence o Going along with the crowd because you think the crowd knows more than you do. o Autokinetic effect § An illusion caused by very slight movements of the eye, that a stationary point of light in a dark room is moving o Group norms § The beliefs or behaviours that a group of people accepts as normal. o Goes along with the people first theme. Muzafer Sherif ¥ He used the autokinetic effect to study the formation of group norms. ¥ He asked individual participants in a dark room to estimate how far the light moved. o Their individual estimates ranged from about 2.5 to 20.3 cm. o They repeated this process on subsequent days, but in the presence of two other participants. o As participants heard the estimates provided by others, their individual answers became closer or more similar to each other. ¥ These social norms aren’t temporary either, they can last at least one year. ¥ These social norms can also be passed on from one person to another. o People ended up conforming to the (false) norms set by someone long gone. o Two types of situations increase how likely you are to be affected by informational influence: § Ambiguous situations, in which people don’t know how to behave. Casey Venter 39 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|41290601 § Crisis situations, in which people don’t have time to think for themselves. ¥ Pluralistic ignorance o Looking to others for cues about how to behave, while they’re looking to you. o Collective misinterpretation. ¥ Informational social influence helps produce private acceptance. o A genuine inner belief that others are right. ¥ Normative social influences may bring about mere public compliance. o Outwardly going along with the group but maintaining private, inner belief that the group is probably wrong. Techniques of social influence ¥ Techniques based on commitment and consistency: Foot-in-the-door technique ¥ An influence technique based on commitment, in which one starts with a small request in order to gain eventual compliance with a larger request. ¥ Complying with small requests seems like no big deal, but it increases the likelihood of complying with larger requests later on. ¥ It’s easier to comply the second time than the first time. ¥ If requests get bigger slowly and gradually, the person may be more willing to comply with each one than if you had initially started with a large request. Low-ball technique ¥ An influence technique based on commitment, in which one first gets a person to comply with a seemingly low-cost request and only later reveals hidden additional costs. ¥ This technique is considered unscrupulous (not honest or fair). Bait-and-switch technique ¥ An influence technique based on commitment, in which one draws people in with an attractive offer that’s unavailable and then switches them to a less attractive offer that is available. ¥ It gets people to make a psychological commitment, and then relies on consistency pressures to keep them loyal to this commitment even when the influencer changes the terms. Labelling technique ¥ An influence technique based on consistency, in which one assigns a label to an individual and then requests a favour that’s consistent with the label. ¥ This technique is related to the self-fulfilling prophecy. o People tend to live up to the positive label’s others give them. ¥ Research has shown that this technique can persuade both children and adults. ¥ This technique also uses the importance of self-concepts. Casey Venter 40 Downloaded by Mihlali Luhabe ([email protected])