SACE Stage 2 Psychology Syllabus Glossary 2024 PDF

**2024: SACE STAGE 2 PSYCHOLOGY SYLLABUS GLOSSARY** **By Benjamin Walkuski** *Note: This glossary does not include the science as a human endeavour terms---application and development, influence, and communication and collaboration.* **TOPIC 1 --- SCIENCE ENQUIRY SKILLS:** **Biopsychosocial Mode...

**2024: SACE STAGE 2 PSYCHOLOGY SYLLABUS GLOSSARY** **By Benjamin Walkuski** *Note: This glossary does not include the science as a human endeavour terms---application and development, influence, and communication and collaboration.* **TOPIC 1 --- SCIENCE ENQUIRY SKILLS:** **Biopsychosocial Model:** The idea that a person's metal health is comprised intersecting biological, social, and psychological factors.  *NOTE: The biopsychosocial model does encompass physical health as well as mental health. However, SACE Stage 2 Psychology students will not be asked questions regarding physical health.* **Biological Factors:** A person's physiological pathology; examples include hormones, neurotransmitters, physical health, and body weight. **Psychological Factors:** A person's thoughts, emotions, and behaviours; I.E: psychological distress, fear, avoidance, and maladaptive coping mechanisms. **Social Factors:** A persons socio-economic, socio-environmental, and cultural experience; examples could include work politics, family circumstances, and hierarchies of social power. **Experimental Design (W/Pros and Cons):** The researcher manipulates the independent variable to observe the changes it causes to the dependent variable. Experimental designs always have a control group and random allocation: [Control group:] A group that is not subject to the independent variable. This establishes a baseline to compare the effects of the independent variable to. [Random allocation:] Also known as random assignment. The mixed placement of participants into groups; each participant an equal chance to be placed into each group. Additionally, experimental designs can either employ within group designs or between group designs. [Between group designs:] Participants are split into groups that each only try one condition (differences *between* the independent variable experienced by the groups). - Between group designs are cheaper and more time efficient than within group designs [Within group designs:] Participants tries each condition being tested (all variations *within* independent variable are experienced by the participants). - Within group designs are more accurate and reliable than between group designs Experimental designs may also employ blind procedures or double-blind procedures: [Blind Procedure:] Participants are unaware of the conditions they are being subject too, but the researcher is aware. - Done to minimise the placebo effect---see placebo effect. [Double-Blind Procedure:] Both participants and the experimenter are unaware of the conditions that the participants are subjected too. - Done to minimise the placebo effect and researcher bias. [Pros of experimental designs:] - Can identify a causal link between the independent and dependent variables. - Experiments can be replicated due to standardised procedure. - Extraneous variables can be controlled. [Cons of experimental designs] - Results from the sample may not apply to the real world. - Many variables cannot be controlled. - The independent variable being tested may cause ethical issues by creating frustration, anxiety, or harm to participants. **Observational Design (W/Pros and Cons):** The researcher collects data on pre-existing groups that cannot be manipulated, such as age, or gender. This can be conducted under field or controlled conditions. Types of observational designs include: [Naturalistic observation:] Involves the observing and recording of a chosen variable or variables without interference or manipulation. [Correlational studies:] When the researcher investigates relationships between two variables without controlling or manipulating them. This allows the researcher to correlate the relationship between the variables (does not establish relationship). The Case for Correlational Studies \| by Lucia B. \| The Startup \| Medium [Longitudinal Studies:] When the research follows a person, or group of people, over a period to measure changes with respect to time. [Cross-sectional studies:] Research designs where the independent variable is age. These designs are observational as a causal relationship cannot be determined. Unlike longitudinal studies the participants are of various ages and not followed over a long period of time. - More cost effective and time efficient than longitudinal studies, at the cost of introducing confounding/extraneous variables [Sequential studies:] Studies that are a combination of cross-sectional and longitudinal studies. In this study participants of varying ages are followed over a period. [Pros of observational designs:] - Makes unethical or impractical research possible. - Can be carried out in a natural setting where some behaviours are exclusively observed. - Correlation allows relationships to be generalised to the true population. [Cons of observational designs:] - Cannot infer cause and effect. - Naturalistic observations cannot be repeated. - Possibility of observer bias - Lack of random assignment of participants may mean that the sample cannot be generalised to true-value. **Qualitative Design:** When researchers collect data that is rich in language and words, extracted from transcripts, extended response questions, and other texts. The researcher has an explicit role of interpreting this data to gain findings, via content analysis. [Content analysis: ] 1. The text is divided into themes via coding---identifying the core messages in the text. 2. These themes are placed into a frequency table. 3. The number of times each theme is expressed in the text is tallied in the table. 4. The frequency table includes quotes from the text. 5. The frequency table is used to generate pie charts for analysis of the data. [Focus Groups (W/Pros and Cons): ] 1. Groups of 6-12 people are asked by the facilitator open ended questions to discuss as a group. 2. A scribe (with consent) records their discussion. 3. The transcript is then processed through content analysis to gain usable data. [Pros of focus groups:] - Can obtain information from illiterate participants. - Participants can share ideas to gain a greater pool of expertise. - Data is more detailed than quantitative data. [Cons of focus groups: ] - Group consensus may repress other from expressing minority views through conformity. - A few people may dominate the discussion, causing other views to be obfuscated. [Delphi Technique (W/Pros and Cons): ] 1. Questionnaire is sent to experts in the research investigation topic (is not done face-to-face) 2. Experts are allowed to give feedback to other responses to questionaries. 3. The first two steps are repeated using different questionaries until group consensus (unanimity in majority of responses) is reached. [Pros of the Delphi technique:] - Allows for a great pool of expertise. - Participants do not need to be in the same location (allows for international/interstate expertise to be exploited) - Confidentiality and anonymity of responses allows minority views to be expressed. [Cons of the Delphi technique: ] - Use of experts may mean that the population is not representative of true-population. - Non-responses will limit the scope of answers. - Forces consensus by not allowing participants to discuss ideas. *NOTE: Interviews are another form of qualitative design---when discussing interviews the process of content analysis is the same as in Focus Groups. Students are discouraged from discussing interviews, as they show a lack of knowledge concerning qualitative design to markers.* **Objective Quantitative Data:** Factual numerical data. - Reduces observer and participant biases in the data. - Easier to replicate and validate than other types of data. [Physiological measures:] Physiological responses can be measured directly by a numerical measuring device. I.E: Heart rate monitor, electropherogram, blood pressure, etc. [Behavioural Observation:] Behaviours have objective criteria that can be verified by other researchers to minimise observer bias. Examples include, behavioural counts, and timed behaviours (I.E: measuring running speed with a stopwatch). **Subjective Quantitative Data:** Opinion-based numerical data. - More affected by participant and observer bias. - Hard to verify to determine the accuracy of data. [Self-Report Methods:] When participants answer a series of questions with a numerical rating scale. Examples include: Likert scale:  Thurstone scale: Semantic Differential Scale:  **Qualitative Data:** Language rich worded data. Qualitative data is obtained via open-ended (free-response) questions. - Qualitive research questions are open ended and avoid using why, as they cannot establish cause and effect. **Population:** The entire group of individuals that possess specific characteristics that are of interest to the researcher. **Sample:** A small group of individuals in the population. Samples are used to represent the population. The greater the size of the sample used to more accurately it depicts the population, as individual variation is minimised. - Ideally samples should be 30 or more individuals. - Under 30 individuals, and the generalisability of the results to the true-population is lessened. [Convenience sampling (W/Pros and Cons):] The research selects a group of participants that are easily accessible to them. [Pros of convenience sampling:] - Quick and cheap [Cons of convenience sampling:] - Poor representation of true population [Random Sampling (W/Pros and Cons):] Every member of the population has an equal chance of being selected as part of the sample. [Pros of random sampling: ] - Minimises the bias in the sample, giving the results a greater accuracy and generalisability to true population. [Cons of random sampling:] - Sample may be subject to random biases due to chance, generating uncertainty. [Stratified Sampling (W/Pros and Cons):] The population is broken down into groups, and participants are randomly sourced from those groups in the same proportion that the group holds in the population. [Pros of stratified sampling:] - Eliminates participant variables. - Most accurate representation of true population [Cons of stratified sampling:] - Expensive and time consuming **Independent Variable:** The variable that is manipulated or observed effecting the dependent variable. **Dependant Variable:** The variable that is changed because of changes in the independent variable; this is what the researcher is measuring. *NOTE: Remember "Independent is what you change, dependents what you measure." In graphs you change the X value, therefore the X axis is always the independent variable, while the Y is always the dependent variable.* What is an independent variable? + Example **Extraneous Variables:** Variables outside of the independent variable, which could impact the dependant variable. **Controlled Variables:** Also known as constant variables. These are variables outside of the independent variable and dependant variable that do not change. **Hypothesis:** A prediction on the effect of the independent variable on the dependent variable, written in the general formula: "If \[independent variable\] increases/decreases, then \[dependent variable\] will \[increase/decrease\]" *NOTE: If students write the dependent variable first, they will lose marks. The independent variable is what affects the dependent variable.* **Null Hypothesis:** The idea that the effect of the independent variable on the dependant variable does not exist. This occurs when there is no relationship between the dependent variable and the independent variable. **Placebo Effect:** When people believe they are being subject to a stimulus, when they are not, but demonstrate changes in line with that stimulus. **Participant Variables:** The differing individual characteristics between participants, which may impact how participants respond in an experiment. **Confounding Variables:** A variable other than that being tested, which affects both the independent variable and dependant variable. **Experimenter Effects:** When the experimenter's expectations surrounding the results of their experiment, effects the results. - Typically, via bias---compounded in qualitative and subjective quantitative data. **Situational Variables:** Parts of the environment that might affect participant behaviour. **Demand Characteristics:** A cue that makes participants cognizant of what the researchers expect to find, and how participants are expected to behave. - Makes participants more likely to give responses in line with the hypothesis. Average (Mean, Median, Mode): Mean is the mathematical average of a set of data: \ [\$\$mean = \\frac{\\sum\_{}\^{}x}{N}\$\$]{.math.display}\ Where, [*x*]{.math.inline} is the ordered list of values in the data set, and [*N*]{.math.inline} is the number of values in the data set. Median is the middlemost value in a set of data: \ [\$\$\\text{median}(N\\ is\\ \\text{odd}) = x\\lbrack\\frac{N + 1}{2}\\rbrack\$\$]{.math.display}\ \ [\$\$\\text{median}\\left( \\text{N\\ is\\ even} \\right) = \\frac{x\\left\\lbrack \\frac{N}{2} \\right\\rbrack + x\\lbrack\\frac{N}{2}\\rbrack}{2}\$\$]{.math.display}\ Mode is the most frequently occurring value in a set of data. *NOTE: Formula for mode is unrequired knowledge for SACE Stage 2 Psychology---students can just tally the frequency of values in a data set to derive the mode.* **Measures of Spread (Standard Deviation and Range):** Range is the difference between the maximum and minimum values of a data set: \ [*Range* = *max* − *min*]{.math.display}\ Standard deviation is a measure of how far apart the data set is from the mean of that data set: \ [\$\$S\_{d} = \\sqrt{\\frac{\\sum\_{}\^{}\\left( x - mean \\right)\^{2}}{N - 1}}\$\$]{.math.display}\ The greater the standard deviation and the range, the greater the scatter of the data set. This indicates that random error has occurred---see random error. **Normal Distribution:** A standard deviation above 1 indicates that the data set has high scatter, above [ ± 34.1% ]{.math.inline}about the mean.  **Representativeness of the Sample:** The degree to which the results obtained from a sample are accurate to the true population. An unrepresentative sample lacks internal validity, as the experiment does not properly test the hypothesis that it claims too. **Validity (Internal Vs External):** Validity refers to the degree to which an experiment measures what it claims to measure. [Internal Validity:] The degree to which an experiment tests the hypothesis that it claims to test. - May be compromised due to individual differences, researcher effects, and demand characteristics. [External Validity:] The degree to which an experiment can be generalised to the true-population. - May be compromised due to sampling bias. **Reliability**: The degree to which an experiment's results can be repeated by other experiments. **Relationship between reliability and validity:** All valid experiments are reliable, but not all reliable experiments are valid. **Random Error:** **A measurement error where unpredictable changes during the experiment cause differences between the observed and true value of individual data points. This generates scatter in the data set, decreasing the reliability of the experiment.** **Systematic Error:** **Systematic errors are measurement errors resulting in a consistent difference between the observed values of a data set and the true value, thus causing a decrease in accuracy. This does not affect the reliability of the results but may impact the validity.** **Ethical Principles:** Psychologists have an obligation to uphold the following ethical principles: [Informed consent:] Participants must be capable of giving consent while fully understanding the experiment. People under the age of 18 cannot give informed consent---these people's parents must provide consent. [Right to Withdrawal:] Participants must be made aware that there are no consequences for them to withdraw from an experiment---and be able to exercise that right to withdrawal. [Deception and Debrief:] Deception should be rarely used, only when it is required to test a specific variable. If deception is used during an experiment, then participants must be debriefed after the experiment on what the actual experiment is. During debrief participants should be offered support services and given the opportunity to remove their results from the experiment. [Accurate Reporting:] Results should not be fabricated. [Duty of Care:] Also known as psychological harm/distress. Experimenters have an obligation to ensure that no psychological or physical harm comes to the participants of the experiment. [Voluntary Participation:] Participants should not be coerced into joining the experiment or face consequences for not participating. The experimenter should not hold power through money or other means, over the participants. [Confidentiality and Anonymity:] Personal information of the participants must not be disclosed, unless informed consent has been given to the researcher to do so. The researcher should always protect privacy of the participants. **TOPIC 2 --- SOCIAL INFLUENCE:** **Obedience:** Performance of an action under the orders of an authority figure. For obedience to occur there must be: - A legitimate authority figure - A direct request - Doing an atypical behaviour **Milgram's Obedience Study (W/Ethics):** An experiment regarding obedience conducted by Stanley Milgram. 1. Participants were sourced deceptively under the pretence of a memory test. 2. Participants are given the teacher role, while a confederate is given the learner role, by the researcher. 3. Teacher watches the researcher strap the learner to an electric chair. 4. Teacher is taken by the researcher to a separate room. 5. Researcher instructs the teacher to test the memory of the learner via word phrases. After a practice test, the teacher is told to shock the learner for every wrong answer, increasing the voltage of the shock administered after each incorrect answer. 6. A fake pain response is played over a radio after each shock is administered. Until a severe enough shock is administered---after which no sound plays to insinuate the learner is unconscious or dead. 7. If the participant every asked to withdrawal or showed concern for the learner, the experimenter ordered them to continue the test. 8. After the end of the experiment the participant is debriefed Milgram's experiment had numerous ethical issues these include: [Deception:] Participants were deceived into believing that the experiment was a simple memory test. However, this was minimised by having a debrief after the experiment. [Right to Withdrawal:] Participants were aware of there right to withdrawal. However, this was contradicted by the orders of the experimenter when participants objected to their actions. This led to confusion regarding participant's right to withdraw, meaning that it was not exercised. [Psychological harm/distress:] The participants thought that they had killed someone, causing feelings of panic, anxiety, self-hatred, and grief. **Situational Factors Effecting Obedience:** External influences that change obedience behaviours. These include: [Proximity to Authority Figure:] People are more likely to obey an order if they are closer to an authority figure. Inversely, people are less likely to obey an order if they are further away from an authority figure. [De-individuation:] De-individuation refers to the loss of one's identity and self-awareness in the presence of a large group. This leads to greater obedience as people tend to preform the same actions as that of the group, as people shift blame for their actions onto the group. [Prestige of Authority Figure:] The degree of socially legitimised power an authority figure holds relative to the person who is being ordered to obey. The greater the perceived prestige of the authority figure, the more likely people are to obey the request. **Dispositional Factors:** Internal factors that impact the likelihood of obedient behaviours. These include: - Personal characteristics - Intelligence - Self-esteem - Level of perceived self-authority **Zimbardo's Stanford Prison Experiment (W/Ethics):** An experiment conducted by Philip Zimbardo at Stanford university basement. 1. 24 Men were selected to take place in a prison experiment---some were allocated the role of guards and others that of prisoners. 2. Prisoners were unexpectedly arrested by real police officers, then blindfolded, and taken to a mock prison at Stanford. Upon arrival all prisoners were stripped naked, deloused, and given a uniform. The number on the back of the prisoners' uniform would replace their names. 3. Guards were given uniforms with reflective sunglasses. 4. Guards were told to do whatever they thought was necessary to keep order in the prison, except for violence. 5. Zimbardo would take on the role of prison warden. There were numerous ethical issues with the Stanford prison experiment: [Deception and Debrief:] The participants were not fully informed of their abduction and the extreme psychological conditions they would be subject to. For such extreme conditions and long time, the study lacked a comprehensive debrief after its completion, leaving many participants with psychological trauma. [Privacy:] The study was a media spectacle, and prisoner participants were stripped naked, compromising the privacy of participants. [Informed Consent:] Participants did not understand the full extent of the experiment and the psychological harm it would cause. Thus, informed consent was not provided. [Psychological Harm/Distress:] Prisoners experienced extreme, anxiety, and emotional distress, to the point where some had to be removed because of the abusive and dehumanising behaviour of the guards. [Right to Withdrawal:] While the prisoners did have the right to withdrawal, due to the elaborateness of the role-play during the experiment, many thought that they did not have such a right. As a result, the right to withdrawal was rarely exercised. **Conformity:** A change in behaviour or belief because of real or imagined group pressure. **Compliance Conformity:** A public change in behaviour to appease the majority group, without a change in private behaviours and beliefs. This is the shallowest form of conformity. - Results in a short-term change in behaviour - Change in public behaviour. - No change in private behaviour/belief **Identification Conformity:** When people identify with a group, then change their behaviour and beliefs to be in line with those of that group. This leads to a change in public behaviour and public beliefs when in the presence of the group that the individual identifies with. Identification conformity is the middle level of conformity. - Results in a short-term change in public behaviour and private beliefs **Internalisation Conformity:** When an individual changes their personal beliefs and public behaviours to match a group. This is the highest level of conformity. - Results in a semi-permanent change in public behaviour and private beliefs **Normative Social Influence:** When individuals conform to avoid the perceived threat of social punishment, or to gain a perceived social reward. This form of conformity is associated most strongly with identification and compliance conformity. **Informational Social influence:** When individuals conform to gain knowledge or because they believe the group holds a correct belief. This form of conformity is associated most strongly with internalisation conformity. **Factors Affecting Conformity:** Numerous external and internal factors affect the likelihood of an individual conforming. These include: [Individual Characteristics ] [Personality]---personality types less concerned with the views of others (low self-monitors) are less likely to conform. [Individuals position within the group]---the higher the position in the group the less social pressure to conform. [Cultural context ] [Level of group unanimity]---the higher the group unanimity the greater the social pressure to conform. [Difficulty of the task]---the more difficult a task the more likely individuals are to conform to the group. This is due to informational social influence. [Privacy]---the greater the privacy, the lesser the social pressure to conform. [Anonymity]---anonymity reduces the perceived social consequences/gain of conformity, decreasing the likelihood of conformity. [Status of Majority group]---the greater the status of the majority group, the higher the likelihood of conformity. **Ethnocentric Bias:** When the perceptions of others are influenced by the culture of one's ethnic group. This creates bias in the results through experimenter effects and demand characteristics. Many ethnic minorities have cultures which encourage disengagement with researchers---namely, Aboriginal cultures promote the secrecy of traditions, preventing research. **How to reduce Ethnocentrism:** If participants are from an ethnic minority ensure that they have access to translators, interpreters, and advocates during the research process. *NOTE: Ethnocentrism is such a broad topic that will never be asked by an exam.* **Attitude:** The beliefs, emotions, and behaviours directed towards a given attitude object. **ABC Model of Attitudes:** The idea that attitudes are formed via three components, which influence each other. [Affective component:] The feelings and emotions one holds towards an attitude object. [Behavioural component:] The actions a person takes in relation to an attitude object. [Cognitive component:] The knowledge, beliefs, and ideas directed towards an attitude object. **Bi-directional Relationship of Attitudes and Behaviour:** The idea that attitudes affect behaviours, and behaviours affect attitudes. As a result, people develop attitudes that are in line with their behaviours, and exhibit behaviours that are in line with their attitudes. **Persuasion:** The process of changing one's behaviour or attitudes through communication with other people. **The YALE Communication Model:** A model of understanding persuasion, which stipulates the efficacy of persuasion is determined by how complimentary the audience, message, source, and channel, are to one another. [Audience:] The people who is attitude the text aims to change. The relevance of the message, source, and channel, to the audience impacts the persuasiveness of the text. [Message:] The text itself---the themes that it aims to convey to the audience to change the audience's attitude. May use fear or logic, emotional impact, or rhetorical questions to make persuade audiences. [Source:] The person who is delivering the message---if the source is attractive, an expert, authority figure, and/or celebrity, then the likelihood of persuasion is increased. [Channel:] The medium through which the message is delivered---such as social media or television. **The Elaboration Likelihood Model (Central/Peripheral Route):** ELM for short, is a model which suggest that the likelihood of an attitude change is determined by the level of elaboration---expansion---that the text provides. In the ELM information is processed either centrally or peripherally. [Central processing route:] The text is processed with a high level of cognition in the central route. As a result, changes in attitude depend on the quality of logical argumentation in a text. This leads to long-lasting changes in attitude. This route is characterized by: - Compelling argumentation - Facts and statistics - Careful information processing with a high level of cognition - High amounts of attention and conscious thinking regarding the persuasive text - Expert opinions [Pros of the central processing route:] - Leads to long lasting changes in attitudes and behaviours. [Cons of the central processing route:] - Requires the audience to critically think about the persuasive text with a high level of cognitive processing. This may alienate certain audiences---limits the number of people persuaded. - Requires for logical argumentation to be provided---which may be difficult. [Peripheral processing route:] The text is processed with a low level of cognition via the peripheral route. As a result, changes in attitude depend on subliminal cues in the text---such as the attractiveness of the presenter, catchy catchphrase/call to action. This leads to short-term changes in behaviour, rather than sustained attitude changes. [Pros of the peripheral processing route:] - Works well with people who are not motivated to think critically about a given topic. - Motivates short-term behaviour changes---good for elections, consumerism, etc. [Cons of the peripheral processing route: ] - No sustained change in attitudes *NOTE: The elaboration likelihood model itself is not part of the syllabus, only the central and peripheral routes.* **Direct Experience:** When attitudes are formed from personal experiences related to the attitude object. Attitudes formed via direct experience tend to be more strongly held than those formed through indirect experience. **Indirect Experience:** When external sources, separate from the attitude object, inform the formation of attitudes surrounding the attitude object. This is often how prejudiced attitudes are formed. The strength of attitudes formed via indirect experience increases with mere exposure. **Persuasion Strategies:** Techniques used to change individuals' attitudes. These include: [The Norm of Reciprocity:] The social norm that one preforms positive actions to others that have given them favours. The norm of reciprocity can be used to make individuals feel obligated to comply with a request. [Door in the Face:] When a persuader begins by asking for a large favour to be granted by the persuadee. Thereafter, the persuader changes to a comparatively lesser favour, increasing the likelihood that the persuadee will change their behaviour, as they believe the persuader is making a concession. [Foot in the Door:] When a persuader begins by asking for a small favour from the persuadee. When the persuadee obliges, the persuader asks for a larger favour. The persuadee is more likely to preform the request as to avoid cognitive dissonance. **Cognitive Dissonance Theory:** When one's attitudes and behaviours contradict one another. This generates negative emotions such as guilt and self-loathing, leading to a change in behaviour and attitude to minimise the dissonance. The weaker held behaviour or attitude changes in accordance with the stronger held attitude or behaviour. **Self-Perception Theory:** When behaviour is used to form/change one's attitude through inferencing. This can occur when attitudes are not firmly held or not formed yet. **Self-Monitoring:** The ability of people to attend to social cues and adjust their behaviours to social pressures. People are classified as high self-monitors or low self-monitors. [High Self-Monitors:] More readily attend to social ques and pressures. As a result, high-self monitors conform to social pressures easily. These people are more likely to engage in self-presentation via social media and less likely to have a strong behaviour-attitude relationship. [Low Self-Monitors:] Are not attentive to social ques and pressures. As a result, low self-monitors tend not to conform to social pressures. These people are less likely to engage in self-presentation via social media, and more likely to have a strong behaviour-attitude relationship. **Prejudice:** Emotions and feelings directed towards a person or group that is based upon insufficient evidence. This is the affective component of prejudiced attitudes. **Stereotype:** Thoughts and opinions directed towards a person or group that are based upon insufficient evidence. This is the cognitive component of prejudiced attitudes. **Discrimination:** Negative actions directed towards a person or group of persons. This is the behavioural component of prejudiced attitudes. *NOTE: Prejudice, stereotype, and discrimination are all referred to as a collective as prejudice---a clearer way of saying this is prejudiced attitudes, to differentiate between prejudice (affective component) and prejudice (attitude).* **Unintentional Biases:** Automatic unintentional ways of processing information which distort that information. Some biases include: [Confirmation Bias:] When an individual favours or looks for information that supports their own pre-existing attitudes, while rejecting information that disputes those attitudes. [Attribution Bias:] When one attributes good outcomes to their own behaviour, while attributing bad outcomes to external factors. [Gender Bias:] The tendency to prefer a certain gender over others for a particular task. [Conformity Bias:] The tendency to behave similarly to those in a majority group. **Learning Prejudice:** Prejudice can be learned via classical conditioning, operant conditioning, or observational learning: [Classical learning:] Children can be taught to associate particularly groups with certain traits, such as crime, or violence. [Operant conditioning:] Discriminatory behaviours may be reinforced by others. For example, homophobic jokes may make people laugh, reinforcing homophobia. [Observation Learning:] People may model (imitate) the discriminatory behaviours of others, namely their parents. **Exposure to Prejudice:** Direct experience or indirect experience with the objects of prejudice may lead to the development of prejudiced attitudes. [Direct experience:] Negative direct experience with individuals who are part of a minority group can lead to the development and reinforcement of prejudiced attitudes surrounding that minority group. These are misinformed as an individual or group of individuals cannot represent a whole minority group. [Indirect experience:] When external texts or interactions beside those of the minority group that express misinformed attitudes towards the minority group can lead to the development of prejudiced attitudes through mere-exposure. **Effects of prejudice:** [Social stigma:] The discrimination, or prevalence of negative feeling, towards minority groups due to stereotypes can lead to people within the minority group being socially ostracised (stigmatised). [Internalisation:] The prevalence of prejudiced attitudes can cause people within the discriminated minority group to begin to develop those very same prejudiced attitudes---absorb negative stereotypes about themselves. [Stereotype threat:] When a person feels at risk of conforming to stereotypes about the minority group to which they belong. This causes feelings of anxiety, self-loathing, and guilt. **Examples of Discrimination Today:** Explicit forms of discrimination are now outlawed and illegal however discrimination still occurs. This may occur because of: [Reluctance to Help:] The avoidance of helping other groups achieve equal access or improve their position in society by passively or actively not avoiding assistance. - I.E: Walking past a homeless person in the street. [Tokenism:] Deliberately giving trivial assistance to minority groups to be seen as inclusive and not prejudiced. - I.E: Giving money to a homeless person on the news or in front of friends. Additionally, often seen in TV shows by giving minority group members background roles to seem inclusive. [Reverse Discrimination:] Also known as positive discrimination. This is the act of creating prejudice in favour of a minority group. - I.E: Equality quotas in the workplace (SA police must have 50% of spots available for women) or scholarships for disabled students. **Ways to Reduce Prejudice:** [Education:] This is a form of indirect experience wherein people are taught why certain prejudiced attitudes are wrong and harmful. As a result, prejudiced individuals are forced into a state of cognitive dissonance, causing them to exhibit less discriminatory behaviours. - I.E: Harmony Day, or Reconciliation Week [Intergroup Contact:] This is a form of direct experience with people of minority groups---contact between groups of people who hold prejudiced beliefs towards each other may lead to those people changing their attitudes, lessening discrimination. However, direct contact alone may lead to hostility between groups further entrenching prejudiced attitudes, therefore a facilitator or facilitating organisation is required. [Superordinate Goals:] When different minority groups work towards common gains it can support understanding between groups. For this to work both minority groups must contribute towards to goal to feel mutually valued. **Self-Presentation:** A form of impression management where people act to control how others perceive them. This is achieved through verbal and non-verbal communication---see verbal and non-verbal communication for more details. Self-presentation preforms three primary functions: 1. Facilitates social interaction. 2. Enables individuals to attain material and social rewards. 3. Allows people to privately construct desired identities (typically in line with their self-concept) **Self-Concept:** An individual's private sense of self, including one's ideal self, self-image, and self-worth. [Ideal-self:] The person that an individual desires to be. [Self-Image:] The person that an individual believes themselves to be. [Self-Worth:] The value one assigns to the self---determined by the views of others, self-image, and comparative evaluation to others. An individual's self-concept is more likely to be close to their self-presentation of themselves if they are a low self-monitor as opposed to high self-monitors. **Validation:** When people engage in self-presentation to reinforce their self-concept. **Impression Management:** Impression management is the strategic controlling of information that people let others know about themselves. This is done through non-verbal and verbal communication. [Verbal Communication:] Includes the words that individuals speak. This is done on a semantic and expressive level. On a sematic level verbal communication involves what words are spoken. Whereas, on an expressive level verbal communication involves the way in which words are spoken (pitch, speaking rate, emphasis). [Non-verbal Communication:] Includes all direct and indirect forms of communication that are not spoken. Direct forms of non-verbal communication may involve gestures or messages online. Whereas indirect forms of non-verbal communication may involve body language and photographs posted online. **Primacy Effect:** Ones first impression of another informs that one's attitude towards them more than information following the first impression. **Recency Effect:** More recent information regarding an attitude object is more important than prior information. **Schema:** Units of abstract understanding that categorise information. These units inform impression formation by influencing the expectations one holds of others.  **Social media:** social media provides users with an extreme way to manage and curate their self-presentation via verbal communication (voice notes, and videos)and non-verbal communication (images and messages). As a result, social media has many links to psychological phenomena like validation, self-monitoring, and impression management. [Link to validation:] Users may seek validation of their self-concept through the feedback of others on social media. Through curating their online profile social media users can use non-verbal and verbal communication to encourage the desired feedback, thereby validating their self-concept. [Link to self-monitoring:] High self-monitors are more likely to engage in impression management via social media than low self-monitors. This is because high self-monitors value the opinions as well as beliefs of others, and want to be accepted by others, moreso than low self-monitors. [Ethical Concerns with social media:] Low self-monitors may become addicted to social media. Alternatively, low self-monitors could suffer mental illness like depression and anxiety from cyberbullying or social rejection online. Contrastingly, users that seek validation through social media may exhibit more extreme behaviours over time to gain more validation. I.E: validation of dieting behaviours on social media could encourage eating-disorders. **TOPIC 3 --- LEARNING:** **Learning:** A permanent change in thinking and behaviour. In SACE Stage 2 Psychology there are 3 core types of behavioural learning: - Learning by association (classical conditioning) - Learning by consequence (operant conditioning) - Learning by watching and modelling (observational learning) All things that have been learned can be unlearned. **Classical Conditioning:** Learning by association. Occurs when two stimuli are repeatedly paired until both stimuli can generate the same response independent of one another. [Mrs Pinchbeck's 2-2-3-2 Model:] The pairing of the two stimuli can be seen below. [Before conditioning] \ [Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS) = *Unconditioned* *Response*(*UCR*)]{.math.display}\ \ [Neutral Stimulus (NS) = No *Response* (NR)]{.math.display}\ [During conditioning:] \ [*UCS* + *NS* = *UCR*]{.math.display}\ [After conditioning:] \ [Conditioned Stimulus (CS) = *Conditioned* *Response* (CR)]{.math.display}\ The conditioned stimulus is always the same as the neutral stimulus and the conditioned response is always the same as the unconditioned response. classical\_conditioning **Contiguity:** In classical conditioning contiguity refers to the time between the presentation of the unconditioned stimulus and the neutral stimulus. Contrastingly, in operant conditioning contiguity refers to the time between the consequence (reinforcement or punishment) and the behaviour. In both cases optimum learning occurs when the difference in time is lesser than or equal to 0.5 seconds. At times greater than 0.5 seconds the stimuli cannot be adequately paired (classical conditioning), and the consequence cannot be understood because of the behaviour (operant conditioning). **Contingency:** In classical conditioning contingency refers to the number of times that the neutral stimulus is paired with the unconditioned stimulus. In operant conditioning contingency refers to the number of times that the consequence (reinforcement or punishment) is administered after the behaviour. As contingency increases the rate of learning increases. **Biological Preparedness:** Humans have a biological pre-disposition to learning certain associations, or behaviours. This is because natural selection favoured the survival and reproduction of individuals who could more readily learn these associations or behaviours. Biological preparedness is seen in phobias such as arachnophobia, as well as the fear of snakes. **Generalisation:** In classical conditioning generalisation is when the conditioned response is elicited by similar stimuli to the conditioned stimulus. Similarly, in operant conditioning generalisation is when the learned behaviour is applied in different scenarios with similar consequences. **Discrimination:** In classical conditioning stimulus discrimination is when the subject differentiates between the conditioned stimulus and other stimuli, causing other stimuli to not elicit the conditioned response. Similarly, in operant conditioning stimulus discrimination is when the subject distinguishes between scenarios with similar consequences and does not apply the learned behaviour. **Principals of Classical Conditioning:** [Acquistion:] The exact moment that a new response has been successfully learned. This does not mean that the response is always exhibited because of the conditioned response. [Extinction:] The gradual weakening of a previously learned response. This is different from unlearning. [Spontaneous Recovery:] The re-emergence of a previously extinct conditioned response.  [Stimulus generalisation:] A form of generalisation regarding stimuli---see generalisation for more details. [Stimulus discrimination:] A form of discrimination regarding stimuli---see discrimination (topic 3) for more details. **Systematic Desensitization:** A psychological therapy (can only be performed by registered psychologists) whereby successive stimuli related to a phobia are associated with relaxation to minimise feelings of anxiety and fear. This follows three main steps. 1. The psychologist teaches their client relaxation techniques such as breathing techniques, grounding, or mindfulness. 2. The psychologist and the client develop a hierarchy of fears from least feared to most feared stimulus. 3. The psychologist and client then work through this hierarchy of fears from least feared to most feared. The stimulus in the hierarchy is presented to the climate and they are instructed to calm themselves using relaxation techniques. Only once the client is fully relaxed in presence of the stimulus can they move onto the next fear in the hierarchy. By associating their fears with relaxation and learning these techniques, clients will be better able to cope with their phobia for a greater quality of life. Not all fears in the hierarchy need to be worked through for systematic desensitization to be successful. **Operant Conditioning:** Learning by consequence (reinforcement or punishment). **Reinforcement:** A consequence delivered to increase a behaviour. [Positive Reinforcement:] The addition of a pleasant stimulus. I.E: Money for a good grade. [Negative Reinforcement:] The removal of an unpleasant stimulus. I.E: Taking away a child's chores for a good grade. **Punishment:** A consequence delivered to decrease a behaviour. There are two types of punishment. [Response Cost:] The removal of a pleasant stimulus. I.E: giving a child a detention for disrupting a class. [Aversive Punishment:] The addition of an unpleasant stimulus. I.E: Smacking a child for getting a bad grade. **Punishment Vs Reinforcement:** Reinforcement is preferred over punishment to cause changes in behaviour. This is because punishment can cause aggressive behaviours, fear of authority, and/or psychological and physical harm. Contrastingly, reinforcement fosters feelings of appreciating and love, helping to develop self-esteem. **Schedules of Reinforcement:** The interval or rate at which responses are reinforced. Can either be a continuous or partial schedule: [Continuous schedule of reinforcement:] Every single response that is provided is reinforced. This schedule leads to the fastest learning but is the most impractical. [Partial schedule of reinforcement:] Only some of the responses are reinforced, there are four types of partial schedules. - [Fixed Ratio:] The reinforcement is provided after a set number of responses. (Best for learning a new behaviour) I.E: Being paid after 5 jobs have been completed. - [Fixed Interval:] The reinforcement is provided after a set time of preforming the response. I.E: Being paid 10 dollars per hour. - [Variable Ratio:] The reinforcement is provided after an unpredictable number of responses. (Best for maintaining a behaviour) I.E: Gambling at the pokies, receiving a win after a set number of lever pulls. - [Variable Interval:] The reinforcement is provided after an unpredictable time spent preforming the response. I.E: Fishing---the fish bites the bait after a random amount of time. *NOTE: Schedules of reinforcement only apply to positive reinforcement not punishment or negative reinforcement.* **Shaping:** The positive reinforcement of successive approximations of a desired behaviour. Each successive response is chained, requiring a closer approximation of the target behaviour to receive positive reinforcement. Shaping begins on a continuous schedule of reinforcement until the behaviour has been acquired. Thereafter, the behaviour is reinforced on a partial schedule of reinforcement to prevent extinction. **Behaviour Modification:** A psychological intervention (can be employed by both psychologists and normal people) used to modify behaviours through the reinforcement of desired behaviours. 1. Identify a maladaptive behaviour or desired behaviour. 2. Monitor the amount of time spent preforming that behaviour. 3. Select a realistic goal to work towards 4. Agree on a reward for achieving the goal. 5. Write and sign a contingency contract. 6. Re-monitor the see if the behaviour has been changed after a designated period, and if so, administer the reward. 7. Over time gradually remove the reward and re-monitor the behaviour to ensure that it has been changed in the way desired **Observational Learning:** Learning by watching and modelling after the behaviours displayed by others. This occurs via the modelling process---see the modelling process (ARRM). **The modelling process (ARRM):** For modelling to occur the subject must pay attention to the model, retain knowledge of the model's behaviour, reproduce the model's behaviour, and be motivated to reproduce the model's behaviour. If one of these criteria are not met, then acquisition cannot occur. [Attention:] Focusing on the model's behaviour [Retention:] Remembering a schema of the model's behaviour [Reproduction:] Preforming the same behaviour as the model [Motivation:] The reason to preform the actions of the model **Performance:** The process of the acting the newly acquired response from observational learning. **[Albert Bandura's Bobo Doll Experiment:]** Bandura used a sample of 37--39-month-old children to research how aggression is learnt through observation. 1. Children were split into three groups by their role model---one treated the bobo doll aggressively, the other played with the bobo doll, while another did not play with the bobo doll (control). 2. Each group was split in half with some observing a female model interact with the bobo doll, while others observed a male interact with the bobo doll. 3. After observing the model, the children were allowed to individually play with the bobo doll and their behaviours were counted. Children who observed the aggressive role model were more likely to behave aggressively towards the bobo doll than those who were not exposed to the aggressive model. *NOTE: Students do not need to know ethical issues of the Bobo doll experiment in SACE Stage 2 Psychology.* **Implicit Vs Explicit Learning**: [Implicit learning] is unconscious observational learning wherein individuals can replicate behaviours without consciously deciding to learn it. Contrastingly, [explicit learning] is conscious observational learning wherein individuals' intent to learn a behaviour. **Mirror Neurons:** Neurons that fire during the observation and reproduction of a behaviour. These neurons are thought to play a role in the process of observational learning. **Factors Affecting Learning** [Academic Characteristics:] People who have good learning styles, learning goals, and are more engaged in learning activities, will learn behaviours faster. [Cognitive Characteristics:] People with higher intelligence can learn behaviours faster than those with lower intelligence. [Social/Emotional Characteristics:] The resilience of the learner to adversity, the group social structure, self-image, and self-esteem can all play a role in the learning of behaviours. [Motivation to learn:] People who are more motivated to learn, learn behaviours faster than those who are less motivated. **Cognitive Behavioural Therapy:** CBT for short. A psychological therapy (Can only be used by psychologists) that views problematic behaviours as learned. Therefore, it is the job of the psychologist to work with their client to help them unlearn the problematic behaviour. In CBT, the psychologist tailors a therapy plan to their client, helping them learn new skills, change their environment, and modify their thinking patterns to reduce the problematic behaviours. This helps change the thoughts, feelings, and behaviours that the client exhibits to something healthier, as per the ABC model of attitudes. *NOTE: Cognitive behavioural therapy is the most broad and nebulous of all therapies in SACE Stage 2 Psychology. If given the opportunity, never answer a question regarding CBT.* **Learned Helplessness:** When a subject is repeated subject to an adverse stimulus perceived to be beyond their control they learn helplessness. The subject stops preforming behaviours to avoid the aversive stimulus. This behaviour can be generalised. **Martin Seligman's Learned Helplessness Experiment (W/Ethics):** During Seligman's Learned Helplessness experiment he trained dogs to learn they had no ability to avoid painful shocks to demonstrate learned helplessness. 1. Seligman placed dogs in a chamber with a hurdle and shocked floor. 2. A bell would be rung, and, on one side, the floor would turn on. 3. The dog would learn to associate the bell sound with jumping the fence to avoid the shock. 4. A separate group of dogs were also placed into boxes but with unavoidable shocks. 5. When these dogs were then placed into a container with a hurtle to jump over, they laid down and were shocked. These dogs had learnt that their behaviour had no impact on the shocks, they had learnt helplessness. There are numerous ethical issues with the learned helplessness experiment: [Psychological distress:] The actions of repeatedly shocking the dogs caused them considerable psychological distress, which may have impacted their ability to be socialised with people. This could have led to dogs getting put down. [Duty of care:] The experimenter showed no duty of care, as dogs were physically harmed by the shocks but left in pain by the researcher. **Internal Vs External Locus of Control:** An internal locus of control is the belief that one controls their own actions and outcomes. An external locus of control is the belief that external factors outside of one's control has led to one's outcomes. People with an external locus of control are more likely to learn helplessness. **Little Albert Study (W/Ethics):** A nine-month-old called Albert was exposed to numerous stimuli, including a white rat. 1. Little Albert was shown the white rat a hammer would be hit against a steel bar. 2. Little albert would pair the loud noise (which made him cry) with the white rat. 3. As a result, Albert was conditioned to fear the white rat. 4. When little Albert was exposed to other stimuli without the rat or the loud sound, such as a fur coat, dog, or rabbit mask, he would display signs of distress. The little Albert study showcased stimulus generalisation. There were numerous ethical issues with the little Albert study. [Psychological Harm and Distress:] The experiment subject little Albert to numerous stressors which could cause childhood trauma and harming his psychological development. This also may have caused little Albert to develop a phobia of fluffy animals. [Informed Consent:] As a nine-month-old Little Albert could not give consent to the experiment. However, his parents, who gave consent on Albert's behalf, were unaware of the long-lasting psychological trauma that the experiment may have caused, and thus could not provide informed consent. [Confidentiality:] Videos of little Albert during the study were published, breaching his confidentiality and anonymity.