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Chapter 1: Social Psychology
What is Social Psychology? Key concept: not mere action but interaction Social psychology – studies how we are influenced by others; scientific field that seeks to comprehend the nature & causes of individual behavior in social situations Scientific Method Observation Questions Hypothesis Testing Theory Types? Psychological social psychology Sociological social psychology History of Social Psychology Norman Triplett – conducted 1st^ social psychological experiment (1895); “bicycle rider”: with/without competitor William McDougall & Ross – first to use term “social psychology” (1908) “social behavior” – innate tendency or instinct Floyd Allport – social behavior was affected by different factors such as presence of others Cross Cultural Psychology: Individualism & Collectivism Individualism o Privacy o Self identity o Inner attribute of self o Independent o Individual decision Collectivism o Social system o Social identity o Socialization o Interdependent
o Loyalty & harmony *Social Influence Factors
Self ∆ Other
Environment/Social Context
Chapter 2: Research Method in Social Psychology
Where & what Where: location What: design Research: Basic or Applied in nature Basic research: increase knowledge about social behavior Applied research: increase understanding of solutions to real world problems Scientific Research Conduct systematical research Not just common sense o Investigate common sense assumptions about human behavior o Avoid errors in perception/ thinking process Hypothesis Specific propositions/expectations about the nature of things derived from a theory Types of Research Methods I. Observational research method II. Cross-cultural research method III. Quasi-experiment research method IV. Experimental research method V. Correlation research method
o Peer review process Informed consent form, voluntary participation, debriefing, etc. Correlation research method Relationship between two or more variables Provides info on the direction & strength of the linear relationship between variables Correlation: direction Positive correlation – when one variable increases, the other variable also increases Negative correlation – when one variable increases, the other variable decreases Correlation Coefficient: Strength r = ± 1. ± : direction (positive or negative) 1.00: strength, maximum value, range from 0 to 1. Statistics: significant level Statistical significance p < 0. Random likelihood is under 5% Meta-Analysis A statistical procedure used to understand the outcomes of many studies
Chapter 3: Self
Knowing thyself Self concept Self esteem Self monitoring: self presentation Self scheme Self perception Self awareness Who am I? _____________________________________________ Self Concept The sum total of a person’s thoughts & feelings defining the self as an object Perceptions of our own quality Characteristics of self
The knowledge of the kind of person you are Contents of self-concepts Physical attributes Traits & disposition Gender identity Role identity Racial identity Self-esteem A person’s evaluation of his/her self-concept Evaluative component of the self-concept in either positive or negative way Positive evaluation: high self-esteem Negative evaluation: low self-esteem Self-esteem & risks taking behavior People w/low self-esteem, are more concerned about protecting themselves from threat & are less inclined to take risks than people with high self-esteem Dark side of high self-esteem High self-esteem: more aggressive & defensive than other when someone challenges their favorable self-assessments Self-enhancement The process of seeking out & interpreting situations so as to attain a positive view of yourself Self-monitoring Tendency to use cues from other people’s self-presentation in controlling one’s own self- presentation Self-schema Schemas: organized, repeatedly exercised patterns of thought about some stimulus, which are built up from experience & which selectively guide the processing of new info Cognitive generalization about the self Derives from the past experience Organize & guide the processing of self-related info contained in the individual’s social experience
o Yawning o Groaning o Sneezing o Snoring Impression formation Our impressions of others are shaped by their nonverbal behavior o Facial expression Facial expressions Happy Surprise Sadness Anger Disgust Fear Problems in understanding/detecting facial expressions Particular vocation o Actor/actress Cultural norms Eye contact Eyes don’t lie, do they? Eye contact & social interacting o Friendliness, liking, etc Staring Body language Emblems: nonverbal acts w/direct verbal translation o Sign language Illustrators: nonverbal acts company speech Regulator: helping flow of conversation Adaptor: sitting or leaning to show how you are reacting Attribution Infer the causes of behavior
Internal attribution: personal dispositions/responsibility, stable traits External attribution: situational/environmental factor Jones & Davis: Correspondent inference Focus on internal attribution Fritz Heider: father of Modern Attribution Theory Internal attribution o Voluntary behavior o Non common effects o Low in social desirability Schacter & Singer’s Theory External attribution Over-justification effect: when we are rewarded for performing intrinsically interesting activities we become less interested in those activities Kelley’s Theory Either internal or external attribution o Consistency: high/low → high – talk every day o Consensus: high/low → high – people talk back o Distinctiveness: high/low → low – if talk everywhere Consistency Consensus Distinctiveness High Low Low internal High High High external Biases in Attribution Fundamental attribution error: quick to blame others internal move Actor-observer effect: mistake b/c of actor/observer Self-serving bias: good happen = internal; bad = environmental (external) Self-handicapping: you tried to disable self & use it as an excuse Social Cognition
