Social Psychology

Social Psychology

Which one of these guys would you date and why????????

This man is 6’4” This man is 5’7” Person Perception

The research demonstrates…. • - New research seems to demonstrate that the taller you are (men) the more money you may make • - Each inch of height is apparently worth $789 more in salary per year • - What was the research?

People perceived as beautiful or handsome generally make more money and get more promotions • The study demonstrated that a person who is 6 feet tall could earn about $166,000 more over a 30-year career than someone 5’5”

Halo Effect • The ‘halo effect’ appears to be alive and well. The ‘halo effect’ is the belief by people that ‘what is beautiful is good’ • This means that people ultimately seem to judge others by their appearance on a conscious and even unconscious level

Factors that add to person perception • Person perception, the process by which we use our schema to form impressions of others can be formulated by: • A person’s physical appearance • How you act towards each individual • Effects of race • These are physical traits

Attributions • Attributions help us to better understand our own and other’s behavior • For instance, you call up your best friend on a Friday night and ask her to go out. She tells you she already has plans to go out with other people. What goes through your mind?

Internal vs. external attributions • Internal attributions – when we tend to look at the characteristics or the character of a person to judge their behavior (ours or others) • External attributions – when we make judgments about behaviors based on the situation occurring

Fundamental attribution error – when we look at another’s behavior, we tend to focus on the person’s disposition or personality traits and overlook the situation • Actor-observer bias – when we look at other’s behavior, we tend to look at internal attributions but when we look at our own behavior, we tend to look at external attributions

Self-serving bias – when we are successful, we tend to look at internal attributions. When we fail, we tend to look at external attributions. • Defensive attributions – tendency to blame the victim for the crime

When someone asks for a small favor first then a larger favor later Ask someone for 1 hour of community service and they are likely to comply Go back later and ask for more time Foot-in-the-door phenomenon

When you ask someone for a large request, you then go back that you know they will refuse, then go back and ask for a smaller request Door-in-the-face phenomenon

Attitudes • Attitudes are beliefs of opinions about an object, person or event that range from negative to positive thinking. • Attitudes predispose us to behave in a certain way and are often ingrained within us and difficult to change.

Attitudes are often subject to cognitive dissonance, in which we are in a state of unpleasant psychological tension which causes us to work to reduce that tension. • We may: • Change our attitudes • Develop and add new attitudes • Change our behavior

Solomon Asch study – demonstrates conformity in thinking and behavior – when people give in to group pressure even though pressure may not be a direct request from others Conformity

Asch study findings • Approximately 35% of the people in the study were willing to agree with the group • With 5 or more people most were willing to conform • After 7 people, it was insignificant how many people were in the group, you really did not see more than 35% conform • If there was one dissenting vote, people were less likely to conform

Compliance vs. Obedience • Compliance - Kind of conformity in which we give in to actual social pressure in which there may only be a social consequence • Obedience – performing some behavior in response to a request by an authority figure

Milgram Study • Stanley Milgram • Conducted in the early 1960s • 65% of the people were willing to deliver 450 volt shocks • Repeated in different countries with similar results • People less likely to conform when not in the presence of authority – i.e., when instructions given in a different room/building

Determined that people are likely to obey authority because they are used to doing so in their daily lives • Although some question the ethical implications of Milgram’s study, there aim appeared to be no long-term psychological damage done to people

Zimbardo Prison Study • Demonstrates how the behavior of the individual can be shaped by the demands of the environment. • It also demonstrates how the study of psychology can shed light not only on questions about individual behavior, but also on questions of practical concern to society.

Zimbardo cont’d • One disturbing implication of the research looks at the parallels between what occurred in the mock prison and daily experiences in our own lives • It is felt that: “The physical institution of prison parallels the mind that all of us daily create, populate and perpetuate. We speak here of the prisons of racism, sexism, despair, shyness, "neurotic hang-ups" and the like. The social convention of marriage, as one example, becomes for many couples a state of imprisonment in which one partner agrees to be prisoner or guard, forcing or allowing the other to play the reciprocal role - invariably without making the contract explicit.”

“Dissent was unthinkable… Offenders sweltered in "The Box," a 6-by-4-foot (1.8-by-1.2-meter) underground enclosure. Misbehaving children were dangled head-first into the well late at night. Loudspeakers broadcast Jones' voice at all hours. Deborah Layton – escaped from Jonestown Jim Jones

Brainwashed???? • Brainwashing is a forced attitude change that requires a captive audience • POW’s often subjected to brainwashing techniques • Patricia Hearst

Physical and psychological aspects of brainwashing: • Physical abuse • Lack of sleep • Humiliation • Isolation • Giving hope • Fear

Cults • Cults often look for people who socially isolate themselves from friends and family • They then work to further isolate them and make them initially feel like the cult is their family • Jim Jones used sedatives to calm people and armed guards to keep people in line

People who join cults often do so because of the personality of the leader, not necessarily what they believe in Often see leader as infallible

They often follow leader without question Often used guilt, manipulation, deception, fear, and high-pressure indoctrination

Group behavior • Group cohesion – when groups bond strongly together due to common attitudes • Group norms – unwritten rules that may be spoken or simply understood about behavior of the group

How do we form groups? • Maslow cites the need for love and belongingness • Schacter cites the need for affiliation • Festinger cites the social comparison theory – which states that humans are compelled to compare themselves to others in group to determine correct beh.

Mullen & Cooper cite the fact that people like to join task-oriented groups – where every member has specific tasks to complete. Makes people feel needed • People are more willing to work hard if there is a group cohesion • Others cite the fact that people join groups that are socially oriented

How do crowds affect behavior? • Crowds consist usually of a large group of people with most being people that we do not know • Social facilitation – when we increase our performance in a group situation • Social inhibition – when we decrease our performance in a group situation

Crowds • Deindividuation – • When people act irrationally or perform behaviors they normally would not simply because they are in the presence of a group • Takes away personal identity • Sports events – why do crowds behave so badly sometimes?

Bystander effect • States that people may feel inhibited to help others when in a crowd • May be due to two reasons: • Informational influence theory – says that we use the reactions of others to judge the seriousness of the situation • Diffusion of responsibility – in the presence of others, people feel less personal responsibility and are less likely to help when it is required

Are groups good for business? • Risky shift – when the group is able to swing an individual’s judgment • Group polarization – after group discussion the majority’s point of view shifts to a more extreme position

Groupthink – when group decisions abandon critical thinking when making a judgment in favor of other factors • Social loafing – when in groups, some people allow others to take charge and they sit back and do nothing. You should try to assign specific roles for people.

Persuasion • Central Route – Adds in facts, logic and strong arguments • Peripheral Route – Emphasizes emotional appeal, focuses on personal traits and generates positive feelings • Three components – source, message and audience

Source – We are more likely to believe sources that appear honest, trustworthy, have expertise and credibility and are attractive. • Message – messages using a central route are convincing and understandable, however, the peripheral route may appeal to people more. Fear tends to be a good technique. • Audience – audiences who want the facts should be given the central route, others the peripheral. Know your audience and their attitudes

Stereotyping Prejudice-Remember these are only attitudes Discrimination-These are behaviors that may affect others Other ways in which we form impressions of others

1. Physical attractiveness – matching hypothesis 2. Similarity 3. Reciprocity 4. Proximity 5. Romeo and Juliet Effect Factors in interpersonal attraction

Social Psychology