Implicit Attitude

An attitude of which the individual is unaware

Stereotypes

Generalized impressions based on social categories - May be positive or negative - Eg age, race, beliefs

Prejudice

Negative stereotypical attitudes towards all members of a group - Eg sexism, racism, ageism, homophobia

Attraction

What causes us to connect?

Physical Proximity

Mere Exposure effect

Similarity

- Opposites do not attract - Reciprocity

Physical Attractiveness

Matching effect

Attitudes

Positive or negative evaluative reactions towards a stimulus

Central Route Persuasion

Going directly though the rational mind, influencing attitudes with evidence and logic

Peripheral Route Persuasion

Changing attitudes by going around the rational mind and appealing to fears, desires, associations

Persuasion Techniques

Foot in the door technique & Door in the face technique

Foot in the door technique

Get them to agree to something small so they will agree to something larger later on

Door in the face technique

Ask them for something large, expecting a rejection, so that they are more likely to agree to a smaller request

Self perception theory

Says that we infer our attitude by observing our behaviour - Inferring boredom from needing to yawn

Role Playing

When the roles were playing ends up feeling real Eg actors, arranged marriages, Stanford prison study

Dissonance Theory

When our behavior's changes our attitude - Festinger and Carlsmith study (1959)

Obedience

Adjustment of individual behavior's, attitudes and beliefs to the order of an authority figure. - Could be good, could be bad Bad = Milgram's study (1974)

Bystander Effect

The finding that people are less likely to provide needed help when they are in groups than when they are alone

Social Roles

Specific set of expectations for how someone in a specific position should behave - Eg Stanford prison study (1971)

Attributions

Judgements about causes of our own and other people's behaviour and outcome

Dispositional (Internal) Attributions

Believe behaviour caused by the person's inner traits

Situational (External) Attributions

Believe behaviour caused by aspects of the situation

Actor Observer Effect

We make situational attributions about our own behaviour and dispositional attributions about the behavior's of others Eg the observer (dispositional) focuses on the personality of the actor. the actor (situational) focuses attention on external factors

Self Serving Bias

Use dispositional attributions for successes and situational attributions for failures Strength depends on psychological state & culture Eg Depressed people more dispositional attributions for failure

Social Psychology

The branch of psychology that deals with how the individual is affected by others. In order to fully understand social reality, need to study the interaction between the person and the situation

Mimicry

Taking on for ourselves the behavior's, emotional displays, and facial expressions of others Eg Chameleon Effect

Chameleon Effect

Non conscious mimicry of others that involves automatically copying others behavior's without realizing it Eg yawning, leg taping, mood, accents

Social Norms

The (usually unwritten) guidelines for how to behave in social contexts

Social Facilitation

The improvement in performance because others are present

Social Loafing

The tendency to expend less individual effort when working in a group than when working alone. - Caused by the belief that individual performance is not being monitored, goal or task has little meaning/value to person, the task is simple and persons effort is redundant

Group Polarization

When people of similar views form a group, discussion withing the group makes their views more extreme

Groupthink

In pursuit of social harmony (and avoidance of open disagreement ) the group makes decisions without an open exchange of ideas

Conformity

Adjusting our behaviour or thinking to fit in with a group standard -Asch study (1956)

Normative Social Influence

Going along with others in pursuit of social approval or belonging ( to avoid disapproval/rejection) Eg what we wear, how we do our hair

Informational Social Influence

Going along with others because their ideas and behaviour make sense, the evidence in our social environment changes our minds. Eg deciding what side of the road to drive on

Schachter Theory

Look to external cues to decide what to feel - Physiological arousal = how 'strongly' we feel -Labeling = 'what' we feel

Facial feedback hypothesis

Muscular feedback to the brain plays a key role in emotional experience

Vascular theory of emotional feedback

Tensing facial muscles alters temperature of blood flow - Cooling increases positive effect - Warming increases negative effect

Cannon Bard Theory

- Cognition is involved Stimuli - thalamus - cortex- emotion

James Lange Theory

Somatic theory of emotion Body informs mind Physiological reactions determine emotions

Obesity

Body Mass Index (BMI) is a measure of body fat based on height and weight

The physiology of sex

Four stages 1 Excitement 2 Plateau 3 Orgasm 4 Resolution

Environmental Factors that affect eating

- Food Variety - Smell and food in sight - Presence of others - Familiarity of food - Stress

Genetic Influences on obesity

Influence basal metabolism and tendency to store energy as fat or lean tissue

Environmental influences on obesity

- Inexpensive, tasty foods high in fat and/or carbohydrates – Supersizing due to cultural value of getting best value – Decreased daily activity due to technological advances

Motivations for sex

- Desire to reproduce – Obtain and give sensual pleasure – Express love and intimacy – Fulfill ‘duty’ – Conform to peer pressure

What are emotions?

-Positive and negative feelings that involve a pattern of cognitive, physiological, and Behavioural reactions to events – Link between motivation and emotion • React emotionally when goals and motives are gratified, threatened, or frustrated • Stronger reaction to important goals