Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007 Chapter 14 Social Psychology This multimedia product and its contents are protected under copyright law. The following are prohibited by law: Any public performance or display, including transmission of any image over a network; Preparation of any derivative work, including the extraction, in whole or in part, of any images Any rental, lease or lending of the program. ISBN: 0-131-73180-7 Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007 Social Psychology Social psychology – The branch of psychology that studies the effects of social variables and cognitions on individual behavior and social interactions Social context – The combination of People The activities and interactions among people The setting in which behavior occurs, and The expectations and social norms governing behavior in that setting Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

How Does the Social Situation Affect our Behavior? We usually adapt our behavior to the demands of the social situation, and in ambiguous situations we take our cues from the behavior of others in that setting Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

How Does the Social Situation Affect our Behavior? Situationism – The view that environmental conditions influence people’s behavior as much or more than their personal dispositions do Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Social Standards of Behavior Social role – One of several socially defined patterns of behavior that are expected of persons in a given setting or group Script – Knowledge about the sequence of events and actions that is expected in a particular setting Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Social Standards of Behavior Social norms – A group’s expectations regarding what is appropriate and acceptable for its members’ attitudes and behavior Social norms influence students’ political views Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Conformity: The Asch studies Which line matches the line on the left? A 1 2 3 Standard line Comparison lines Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Conformity: The Asch studies What would you say if you were in a room full of people who all picked line number three? A 1 2 3 Standard line Comparison lines Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007 Conformity No opposition (control) Correct estimated (percent) 100 80 60 40 20 With partner Alone against majority Critical trials 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Group Characteristics That Produce Conformity Asch identifies three factors that influence whether a person will yield to pressure: The size of the majority The presence of a partner who dissented from the majority The size of the discrepancy between the correct answer and the majority position Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007 Groupthink In “groupthink,” members of the group attempt to conform their opinions to what each believes to be the consensus of the group Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Conditions Likely to Promote Groupthink Conditions likely to promote groupthink include: Isolation of the group High group cohesiveness Directive leadership Lack of norms requiring methodical procedures Homogeneity of members’ social background and ideology High stress from external threats with low hope of a better solution than that of the group leader Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Obedience to Authority Imagine if an experimenter studying “the effects of punishment on memory” asked you to deliver painful electric shocks to a a middle-aged man who had been treated for a heart condition Each time the man missed an answer, you would be instructed to deliver an increasingly powerful shock Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Milgram’s Shock Generator Caution On Amp Meter Amps Intensity Resistance Very Strong Shock Slight Shock Moderate Shock Strong Shock Intense Shock Extreme Shock Danger XXX Would you deliver a “Moderate Shock?” Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Milgram’s Shock Generator Caution On Amp Meter Amps Intensity Resistance Very Strong Shock Slight Shock Moderate Shock Strong Shock Intense Shock Extreme Shock Danger XXX Would you refuse the experimenter’s instruction to deliver an “Extreme Shock?” Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Milgram’s Shock Generator Caution On Amp Meter Amps Intensity Resistance Very Strong Shock Slight Shock Moderate Shock Strong Shock Intense Shock Extreme Shock Danger XXX What if the victim was screaming in agony? Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Milgram’s Shock Generator Caution On Amp Meter Amps Intensity Resistance Very Strong Shock Slight Shock Moderate Shock Strong Shock Intense Shock Extreme Shock Danger XXX Two thirds of participants delivered the maximum 450 volts to the learner Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Obedience to Authority In Milgram’s experiment The victim was an actor The victim received no actual shocks Nevertheless, this controversial experiment demonstrated how powerful effects of obedience to authority Situational factors, and not personality variables, appeared to effect people’s levels of obedience Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Obedience in Milgram’s Experiments Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Ten Steps Toward Evil- Getting Good People to Harm Others Provide people with an ideology to justify beliefs for actions Make people take a small first step toward a harmful act with a minor, trivial action and then gradually increase those small actions Make those in charge seem like a “just authority” Slowly transform a once compassionate leader into a dictatorial figure Provide people with vague and ever changing rules Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Ten Steps Toward Evil- Getting Good People to Harm Others Relabel the situation’s actors and their actions to legitimize the ideology Provide people with social models of compliance Allow verbal dissent but only if people continue to comply behaviorally with orders Encourage dehumanizing the victim Make exiting the situation difficult Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007 The Bystander Problem Diffusion of responsibility – Dilution or weakening of each group member’s obligation to act when responsibility is perceived to be shared with all group members Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007 The Bystander Problem In one experiment, a student was led to believe that the he or she was taking part in an experiment with between one and five other students (over an intercom) The student then heard what sounded like another student having a seizure and gasping for help The researchers timed how long it would take the students to ask for help Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Bystander Intervention in an Emergency 80 40 60 100 20 Percentage helping 2-person groups 3-person groups 6-person groups 20 80 120 160 200 240 280 Seconds from beginning of emergency Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Prosocial Behavior Kitty Genovese case in Kew Gardens NY. Bystander Effect: Conditions in which people are more or less likely to help one another. In general…the more people around…the less chance of help….because of… Diffusion of Responsibility Pluralistic Ignorance People decide what to do by looking to others.

Constructing Social Reality: What Influences Our Judgments of Others? The judgments we make about others depend not only on their behavior but also on our interpretation of their actions within a social context Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Constructing Social Reality: What Influences Our Judgments of Others? Social reality – An individual’s subjective interpretation of other people and of relationships with them Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Interpersonal Attraction Reward theory of attraction – A social learning view that says we like best those who give us maximum rewards at minimum cost Proximity Similarity Self-Disclosure Physical Attractiveness Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Expectations and the Influence of Self-Esteem Matching hypothesis – Prediction that most people will find friends and mates that are about their same level of attractiveness Expectancy-value theory – Theory that people decide whether or not to pursue a relationship by weighing the potential value of the relationship against their expectations of success in establishing the relationship Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Attraction and Self-Justification Cognitive dissonance – A highly motivating state in which people have conflicting cognitions, especially when their voluntary actions conflict with their attitudes Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Making Cognitive Attributions Fundamental attribution error – Tendency to emphasize internal causes and ignore external pressures Self-serving bias – Attributional pattern in which one takes credit for success but denies responsibility for failure Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Prejudice and Discrimination Prejudice – A negative attitude toward an individual based solely on his or her membership in a particular group Discrimination – A negative action taken against an individual as a result of his or her group membership Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Prejudice and Discrimination In-group – The group with which an individual identifies Out-group – Those outside the group with which an individual identifies Social distance – The perceived difference or similarity between oneself and another person Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Dissimilarity and Social Distance Causes of Prejudice Dissimilarity and Social Distance Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Dissimilarity and Social Distance Causes of Prejudice Dissimilarity and Social Distance Economic Competition Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Dissimilarity and Social Distance Causes of Prejudice Dissimilarity and Social Distance Economic Competition Scapegoating Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Dissimilarity and Social Distance Conformity to Social Norms Causes of Prejudice Dissimilarity and Social Distance Economic Competition Scapegoating Conformity to Social Norms Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Dissimilarity and Social Distance Conformity to Social Norms Causes of Prejudice Dissimilarity and Social Distance Economic Competition Scapegoating Conformity to Social Norms Media Stereotypes Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007 Combating Prejudice Research suggests that the possible tools for combating prejudice include: New role models Equal status contact Legislation Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Other Topics in Social Psychology Social facilitation – An increase in an individual’s performance because of being in a group Social loafing – An decrease in performance because of being in a group Social Facilitation- The idea that in group work, the lesser skilled members are able to achieve more than they could have achieved on their own. Social Loafing- The idea that in group work, some members will do as little as possible since there are others to carry the load. Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Other Topics in Social Psychology Deindividuation – Occurs when group members lose their sense of personal identity and responsibility and the group “assumes” responsibility for their behavior Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Zimbardo’s Prison Study Showed how we deindividuate AND become the roles we are given. Philip Zimbardo has students at Stanford U play the roles of prisoner and prison guards in the basement of psychology building. They were given uniforms and numbers for each prisoner. What do you think happened?

Other Topics in Social Psychology Group polarization – When individuals in a group have similar, though not identical, views, their opinions become more extreme Groupthink – An excessive tendency to seek recurrence among group members Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007 Loving Relationships Romantic love – A temporary and highly emotional condition based on infatuation and sexual desire Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Sternberg’s Triangular Theory of Love Passion Intimacy Commitment Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

What Are the Roots of Violence and Terrorism? The power of the situation can help us understand violence and terrorism, but the broader understanding requires multiple perspectives that go beyond the boundaries of traditional psychology Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

The Robbers’ Cave: An Experiment in Conflict In the Robber’s Cave experiment, conflict between groups arose from an intensely competitive situation Cooperation, however, replaced conflict when the experimenters contrived situations that fostered mutual interdependence and common goals for the groups Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

The Robbers’ Cave: An Experiment in Conflict Violence and aggression – Terms that refer to behavior that is intended to cause harm Cohesiveness – Solidarity, loyalty, and a sense of group membership Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

The Robbers’ Cave: An Experiment in Conflict Mutual interdependence – Shared sense that individuals or groups need each other in order to achieve common goals Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007 Terrorism Terrorism – The use of violent, unpredictable acts by a small group against a larger group for political, economic, or religious goals Taking multiple perspectives can provide important insights on the problems of aggression, violence, and terrorism Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007

Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007 End of Chapter 14 Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007