Interpersonal & Group Perspectives Your Milgram Q’s are due today!!

Attributions Continued Just World Belief: – We tend to believe that the world is, on the whole, fair, and that wrongs will be punished and rights rewarded. – A number of studies have shown beliefs that people who suffer deserve it and have brought their ills upon themselves. Why Do We Think Like This? – Invulnerable Belief- We can avoid unpleasant situations – Reduce anxiety caused by injustices

How Correlated are Actions and Attitudes?

Attitudes & Behaviors may not be as correlated as you think! Read the description of the psychology experiment & answer the question. When we feel less coerced & more responsible for troubling actions we feel greater cognitive dissonance.cognitive dissonance Rationalization: protects our ego; If we choose to do/say it, we must believe it. Cognitive Dissonance Theory: When attitudes and behaviors do not match it creates stress. Especially when you feel responsible for your behavior!! Cognitive Dissonance Theory What causes changes in our attitudes? – Persuasion – Credibility – Likability – Attractiveness

Obedience - Milgram Prior to the study, most scholars thought only sadists would shock “learners” until the end. Two-thirds of the subjects went all the way to the end of shocks Obedience increases with status/prestige.

Conformity-Asch Factors increasing conformity – Group size, cohesiveness, social status, culture, avoid rejection

Social Facilitation The presence of others improves performance on easy tasks. Opposite = Inhibition Examples: – Cars rate of speed – Billiards accuracy – Sporting events – The Office Cars travel 15% faster!

Social Loafing Tendency to work LESS when in a group Loafing increases with group size (accountability & dispensable) Not observed in all cultures – Collective vs. Individualistic societies Examples: – Clapping at a concert – School projects – Football Game/Films Find the social loafer!!

Group Polarization Group interaction intensifies the original opinion of group members. In groups, people tend to be more extreme in their decisions. Examples: – Inflexible juries tend to hand down harsher sentences – Racial attitudes – Political attitudes

Groupthink Occurs when a cohesive in- group makes decisions w/o considering alternative actions. – Illusions of invincibility – Illusions that all are unanimous – Direct pressure to conform – Mindguards, alternative solutions are kept from leader – High Stress Examples: Bay of Pigs & Challenger Disaster