Social Psychology
subfield in psychology that deals with how our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by our social interactions with
... [Show More] others
Social Perception
processes by which we form impressions, make judgements, and develop attitudes about the people and events that constitute our social world
Impression Formation
process of developing an opinion or impression of another person
Social Schema
mental image or representation that we use to understand our social environment
Stereotypes
oversimplified generalizations about the characteristics, attitudes, and behaviors of members of a particular group
Self-Fulfilling Prophecy
exception that helps bring about the outcome that is expected
Attribution
assumption about the causes of behavior or events
Dispositional Causes
causes relating to the internal characteristics or traits of individuals
Situational Causes
causes relating to external or environmental events
Fundamental Attribution Error
tendency to attribute behavior to internal caues without regard to situational influences
Actor-Observer Effect
tendency to attribute the causes of one's own behavior to situational factors while attributing the causes of other people's behavior to internal factors or dispositions
Self-Serving Bias
tendency to take credit for our accomplishments and to explain away our failures or disappointments
Attitude
positive or negative evaluation of persons, objects, or issues
Elaboration Likelihood Model
theoretical model that posits two channels by which persuasive appeals lead to attitude change: a central route and a peripheral route
Attraction
feelings of liking for others, together with having positive thoughts about them and inclinations to act toward them in positive ways
Matching Hypothesis
belief that people tend to pair off with others who are similar to themselves in physical attractiveness and other characteristics
Proximity
nearness or propinquity
Reciprocity
principle that people tend to like others who like them back
Prosocial Behavior
behavior that benefits others
Bystander Intervention
helping a stranger in distress
Social Norms
standards that define what is socially acceptable in a given situation
Prejudice
preconceived opinion or attitude about an issue, person, or group
Discrimination
unfair or biased treatment of people based on their membership in a particular group or category
In-Groups
social, religious, ethnic, or national groups with which one identifies
Out-Groups
groups other than those with which one identifies
Out-Group Negativism
cognitive bias involving the predisposition to attribute more negative characteristics to members of out-groups than to those of in-groups [Show Less]