Social Psychology Course by Wesleyan University

7/27/2019 Social Psychology Course by Wesleyan University

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The psychological construction of reality

1.4 Perceptions

Were influenced by external factors such as :

Where were paying attention to Past experiences Contextual factors Expectations Motivations , etc.

That alters our reality to being identical to another.

-Its inaccurate to say that people have different/same attitudes towards the same thing.

As the thing is simply not the same for different people.

Our perceptions are influenced by what we expect to see, by what we want to see, by what

we are paying attention to etc

Photographs = fixed perceptions

Perceptions summarized is what is going on out there and whats going on internally.

Illusions happen because our visual receptors have adapted to see a particular world eg.

Distance.

Illusions could also be an Analogy for people as they come in with a different mentality and

(pre)dispositions they process social information in particular ways.We instantly look at

photos ( and say we have a childs face) we try to work out what that person is thinking

regardless of whether we are aware of the circumstance.

However, as we focus on certain traits ( being a threat/ something wrong) we tend to miss

out on other aspects.

1.5 Confirmation Bias

Usually when we are given data/ information we assume it is correct and dont go and seek

disapproving evidence.

When groups get together and interact with one another, there are usually social

expectations. Expectations do not receive a fair test. Greater expectations given to supported

suggested evidence so they disregard the counter arguments. Eg. Stereotypes. It supports

the stereotypes. It affects both the person creating that expectation but the expectation of the

person receiving it.


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1.6 Self fulfilling Prophecies

Sfp( self fulfilling prophecies) is created through a continual, gradual truth, it makes it

difficult to distinguish regular prophecies.

Beliefs can literally create a reality.

( Monkeys with the banana experiment)

1.Social Judgements in the blink of an eye

Social judgments lead people to predict with efficiency by a first glance observation.

A Thin slice of behavior small sections of interviewed materials Eg. College Photos of people that became successful, or video clips of unhappy

marriages etc.

> Judgments about peoples personalities, veracity, level of depression were just asaccurate it not more so than when the judgments were based on thin slices of

behavior in 5 minutes of length.

Why are they accurate if they are not reliable forms of data?

Scientists believe it could be an evolutionary clue such as rapidly identifying Potential threats Possible partners Competent leaders

Our brains are wired to process emotions before cognitionse.g We know what we feel before we can ask why we feel that way

* Thin slice judgments happen so fast that it loses its level of accuracy

Pros to social judgments:

Happens rapidly with surprising efficiency/ accuracy

Cons to social Judgments:

Certain bias/ distortions is involved and once the ideology is assumed. We lock onto

those beliefs.

1.8 What other people think of you

First impressions are very important when meeting someone new. In 5 seconds sums

up how you will like someone.

2.1. Attribution Theory: The whys and the wherefores of behaviour

By Fritz Heider, The psychology of Interpersonal Relations

Attributions can help at a personal level:


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To avoid conflict, Improve relationships (friendship/ romantic) Increase productivity and Job Satisfaction Lead to greater self Understanding

Harold Kelleys theory:

People tend to explain behavior in Three Possible causes:

1. The Person Something about the person in question2. Entity Some enduring feature of the situation (something outside the person

may have caused that behavior).

3. Time Something about the particular occasionCasual attributions are based on:

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Consensus

Do other people respond similarly?2. Distinctiveness Do other situations elicit the same behavior?3. Consistency Does the same thing happen time after time?In General, the more salient a stimulus is, the more likely it is to be viewed as casual,

as having caused a behavior to occur. ((not always, but in many situations).

Perceptions of causality are partly a function of where ones attention is directed.

And attention is in turn a function of salience.

Why does this matter?

We dont want to be influenced by who were looking at when the making of anyjudgment is made Especially, when we are unaware.

Eg. Camera angle of a suspect and interrogator in a crime can influence the

judgments made.

Causal attribution is not a matter of logical deduction; its also partly a matter of

sensory perception of what we happen to be looking/hearing at at the moment.

2.2 Some Twists and Turns When Explaining Behavior

In the way people judge behavioral causes attributions, researchers often exclude

Consensus information. Why? Perhaps its too difficult to assume such

In an experiment that involved such research, the person who gave the people

consensus information did not significantly affect the causal attributions that people

made.

Even when the people knew that the majority of participants in the originalexperiments had received a shock or failed to help, the made dispositionalattributions.


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Consensus information also failed to affect judgments of how people thoughtthey themselves would have acted if they had been in the original studies.

For example, a study showed that 11 out of 15 people chose to ignoresomeone having a seizure. When this question was asked to a participant,

they would answer that they would try to help if they had been on thatposition. This is called the False- Uniqueness effect.

The false uniqueness effect is the false belief that when it comes to our gooddeeds and other desirable behaviors are more unique than what we really are.

We, as human beings, result in shock as we have not been given the actual

scenario/

disposition in behavior.

Whats the difference between the False attributions and the Actor-observer

differences in Attribution?

The classic finding is that actors are more likely to explain their behavior as functions

of situational factors than are observers. Unlike the fundamental attribution error,

the actor observer difference is simply a bias not a true error.

Actors downplay dispositional explanations, but mainly when the behavioror outcome is negative.

If the behavior or event is positive this difference often reverses.Whats the difference between bias and error?

2.3 Attitude and Behavior

* Far less consistency

It is considerably more likely that attitudes will be unrelated or only slightly related

to overt behaviors than that attitudes will be closely related to actions Wicker

Why? Attitudes are different from behavior.

Studies: 1934, Richard LaPiere, Alan Wicker, Darley & Baston

Summary: A man followed a young couple around the USThey visited 184 restaurants/cafes

67 hotels, auto camps, tourist homes

There was an anti-Chinese thing going on and Richard observed racialdiscrimination towards the companions only once every 251 encounters


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Out of 128 people, 92% would not accept Chinese guests

Limitations: not independent ratings of discriminationsPerhaps more discrimination

One couple in the studies

1973, Darley & Baston

Summary: 47 Seminary students were asked to give a speech about jobs atwhich seminary students would be effective and the parable of the good

Samaritan

3-5 minutes long and recorded Independent variables: Time whether they are in a hurry and topic of

speech

List three possible reasons why you think Allan Wicker found little or no relationship

between the people's behavior and the attitudes they report holding.

1. Maybe journals reject reports of consistency obvious or unexciting (the filedrawing syndrome).

2. Many attitudes relate to any one behavior3. Many behaviors relate to any one attitude.4. Attitude items tended to be more general than behaviors5. Attitudes and behaviors are often elicited under different conditions e.g.

Attitudes = anonymous surveys behaviors = publically observed

Behavior is inconsistent with one attitude to be consistent with another.

Attitude-behavior consistency

Attitudes and behaviors are most likely to be related when:

They closely match each other (generality/specificity) The attitude is strong or potent (acquired through experience) The attitude is easy to recall and has been stable over time People are made aware of themselves and their attitudes Outside influences are kept to a minimum.

2.4 Cognitive Dissonance and Self Perception

People try to avoid/ reduces psychological inconsistencies

Cognitive dissonance is where people simultaneously hold two thoughts that are

psychologically incompatible that are inconsistent in some way. A NEGATIVE

DRIVE STATE.

Study: Festinger and Carl Smith


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Students of Stanford were randomly assigned to one of three experimental

conditions where they did a boring activities for 30-1 hour. The students were paid

either 20$ or 1$ to tell the next person ( a researcher) to tell them how enjoyable it

was. The 20$ felt happy to lie as it was a monetary reward whereas the person who

received only 1$ eventually believed the experiment was fun to avoid believing that

they were lying for no good reason. This allowed the reduction of cognitive

dissonance. They did not have a reason.

Key parts of the Self- Perception Theory

Individuals come to known their own attitudes, emotions and otherinternal states partially inferring them from observations of their own

behavior and the circumstance in which their behavior occurs.

To the extent that internal cues are week, ambiguous and uninterpretable, theindividual is functionally the same position as an outside observer.

Difference between CDT and SPT The difference between the two theories is that

Self-perception theory explains classic dissonance findings in terms of how people

infer the causes of their behavior

Self perception theory Cognitive dissonanceFocuses on social inferences and isattribution in nature

Involves a natural tendency to reduce/avoid inner conflict

Unsure which one is more accurate ->

Both theories operate in a wide variety of situations where we, as subjects, can feeltension and there are also situations where we watch our behavior and can draw

explanations from it.

2.5 Two Flavours of Dissonance: Vanilla and Earthworm

Predecisional Dissonance is where dissonance influences decisions.

Comes before a decision is made

E.g Study : Sherman and Gorkin 1980 The relationship betweenattitudes towards social issues and the ability to solve logical

problems

80% of students could not solve the assigned problem after the 5-minute time trial. Tried to redeem their equality to reduce their

dissonance to show they werent bias against women.

People adapt their beliefs situations to reduce their dissonances. Although it is superficially striking to observe people choosing to

eat a worm, the more impressive aspect of these findings is the degree

to which people will change their conceptual system to make sense of

the random event of their lives Comer & Laird


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Is this the same mechanism in other self destructive situations?

Post-decisional Dissonance is where dissonance follows a choice that has already

been made and efforts to avoid or reduce this dissonance affect later judgments

Comes after a decision is made Study: knox did a survey on people betting 30 seconds before and

after on a horse. The ratings showed that before they made the bet,

they where fair(3.48) chances on the 1-7 scale and after they had

betted on a horse, they chance had increased to good (4.81).

Showing that commitment increased peoples confidence that they had

picked a winner. As well with voting.. People dont want to elect

losers. So they are more confident with their chosen person.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT:

How universal Cognitive dissonance is?

East vs Western beliefso Dissonance does occur around the globe, but the form it takes is

somewhat different from country to country

Westerners beliefs tend to be concerned about inconsistenciesthat might suggest theyre incompetent or bad in some way.

Easterners tend to be more concerned about choices andbehaviors that could lead to social rejection.

How useful it is to understand cognitive dissonance theory?

2012 study, NAS on cheating.

63% at the top were honest whereas 21% at the bottom.

2.6 How to Be Persuasive

Bill Maguire Matrix with independent variables

If you want to be persuasive, is it good to:

1. Discuss counter-arguments to your position? Campaigns often stay on the offensive

o Its better to discuss counter-arguments When the counter-arguments are salient When the receiver is highly intelligent or opposed to your

positions

o In such cases, its best to present a two sided appeal Counter arguments can also build resistance


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If you mildly criticize the position people hold, its like immunizing themwith a low-dose vaccine also known as attitude inoculation.

o The difference between a two-sided appeal and attitude inoculation isthat you raise counter-arguments and then explain why theyre not

convincing, whereas in attitude inoculation, the receiver generatesreasons why the objection isnt persuasive.

2. Use a central (fact filled)route to persuasion? Central route: Based on facts, statistics and arguments

o Works best when the receiver is highly involved Peripheral route: Uses beautiful music, idyllic settings, attractive models,

or other incidental cues

o Works best when receiver isnt too involved or critical3. Scare the receiver with a fear-based appeal?

Yes, fear appeals can be very effective as long as you give people specificsteps they can take to avoid whatever the threat is.

If you just scare people without saying how to avoid the threat, fear appealscan backfire and lead to denial of the threat

2.7 Secrets from the Science of Persuasion ( Guest Lecture)

6 universal shortcuts that guide human behavior:

1. Reciprocityo

Obligation to give when you receiveo People will say yes to those who they oweo What is given is personalized and unexpected

2. Scarcityo People wanted it moreo Its not simply enough from the benefits but its uniqueness

needs to be illustrated especially if explaining to them what theyll

lose becomes important. E.g Concorde

3. Authorityo The idea that people follow the lead of credible, knowledgeable

experts

o Itsimportant to highlight that youre credible and knowledgeablebefore you make your influence attempts.

4. Consistencyo Looking for and asking for small initial commitments that can be

made

o For increased influenced looks for voluntary, active and publiccommitments and ideally gets those commitments in writing.

5. LikingA) We like people who are similar to usB) People who pay us genuine compliments


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C) People who cooperate with us towards mutual goals

6. Consensuso People will look to the actions and behaviors of others to

determine their own.

o This means that rather than relying on our own ability to persuadeothers, we can point to many others who are already doing,

especially many similar others.

2.8. The Ins and Outs of Social Influence

Effective Social Influence techniques

o Asking people to imagine or predict doing somethingo Telling a stranger your name before making a requesto Engaging people in dialogues rather than monologue (symbolizes friendship)

1. Foot in the Door Techniquea. Summary: Researched in 1960s

People are more likely to comply with a large request after a smaller one

regardless of whether the requests were of the same type or on the same

topic.

Participants were 112 Palo Alto residents

Five conditions (four with a small request then a larger)

Post a small sign Be a safe driver

- Self-perception theory!

Self-perception increases when labeled helpful.

2. The door in the face techniquea. When someone says no to a large request, it is a lot easier to persuade him

or her to comply to a smaller request as they feel obligated to reciprocity.

No Delay, Same person and pro-social and same beneficiary3. The Low ball technique

a. Once people commit themselves to honoring a request can often beincreased without them withdrawing from the commitment.

Social Psychology Course by Wesleyan University

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