The Social-Cognitive Perspective

Of Personality

(p.445-450)

Bandura is Back

• Social Learning theory (remember unit 7)

• Behaviorism (as introduced by Watson) supports human behavior as a simple reaction to external stimuli.

Social Cognitive Theory

• Focus on how we interact with our environment.

Reciprocal Determinism: the interacting influences between personality and environmental factors.

Social Cognitive Perspective

1. Different People choose different environments.

The TV you watch, friends you hang with, music you listen to were all chosen by you (your disposition)

But after you choose the environment, it also shapes you.

Social Cognitive Perspective

2. Our personalities shape how we interpret and react to events

• If I am anxious, then I will be more aware of threatening events. This causes anxious people to see the world as more threatening.

Social Cognitive Perspective

3. Our personalities help create situations to which we react.

If I expect someone to be angry with me, I may give that person the cold shoulder, creating the very behavior I expect.

Personal Control

• Our sense of controlling our environment rather than the environment controlling us.

External Locus of Control

• The perception that chance or outside forces beyond one’s personal control determine one’s fate.

Internal Locus of Control

• The perception that one controls one’s own fate.

Learned Helplessness• The hopelessness and passive resignation

an animal or human learns when unable to avoid repeated aversive events.

Perks of Optimism

• Students who take responsibility and a hopeful attitude toward effort, good study habits, and self-discipline can make a difference.

• Health: Life expectancy tends to improve with optimistic attitudes.

Optimism challenges

• If overly optimistic, it could hinder test grades, blind us to real risks, and prevent sensible precautions from being taken.

Assessing Behavior in Situations

• The best way to predict a persons behavior is through past behavior patterns in similar situations.

• If you can’t check past behavior, the next best thing to do is create an assessment that simulates the task demands.

Criticisms

• Too much focus on situation and not enough on the inner traits

Quiz question

• The perception that one can strongly influence the outcome and destiny of one’s own life exemplifies:a.The reality principleb.The Barnum effectc.An internal locus of controld.The pleasure principle