Introduction to Social Psychology

Slide 1: Introduction to Social Psychology 1st year undergraduate psychology lecture 2007 James Neill

Slide 2: Overview: Pt 1 Activity: Topic Matching (10 mins)   Definition(s)  Scope  Foci  Topics  Video (27 mins)

Slide 3: 2 3 1 4 5 6 7 9 11

Slide 4: Conflict, Aggression, Prejudice 1. 2. Groups, Cooperation, Teamwork 3. Crowd Behaviour, Group Mind, Group Polarisation, Deindividuation 4. Disengagement, Solitude, Loneliness 5. Social Facilitation, Comparison, & Self 6. Environmental 7. Attraction, Relationships, Love 8. Relationships, Interpersonal Conflict 9. Prosocial Behaviour, Helping, Altruism 10. Conformity, Obediance

Slide 5: Lecture Web Page http://ucspace.canberra.edu.au/display/Psy102200 Reading Myers (2007) Ch 18 Social Psychology

Slide 6: What is Social Psychology? Influence of social processes on the way people:  Think (thoughts; cognition)  Feel (feelings; emotions)  Behave (behaviour; actions)

Slide 7: Three Themes  Social Thinking - how we think about others e.g., Attributions  Social Influence - how we are influenced by others, e.g., Conformity  Social Relations - how we interact with others, e.g., Relationships

Slide 8: Domains / Units of Analysis

Slide 10: Why is Social Psychology Important?

Slide 11: Focus 1: Relationships

Slide 12: Focus 2: Social Influence

Slide 13: Focus 3: Leadership

Slide 14: Focus 4: Intergroup Relations

Slide 15: Video: The Power of the Situation Annenberg (1989). The Power of the Situation (Program 19). [27 min video] Annenberg: Santa Barbara, CA.

Slide 16: Overview: Pt 2 Social Cognition  – Attribution Attitudes  Behaviour – – Cognitive Dissonance Social Influence  – Conformity – Obediance – Group Influence Social Relationships  – Group polarisation – Aggression – Conflict & Cooperation – Prosocial Behaviour

Slide 17: Social Thinking  Attribution  Behaviour  Attitudes  Cognitive Dissonance

Slide 18: Social Thinking Questions  How do we explain people’s behaviour?  How do we form our beliefs and attitudes?  How does what we think affect what we do?  How can attitudes be influenced and behaviour changed?

Slide 19: Attributions We are all ‘intuitive scientists’ or 'naive  psychologists'.  Process of inferring the causes of mental states, behaviours, and events which occur to ourselves & others (Heider, 1958) – External attributions Behavior is due to the situation, ‘The boss yelled at me ... because this is April 15th and his taxes are not done.’ – Internal attributions Behavior reflects the person, ‘The boss yells at everyone ... because he is a hostile person.’

Slide 20: Attributional Biases  Fundamental Attribution Error (or Correspondence Bias) – Overestimate internal factors (i.e., blame people) more than external factors (i.e., circumstances)  Actor-Observer Bias – More aware of external influences on our own behaviour

Slide 22: Attributions Observed Behaviour External Internal (Situational) (Dispositional) Explanation Explanation

Slide 23: Attitudes  Valenced (+/-) beliefs & feelings towards people, objects, & events, e.g., – George W. Bush? – Guns? – Recreational drug use? attitudes  behaviour ?  Do

Slide 24: Attitudes & Behaviour Behaviour Situation Attitudes

Slide 25: When do Attitudes Predict Behaviour? Attitudes are implicit (unconscious).   Situational demands are low.  Attitudes are strong & based on personal experience.  Attitudes are specific & relevant to behaviour.  Conscious/aware of attitudes.  Environmental reinforcement matches attitude.  Important others share the same attitude.

Slide 26: Behaviour Also Influences Attitude Behaviour Situation Attitudes

Slide 27: Behaviour Also Influences Attitude e.g.,  Foot-in-the-door  Role playing “What we do, we gradually become.”

Slide 28: Foot-in-the-door Technique IV: 1st request: “Sign a petition supporting safe driving?” vs. no request ~ 2 weeks later… DV: “Can we place this large, ugly ‘Drive Safely’ sign in your front yard?” Those who had signed the petition were 3 x more likely to agree to the 2nd request.

Slide 29: Foot-in-the-door Technique Foot-in-the-door technique as used by Scientology Time Magazine, 1991

Slide 30: Foot-in-the-door Technique Foot-in-the-door technique – continued Time Magazine, 1991

Slide 31: Foot-in-the-door Technique Foot-in-the-door technique – continued Time Magazine, 1991

Slide 32: Cognitive Dissonance (Festinger) (Action Belief)   Distress Distress   (Action or Belief) (Action = Belief)   Distress

Slide 33: Cognitive Dissonance Idon't believe in sex before marriage (attitude), but I just had sex before marriage (behaviour). I believe that speeding increases the risk of car accidents (attitude) yet speed on a daily basis (behaviour).

Slide 34: Cognitive Dissonance Model Motivation Two State of Attitude to reduce inconsistent dissonance change dissonance cognitions (e.g., an attitude and a counter- attitudinal behaviour)

Slide 35: Cognitive Dissonance Model Motivation Two State of Attitude to reduce inconsistent dissonance change dissonance cognitions (e.g., an attitude and Change or justify a counter- UNLESS counter- attitudinal attitudinal behaviour) behaviour

Slide 36: Cognitive Dissonance Model Motivation Two State of Attitude to reduce inconsistent dissonance change dissonance cognitions (e.g., an attitude and Change or justify a counter- UNLESS counter- attitudinal attitudinal behaviour) behaviour No No attitude dissonance change

Slide 37: Social Influence  Conformity  Obediance  Group influence

Slide 38: Social Influence Questions  How we influence each other?  How are we affected by pressures to conform and obey?  How are we affected by group interaction?  How do groups affect our behavior?

Slide 39: Social Influence The greatest contribution of social psychology is its study of attitudes, beliefs, decisions, and actions and the way they are moulded by social influence.

Slide 40: Conformity Willingness to accept others’ opinions about reality. Adjusting one’s behavior or thinking to coincide with a group standard.

Slide 41: Asch’s Conformity Studies (1950’s) Subjects were asked to judge line lengths while  working in a group 7 subjects; the 6th was real, rest were  confederates. Confederates consistently gave obviously wrong  answers The subject often conformed and gave the same  wrong answer On average, 37% of participants conformed.  Some never caved. 

Slide 42: Conformity Solomon Asch studies.

Slide 43: Conditions That  Conformity Feelings of incompetence, insecurity, low  self-esteem.  Group size 3+.  Group is unanimous (lack of dissension).  Group status desirable & attractiveness.  No prior commitment to response.  Group observes one’s behavior.  Culture strongly encourages respect for social standard.

Slide 44: Reasons for Conformity  Normative Social Influence A person’s desire to gain approval or avoid  rejection. Respecting normative behavior, because price may  be severe if not followed.  Informational Social Influence Group may provide valuable information.  When the task is difficult or you are unsure, it  makes sense to listen to others.

Slide 45: Obediance  Peoplecomply to social pressures. But how would they respond to outright command?  Milgram designed a study that investigated the effects of authority on Stanley Milgram obedience. (1933-1984)

Slide 46: Milgram’s Study

Slide 47: Milgram’s Studies  ~65% complied with administration of shocks  Degree of obediance influenced by: – Physical proximity of authority figure – Status of authority figure – Depersonalisation of victim – Lack of role models for defiance

Slide 48: Milgram’s Study Depending on subtle changes in conditions, compliance varied b/w 0 & 93%

Slide 49: Zimbardo’s Prison Study (1970’s)  Subjects played either prisoners or guards.  Prisoners were arrested, fingerprinted, dressed, and referred to by number.  Guards were dressed and given control over prisoners.  Subjects became their roles in action, thought and feeling.

Slide 50: Resistance  ~a third of individuals resisted social coercion (Milgram).  One dissenter can have a disproportionate effect on reducing the compliance of others.

Slide 51: Group Influence Social facilitation  Social loafing  Deindividuation  Group polarisation  Groupthink 

Slide 52: Social Relationships Antisocial  Prejudice  Aggression  Conflict Prosocial  Prosocial Behaviour

Slide 53: Social Relationships Questions  What causes us to harm, help, or to fall in love?  How can we transform aggression into compassion?

Slide 54: Social Relations Social psychology teaches us how we relate to one another from prejudice, aggression and conflict to attraction, altruism and peacemaking.

Slide 55: Prejudice  “Prejudgement”: Unjustifiable (usually -ve) attitude toward a group and its members – often towards a different cultural, ethnic or gender group.  Worksat the conscious and [more so] the unconscious level.  Morelike a knee-jerk response than a conscious decision.

Slide 56: Prejudice Components Beliefs (stereotypes) • Emotions (hostility, envy, fear) • Predisposition to act (to discriminate) •

Slide 57: Prejudice Roots Social inequalities 1. – haves vs. have-nots Social divisions 2. – in- vs. out-groups (in-group bias) Emotional scapegoating 3. – blaming, emotional outlet (+FAE)

Slide 58: Categorisation  We are “cognitive misers”, so we use categorisation to simplify and organise our perceptual worlds.   Stereotypes Generalised (often exaggerated) beliefs about a group of people.   Potential for prejudice   Potential for aggression/conflict

Slide 59: Aggression  Physical or verbal behavior intended to hurt or destroy.  Emerges from the interaction of: – Biology  Genetic  Neural  Biochemical – Experience  Aversive events e.g., misery, temp, frustrate  Operant conditioning  Social learning

Slide 60: Aggression

Slide 61: Conflict  Perceived incompatibility of actions, goals, or ideas.  Conflicting parties, each rationally pursuing their self-interest, become caught in mutually destructive behavior  “Social Trap”: – Win-Lose – Lose-Win, or – Lose-lose.

Slide 62: Game Theory

Slide 63: Game Theory

Slide 64: Game Theory

Slide 65: Attraction Proximity (mere exposure effect) Attractiveness Similarity Cost-benefits

Slide 66: Love Passionate Aroused state of absorption (arousal + cognition) Companionate Deep affection & caring

Slide 67: Altruism Unselfish, intentional behavior that is  intended to benefit welfare of others. – Behaviours which have no obvious gain for the provider – Behaviours which have obvious costs for the provider (e.g. time, resources) Is there really altruism?  – Altruism is often for self-benefit e.g., power, status, reward, psychological gain. What matters in judging the act is the actor's  intended outcomes.

Slide 68: Altruism  Equity / Reciprocity – Give to relationships in proportion to what we receive (Social Exchange Theory)  Socialresponsibility norm  Reciprocal altruism – Natural selection favors animals that are altruistic if the benefit to each is greater than the cost of altruism

Slide 69: Bystander Effect  Diminished sense of personal responsibility to act because others are seen as equally responsible.  Bystanders are less likely to help in presence of more people (e.g. part of a large crowd)  75% help when alone vs. 53% in presence of others  \"Diffusion of responsibility\"

Slide 70: Peacemaking  Superordinate goals  Communication  Graduated & Reciprocated Initiatives in Tension-Reduction (GRIT)

Slide 71: References Myers, D. G. (2001). Social Psychology  (Ch. 18). In D. G. Myers (2001). Psychology (6th ed.) (pp. 643-688). New York: Worth.  Myers, D. G. (2007). Social Psychology (Ch. 18). In D. G. Myers (2007). Psychology (8th ed.) (pp. 723-771). New York: Worth.