This document discusses 5 concepts from social psychology: 1. Discrimination and stereotyping, such as negative views of people with tattoos. 2. The halo effect, where one positive trait causes us to positively judge other unknown traits. 3. Optimism bias and counterfactual thinking, like being overly optimistic about academic results. 4. Self-fulfilling prophecies, where expectations of others can influence their actual performance. 5. Social loafing in groups, where people put in less effort due to diffusion of responsibility.

1. Social Psychology
Tung Siew Hui, Jiji Ng, Jason Goh KokWei, Chin Cheong Soon

2. 5 Concepts Incorporated in Class
▪ Discrimination
▪ Halo Effect
▪ Optimism Bias and CounterfactualThinking
▪ Self-fulfilling Prophecy
▪ Social Loafing

3. Video Clip: First-hand Approach to
University Environment

4. Stereotype-Discrimination: Tattoo
Irrational behavioural disposition towards group
or its members – disparagement:
o based on society’s consequential values
o lack of mutuality between discriminating and
discriminated individuals.
o impulsive categorization of discriminating
individual; not the actual values of
discriminated individual.
Manifestations of hostility:
o verbal: professing the barbarity of tattooing
individual
o non-verbal: disrespected reflection in facial
and viewing expression
Prejudicial thinking:
o avoidance of contact
o renunciation of equality

5. Cognitive Bias–Halo Effect: New
Relationship
Tendency to view peer holistically by means of
social norms, initiated by peer’s positive,
specific trait, is due to:
o conceptual bias: nonconformity in
reasoning about ambiguous group’s belief,
desire and intention.
o cognitive predisposition: deep-rooted
perception of former trait.

6. Optimism Bias and Counterfactual
Thinking: Academic Result
Optimistic bias: exaggeration of positive
occurrence for difficult occasions, as in:
o planning fallacy: tendency of generating
optimistic predictions about task
management.
Counterfactual thinking: susceptibility of
comparing situational alternatives with
current occurrence via automatic and active
cognition processing, as in:
o downward counterfactual thinking:
comparison associated with positive
feelings on present outcomes with less
favourable ones

7. Self-fulfilling Prophecy: Academic
Performance
Self-fulfilling prophecy: Positive or negative
expectation affected target to create
situations in the expectation’s fulfilment.
o realisation and internalisation of
perceiver’s behaviour based on
classification of behaviour, occasioning
target being “socially reconstructed”,
because:
o educator’s behaviour redirect student’s
belief of learning in motivation,
achievement and behaviour.

8. Social Loafing: Group Assignment
Tendency of individuals to dedicate lesser
effort in the contribution of group task, due
to:
o lacking motivation in task drive
o unproductive group expectation on
member’s negligence
o diffusion of responsibility due to
bystander effect