This document contains 5 journal entries by a student about topics in social psychology: social loafing, social comparison, counterfactual thinking, covariation theory, and observational learning. Each entry provides an example and definition of the topic, along with one of the student's own experiences related to that concept. The document also includes references used in the journal entries.

1. SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE, BUILDING AND
DESIGN
FOUNDATION IN NATURAL BUILD
ENVIRONMENT (FNBE)
AUGUST 2014 INTAKE
Name: Teo Kuo Chien
Student ID: 0320195
Group/session: Monday 9 a.m.
Subject and Course: Social Psychology (PSY30203)
Assignment 1 – individual journal
Submission date: 27-4-2015

2. Entry 1 – Chapter 1 - Social Loafing
23-4-2015 Thursday 7:30p.m.
Social loafing is a study conducted by a French professor of agricultural engineering
named Max Ringelmann in 1883. He concluded that an individual’s performance actually gets
worst in the presence of others.
One of the examples of social loafing is clapping hands during a concert need not make
much noise in term of saving your hands getting painful and nobody will notice. Another
example is in a group sport competition like basketball or football, you perform less on court
or field in term to save energy but your teammates will win the game for you and everyone
receive the same result. One of my own experience was when having a group assignment. I
attend all meeting to shown up more so it feels like I done more work but people who absent
for meeting actually did more for the final work.

3. Entry 2 – Chapter 2 – Social comparison
23-4-2015 Thursday 8:50p.m.
Social comparison states that we compare our own social and personal worth based on
how we stack up with others. As a result, we are constantly making evaluation between self
and other across a variety of domains. It is defined into upward and downward social
comparison. Upward social comparison is an assessment of how we measure up against our
peers which think we have done badly while it was only a little bit more to reach the best and
downward social comparison act completely opposite.
An example of upward social comparison is that you got an 85% for a math exam but
one of your friend got a 90% which is highest in class and u think that you are doing so badly.
We can enhance our self-esteem by feeling that we are better than other people. As an example
of downward social comparison, during a running event, you was group running with a bunch
of people, people who run around you run with a slower speed than you and it makes you think
that you run faster. Another example is that when teacher posting result for a test, most of your
friends get a C grade for that test and you get a B grade. You feel smarter than your friends but
actually you are not that good as an A graded result. One of my own experience was during I
having a badminton training session. One of the badminton player I used to trained with spend
less effort all the time during training and it makes me feel that I will win while having a game
with him but when it comes to real game with him I lost because he put all effort in the game.

4. Entry 3 – Chapter 3 – counterfactual thinking
24-4-2015 Friday 9:30a.m.
Counterfactual thinking is define as imagining different outcomes for an event that has
already happened. It is categorize into two category which is upward and downward
counterfactual thinking. Upward counterfactual is that regretting of the outcome of an event and
will think of a better action which should be done before the outcome happened to be it is.
Downward counterfactual is that thinking positively after receiving a bad outcome.
As an example for upward counterfactual thinking. After you had cooked your dinner and
it doesn’t look good, you will think that if only you had added more vegetable or meat or salt in
it instead of just cooking it simple. For an example of downward counterfactual thinking. You
was given an assignment of drawing an object and the outcome after you drawing was not like
what you expect, but after you observe your friends work which is even worst than yours, you
feel that at least you draw better than them. One of my own experience was after I submitted a
last minute work and worried about the result and the result came out to be better than people
who work harder than me even though my result was not that good but I will think that it is still
better because I work lesser.

5. Entry 4 – Chapter 4 – Covariation theory
24-4-2015 Friday 8:00p.m.
Covariation theory is an attribution found by Harold Kelly in 1967. Covariation means
developing a logical model for judging whether a particular action should be attributed to some
characteristic which is internal of the person or the environment which is external. It is based on
three factors, consensus, distinctiveness and consistency. Consensus is would most people
behave in the same way? Distinctiveness is would the same person behave differently in other
situation? And consistency is does the individual respond in the same way to the same stimulus
in different context?
An example of covariation theory is Alison smokes a cigarette when she goes out for a
meal with her friend. If her friend smokes, her behavior is high in consensus. If only Alison
smokes then it is low. If Alison only smokes when she is out with friends, her behavior is high
in distinctiveness. If she smokes at any time or place, distinctiveness is low. If Alison only
smokes when she is out with friends, consistency is high. If she only smoke on one special
occasion, consistency is low. If Alison only smokes when she is out with friends, consistency is
high. If she only smoke on one special occasion, consistency is low. One of my own experience
was that one of my friend make a joke and causes me and everyone to laugh therefore
consensus is high. And it is an unusual behavior for me because people usually don’t laugh at
what I’m laughing so it is high distinctiveness. Consistency is also high because I’m still
laughing this joke of his. This makes it an external causes.

6. Entry 5 – Chapter 5 – Observational learning
24-4-2015 Friday 10:10p.m.
Observational learning is based primarily work of Albert Bandura in 1977. Observational
learning is refer to learning that occurs when watching others as a model and engage in the same
behaviors and repeating and replicating those observed actions. This can explain how we acquire
attitudes, fears, opinions, or specific behaviors.
Several examples of observational learning are like when children observed their father
had violent against their mother, the children will follow as it is a behavior they learn and think it
is right and bring it forward to their future. Another example is when you are young, you see
everyone will have their own mobile phone when they reach certain age therefore when you
reach the age similarly you will get yourself a mobile phone too which u think it is a stimulus to
follow. One of my own experience was when I was young, I watch my family on how they
communicate to each other, so I follow the same way they talk and communicate to people I
meet.

7. References
 https://www.boundless.com/psychology/textbooks/boundless-psychology-
textbook/learning-7/cognitive-approaches-to-learning-48/observational-learning-203-
12738/
 http://psychology.about.com/od/developmentalpsychology/a/sociallearning.htm
 http://psychology.about.com/od/oindex/fl/What-Is-Observational-Learning.htm
 http://www.simplypsychology.org/attribution-theory.html
 http://tweenparenting.about.com/od/physicalemotionalgrowth/a/Downward-
Comparisons.htm
 http://tweenparenting.about.com/od/socialdevelopment/a/Upward-Comparison.htm
 http://changingminds.org/explanations/theories/counterfactual_thinking.htm
 http://www.psych-it.com.au/Psychlopedia/article.asp?id=401
 http://psychology.about.com/od/sindex/g/Socialcomp.htm
 http://changingminds.org/explanations/theories/social_loafing.htm