Term
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Definition
Attribution Theory: How do you decide why or how somebody did something? Why did you win that game? Why did you do poorly on the exam? You try to figure out the causes of the outcome.
• Types of attributions
o Personal attribution- it’s about us- You do well on your exam- I studied really hard!
o Situational attribution- it’s about the situation or environment- You lose a soccer game- the weather was bad! |
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Term
| Kelley's Covariation Model |
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Definition
Kelley’s Covariation Model- the way we make decisions about how to attribute involves a pretty complicated analysis. We must look at three things to ask our selves to see whether we can attribute it to personal or situation: Let’s say you’re deciding to take a class next semester and you ask somebody for a recommendation and a friend of your says: take organic chemistry. Everybody loves it. So, personal attribution or social attribution: Personal means that your friend really likes it but nobody else does (and don’t take it)- function of the person. Social means that everybody likes it (take it)- function of the situation.
• Consensus- what do other people think?
o If everybody loves organic chemistry then you have high consensus→ situational.
o If everybody hates it or hated it, then you have low consensus→ personal
• Distinctiveness
o Friend says I like that class better than any other one. High distinctiveness → situational
o Friend says I like that class and these 10 others! Low distinctiveness → personal
• Consistency – to make any kind of attribution, you need consistant behavior
o Friend says “I love organic” and then “I hate it” the next day→ makes it impossible to make an attribution.
o Friend always says “I love organic” → you need high consistency to make any kind of attribution. |
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Term
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Definition
Attributional biases
• Fundamental attribution error- our strong tendency to make personal attributions when we look at people’s behavior. Ex) Driving and gets cut off by a person. We say that person is a jerk- we don’t say oh, that person is in a real rush and needs to get a child to the hospital.
• Actor-observer bias- when we look at our own behavior- we often make situational attributions for our own behavior.
• Self-serving bias- how do we attribute successes versus failures. When we do well, we make personal attributions. When we do poorly, we make situational. |
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Definition
| Effects of attribution- influences lots of things in daily life all of the time. Many political debates- abortion, for instance. Situational attribution lading to an unplanned pregnancy- rape, lack of knowledge or resources, failure rate of contraceptives. Attributions that are personal- irresponsible behavior. Selfish lifestyle choice. |
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Term
| Attitudes: acquiring attitudes: |
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Definition
• Acquiring attitudes
o Information- get information from other people. Learn things from other people, like parents, peers, media, older siblings
o Classical conditioning – unconscious association between two different types of things. Eating cheetos when you’re coming down with the flu, and you decide you don’t like cheetos anymore.
o Operant conditioning – behaviors reinforced by rewards or punishment. I should play hockey because my parents congratulate me when I score a goal.
o Observational learning/modeling- we learn what we should do based on what others do and model from them |
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Term
| Theories of attitude change: |
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Definition
elaboration likelihood model of persuasion (petty & cacioppo)
Cognitive dissonance Theory (Festinger)
Self-perception theory (Bem) |
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Term
| o Elaboration Likelihood Model of Persuasion (Petty &Cacioppo)- |
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Definition
• Theories of attitude change
o Elaboration Likelihood Model of Persuasion (Petty &Cacioppo)- you have a choice of how to change
• Central/systematic route- intensive, involved, involves careful consideration, evaluation, thought- are people convinced by the strength of the arguments. You try to convince people through the merit of the arguments. Ex) ads for medicine- show comparisons of speed, etc. or healthy cereals. Or cleaning products. High elaboration- Degree of attitude cange depends on quality of arguments.
• Peripheral/heuristic route – the person does not think carefully about the argument and is influenced by superficial characteristics of a message like if the speaker is attractive, speaker’s expertise- it’s not about the actual merits of the subject being discussed. Ex) beauty products. Cigarettes. Beer/ alcohol. Perfume. Low elaboration- careful processing doesn’t occur and attitude chane depends on presence of persuasian cues
• Using central takes longer than peripheral! We are exposed to so many media processing messages, we must pick and choose. What influences: do you care enough to process things centrally? Buying a care? Yes. Buying perfume? No.
• Study: mandatory exam to graduate from college. 3 independent variables:expertise who delivered the message (Princeton professor in education policy or a high school student who was an expert debater) and strength of argument. Final independent variable: one group told that it would only go through in 10-15 years, and the other group said that it would be instated with your class.
o Students for whom it won’t effect (10-15) use peripheral, and the quality of the messages doesn’t matter at all – judge based on expertise and prestige (Princeton).
o If it effects you, you are persuaded by quality of the arguments- the speaker doesn’t matter, but quality of argument matters. |
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Term
| Cognitive Dissonance Theory (Festinger) |
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Definition
• Cognitive Dissonance Theory (Festinger)- ULTIMATELY: when you engage in a behavior that contradicts your attitude, it makes you feel uncomfortable (physiologically aroused)- to resolve this feeling of discomfort, you have to change your attitude because you can’t undo your behavior.
o if you want to change their attitude you have to change their behavior. Ex) If we wanted to segregate schools only when people are reduced in prejudice, it would take forever. If we enforce the behavior, and segregate schools, then the attitudes will change. Ex) students in a study: people in study are asked to lie about enjoyability for money- in one condition, $1, in another, $20. According to operant condititioning- the $20 is more likely. However, those who got 20 dollars reported liking it much less than those who got 1 dollar- opposite of operant! If you got 20 dollars for lying, you say I lied, but it was worth it (attributed to situation) I really did hate it. However, if you lied for only $1.00, you say that there must have been some part of you that enjoyed it (attribution to person)
• Insufficient justification- you didn’t have enough justification for your lie for a dollar, so you change your attitude and like it more. If you got 20 you have plenty of justification, so you don’t change your attitude.
• Effort justification- how do you justify the effort you put in to something. Study was for a discussion group about sex. Had to be initiated- two groups, low and high. Low effort condition, had to read a list of sexual words. High effort condition, women had to read sexually explicit words that were extremely explicit and after reading, you had to read a passage that was highly pornographic. When you listen in to the group, you hear an extremely boring discussion about secondary sexual characteristics about crickets. If you did the low effort, you’re going ot be honest and say it wasn’t very interesting. If you did the high effort, you’re more excited- after all you went through! Ex) FRATS- people who go through awful initiation procedures and at the end, you love the frat. If the initiation isn’t that bad, eh. |
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Term
| Self perception Theory (Bem) |
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Definition
| • Self-perception Theory (Bem) – Opposition to cognitive dissonance. It says cognitive dissonance is way too complicated. When you’re figuring out what your attitude is, just look at your behavior. It’s not even about attitude change, it’s about figuring out what you’re attitude is by perceiving yourself and your behavior. Ex) Trying to find out if men had individual preferences in attraction for women. Slide show of naked porn of women. Fake lie detector test. For each man, they chose the particular women which the screen would show the most attraction- you weren’t showing their actual heart rate. Offers the men a picture to take home- they chose the one that says their heart rate liked the most. |
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Term
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Definition
• Asch’s line judgment study illustrating conformity- people in a study see a line and must evaluate which line is closest in size to another line. Other people in study are all confederates of the study. Three trials where it’s obvious. Everyone seems to be picking the wrong answer and you pick the wrong answer too.
• Factors increasing conformity
o Group size – dramatic impact on frequency of right answers- once you get to 3 other people, conformity sky rockets
o Standing alone- it’s hard to be the only person giving a different answer. If someone else gives your answer, you are much less likely to conform. That is true even if the other person doesn’t give your answer.
o Age/sex difference- age most likely to conform is adolescents. Women tend to conform more. |
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Definition
• Milgram’s shock study illustrating obedience- men randomly brought in to administer shocks despite screams of agony
• Factors producing obedience-
o Subject- almost no evidence that subject factors matter!!!! People in general seem willing and able to follow orders. A little evidence of personality but very little. Most people are willing to go along with it.
o Authority- does seem to matter. If it was in a run down strip mall, fewer would obey- at Yale, where there is authority, they do obey. And when the experimenter is not a doctor but a grad student, obedience drops.
o Victim- victim doesn’t matter. Men or women. What seems to help is having the victim removed from sight. Obedience dropped when your proximity was closer to the victim or if you have to force the victim’s hand.
o Procedure- most importantly to lead to obedience. It was designed to increase obedience: gradation of shocks, slow escalation- takes advantage of two principles: cognitive dissonance and justification of actions
• So: what happened in Germany probably wasn’t unique- people take direction from people in a leadership role…
• Ethical issues produced by the Milgram study-
o Are people emotionally damaged after? He tried to make them feel good (some people do it with glee! Showed the healthy student)- obviously, it’s hard to know whether everyone felt good or whether they felt like they needed to tell Milgram now- this would never be able to be done today because it could cause psychological harm to someone! |
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Term
| 4 examples of how people interact with each other: |
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Definition
| Stereotypes and Prejudice, aggression, attraction, altruism |
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Term
| Factors leading to prejudice: |
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Definition
• Social categorization- extent to which we readily and easily categorize people into groups – can be done on many distinctions- do they go to Amherst or Williams (even though they are identical…). Race, religion, sexual orientation…
o Outgroup homogeneity- we see people in our “in” group as distinct, different, unusual, diverse- yet we see people in the out group as all of the same.
o Subtyping- when we get information about somebody who deviates from our stereotype, we logically should change our stereotypes- but we don’t. We create a subtype and we put that person in an exception “box” of a subtype. Finding out that Sanderson is an aerobics instructor doesn’t change our opinions about aerobics instructors! Sanderson is the exception.
o In-group favoritism- we prefer people in our group and give differential attributions to them.
• Social inequality/ just-world phenomenon- we have a real desire to believe the world is fair and just so we blame conditions of social inequality on people’s own personal attributions. If we learn that someone is on welfare, we say that it must be because they are lazy. If we hear that a woman is we raped, we say that she was asking for it.
• Perceptual confirmation- flowers bloom in the the spring- we see what we expect to see- we say the boy reacting to the jack in the box is angry/ surprised whereas the girl baby is scared
• Self-fulfilling prophecy- another level of perceptual confirmation- you have an expectation about somebody and you treat that person in line with your expectations. And then, someone acts exactly that way- it elicits the behavior that you expect.
o Ex) You are going to meet somebody new. Somebody tells you that they are kind of arrogant. You then treat that person coolly. In turn, they react coolly.
o Ex) Students with IQ leaps |
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Term
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Definition
o Sanction by authority- extremely important that people in authority do not sanction prejudice or stereotypes. We look to leaders to see whether or not they are tolerated.
o Equal status contact- best way to reduce prejudice is to have people from different backgrounds interacting on equal footing so everybody is contributing
o Pursuit of common goals- prejudice can be lower when you’re all pulling together to accomplish something. Anything in which the works together for the same goal is a unifying force. |
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Term
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Definition
• The Biology of Aggression
o Genetic- nature has a role. Genetic predisposition to aggression. Identical twins are more similar even if reared apart.
o Evolutionary factors- peoples and animals needed a base level of aggression in order to survive
o Biochemical- hormones (testosterone) are associated with levels of aggression- men have higher testosterone and more aggression- men with higher levels of testosterone are more aggressive than those with lower levels. If you increase testosterone in someone, their aggression increases.
(These three can all be connected and interrelated)
• The Psychology of Aggression
o Learning- modeling learning! Bobo Dolls and bandura- watching aggressive models and imitating that model. Violent television.
o Frustration-aggression theory- we aggress when we are frustrated and are inhibited from completing a desired goal. Ex) losing sports teams act more aggressively than winning sports teams.
o Arousal-affect model (transferred excitation)- when you feel arousal, if you are in a situation that cues aggression, you can transfer your own arousal and interpret it as aggression because of the situation you are in and you will feel aggression. Similar to Schachter Two Factor theory.
o Aggressive stimulus (“weapon focus effect”)- increases the feelings of aggression. Play off of Milgram except you get to choose the level of shocks- in some conditions you were in a room with a tennis racket and in another, there was a rifle- Presence of gun lead you to give higher shock levels.
o Deindividuation – loss of individuality. You do not have a keen sense of self as a distinct person. You are a part of an anonymous group so then major acts of aggression occur with groups acting anonymously. People in groups behave much worse than people individually. |
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Term
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Definition
• Proximity/mere exposure- people or things that you see or hear frequently actually become more appealing to you. Ex) song played repeatedly on the radio!
• Physiological arousal/excitation transfer- if you have arousal from any source, it can lead you to find somebody in your environment more attractive- you transfer the arousal
o Study: Men handed in survey to female or male- in one condition, bridge was stable and in other, bridge wobbled- people who conducted study gave out phone number- dependent variable was how many people called
• Physical attractiveness- people who are physically attractive are thought of as more attractive- influences not just dating, but how we rate people in the world (hiring for jobs, promotions, teaching evaluations, better grades to more attractive children) Why?
o We like to look at things that are appealing.
o When we see somebody who is physically attractive, we think that they are better in all sorts of dimensions as well (what is beautiful is also good).
o Physical attractiveness is associated with being treated well- higher social skills.
o Reflects well on us.
• Similarity
o Opposites attract is not true. Couples who are similar to each other on virtually every dimension increase attraction. Opposites make you fight more. |
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Term
| Altruism and theories of helping |
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Definition
4. Altruism- 1964 in NYC in the early morning when a woman arrived home at 2 am and as she entered the entrance of the building, a man started stabbing her and as she screamed, lights came on and he ran away when he saw the lights. Nobody came nor called the police. So he returned and he killed her and left. After she died, police came and went door to door and many said “yes I did hear something or see something but didn’t do anything” Why? Everybody turning on their lights saw everybody else turning on the lights and assumed that somebody else would call the police. Lead to series of studies about altruism.
• Theories of Helping
o Genetic factors- Prior to this case, people thought that genetics lead to it as an evolutionary advantage. More likely to help younger people who can reproduce, than older people. People who are selfish would die out because if you’re selfish, others won’t help you.
o Empathy-altruism hypothesis- we help people even if we are not genetically related to them if we feel an empathetic connection with them.
o Piliavin’s arousal: cost-reward model- when you see somebody in need, you feel uncomfortable arousal- you want to reduce that discomfort and you do so by helping. In order to get rid of the arousal you have to help and we are very rationally aware of the costs and benefits of helping, which we all compute. If rewards outweigh costs, you help- if vice versa, you do not help.
o Decision Making Tree (Latane and Darley)- the one developed after the NYC case- Helping is very very complicated. When we decide to help, it’s the result of making complex decisions.
• 1. Notice that something is happening- sometimes, you are simply unaware- people in cities help less than small towns because there is so much going on and you might not be paying attention.
• 2. Interpret event as an emergency- in some cases, people notice an event but don’t realize that it’s an emergency- ex) in London, 2 year old boy was taken from the grocery store and his body was found beaten by a train track later- people said yeah I saw that boy and he was walking with two other kids- 2 11 year old boys did it. Everyone thought he was just having a tantrum.
• 3. Take responsibility for providing help- In NYC case, this didn’t happen- they said that somebody else will call the police. You’re more likely to get help if fewer people are around than more, because if their more, people will take less responsibility.
• 4. Decide how to help- people get certified in CPR or first AID. Often it’s not clear what to do. Should I move the person? Call 911? What do you do?
• 5. Provide help- you have to decide to provide help.
o Helping behavior is hard because it relates to the psychology of helping- are we going to look foolish? Are we costing our self something? |
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Term
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Definition
| Freud- best known psychologist, in part because his theories have expanded and aren’t just know in psychology- intended to study nervous orders but he soon saw that people had physical symptoms without physical causes. He tried to focus on causes based on psychological factors. |
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Term
| Freud's levels of personality |
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Definition
Levels of Personality- personality is an iceberg
• Conscious- highly aware of it and understand it- but it is only a small part of our personality. It’s our thoughts, feelings, awareness.
• Preconscious- you don’t quite have access to it but you could- it’s just below the surface- if you had the right tools, you could gain access to it (tip of the tongue kind of feeling)
• Unconscious- bulk of conscious- stuff below the surface. It is repressed. This is what makes a personality. We have buried this stuff. We have no access to it. It influences us in many ways- behavior, thinking, desires. When the unconscious seeps out, we make “Freudian slips |
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Term
| Freud's personality structure |
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Definition
Personality Structure
• Id- pleasure principle- what drives us at a base level. Gratification. We want sex and aggression. (in unconscious)
• Ego- reality principle- rational. How do you satisfy desires of the id in ways that are acceptable in society? (in preconscious)
• Superego- morality principle- trying to be who you want to become- it is your internalized standards for judgement- how you would havae liked to live your life. (in unconscious) |
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Term
| Freud's personality development: |
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Definition
Personality Development: Happens over time. For each stage you need to fulfill the desires of each stage to move on in a healthy way.
• Stages of development
o Oral stage (birth- 18 months)- people are focused on oral gratification. Children put everything in their mouths.
o Anal stage (18-36 months)- children learn to have control over bathroom habits – toilet training- he believes its pleasurable for children to know they have control over body functions.
o Phallic stage (3-6 years)- shift to looking at pleasure in a more adult way- focus a bit more on genitals (little boys)
• Oedipus complex- little boys develop an unconscious sexual desire for their mothers and resent fathers for taking them away – they want their father to be dead so that they can be with their mother. This makes them feel guilty and resolve this guilt by going through…
• Repression- burying away the desire for the mothers, and the desire to kill their fathers, and cope by starting with…
• Identification with their fathers. This is very important. I’m going to be like my father and do similar things as my father.
o Latent stage (6-puberty)- nothing happens. Sexuality is dormant. They play with same sex peers.
o Genital stage (at puberty, through adulthood- you begin having normal, or adult like, sexual desire
• Fixation (when development goes awry) – when you do not satisfy those desires, you have unresolved conflict from earlier stages and you don’t progress normally- you are stuck with baggage that you didn’t work out during childhood. Ex) if stuck in oral stages, you chew gum, eat candy, smoke cigarettes |
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Term
| Freud's defense mechanisms: |
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Definition
Defense Mechanisms (types of repression) – because we live in social groups, you cannot act out your desires all of the time. So we take these desires and bury them.
• Regression- when people are faced with something anxiety provoking, they regress to an earlier time period. Ex) when children have undergone stresses, they act younger than their age.
• Reaction formation- unacceptable impulses are switched to their opposite. Ex) People claim they really hate people but they actually really love them.
• Projection- you take your own thoughts and beliefs and project them onto somebody else. If you don’t trust someone, you might say, that person does not trust me.
• Rationalization – you rationalie why a behavior is okay. People with an alcohol problem sometimes say “no I don’t have an alcohol problem, I just drink to be social!”
• Displacement- you have anger at somebody or something- instead of acting one way towards the object of that desire, you displace it onto somebody else- children who feel anger at their parents may displace it onto their stuffed animal or a sibling
• Sublimation – you take unacceptable impulses and you convert them into acceptable ones. |
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Term
| Freud's assessing the unconscious |
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Definition
Assessing the Unconscious
• Hypnosis- separation from conscious controls – can tap into hidden desires or needs
• Dream interpretation- unconscious seeps out in dreams
• Free association- let someone talk and free associate from one idea to the next.
• Projective tests
o Thematic apperception test (TAT)- interpretation of a neutral stimulus (random pictures- what kind of story do you tell about that picture)
o Rorschach inkblot test – look at inkblots and make a story from it. |
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Term
| Freud's evaluating hte psychoanalytic perspective (personality models) |
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Definition
• The concept of repression- we actually obsess about bad things that happen to us!
• The unconscious mind- evidence suggests that this is correct, based on subliminal messages.
• Freud’s ideas as scientific theory.
o Sex and aggression are not the only true forces- it’s hard to prove some of Freud’s theories yet. As a scientific, it’s base on a small number of case studies- it suggests ideas that are impossible to refute (if they are categorized as repression)- no clear sense of how things would manifest themselves. Yet regardless, he had a profound influence that continues today. |
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Term
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Definition
Followers of Freud (Neo-Freudians) – shared many of Freud’s theories in terms of basic structure, yet emphasized conscious as well. Also, they doubted that sex and aggression were the only motivators.
• Alfred Alder- childhood was very important but instead of emphasizing sexuality, believed that social interactions are important in framing personality.
• Karen Horney- focused on women (whereas Freud with men)- women’s development was separate and independent of males, and focused on children trying to find security and comfort. She questioned penis envy.
• Carl Jung – less on social world like other neo Freudians, focused on unconscious (like Freud)- but believed that the unconscious included the experiences of your ancestors, historically transmitted collective unconscious. He believed that unconscious represents the totality. Your family, cultures unconscious represents a collective unconscious. |
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Term
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Definition
Trait Perspective- can divide people based on their traits and general characteristics. Ex) Different kinds of apples.
• Models in the Trait Perspective
o Eysenck’s biological trait theory- it’s biologically determined and has shown cross cultural validity. But recent research suggests that two dimensions are two small. You are rated on a scale of these two dimensions:
• Emotional vs. stable
• Introverted vs. extroverted
o The Big Five: 5 distinct models OCEAN- validated cross culturally and widely used
• Openness to experience- curiosity, open to new experiences
• Conscientiousness- how reliable or dependable you are
• Extraversion- how focused on social life, activity, energy
• Agreeableness- appreciative, generous, kind, social relationships
• Neuroticism- stability or anxious, emotionally unstable
• Assessing the self:
o Personality inventories- can just ask people. They know what they are like- it’s not the Freudian unconscious. People might mis represent themselves.
o Peer reports- go to an individual or friends and ask them what they think about you.
o Indirect methods- subtle ways of measuring personalities instead of just asking on an questionnaire, go actively into a setting and analyze personality based on physical states – go into their bedroom or office
• Evaluating the Trait Perspective:
o Person-situation controversy- people act differently in different settings, contexts (work versus social)- and those contexts drive behavior
o Consistency over time- is personality stagnant? It should be stable, won’t change with age.
o Traits describe, but do not predict behavior (limitation) |
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Term
| Humanistic/ Phenomenological Perspective models |
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Definition
Humanistic/ Phenomenological Perspective- grew out of a dissatisfaction with Freud’s theories and disagrees with the objectiveness of the trait perspective. Wants to see people in a more nuanced or humanistic way.
• Models in the Humanistic/Phenomenological Perspective
o Maslow’s self actualizing person Hierarchy of needs, believed that the peak is self-actualization. He read about people who were famous for leading productive and wealthy lives and saw that they were loving, carrying, made unpopular decisions, and had a strong sense of identity.
• fulfilling one’s potential,
• are very self aware, open, loving, and caring, focus on a particular task,
• don’t care what others think
Deficiency orientation- focused on what one doesn’t have, wants a fulfillment of things- always focused on absence VS
Growth orientation self actualized, focus on what they can come in a spiritual way, focus on true potential
o Roger’s person-centered perspective- everyone is good and is primed for growth and fulfilled under three conditions:
• Three conditions: genuineness, acceptance, empathy
Genuineness- openness
Acceptance: unconditional love
Empathy- understanding of where others come from
• importance of the self-concept- need good view of yourself, general positive view of themselves reflects itself in other aspects of life |
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Term
| HP assessing self and evaluation |
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Definition
• Assessing the Self-
o Questionnaires- what are you like right now and what is your ideal
o Interviews/conversations- allows a broader sense of person with follow up questions
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• Evaluating the Humanistic Perspective
o Real world contributions- benefits of high self-esteem are clear- happier marriage,s happier lives
o The concept of self-actualization – he could have chosen differentpeople than he did. People can be equally self actualized whether they do good or bad deeds- Hitler!
o Encourages selfishness- selfishness is about fulfilling one’s own needs and self- self indulgent, egocentrism
o Ignores capacity for evil- is pure goodness true or are there people who are just inherently evil?
o Ignores differences across cultures (individualistic versus collectivistic)- individualistic vs. collectivism- are you a part of a community or family- the theory doesn’t see how your self is connected to other people which varies between different cultures |
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Term
| Social cognitive perspective |
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Definition
Social-Cognitive Perspective: Most recent model. We learn many of our behaviors through our observations and imitations of society around us.
• Models in Social Cognitive Theory
o Reciprocal influences (Bandura) reciprocity between person and situation. Ex) highly aggressive child may choose to play football, get into fights, read violent cartoons, which leads to greater aggression – a trait leads someone to put themselves in a certain position, and being in a certain position further leades to a trait
• Personal control (Rotter)- extent that you can control what happens in your world
o Internal locus of control- individual believes that his or her behavior is guided by his or her personal decisions and efforts
o External locus of control- individual believes that his or her behavior is guided by fate, luck or other external circumstnces
• Person by situation theory (Mischel)- best way of predicting future behavior is by looking at past behavior in similar situations. You can’t predict broadly, only specifically. You need to know person in the present and previous behavior to predict future beavior.
• Assessing the self
o Questionnaires
o Observation- observe people in different situations
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• Evaluating the Social Cognitive Perspective
o Ignores unconscious motives- doesn’t acknowledge unconscious traits or thoughts, it’s completely cognitive. The model is very logical, objective and rational. Not really looking at individual differences but rather situational differences. Also ignores anything regarding to a strict trit model.
o Is it personality? The model doesn’t seem to relate to personality- it relates more to the situation than to personality. It underplays the role of the person. |
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Term
| Classifying Psychological Disorders |
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Definition
Classifying Psychological Disorders- 30% of America have dealt with disorders. Very wide spread. Includes people being hospitalized, therapy, and includes those who may not see a psychological therapist but may talk to a guidance counselor, priest, or some kind of mental health advocate
• Defining psychological disorders- psychological disorders have all of these criteria:
o Atypical (abnormal)- it is not something seen in many people. Something beyond the norm.
o Disturbing- in appearance- doesn’t go about normal behavior. People see it as weird.
o Maladaptive- it is harmful.
o Unjustifiable- not a reason for it. You need to understand where the behavior is coming from.
o **Different cultures see these behaviors in different ways! Ex) homosexuality- at one point 30 years ago it was considered a disorder. And disorders can be culturally specific- eating disorders are primarily in western cultures.
• Diagnosing psychological disorders (DSM-IV)
o Giant book. It tells you what the criteria are to get any kind of psychological disorder. 250 disorders described. But put in 17 different categories- we talk about 5 of them.
• The dangers of labeling psychological disorders – consequences exist. Once you learn that somebody has a psychological disorder, do you treat them differently or see their behavior in different ways? It’s a form of stereotype that can influence other things and the label can impact that person harmfully! |
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Term
| Understanding Psychological Disorders |
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Definition
• Medical perspective- psychological disorders have a clear biological cause that could be genetic, hormone, something. They can be treated with medicine. (Antidepressants). This is a promising advance, but it has side effects, so it has some costs.
• Bio-psycho-social perspective – Biology does matter but there are also psychological and social factors that lead to different kinds of disorders and have implications for treating different disorders. Schizophrenia and depression are seen in relatively equal proportions across the world – anorexia and bulimia are super different across cultures. It may not be biology, but there are other factors involved (culture, psychology, whatever) |
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Term
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Definition
• Generalized anxiety disorder- very persistent, overwhelming, sense of anxiety. It is out of control. Highly negative. Worry obsessively about bad things happening. A real sense of panic. Anxiety is free flowing- it’s not clear what is causing it for you!
• Phobias- anxiety is very clearly about something. You are phobic about an object. No longer free flowing. You know exactly what is causing you anxiety. Easier to live with- avoid places where you see the thing that triggers your phobia.
• Obsessive-compulsive disorder- you are managing your general anxiety by engaging in very ritualistic behaviors that make you feel in control.
• Explaining Anxiety Disorders
o Learning perspective- anxiety is about classical conditioning. Anxieties are conditioned in the exact way that other behaviors are learned. Little Albert! Difficult to understand generalized anxiety disorder with this-
o Biological perspective- anxiety is a function of your biology- most things we develop phobias or anxiety about have to do things that are or have been risky to us historically- so biologically we are Ex) washing hands repetitively- OCD is adaptive to prevent getting sick
o *Probably are elements of both of these. |
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Term
| Affective/ mood disorders |
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Definition
• Biological perspective- something that occurs that is maladaptive, probably at a genetic level. Genetically influenced.
• Social-Cognitive Perspective- some correlation between negative thoughts and social circumstances.
o Self defeating beliefs arise from feelings of learned helplessness?
• Describes the tendency to give up. Ex: Dog escapes the shocks, then dog doesn’t escape the shocks even when he/she does something. Dog loses motivation and assumes he is helpless therefore takes the shock.
• Negative thoughts lead to negative mood
• Negative moods lead to negative thoughts?
Bad mood influences negative thoughts, about oneself and about the world.
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Term
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Definition
Dissociative Disorders- some of the most controversial disorders. Things in which there is a dissociation between different parts of one’s self. Conscious awareness is separated from other experiences.
• Dissociative amnesia- somebody simply has a missing memory about a particular day or episode. There is a period of time from where you have no memory but you are totally normal in every other sense. Very upsetting for the person experiencing it, often because the period you cannot remember is a highly stressful one- it seems almost protective. Once you have it, you’re unlikely to recover it.
• Dissociative fugue- a person forgets who they are in terms of identity. You have amnesia about your life. Typically a case in which your old life isn’t going too well. Is the person really in a fugue state or faking though. It isn’t clear if they have legitimately forgotten.
• Dissociative identity disorder (multiple personality disorder) – also controversial. People are thought to have two or more competing personalities that are competing for control of the person’s mind and behavior.
Explaining Dissociative Disorders
• A strategy for coping with anxiety – they may be learned as anxiety management
• A strategy for coping with abuse- particularly multiple personalities
• A fraud – many believe that these are not true and that people are pretending at a fundamental level but isn’t representing a real psychological disorder
o They are almost nonexistent outside of north America (multiple personality)
o Rate of disorders is highly correlated with how much publicity there is about the topic of Dissociative disorders |
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Term
| Schiophrenia and its symptoms |
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Definition
Schizophrenia – a group of severe psychotic disorders. Characterized by a split from reality. People cannot function at all in daily life due to loss of contact with reality. Very difficult to establish social relationships. 1/100 develop it. Typically develops gradually or very suddenly and out of nowhere (this is typically in response to stress) Easier to treat it if it is sudden.
• Symptoms:
o Disorganized thinking – fragmented and bizarre- characterized by false beliefs, or delusions. Especially delusions of grandeur or persecution. Often obsessed with insignificant or particular things.
o Disturbed perceptions- hallucinations. Hearing voices which may tell them to hurt people or themselves. Other senses too- visual, smell..all sensations are very real- a particularly vivid dream.
o Inappropriate emotions and actions – ex) may hear that someone has died and they may laugh out loud. Angry for no apparent reason. Become mute and catatonic. Ritualistic behavior like rocking in a chair. |
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Term
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Definition
• Types:
o Paranoid- people are preoccupied with delusions or hallucinations – they believe people are trying to kill them and get them.
o Disorganized—characterized by disorganized behavior. Gaps in coherent thoughts. Can include an inappropriate or flat affect.
o Catatonic- quite different. Shows one of two things- immobility or movements and speech that are ritualistic and repetitive
o Undifferentiated or residual – people who have symptoms of each or a couple. |
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Term
| Understanding schiophrenia |
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Definition
• Understanding schizophrenia
o Brain abnormalities- people have abnormal brain chemistry and there is an imbalance that leads them to develop schizophrenia. Most common is the dopamine hypothesis: people with schizophrenia are thought to have an excessively large number of receptors for dopamine, meaning they are excessively stimulated.
o Genetic factors – major genetic links. If child is adopted and adoptive parent has schizophrenia, chances are not increased. If you share some kind of genes but don’t live with them, you have an increased risk. Sibling, more so. Share genes with parents but do live, even more. Fraternal Twin, even more. Child of two parents with schizophrenia is extremely likely. Identical twin is most likely.
o Psychological/environmental factors – families in poverty, babies with malnutrition, early childhood trauma, birth complications
o Diathesis model- there are certain precursors to schizophrenia (environment, biology, brain)- they all increase your vulnerability for schizophrenia- so if you have this increased vulnerability, if a stressful experience occurs (social stresses, poor self understanding, stressful family dynamics) it can lead to the disorder of schizophrenia. |
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Term
| Personality disorders and its types: |
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Definition
Personality disorders- inflexible and enduring personality traits. All disorders have some impairment in terms of function and social relationships.
Histrionic
Narcissistic
Borderline
Antisocial |
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Term
| Histrionic personality disorder |
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Definition
• Histrionic personality disorder- shallow, attention getting emotions all of the time. React to the smallest thing with devastation and to the smallest good news with great jubilation. Out of proportion reactions that are short lived. Often, people want attention and want to be recognized. Typically are highly dependent on praise and reinforcement.
o Caused by: 1) a lower threshold of stimulation. Hypersensitivity in the brain. 2) parents may have reinforced certain tendencies. Parents who overreact are reinforcing the general tendency. Evidence that treatment can work by looking at reasons for deep need for validation. |
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Term
| Narcissistic personality disorder |
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Definition
• Narcissistic personality disorder- people who exaggerate their own importance- how important or successful they are or will be. Very unwilling to receive criticism. Have trouble meeting other people’s needs because it is all about themselves.
o Caused by parents who have a great sense of how wonderful their child is. Evidence that treatment can work. |
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Term
| Borderline personality disorder |
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Definition
• Borderline personality disorder- unstable identity. Not sure of who you are. Unstable emotions and relationships. May feel depressed or lonely so behaviorally react to make themselves feel better like binge eating, drinking, etc. Overwhelmingly, they have trouble making social relationships.
o Due to disfunction in family. May include physical or emotional trauma. Very resistant to treatment. |
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Term
| Antisocial personality disorder |
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Definition
• Antisocial personality disorder- people whose behavior is against society. Most important characteristic is criminal behavior and violence. Abuse of alcohol/drugs which facilitate the person’s ability to engage in antisocial disorders. No ability to feel remorse and guilt. Highly problematic for individuals and for society. Much more prevalent in men than women. You see it before age 15. Willing to harm their friends and family . Inability to keep a job, marriage, romantic relationship. Having assaultive behavior.
o Genetic root like histrionic- people seem to not have the same level of fear threshold that over people do. High fear threshold.
o You can channel this- encourage high contact sports, becoming a soldier, police officer, fire fighter |
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Term
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Definition
Psychodynamic
Humanistic/Phenomenological
Behavior Therapy
Cognitive Therapies |
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Term
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Definition
1. Psychodynamic- rooted in Freud. Based on childhood and in unconscious. Goal of therapy is to take events in childhood in the unconscious and to bring them to the surface.
• Methods (in addition to free association, dream interpretation, projective tests)
o Resistance- when you experience some kind of a block or resistance to the natural flow of dialogue in a therapy setting, it means that you are trying to ignore or block thinking about something
o Interpretation- making sense of the dreams or associations or tests- applies a meaning person’s images and stories
o Transference- the client transfers his or her feelings about other people in their lives to their therapist. You see a playing out of other relationships.
• Critiques
o Do repressed memories exist? Basically, it assumes that they do- but it might not. We often ruminate about bad things.
o Can you critically test this approach? The assumptions are impossible to test! If someone says “no that’s not true” then they are resisting! Anything you say, if the person disagrees with you, they are resisting you.
o Very expensive and time-consuming- three times a week for an hour a time, at like 200 dollars a session. For two years.
• *It is used now. But it’s not very common. But this method does influence other methods of therapy. Elements are used more commonly in different settings and in shorter term settings. |
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Term
| Humanistic/Phenomenological |
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Definition
2. Humanistic/Phenomenological- everybody has the potential to be good and worthwhile people with great potential for fulfillment and what we really need to do is focus on the conscious, what is possible, and our potential- not what is bad, unconscious, repressed, and anxiety provoking.
• Roger’s person-centered therapy- most widely used technique. Uses active listening. Basically, the genesis of active listening- repeating what they say, nod and affirm, validate it. Sitting across from eachother- no lying down. It’s more of a conversation.
• Gestalt therapy- focuses on making people feel good and is about trying to get people to take responsibility for their own feelings. “I statements”- I feel, I need to know- self awareness. Too often, people blame others. |
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Term
| Behavior Therapy- classical conditioning |
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Definition
3. Behavior Therapy- based on principles from learning theory. Not just theories of personality.
• Classical conditioning techniques- Pavlov’s dogs . Replace maladaptive thoughts with adaptive ones. Simply a replacement. If you’re having a bad reaction, replace it with a good one. These are all called counter conditioning.
o Systematic desensitization – you create a safe place in your mind that makes you feel happy and calm. You take that positive association. If you have a phobia of final exams, you would come up with an ordered list of things that freak you out about exams. When you think about the items on the list, you systematically go to your safe place until you can read the item on your list without feeling anxiety. Then you go on to the next thing on your list until you feel no anxiety.
o Flooding- opposite of systematic desensitization. Sink or swim. In most cases, people’s fears are irrational. If a 5 year old were afraid of dogs, you put them in a pen of dogs and lock the door. You realize that you’re not going to die and you get over your phobia.
o Aversive conditioning – to counter condition health behaviors. You take someone’s vice (smoking) – you make them less comfortable with something. You probably start off with a positive association with smoking (calm, mature, cool)- you would have them smoke and while they smoke you watch dead baby seals being clubbed. Electric shocks when smoke. |
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Term
| Behavior therapy- operant conditioning |
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Definition
• Operant conditioning technique- Skinner’s pigeons – trying to give positive reinforcement for engaging in good behaviors.
o Behavior modification- how most parents toilet train kids. Try to take bad behavior and make it better. Can reward not engaging in the behavior or punish the bad behavior. If kid punches others, if they don’t punch for the week, they get a reward. If they do punch others, they get detention. Often used for autistic kids who have trouble maintaining eye contact or for making body contact.
o Token economy – difference is subtle. In this one, you have to earn rewards after repeated acts of good behavior. Behavior modification is doing one thing, and you get a reward. You get into a fight, there’s a punishment. But in token economy, you have a structure in which you accumulate “tokens” or rewards for a bigger outcome- but it’s focused on maintaining behavior over time to get a reward. You need to be in an institutional setting. Ex) Prisoners who go a series of days without getting into a fight might get more rec time. |
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Term
| Behavior therapy- critiques |
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Definition
• Critiques
o What happens when reinforcement ends? In operant techniques, what happens when the rewards or punishments end? It’s inherently short term. Therefore, it’s not clear whether this behavior will be maintained, though that is the goal.
o Is it ethical to choose how to control someone else’s behavior? In operant conditioning. Often these techniques are used with children but sometimes with adults- should you try to control someone’s behavior so much? Some think that it takes away free will.
o Focus on the symptoms, not the cause (which psychodynamics says is the important part) |
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Term
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Definition
4. Cognitive Therapies- if you are having problems, the problem is how you think. You are thinking in a maladaptive and destructive way. You need to stop engaging in these bad thought patterns.
• rational-emotive therapy (Ellis)- Therapist talks a lot more. He explains to her and shows her. Challenges illogical beliefs. Almost opposite of Roger’s person-centered.
• cognitive therapy for depression ( Beck) – specifically to cope with depression. Very controversial. Some people think it’s a good reality check and some people think it is mean. It is a vigorous and challenging method. It’s ridiculing. The goal is for people to take off the negative view and to develop more rational thought patterns.
*Two differences: 1) Beck model was supposed to be kinder and more gentle. 2)beck was just supposed to work with depression |
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Term
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Definition
MODES OF THERAPY:
Most traditional- client and therapist.
Group and Family Therapy – bring people together from similar backgrounds with similar issues to talk about something in a setting. It’s a lot cheaper. It can be less threatening. Can help people understand that they are not alone.
• AA- most common self help group in America and probably the world. 12 steps in a progression towards sobriety. Has adaptations for gambling, over eating, etc. Research suggests that this model can be effective. Valid scientific research. Highly cost effective.
• Family therapy – often very important because it helps members of the family understand how their own issues relate to one another |
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Term
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Definition
• Client’s perceptions- ask people who have gone to therapy if they have benefited. Most people say yes. (could be cognitive dissonance- effort justification)
• Clinician’s perceptions – therapists say yes. That doesn’t mean it’s true though. If someone is unsatisfied, they probably won’t tell the therapist.
• Outcome research – best models of therapy random assign people to receive different kinds of therapy or some receive therapy and others not receive it and they look at phobias, depression, or whatever- suggests that therapy is better than not having therapy and the benefits are clear.
o HOWEVER:
• There are people who have therapy and do not get helped
• There are people who do not get helped and show improvement
• Therapy tends to be more cost effective than other approaches (anti-depressants) |
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Term
| The Relative Effectiveness of Different Therapies |
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Definition
The Relative Effectiveness of Different Therapies
• Particular matches at times work best.
o Strong predictor: if you like your therapist.
o No data to show that particular training is advantageous- most common therapist is a MSW – a licensed social worker – different than a PHD or MD
o Certain problems are more responsive to different therapies:
• Phobias- learning or behavioral techniques
• Depression- cognitive
• Commonalities among different therapies
o Hope for demoralized people
o Offers A new perspective
o An empathetic, trusting, caring relationship- this might be the most valuable
• The use of drug therapy approaches
o Drugs can be used very effectively to treat different disorders like anxiety and bipolar disorder, but there are many cases where people use combo talk therapy and drug therapy. Talk therapy seems to help people to get off of the medication
o Talk is cheaper than drug
o Drug therapy has side effects |
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Term
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Definition
The Power of Perception- the placebo effect- some kind of an inert medication or treatment – based on belief that something is going to work. 35-45% for prescriptions have no known effect on the physical effect.
Ex) Placebo knee surgery – one group had real surgery, another fake, another had no surgery except for giving a scar. Men in all three groups showed same level of improvement. |
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Term
| Impact of Learning Principles on Health Behavior |
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Definition
The impact of Learning Principles on Health Behavior- 100 years ago, many people died from viruses and infections thanks to vaccines. Now, cancer, heart disease and cardiovascular problems, and accidents (age 1-44). The things that kill us now have a role of behavioral choice that is not true for the past. Eating habits, smoking, hygiene, drunk driving.
• Operant/instrumental conditioning- reward and punishments for engaging in particular behaviors. Fines for receiving a DUI. Health care benefits for stopping smoking.
• Modeling/observational learning – seeing advertisements of habits, rules about smoking being shown in movies and ratings, |
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Term
| Impact of Emotion on Physical Health- Stress |
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Definition
The Impact of Emotion on Physical Health: The Case of Stress
• Cannon’s fight or flight response- when an organism notices a threat, the person experiences a desire to either escape or fight it off. This desire leads to physiological reactions in the body. Heart rate increases, muscles tense. Lead to more complex model:
• Selye’s General Adaptation Syndrome- it’s not as straight forward as fight or flight. There is a distinction over time in terms of your reaction.
o Alarm reaction- immediately, your body has an alarm reaction when it senses the stressor. Body resistance weakens and becomes more susceptible to minor infections
o Resistance- how we deal with the stressor- our body mobilizes its resources to fight off the stressor. We don’t ovulate, we don’t use our immune system
o Exhaustion- our body can’t keep going any more. Our body has not been giving priority to immune system and less essential mechanisms and then it leaves itself at big risk of acquiring a minor or major infection Ex) going home after exams!
• Stress and immune competence- it takes a lot of energy and resources to fight off stress and they get diverted from focusing on your immune system. You end up with fewer immune cells in your blood after stress has been prolonged for a long time.
o In animals- advantage of making them stressed and using random assignment. Make rats swim, crowded in a cage, bright lights – do the stressed rats show less immune response? Tumor cells grow much faster for tumor size.
o In people- evidence it is true for people too.
• Cohen et al.- Inject a cold virus into your nose. Quarantine people over the next 2-3 weeks. Sees who develops the cold. Those who are feeling more stress are more likely to get sick.
• Psychological factors that reduce stress and improve health
o Social support- can be a marriage, or a best friend, or a social network – even having a dog can be effective. Not true with cats or fish.
o Disclosure – talking about something. Hiding the truth is stressful. Lack of disclosure can be very stressful. |
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Term
| Impact of personality on health |
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Definition
• The Impact of Personality on Health
o Perceived control- believing that you have control over a situation- the allusion of control is beneficial by giving you confidence that you can control it. Ex) nursing home- randomly assigned two different floors to be treated in two different ways. Those who perceived that they had control over their treatment were happier, healthier, involved. 18 months later, 25% had died on floors not involved in the study. For those who had no control, 30% died. For those with control, only 15% died.
o Optimism- people who are optimistic tend to do better. Mechanism is unclear but definite correlation.
o Type A Behavior – describes three traits. Competitive drive. Time urgency. Tend to be hostile. Cannot play a casual game of tennis. Tend to have stress and coronary heart disease. |
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Term
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Definition
• The impact of memory on eyewitness testimony- extremely powerful way of getting someone convicted of a crime. People strongly believe eyewitnesses. Eyewitnesses can often be wrong! Of 62 false accusals, 50 of them were eyewitness and innocent were convicted. We need to understand psychology to understand why these mistakes occur.
o Acquisition -crimes almost inevitably occur suddenly, without warning, quickly, in dark settings and are highly anxiety producing- people’s general memory may be impaired due to the arousal involved. Sub obtimal conditions.
• Weapon-focus effect- if criminal is holding a weapon, the victim focuses on the weapon and not their face or features
• Cross-race identification bias- we are less good at identifying people not of our own race – out group homogeneity.
o Storage- memories fade over time. They can change over time, too. You can store them and they can be stored in different ways. Study: contact, hit, and smash, how many MPH at each? Speed increased for smash. Memory changes depending on how you ask the question. One week later, they were called again- do you remember seeing broken glass? Hit- no. contact- no. Smashed- 32% thought smashed.
o Retrieval-
• Familiarity-induced biases- mug shots and then lineups. Often, police have given you a mug shot of who they think did it and they bring them in the lineup. If you’re picking out of a lineup because they’re familiar, it may be because you saw their mug shot!
• Line-up construction- line ups need to have people that look as close to each other as possible. If different, then you choose the person “most like” the perpetrator- not who IS the perpetrator. If they’re similar, you have to choose nuances- not just “you have a mustache and so did he” |
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Term
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Definition
o The power of compliance in eliciting false confessions – police officers use psychological methods to elicit confessions and confessions are considered profound evidence. Can be good- but sometimes people confess to crimes that they did not commit. Central park murder – after 11 hours of interrogation, they all confessed and were put in jail. 8 or 9 years later, somebody was arrested for raping a woman in NYC- and his DNA matched the DNA found in the jogger case. Why?
• Idea that somebody will figure out they didn’t do it
• Pressure in interrogation room- maybe I’ll get a smaller sentence if I do confess...plea bargaining.
Kassin and Kiechel – with Williiams students. Students came into a lab- the lab was rigged so you thought you broke a computer- and he said that you have to sign a confession that you broke the computer. What percentage will sign when they didn’t break it? Many, under the right conditions (eye witness, and when very distracted from doing a task) yes. |
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Term
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Definition
• Dynamics of deliberation- patterns of group think. Group polarization – power in a group!
• The role of jury size – if not a death penalty case, you can have a jury as low as 6 people. Supreme court overruled psychologist’s argument that 12 was better. Rejected on basis of line study- people were much more willing to deviate from the group when you were not standing alone. So court said it doesn’t matter 6 vs 12, 1/6 versus 2/12- but psychologists said it is not the same thing! If 1/6, the 1 will cave to go with the group!
• Less than unanimous verdicts in civil cases- a majority wins. People make decisions very fast. People want to get home. Information isn’t reviewed at the same level of depth. |
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Term
| Education- developmental issues |
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Definition
• Developmental Issues- Erikson’s theories have great relevance
o Preschool (initiative)- we can help children to take their own initiative.
• 1. Trying to provide opportunities for children to select their own activities.
• 2. Encouraging choices whenever possible.
• 3. Give children the opportunity to pretend- take initiative as a different person.
• 4. Tolerating mistakes- tying their own shoes, pouring milk.
o Middle childhood (industry)- setting forth goals and carrying them out.
• 1.Help children define goals and progress towards those goals.
• 2 Giving them a sense of responsibility through chores.
• 3. Trying to provide support based on effort- often, children are focused on whether they are better than other people so try to help them focus on effort put forth.
o High school (identity formation) –
• 1. parents helping children explore different career decisions.
• 2. Tolerance for acceptable identity transformations.
• 3. Help students be responsible for getting their own help. |
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Term
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Definition
o Operant conditioning- rewards or punishments. Typically a reward for doing something well.
• Overjustification- you remove its intrinsic motivation. It should be inherently enjoyable. Getting a surprise reward isn’t bad- but doing something to get a reward is bad.
• Observational learning- influence of models. Children learn what kind of behaviors they should engage in. They model their behaviors on others. If you come to college and learn you don’t need to go to class, or can get extensions and not do papers, they will. Sometimes that can lead you to work harder or to make different kinds of choices. |
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Term
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Definition
o Attentional focus – High level athletes must have this- paying attention to what they are supposed to focus on and ignoring the other stuff. Particularly important because there are multiple distractions.
o Imagery- use of visualization. Being able to imagine what something looks like is a low level of practice (injured athletes) Leads to higher level of performance. Particularly effective if in combo with physical practice
o Thought suppression – might be thinking “don’t screw up” or “don’t choke” and at that moment, it hurts you when you’re thinking about it . Ex) Gold medalist who blew it prevented thought suppression by watching himself, every day, lose the gold
o Goal setting- very specific in terms of types of goals.
• 1) Goals need to be very specific
• 2) Need to be measurable- did you do it?
• 3) Need to be set at the right level – ambitious but doable |
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Term
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Definition
o Arousal- having arousal is good. Arousal follows an inverted U pattern. The best performance occurs at a moderate level of arousal. Too low, and you’re too calm. Too much and you’re too hyped and nervous. Easy if you play an individual sport because all you do is work on yourself to get to that middle level. The problem is when you are on a team because then you have a range of the curve- by trying to bring people up, people that are too high get WAY high and vice versa
o Arousal adjustment strategies- hypnosis, meditation, etc. |
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Term
| Athletics- social psychology |
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Definition
o Aggression
• Game factors
1) Aggression is more common towards the end of the game than the beginning
2) score differential is greater- less of a consequence- if it’s a brawl and you get thrown out, what does it matter?
3) Losing team aggresses more
• The color black- teams wearing black tend to get more penalties. Theory: wearing the color black primes or cues aggression as how the picture of weapon can cue aggression. It’s because they are perceived as acting more aggressively, and that they don’t actually act more aggressively.
o Social facilitation and audience effects (home advantage) – if you are good at something, increasing arousal improves performance. If you are not good at something, increasing arousal decreases performance.
o The impact of team cohesion on performance- cohesion and performance are definitely correlated. But we don’t know if there is a causal relationship. Cohesion could cause performance. Performance could cause cohesion. And a third variable like time spent together could increase both. |
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Term
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Definition
o• Athlete vs. Non-athlete- athlete is usually more extroverted and likes group things whereas the non-athlete is more independent and introverted. Associations are not clear as to how or why they are what they are.
• Personality and sport type- individual sport athletes look more like non-athletes whereas team sport athletes look more like athletes.
• Personality and position- people on team sports that look like individual sport athletes. Ex: Goalie |
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Term
| Social psychology of teaching |
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Definition
o Self-fulfilling prophecy- if you have an expectation about how somebody is going to behave, you treat them in line with that expectation and your behavior towards them elicits what you expect. Randomly identified a few kids who would make IQ spurts- they didn’t exist. Yet by the end of the year, they showed an increase in IQ- teachers expectations lead to them having higher IQs. Expectation influences academic performance!
o Stereotype threat- In an academic setting, people who are members of stereotyped groups often underperform in situations where there is an assumption and they are worried about conforming – has affected SAT- by bubbling your race and gender does that prime people negatively? Now the MCAT has you do that at the end.
• Ex) women taking a math test- one group told it was a practice and others they said it shows that women do more poorly than men, is this true? When they knew about the stereotype they did worse. |
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Term
| How to decide attribution |
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Definition
| kelley's covariation model |
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