REVIEW Social Thinking and Social Influence

Learning Objectives

Test Yourself by taking a moment to answer each of these Learning Objective Questions (repeated here from within the module). Research suggests that trying to answer these questions on your own will improve your long-term memory of the concepts (McDaniel et al., 2009).

Question

35-1 What do social psychologists study? How do we tend to explain others' behavior and our own?

ANSWER: Social psychologists use scientific methods to study how people think about, influence, and relate to one another. They study the social influences that explain why the same person will act differently in different situations. When explaining others' behavior, we may—especially if we come from an individualist Western culture—commit the fundamental attribution error, by underestimating the influence of the situation and overestimating the effects of stable, enduring traits. When explaining our own behavior, we more readily attribute it to the influence of the situation.

Question

35-2 How do attitudes and actions interact?

ANSWER: Attitudes are feelings, often influenced by our beliefs, that predispose us to respond in certain ways. Peripheral route persuasion uses incidental cues (such as celebrity endorsement) to try to produce fast but relatively thoughtless changes in attitudes. Central route persuasion offers evidence and arguments to trigger thoughtful responses. When other influences are minimal, attitudes that are stable, specific, and easily recalled can affect our actions. Actions can modify attitudes, as in the foot-in-the-door phenomenon (complying with a large request after having agreed to a small request) and role playing (acting a social part by following guidelines for expected behavior). When our attitudes don't fit with our actions, cognitive dissonance theory suggests that we will reduce tension by changing our attitudes to match our actions.

Question

35-3 How does culture affect our behavior?

ANSWER: A culture is an enduring set of behaviors, ideas, attitudes, values, and traditions shared by a group and transmitted from one generation to the next. Cultural norms are understood rules that inform members of a culture about accepted and expected behaviors. Cultures differ across time and space.

Question

35-4 What is automatic mimicry, and how do conformity experiments reveal the power of social influence?

ANSWER: Automatic mimicry (the chameleon effect)—our tendency to unconsciously imitate others' expressions, postures, and voice tones—is a form of conformity. Solomon Asch and others have found that we are most likely to adjust our behavior or thinking to coincide with a group standard when (a) we feel incompetent or insecure, (b) our group has at least three people, (c) everyone else agrees, (d) we admire the group's status and attractiveness, (e) we have not already committed to another response, (f) we know we are being observed, and (g) our culture encourages respect for social standards. We may conform to gain approval (normative social influence) or because we are willing to accept others' opinions as new information (informational social influence).

Question

35-5 What did Milgram's obedience experiments teach us about the power of social influence?

ANSWER: Stanley Milgram's experiments—in which people obeyed orders even when they thought they were harming another person—demonstrated that strong social influences can make ordinary people conform to falsehoods or give in to cruelty. Obedience was highest when (a) the person giving orders was nearby and was perceived as a legitimate authority figure; (b) the research was supported by a prestigious institution; (c) the victim was depersonalized or at a distance; and (d) there were no role models for defiance.

Question

35-6 How is our behavior affected by the presence of others?

ANSWER: In social facilitation, the mere presence of others arouses us, improving our performance on easy or well-learned tasks but decreasing it on difficult ones. In social loafing, participating in a group project makes us feel less responsible, and we may free ride on others' efforts. When the presence of others both arouses us and makes us feel anonymous, we may experience deindividuation—loss of self-awareness and self-restraint.

Question

35-7 What are group polarization and groupthink, and how much power do we have as individuals?

ANSWER: In group polarization, group discussions with like-minded others strengthen members' prevailing beliefs and attitudes. Internet communication magnifies this effect, for better and for worse. Groupthink is driven by a desire for harmony within a decision-making group, overriding realistic appraisal of alternatives. The power of the individual and the power of the situation interact. A small minority that consistently expresses its views may sway the majority.

Terms and Concepts to Remember

Test yourself on these terms.

Question

social psychology (p. 442)
attribution theory (p. 442)
fundamental attribution error (p. 442)
attitude (p. 444)
peripheral route persuasion (p. 444)
central route persuasion (p. 444)
foot-in-the-door phenomenon (p. 445)
role (p. 445)
cognitive dissonance theory (p. 446)
culture (p. 448)
norm (p. 448)
conformity (p. 450)
normative social influence (p. 451)
informational social influence (p. 451)
social facilitation (p. 455)
social loafing (p. 456)
deindividuation (p. 457)
group polarization (p. 458)
groupthink (p. 459)
influence resulting from a person's desire to gain approval or avoid disapproval.
improved performance on simple or well-learned tasks in the presence of others.
an understood rule for accepted and expected behavior. Norms prescribe "proper" behavior.
the tendency for people in a group to exert less effort when pooling their efforts toward attaining a common goal than when individually accountable.
the tendency for observers, when analyzing others' behavior, to underestimate the impact of the situation and to overestimate the impact of personal disposition.
adjusting our behavior or thinking to coincide with a group standard.
the mode of thinking that occurs when the desire for harmony in a decision-making group overrides a realistic appraisal of alternatives.
the loss of self-awareness and self-restraint occurring in group situations that foster arousal and anonymity.
the enduring behaviors, ideas, attitudes, values, and traditions shared by a group of people and transmitted from one generation to the next.
a set of expectations (norms) about a social position, defining how those in the position ought to behave.
feelings, often influenced by our beliefs, that predispose us to respond in a particular way to objects, people, and events.
influence resulting from one's willingness to accept others' opinions about reality.
the tendency for people who have first agreed to a small request to comply later with a larger request.
the theory that we act to reduce the discomfort (dissonance) we feel when two of our thoughts (cognitions) are inconsistent. For example, when we become aware that our attitudes and our actions clash, we can reduce the resulting dissonance by changing our attitudes.
occurs when interested people focus on the arguments and respond with favorable thoughts.
occurs when people are influenced by incidental cues, such as a speaker's attractiveness.
the theory that we explain someone's behavior by crediting either the situation or the person's disposition.
the scientific study of how we think about, influence, and relate to one another.
the enhancement of a group's prevailing inclinations through discussion within the group.

Experience the Testing Effect

Test yourself repeatedly throughout your studies. This will not only help you figure out what you know and don’t know; the testing itself will help you learn and remember the information more effectively thanks to the testing effect.

Question 12.1

1. If we encounter a person who appears to be high on drugs, and we make the fundamental attribution error, we will probably attribute the person's behavior to

A.
B.
C.
D.

Question 12.2

2. Celebrity endorsements in advertising often lead consumers to purchase products through (central/peripheral) route persuasion.

Question 12.3

3. We tend to agree to a larger request more readily if we have already agreed to a small request. This tendency is called the phenomenon.

Question 12.4

4. Jamal's therapist has suggested that Jamal should “act as if” he is confident, even though he feels insecure and shy. Which social psychological theory would best support this suggestion, and what might the therapist be hoping to achieve?

ANSWER: Cognitive dissonance theory best supports this suggestion. If Jamal acts confident, his behavior will contradict his negative self-thoughts, creating cognitive dissonance. To relieve the tension, Jamal may realign his attitudes with his actions by viewing himself as more outgoing and confident.

Question 12.5

5. Researchers have found that a person is most likely to conform to a group if

A.
B.
C.
D.

Question 12.6

6. In Milgram's experiments, the rate of compliance was highest when

A.
B.
C.
D.

Question 12.7

7. Dr. Huang, a popular music professor, delivers fascinating lectures on music history but gets nervous and makes mistakes when describing exam statistics in front of the class. Why does his performance vary by task?

ANSWER: The presence of a large audience generates arousal and strengthens Dr. Huang's most likely response: enhanced performance on a task he has mastered (teaching music history) and impaired performance on a task he finds difficult (statistics).

Question 12.8

8. In a group situation that fosters arousal and anonymity, a person sometimes loses self-consciousness and self-control. This phenomenon is called .

Question 12.9

9. Sharing our opinions with like-minded others tends to strengthen our views, a phenomenon referred to as .

Use image to create your personalized study plan, which will direct you to the resources that will help you most in image .

[Leave] [Close]