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LO 1 Define social psychology and identify how it is different from sociology. (p. 554)

Social psychology is the study of human cognition, emotion, and behavior in relation to others. This includes how we perceive and react to others, and how we behave in social settings. Social psychology focuses on studying individuals in relation to others and groups, whereas sociology studies the groups themselves—their cultures, societies, and subcultures. Using the same general research methods as other psychologists, social psychologists often conduct studies involving confederates, or people who are secretly working for them. At the end of a study, researchers debrief participants, or review aspects of the research they had previously concealed.

LO 2 Describe social cognition and how we use attributions to explain behavior. (p. 556)

Social cognition refers to the way we think about others, attend to social information, and use this information in our lives, both consciously and unconsciously. Attributions are the beliefs we develop to explain human behaviors and characteristics, as well as situations. Because attributions rely on whatever information happens to be available (our observations of what people say and do, for example), they are vulnerable to personal bias and inaccuracies.

LO 3 Describe how attributions lead to mistakes in our explanations for behaviors. (p. 557)

Situational attributions are a type of external attribution in which the assumed causes of behaviors are in the environment. Dispositional attributions are a type of internal attribution in which the causes of behaviors are thought to be traits or characteristics. When people make attributions, they are often guessing about the causes of events or behaviors, leaving plenty of room for error. Three common errors are (1) the fundamental attribution error, which assumes the causes of behaviors are in the person (dispositional) as opposed to the environment (situational); (2) the just-world hypothesis, which assumes that if someone is suffering, he must have done something to deserve it; and (3) the self-serving bias, which attributes one’s successes to internal characteristics and one’s failures to environmental factors.

LO 4 Describe social influence and recognize the factors associated with persuasion. (p. 565)

Social influence refers to the way a person is affected by others, as apparent in behavior, emotion, and cognition. Expectations are an often overlooked form of social influence. Students in Rosenthal’s study who were expected to show surprising gains actually did as a result of the high expectations placed on them. Persuasion is intentionally trying to make people change their attitudes and beliefs, which may (or may not) lead to changes in their behavior. There are three factors that determine persuasive power: the source, the message, and the audience.

LO 5 Define compliance and explain some of the techniques used to gain it. (p. 567)

Compliance occurs when someone voluntarily changes her behavior at the request or direction of another person or group, who in general does not have any true authority over her. A common method to gain compliance is the foot-in-the-door technique, which occurs when an individual initially makes a small request, followed by a larger one. Another method is the door-in-the-face technique, which involves making a large request, followed by a smaller one.

LO 6 Identify the factors that influence the likelihood of someone conforming. (p. 569)

The urge to modify behaviors, attitudes, beliefs, and opinions to match those of others is known as conformity. There are three major reasons we conform. Most people want approval, to be liked and accepted by others. This desire, known as normative social influence, can have a significant impact on behaviors. A second reason to conform is that we want to be correct. We look to others for confirmation when we are uncertain about something, and then do as they do. This is known as informational social influence. Finally, we may conform to others because they belong to a certain reference group we respect, admire, or long to join.

LO 7 Describe obedience and explain how Stanley Milgram studied it. (p. 571)

Obedience occurs when we change our behavior, or act in a way that we might not normally act, because we have been ordered to do so by an authority figure. Milgram conducted a series of studies examining how far people would go when urged by an authority figure to inflict punishment on others. During an early experiment, the goal was for the confederate (learner) to memorize a set of paired words. The participant (teacher) sat at a table, which held a control panel for administering electrical “shocks.” The teacher was told to administer a shock each time the learner made a mistake, and the shock was to increase by 15 volts for every mistake. Milgram was surprised that so many people obeyed the experimenter and continued to administer “shocks,” even when they hesitated or were uncomfortable, simply because an authority figure had instructed them to do so.

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LO 8 Recognize the circumstances that influence the occurrence of the bystander effect. (p. 578)

When a person is in trouble, bystanders have the tendency to assume that someone else will help—and therefore they stand by and do nothing, partly because there is a diffusion of responsibility. This bystander effect is more likely to occur when there are many other people present. By contrast, individuals are more inclined to aid a person in distress if no one else is around.

LO 9 Demonstrate an understanding of aggression and identify some of its causes. (p. 580)

Aggression is defined as intimidating or threatening behavior or attitudes intended to hurt someone. Research on aggression suggests that it has a biological basis (for instance, high levels of testosterone and low levels of serotonin). In addition, the frustration–aggression hypothesis suggests that in a frustrating situation, we can all show aggressive behavior.

LO 10 Recognize how group affiliation influences the development of stereotypes. (p. 581)

We tend to see the world in terms of the in-group (the group to which we belong) and the out-group (those outside our group). Seeing the world from the narrow perspective of our own group may lead to ethnocentrism, which sets the stage for stereotyping and discrimination. Stereotypes are the conclusions or inferences we make about people based on their group membership. Discrimination involves showing favoritism or hostility to others because of their affiliation with a group. People who harbor stereotypes and blame scapegoats are more likely to feel prejudice, that is, hostile or negative attitudes toward individuals or groups.

LO 11 Compare prosocial behavior and altruism. (p. 585)

Behavior aimed at benefiting others is known as prosocial behavior. Altruism is a desire or motivation to help others with no expectation of anything in return. Empathy, or the ability to understand and recognize another’s emotional perspective, is a major component of altruism.

LO 12 Identify the three major factors contributing to interpersonal attraction. (p. 587)

Interpersonal attraction leads us to form friendships or romantic relationships with others. The three major factors of interpersonal attraction are proximity, similarity, and physical attractiveness. Many relationships begin with exhilaration and intense physical attraction, and then evolve into more intimate connections. The combination of connection, concern, care, and intimacy is romantic love. This is similar to passionate love, or love that is based on zealous emotion, leading to intense longing and sexual attraction. As a relationship grows, intimacy and commitment develop into companionate love, which consists of fondness, camaraderie, understanding, and emotional closeness. Consummate love is evident when intimacy and commitment are accompanied by passion.