CH14 SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Social Psychology the scientific study of how we think about influence and relate to one another Social psychologists focus on the situation Study the social influences that explain why the SAME PERSON will act differently in different situations Social behavior arises from our social cognition Attribution theory Fritz Heider we can attribute the behavior to the person s stable enduring traits dispositional attribution OR we can attribute it to the situation situational attribution Fundamental Attribution Error we overestimate the influence of personality and underestimate the influence of situations Ex Seeing a quite person in class having fun and being loud at a party Loud person being quiet in class David Napolitan and George Goethals experiment demonstrated fundamental attribution error with Williams College students o Had students talk one at a time with a young woman who either acted cold and critical or warm and friendly o Before researcher told half the students that the woman s behavior would be SPONTANEOUS And the other that she was ACTING for the experiment o Hearing the truth did NOT affect the impressions If she acted friendly both groups decided she was really a warm person If she acted unfriendly both decided she was cold o Attributed her behavior to her PERSONAL DISPOSITION even when told her behavior was SITUATIONAL acting for the experiment When explaining our OWN behaviors we are sensitive to how behavior changes with the SITUATION Use the situation as the reason for our behaviors Exception we often attribute our INTENTIONAL ADMIRABLE actions to our own disposition good reason rather than situations we are sensitive to the power of the situation when we explain the behavior of people we KNOW WELL and have SEEN in DIFFERENT context most likely to commit fundamental attribution error with strangers Our attributions to a person s disposition or situation have consequences Real life effects jury must decide whether shooting was malicious persons disposition or self defense situational A partner must decide whether loved ones mean remark is because of their bad day or because theyre a malicious person Social and economic effects of attribution Political conservatives tend to place blame on the personal dispositions of the poor unemployed they get what they deserve those who don t work are freeloaders Those who take initiative can get ahead Political liberals more likely to blame the past and present situation Attitudes feelings often influenced by our beliefs that predispose us to respond in a particular way to objects people and events If we BELIEVE someone is threatening us we may FEEL fear and anger towards the person and ACT defensively Our attitudes affect our actions vice versa Attitudes Affect Actions Persuasion efforts 1 Peripheral route persuasion occurs when people are infl by incidental cues such as endorsements by respected people speakers attractiveness Ex perfume ad luring us with images of beautiful people in love a does NOT engage systematic thinking b Fast results snap judgements 2 Central route persuasion occurs when interested people focus on the arguments and respond with favorable thoughts a Occurs mostly when people are naturally analytical or involved in the issue Situation also influences behavior Ex strong social pressures can weaken attitudebehavior connection Actions Affect Attitudes Attitudes follow behavior People will stand up for what they believe and believe more strongly for things they have stood up for Foot in the door phenomenon tendency for people who have first agreed to small requests to comply later with larger ones Korean War u s prisoners held in war camps Without brutality the captors secured prisoner s collaboration in various activities Some ran errands or accepted favors false confessions When war ended 21 prisoners chose to STAY with the communist captors More returned home brainwashed convinced that communism was a good thing for Asia o Began with harmless requests but gradually escalated their demands Prisoners adjusted their beliefs to be more consistent with their public acts to get people to agree with something big start small and build A trivial act makes the next act easier succumb to a temptation and you find the next temptation harder to resist WORKS WITH GOOD DEEDS TOO o Boosts charitable contributions blood donations product sales o Experiment researchers posing as safe driving volunteers asked people to permit the installation of a large poorly lettered sig in their front yards Only 17 allowed They approached other home owners with a SMALL REQUEST FIRST display a 3inch high sign Nearly all the people said okay When approached 2 weeks later to allow the large ugly sign in their yards 76 said okay o To secure a big commitment it pays to put your foot in the door start small and build Racial attitudes follow behavior o Years following the desegregation of schools white americans expressed diminishing racial prejudice As americans in different regions came to act more alike they began to think more alike o Moral action strengthens moral convictions Role playing affects attitudes Role a set of expectations norms about a social position defining how those in the position ought to behave In the beginning you feel phony because you re acting a role Before long you adopt the role Zimbardo s Stanford prison experiment randomly assigned some male college volunteers to be guards with outfit club and whistle others prisoners with humiliating outfits For a day or two the volunteers self consciously played their roles But then it became too real The guards started acting cruel and gave degrading routines Prisoners broke down rebelled or became passively resigned After 6 days Zimbardo called off the study WHAT WE DO WE GRADUALLY BECOME But people differ some succumb to the situation others don t person and situation interact Cognitive Dissonance theory that we act to reduce the discomfort dissonance we feel when two of our thoughts are inconsistent when we become aware that our attitudes and actions clash we can reduce the resulting dissonance by changing our attitude We cannot directly control all our feelings but we can influence them by altering our behavior Ex if we are unloving we can become loving be behaving as if we were doing thoughtful things expressing affection etc Cruel acts shape the self But so do acts of good will Act as though you like someone and you soon may Changing our behavior