Offer a definition of social psychologyScientific study of how people’s thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by other people1.) focused on individuals2.) Understand feelings (affect), behaviors, and thoughts (cognition)3.) relationship between self and others4.) scientific study Explain why description and explanation are important to scientific social psychologyDescription: – Observation– Answers the question ‘What?’Ex. What is aggression?What causes aggression?– Theory– Answers the question ‘Why?’Ex. Why are humans aggressive?– Theories connect and organize observations into a larger framework- Theories shape new hypotheses Give three reasons why theories are useful1. Connect and organize existing observations2. Suggest where to look for more information and answers3. Help us make predictions about future events and control previously unmanageable phenomena Describe the four major theoretical perspectives of social psychology1. Social cognitive-Subjective experience (mental processes) of social events is a cause of social behavior-Cognitive processes are often biased toward making us feel better about ourselvesa. subjective experience=mental processes of social events is a cause of social behavior-cognitive processes are often biased toward making us feel better about ourselves2. Social learningPast learning experiences are a major cause of social behavior (Skinner)Focuses on: – Rewards vs. Punishments– Imitating others (rewarded) behavior3. Socio-cultural-Influence of larger social groups is major cause of social behaviorSocial norms: rules of appropriate behaviorCulture: beliefs, customs, habits, and language shared by a group of people in a specific time and place4. EvolutionaryPhysical and psychological predispositions that helped our ancestors survive and reproduce are a major cause of social behavior-our beliefs, attitudes and behaviors shaped by evolution-focus on similarities across cultures– 3 major components to evolution:• Heritability-genes that regulate development passed on from parents• Variation-a small percentage of genes change randomly• Natural selection-some variations are more helpful for survival than others-determines which random variations are passed on through heredity List the two key assumptions shared by the major perspectives in social psychology1. Social behavior is goal oriented2. Social behavior represents a continual interaction between the person and the situation Discuss the five fundamental motives behind goal oriented social behavior1. To establish social ties2. To understand ourselves and others3. To gain and maintain status4. To defend ourselves and those we value5. To attract and retain mates Explain what is meant by “the person” and “the situation” and how they becomeinterwoven through “person-situation interactions”1. Person-features or characteristics that individuals carry into social situations2. Situation-events or circumstances outside the person3. Person-situation interactions-we choose what situations we will enter (reflective of our personality)-situations also chose what type of person will enter them by targeting specific types of personalities Describe the two general types of methods used by social psychologists to study behavior1. Descriptive methods-attempts to measure or record behaviors, thoughts or feelings in their natural state2. Experimental methods-uncover causes of behavior by systematically varying some aspect of the situation Define the five major types of descriptive methods 1. naturalistic observation-observing behavior as it unfolds in its natural setting(+)behaviors are spontaneous-don’t rely on people’s ability to report(-)researcher may interfere-observer bias: you tend to see what you want to see-time consuming2. Case studies-intensive examination of a single person or group(+) rich source of hypotheses-allows study of rare behavior(-) observer bias-difficult to reconstruct causes from past events3. Archives-public records of social behaviors(+) easy to access data(-) many interesting behaviors are never recorded4. Surveys-asking people questions about their beliefs and behaviors(+) cost effective study of difficult to observe behaviors(-) people who respond may not be representativeSocial desirability bias=tendency for people to say what they believe is appropriate5. psychological tests-assessments that measure differences between people’s abilities, cognitions, motivation, behaviors Explain what a representative sample is and why it is important=a group of respondents having characteristics that match those of eh larger population the researcher wants to describe Discuss the difference between reliability and validity in psychological tests1. reliability-consistency of the test’s results2. validity-extent to which the test measures what it is designed to measure Define correlation and explain what is meant by the statement “correlation does not equalcausation”1. correlation=the extent to which 2 or more variables are associated with one another2. correlations can provide hints but they do not enable us to draw conclusions about cause and effect-just because something is correlated does not mean one is the cause of the otherCorrelation coefficient=a mathematical expression of the relationship between 2 variables-ranges from (-1) to 1-absolute value indicates magnitude (closer to 1=stronger; 0=weaker)Positive correlation=when one variable increases, so does the otherNegative correlation=when one variable increases, the other decreases or vice versaNo correlation=occurs when there is not predictable relationship Explain the experimental method, including all of the key concepts associated with thisMethodology1. hypothesis: a researcher’s prediction about what he or she will find2. Independent variable: the manipulated variable3. Dependent variable: the affected variable that we measure change by comparing4. Random assignment: each participant has equal chance of being assigned to a groupHindsight bias=After you know the answer it makes sense even if before you couldn’t figure it outInternal Validity=the extent to which an experiment allows confident statements about cause and effectExternal Validity=the extent to which the results of an experiment can be generalized to other circumstancesReliability=getting the same resultsa. Across items-will the experiment be the same if done
View Full Document
Unlocking...