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Section 1 Social Psychology What is social psychology Personality Situation o The scientific study of how people affect and are affected by others o Focus on how people think act and feel Different people react differently to different situations Why study social psychology o Curiosity about people o Making the world better o Experimental Philosophy Introspection look inside your own mind Theory A theory is an explanation of why a phenomenon occurs Hypothesis A hypothesis is a prediction about reality based on a theory Methods to Mind Study o Pros and cons for each method o All involve hypothesis testing Self report ask people Pros Cons o Convenient o Useful for asking subjective questions o Lying exaggerating o Don t know o Can t tell you Measure behavior Pros o More objective than self report o Behavior sometimes more interesting Cons o Inconvenient o Difficult to operationalize behavior o Behavior might not match mind Measure brain Pros Cons o Objective o Links study of body with study of mind o Very expensive o Still need to link with mind behavior Two types of Theory o Positive Theories What is the world like o Normative Theories What should the world be like Fallacy o Naturalistic Fallacy thinking that because something is true that it ought to be true Positive men are more physically violent than women Normative men should be more physically violent than women o Moralistic Fallacy Thinking that because something ought to be true that it is true Normative men ought to be peaceful and nonviolent Positive men are peaceful and nonviolent Hindsight Bias I knew it all along Conducting Social Psychology Research Types of Evidence o The good Scientific Evidence Experiments Quasi experiments Correlations o The bad Anecdotes Common Sense o The ugly Anecdotes common sense that have been proven wrong How do we test hypothesis in social psychology 1 Correlational Research Goal Test how one variable is associated with another variable Correlation two variables that change together o Positive correlation as one rises the other rises o Negative correlation as one rises the other falls Correlation coefficient r o Ranges from 1 to 1 Sign indicates direction o r 1 weak positive relationship o r 9 strong negative relationship o r 0 no relationship Iron Law of Correlation o Correlation DOES NOT equal causation A B B A C A B Pros Cons o Simple to collect data o Test whether a relationship exists between two variables o Cannot test causation How to test o Experiment o Random assignment to condition o Manipulate Independent Variable o Measure Dependent Variable 2 Experimental Research Two key features o Random assignment of participants o Controlled manipulation of independent variable Two types of variables o Independent variable o Dependent variable Operational definitions o Often social psychologists are interested in abstract concepts such as aggression or attraction In order to study these topics it is necessary to operationalize the constructs Creating operational definitions of variables allow the construct to be observed and measured 3 Natural or Quasi experiments No Experimental Manipulation Let Nature Manipulate the IV for you Evaluating Research o Internal Validity Did IV really have an effect on our DV Did being rejected really cause longer time in ice bucket Enhanced by o Experimental control over IV o Random assignment o External Validity The extent to which the findings from a study can be generalized to other people other settings and other time periods o Reliability Interpreting Results o Dating study Likelihood to date someone that it o Attractive Kind o Attractive Rude o Unattractive Kind o Unattractive Rude Main Effect When an IV has an effect of similar magnitude direction across levels of the other IV Interaction When the effect of one IV on the DV depends on the value or level of the other IV Nature and Nurture Nature o Evolution species change over time Both physically and mentally Via Natural Selection o Evolutionary Perspective 3 major components to evolution Heritability Variation o Genes passed on from parents Natural selection o A small percentage of genes change randomly o These random genetic changes mutations that can happen from one generation to the next create variation o The process whereby those members of a species that survive and reproduce most effectively are the ones that passes along their genes to future generations o Some mutations are more beneficial for survival and reproduction than others o Genetic Fitness Determines which random mutations are passed on to the next generations Evolution of Mental Abilities o Cat scruffing reflex deer in headlights o Sexual Selection Selection based on mates preferences o EEA Environmental of Evolutionary Adaptedness Modern humans first emerged about 130 000 years ago Many aspects of today s environment are different from EEA Evolution explains human psychology in terms of what was adaptive in EEA not today Discord between genes and environment Error Management Theory EMT We are biased to make the least costly error o Fear and Error Management Theory Genes and Environment o Do our genes shape who we are Genes might predispose us to some things eating disorders aggression etc Genetics predict about 40 50 of our individual variation o The Environment Experience Affects brain development Experience helps in development of neural connections A classic study on rats One had an impoverished environment brain cell less developed Other had an enriched environment brain cell more developed Increased 20 o Genes and Environment Nature vs Nurture FALSE DICHOTOMY Often phrased as a competition between two forces But actually not even separate o Nature AND Nurture Language Interaction the effect of one factor depends on another factor Culture o Evolved Cultural Animal Dunbar study Analyzed brain size in animals compared to their body weight Larger brains more social Our brains make up about 2 of our body mass but consume about 20 of our calories o Why would natural selection produce cooperation Survival Progress culture allows learning to be passed on from one generation to the next Branch of social psychology that studies how thoughts emotions and behavior differ across The influence of peers Cultural Psychology cultures Collectivistic VS Individualistic cultures Sedikides et al 2003 o Self Enhancement o American and Japanese P s asked Compared to your peers how do you rank on the following traits o Some traits were focused on


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FSU SOP 3004 - Social Psychology

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Exam 1

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Exam 3

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Test 2

Test 2

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Test 2

Test 2

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CHAPTER 1

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Chapter 4

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Chapter 1

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Chapter 7

Chapter 7

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Notes

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