Chapter 9 Social Cognition Flashcards
(43 cards)
Social cognition
How we interpret, analyse, remember and use information to make judgements about others in different social situations
Person perception
The mental processes we use to form impressions and draw conclusions about the personal characteristics of other people.
What is the role of person perception?
~Make judgements about others
~Influence our choices of friends
~Influence who we should have relationships with and who we should avoid
The halo effect
A cognitive bias in which the impression we form about one quality of a person influences our beliefs and expectations about the person in other qualities.
What are three types of non-verbal communication?
- Body language
- Eye contact
- Facial expressions
What is body language useful for?
Enabling us to make quick and more accurate judgements about someone.
Attribution
The process by which people explain the causes of their own and other people’s behaviour
Personal/dispositional attribution
Explanation due to the characteristics of the person involved.
(Blame the person)
Situational attribution
An explanation due to factors external to the person involved such as the environment, task, luck and fate
The fundamental attribution error
The tendency to overestimate the influence of personal factors and underestimate the impact of situational factors on other people’s behaviour
Saliency bias
Where we attribute behaviour to personal characteristics because the person’s behaviour tends to be more noticeable than the situation in which it is occurring
Just world belief
The belief that the world is a fair place in which people generally get what they deserve and vice versa.
We blame people for their misfortunes
Actor-observer bias/discrepancy
Our tendency to attribute our own behaviour to external or situational causes, yet attribute others’ to internal factors.
Self-serving bias
When we take the credit for our successes but attribute our failures to the situation.
To protect self esteem or maintain a good image
Individualist culture
Where being an individual and independent is valued and encouraged
Collectivist culture
Achieving group goals is encouraged and prioritised over individual goals.
Which culture is less likely to make the fundamental attribution error and the self-serving bias?
Collectivist cultures
Attitude
An evaluation a person makes about an object, person, group, event or issue
Tri-component model of attitudes
Proposes that any attitude has three related components- affective, behavioural and cognitive components
Affective component
The emotional reactions or feelings an individual has towards an object, person, group, event or issue
Behavioural component
The way in which an attitude is expressed through our actions.
Cognitive component
The beliefs we have about an object, person, group, event or issue
What are the limitations of the tri-component model?
~A behaviour may not always reflect the person’s beliefs or attitudes
What factors influence the consistency of attitudes and behaviour?
- Strength of the attitude
- Accessibility of the attitude
- Social context
- Perceived control
