social psychology

Question 1

what are attitudes?

Answer 1

favourable or unfavourable evaluative reactions towards an object or person

Question 2

how are attitudes formed?

Answer 2

• mere exposure to the stimuli

Classical conditioning - nonsense words (cs) + shock (us)
- Advertising
Operant conditioning
- Behaviour that leads to positive outcomes or prevents negative outcomes is strengthened.
Imitation
Adopting the attitudes of role models

Question 3

what is Bem’s self-perception theory?

Answer 3

• that we infer our attitudes from our behaviour
• attitude solidifies if behaviour is freely chosen

e.g. if someone asks what you like we reflect back on our past history of behaviours of always preferring ice cream in the menu

Question 4

testing the quality of headphoones e.g. nodders vs shakers - those of nodders found headphones more pleasing

pulling up vs pushing down - people who pushed up were more positive

what do these studies demonstrate towards attitude?

Answer 4

unobstrusive influences on attitudes!

Question 5

what are the functions of attitudes?

Answer 5

• trying to maintain cognitive consistency - maintaining an internal consistency, order and agreement between their beliefs as well as maintaining social desirability
• balanced situations e.g balanced triads (the balance theory)

Question 6

what is the difference between implicit vs explicit attitudes?

Answer 6

implicit - automatic, non-conscious, difficult to change

explicit - consciously controlled, easier to change (social desirability)

Question 7

what test tests implicit attitudes?

Answer 7

greenwald’s implicit association test (IAT) 1998

Question 8

what is the perception of attitude-behaviour?

Answer 8

we assume that our attitudes predict behaviour, but they’re not always

Question 9

how does behaviour and attitudes differ?

Answer 9

• to minimise social influence on expressed attitudes
• measuring attitudes that are specific to the observed behaviour
• attitude strength: personal involvement and knowledge

Question 10

what is the cognitive dissonance theory?

Answer 10

it is coined by leon festing (1957)
- based on cognitive consistency
- cognitive dissonance is a feeling of sicomfort caused by performing an action that is inconsistent with one’s attitude
- we strive to reduce dissonance
- rationalisation shapes attitudes

Question 11

what is insufficient justification & how does that affect cognitive dissonance? ‘

+ an example

Answer 11

• when extrinsic motivation is low, people are motivated to reduce cognitive dissonance by generating an intrinsic motivation to explain their behaviour
• similarly, more likely to decline a desireed activity whhen presented with a mild threat
• gambling

Question 12

what is an effect that is related to cognitive dissonance?

Answer 12

THE BEN FRANKLIN EFFECT:

• if someone who has done a favour for you in the past, is more likely to do another favour, this is cognitive dissonance - they have to perform an action that is consistent with one;s attitude

Question 13

what is choice dissonance?

Answer 13

choice dissonance is when we make a decision about somethiing between 2 alternatives that are equal, we make a decision then we like the one we picked a lt more, and think more negatively of the one we didn’t choose to reduce

choice dissonance! intensifying dislike of rejection & increasing like towards chosen

e.g –> buying a new product! advertisements e.g. limited editions ,, no returns.

this proves that cognitivedissonance doesn’t require conscious awareness!

Question 14

what are the steps to messagge learniing (yale) approach to persuasion:

Answer 14

• developed by Hovland:
• attitude change follows a series of stages;

1. attend to the mssage,
2. comprehend the message
3. accept the message

• incentives of new message outweighs old messages.

Question 15

what are the factors influencing the message learning approach persuasion:

Answer 15

• source variables
• message variables
• target audience variables

Question 16

what are source variables in persuasion:

Answer 16

Attractiveness:
* Physical appearance
* Likeability & optimism
* Similarity in background/ values to the audience

High vs. Low credibility:
Fast talkers seem more credible than slow speakers.

Question 17

what are message variables in persuasion:

Answer 17

• vivid in person - e.g. video visual + audio
• Fear appeals: inverted U function
• Humour: relevance to message.
• Repetition: mere exposure –> by having sequence or a story in the ads

Question 18

what are audience variables in persuasion:

Answer 18

mood: affects information
- positive mood!
- we also draw on our mood state to iinform our judgements
- sad mod also increeases buying prices e.g. because they want to get rid of things and change their current state & repair mood state.

Question 19

what is the elaboration likelihood model (petty & cacioppo, 1986)

Answer 19

there are 2 routes to persuasion;

1. centrral route (able & motivated)
2. peripheral route (unable or unwilling)
   attitude change ccan occur without comprehension

Question 20

do you need to be conscious, or be able to comprehend to have attitude change

Answer 20

NO

Question 21

what are nudges? + example

Answer 21

• traditional policy tools to change behaviour with rewards and punishments –
  e.g. governemnt - bans, subsidies, fines
• behavioural interventions that encourage desirable behaviour without restricting choice orr changing economic incentives

e.g. – healthy canteen line

Question 22

define compliance:

Answer 22

• behavioural response to a request from another person!

Question 23

how do you enhance compliance? + specific examples

Answer 23

reciprocity:
- large request followed b a small request (door in the face request)

social proof and uncertainty:
- jonestown - e.g. actions of others are the correct actions e.g. if others aree doing it i should too

flattery!

scarcity: we want what we have before it’s too late

consistency:
- low ball effeect; hiding upfront costs n then revelaiing hiddien costs later e.g. car sales
- it makes people happier with poor choices.

Question 24

what are normative social influences & what does it result in:

Answer 24

social influences: a shared standard of behaviour, a guideliine people follow in their relations with others (e.g. the clothes you wear)
- don’t want to be punished by group

thus result in – conformity!

Question 25

what are 2 studies that questioned whether social norm could emerge in a lab situation:

Answer 25

Sheriff norm formation:
- illusions whether individual knowledge is preffered or group conformity responses

Asch’s liine of judgement:
- lines, group setting you are more pressured!

Question 26

what are some important findings from Asch’s line of judgement?study?

Answer 26

• the more confederates in the group = more easier it is to conform
• if there is even one outlier in a group that disagrees, the pressure to conform in a group setting decreases significantly
• anonymity - in private, much less likely to conform

Question 27

what is milgram’s procedure?

Answer 27

• test the willingness of individuals to follow the orders of authorities hen those orders conflict with the individual’s own moral judgement.
• Participants were told by an experimenter to administer increasingly powerful electric shocks to another individuals.
• The majority of participants obeyed, even when the individual being shocked screamed in pain.

Question 28

what does milgram’s procedure show:

Answer 28

People obey either out of fear or out of a desire to appear cooperative.

Question 29

The role of distress?

Answer 29

Participants were visibly distressed, frequently asked if they might stop.

Question 30

What is the main factor of obedience:

Answer 30

• The subject tried to disobey, but failed (ineffective and indecisive disobedience)
• Confusion and uncertainty increase conformity
• Release from responsibility - e.g. I’ll accept full responsibility, you keep doing the shock.
  Incremental involvement - foot-to-door technique e.g. starting off small, but going big.

Question 31

Variations to the Milgram’s Procedure:

Answer 31

• The victims distance - if they can’t see the victim, they are more likely to push to extreme levels of shock, though when the victim was in the same room, the obedience dropped to 40%
• When the authorising figure is not in the room, obedience drops to 21%
  The environment? Prestigious vs dodgy environment?