Unit 6: social cognition

Question 1

What is person perception?

Answer 1

Person perception refers to the mental processes we use to form impressions and draw conclusions about the personal characteristics of other people.

Question 2

Define the term Schema

Answer 2

Schema = A concept or idea that helps us to organise information and interpret information.

Question 3

First impressions

Answer 3

First impressions are influenced by expectations, biases and incomplete information and this might affect the impressions we form.

Question 4

What is the halo effect?

Answer 4

the halo effect leads us to consider only one aspect of a person or a product in order to form a general opinion

Question 5

What is attribution?

Answer 5

Attribution is the process by which people explain the causes of their own and other people’s behaviour.

Question 6

Situational attribution is ?

Answer 6

Behaviour is explained because of the situation they are in

Question 7

Personal attribution?

Answer 7

behavior is explained by their personal qualities

Question 8

Three types of bias affecting attribution?

Answer 8

Fundamental attribution error
actor-observer bias
self-serving bias

Question 9

fundamental attribution error

Answer 9

The fundamental attribution error is the tendency to overestimate the influence of personal factors and underestimate the impact of situational factors on other people’s behaviour.

Question 10

actor observer bias

Answer 10

Actor–observer bias refers to our tendency to attribute our own behavior to situational causes, yet attribute others’ behaviour to internal factors

Question 11

Self-serving bias

Answer 11

Self-serving bias occurs when judging ourselves we tend to take the credit for our successes and attribute failures to situational factors.

Question 12

What are attitudes:

Answer 12

An attitude is an evaluation a person makes about an object, person, group, event or issue.

Question 13

tri component model of attributes

Answer 13

Attitudes are thought to have three components:
an affective component (feelings),
a behavioral component (the effect of the attitude on behavior),
and a cognitive component (belief and knowledge)

Question 14

Affective component definition

Answer 14

The affective component of an attitude refers to the emotional reactions or feelings an individual has towards an object, person, group, event or issue.

Question 15

Behavioural component explained

Answer 15

The behavioural component of an attitude refers to the way in which an attitude is expressed through our actions (or how we might behave should the opportunity arise)

Question 16

Cognitive component definition

Answer 16

The cognitive component of an attitude refers to the beliefs we have about an object, person, group, event or issue. Our beliefs are linked to what we know about the world. They develop as a result of our experience throughout the course of our lives.

Question 17

consistency between components

Answer 17

The tri-component model proposes that all three components must be present before it can be said that an attitude exists

Question 18

factors that influence consistency between attitudes and behaviour

Answer 18

Strength of the attitude
Stronger attitudes are more likely to predict behaviour than weaker attitudes.
Accessibility of the attitude
it has been thought about, is well known and has been stored in memory ready for use
The situation we are in
Our personal belief that we can actually perform the behaviour associated with an attitude

Question 18

factors that influence consistency between attitudes and behaviour

Answer 18

Strength of the attitude
Stronger attitudes are more likely to predict behaviour than weaker attitudes.
Accessibility of the attitude
it has been thought about, is well known and has been stored in memory ready for use
The situation we are in
Our personal belief that we can actually perform the behaviour associated with an attitude

Question 19

stereotypes

Answer 19

grouping people into categories based on what we know about them
A stereotype is a collection of beliefs that we have about the people who belong to a certain group, regardless of individual differences among members of that group.

Question 20

cognitive dissonance

Answer 20

The inconsistency between what people believe and how they behave

Cognitive dissonance refers to a situation involving conflicting attitudes, beliefs or behaviors

Question 21

reducing cognitive dissonance

Answer 21

change our dissonate cognition, change our behaviour and justify behaviour

Question 22

cognitive bias is…?

Answer 22

Cognitive bias is a subconscious error in thinking that leads you to misinterpret information from the world around you

Question 23

anchoring bias definition?

Answer 23

Anchoring bias is the tendency to rely heavily on the very first piece of information received when making a decision and to not modify this anchor sufficiently in light of later information.

Question 24

attentional bias term?

Answer 24

Attentional bias is the tendency to prioritise attention to certain information (or other stimuli) over other information.

Question 25

confirmation bias is ?

Answer 25

Confirmation bias is the tendency to seek, recall or interpret information in a way that confirms existing beliefs or expectations while dismissing or failing to seek contradictory evidence

Question 26

What are heuristics?

Answer 26

A heuristic is a strategy for solving a problem or making a decision that is based on experience with similar types of problems but cannot guarantee a correct outcome.

Question 27

Types of Heuristics

Answer 27

The availability heuristic involves making a judgment based on how easy or difficult it is to bring specific examples to mind.

The representativeness heuristic involves categorising a person, object, event or anything else by judging how closely it matches our idea of a typical member of the category.

The affect heuristic involves making a judgment that is influenced by the emotion being experienced at the time.

Question 28

What is Prejudice?

Answer 28

Because prejudice involves a judgment, it is usually considered to be an attitude, but specifically one for which the focus is people.
Prejudgement
Prejudice is often defined as holding a negative attitude towards the members of a group, based solely on their membership of that group.

Question 29

old fashioned prejudice

Answer 29

A form of prejudice in which members of the majority group openly reject minority group members and their views towards the minority group are obvious and recognisable to others.

Question 30

modern prejudice

Answer 30

A form of prejudice which is more subtle, hidden and expressed in ways more likely to be accepted within the majority group.

Question 31

explicit prejudice

Answer 31

Explicit prejudice is defined as prejudice that is consciously held and usually deliberately thought about. Like old-fashioned prejudice, it is typically openly expressed by the person holding it and is within their control.

Question 32

implicit prejudice

Answer 32

Implicit prejudice is prejudice that is typically unconsciously held; that is, the person holding such prejudice is not usually aware that they do so

Question 33

discrimination

Answer 33

Discrimination refers to positive or negative behaviour that is directed towards a social group and its members.

Question 34

direct discrimination

Answer 34

Direct discrimination happens when someone is treated unfavourably because of a personal characteristic protected by the law.

Question 35

indirect discrimination

Answer 35

Indirect discrimination happens when there is an unreasonable requirement, condition or practice that disadvantages a person, or a group of people, because of a personal characteristic.

Question 36

intergroup contact

Answer 36

Intergroup contact involves increasing direct contact between two groups who are prejudiced against each other.