Social Psychology Terms and Vocabulary. How one tends to act toward the object of an attitude.

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1 Psychology Terms and Vocabulary Action component Actor observer bias Attitude Attitude scale Attribution Autokinetic effect Belief component Brainwashing Coercion How one tends to act toward the object of an attitude. The tendency to attribute the behavior of others to internal causes while attributing one s own behavior to external causes (situations and circumstances). A learned tendency to respond to people, objects, or institutions in a positive or negative way. A collection of attitudinal statements with which respondents indicate agreement or disagreement. The process of making inferences about the causes of one s own behavior, and that of others. The apparent movement of a stationary pinpoint of light displayed in a darkened room. What a person thinks or believes about the object of an attitude. Engineered or forced attitude change involving a captive audience. Being forced to change your beliefs or your behavior against your will. Coercive power power based on the ability to punish others. Cognitive dissonance Compliance Conformity Conviction Cult Culture Door-in-the-face effect Downward comparison Emotional component Expert power An uncomfortable clash between self-image thoughts, beliefs, attitudes, or perceptions and one s behavior. Bending to the requests of a person who has little or no authority or other form of social power. Bringing one s behavior into agreement or harmony with norms or with the behavior of others in a group. Beliefs that are important to a person and that evoke strong emotion. A group that professes great devotion to some person and follows that person almost without question; cult members are typically victimized by their leaders in various ways. An ongoing pattern of life, characterizing a society at a given point in history. The tendency for a person who has refused a major request to subsequently be more likely to comply with a minor request. Comparing yourself with a person who ranks lower than you on some dimension. One s feelings toward the object of an attitude. power derived from possession of knowledge or expertise.

2 External cause Foot-in-the-door effect Fundamental attribution error Group cohesiveness A cause of behavior that is assumed to lie outside a person. The tendency for a person who has first complied with a small request to be more likely later to fulfill a larger request. The tendency to attribute the behavior of others to internal causes (personality, likes, and so forth) The degree of attraction among group members or their commitment to remaining in the group. Group sanctions Rewards and punishments (such as approval or disapproval) administered by groups to enforce conformity among members. Group structure The network of roles, communication pathways, and power in a group. Groupthink In-group Internal cause Intimate distance Legitimate power Low-ball technique Mere presence Norm Obedience Open-ended interview Out-group Personal distance Personal space Persuasion Proxemics Public distance A compulsion by members of decision-making groups to maintain agreement, even at the cost of critical thinking. A group with which a person identifies. A cause of behavior assumed to lie within a person for instance, a need, preference, or personality trait. The most private space immediately surrounding the body (up to about 18 inches from the skin). power based on a person s position as an agent of an accepted social order. A strategy in which commitment is gained first to reasonable or desirable terms, which are then made less reasonable or desirable. The tendency for people to change their behavior just because of the presence of other people. A widely accepted (but often unspoken) standard of conduct for appropriate behavior. Conformity to the demands of an authority. An interview in which persons are allowed to freely state their views. A group with which a person does not identify. The distance maintained when interacting with close friends (about 18 inches to 4 feet from the body). An area surrounding the body that is regarded as private and subject to personal control. A deliberate attempt to change attitudes or beliefs with information and arguments. Systematic study of the human use of space, particularly in social settings. Distance at which formal interactions, such as giving a speech, occur (about 12 feet or more from the body). Reference group Any group that an individual identifies with and uses as a standard for social comparison.

3 Referent power Reward power Role conflict Selfhandicapping Situational demands power gained when one is used as a point of reference by others. power based on the capacity to reward a person for acting as desired. Trying to occupy two or more roles that make conflicting demands on behavior. Arranging to perform under conditions that usually impair performance, so as to have an excuse for a poor showing. Unstated expectations that define desirable or appropriate behavior in various settings and social situations. cognition The process of thinking about ourselves and others in a social context. comparison distance distance scale facilitation Making judgments about ourselves through comparison with others. Distance at which impersonal interaction takes place (about 4 to 12 feet from the body). A rating of the degree to which a person would be willing to have contact with a member of another group. The tendency to perform better when in the presence of others. influence Changes in a person s behavior induced by the presence or actions of others. loafing power psychology role status Upward comparison Ageism Aggression The tendency of people to work less hard when part of a group than when they are solely responsible for their work. The capacity to control, alter, or influence the behavior of another person. The scientific study of how individuals behave, think, and feel in social situations. Expected behavior patterns associated with particular social positions (such as daughter, worker, student). An individual s position in a social structure, especially with respect to power, privilege, or importance. Comparing yourself with a person who ranks higher than you on some dimension. An institutionalized tendency to discriminate on the basis of age; prejudice based on age. Any action carried out with the intention of harming another person. Aggression cues Stimuli or signals that are associated with aggression and that tend to elicit it. Aggressive pornography Ambivalent attachment Media depictions of sexual violence or of forced participation in sexual activity. An emotional bond marked by conflicting feelings of affection, anger, and emotional turmoil.

4 Anger control Antisocial behavior Authoritarian personality Avoidant attachment Bullying Bystander apathy Commitment Companionate love Comparison level Consummate love Desensitization Diffusion of responsibility Discrimination Disinhibition Displaced aggression Dogmatism Empathic arousal Empathyhelping relationship Equal-status contact Ethnocentrism Ethologist Evolutionary psychology Personal strategies for reducing or curbing anger. Any behavior that has a negative impact on other people. A personality pattern characterized by rigidity, inhibition, prejudice, and an excessive concern with power, authority, and obedience. An emotional bond marked by a tendency to resist commitment to others. The deliberate and repeated use of verbal or physical, direct or indirect, aggression as a tactic for dealing with every-day situations. Unwillingness of bystanders to offer help during emergencies or to become involved in others problems. The determination to stay in a long-term relationship with another person. Form of love characterized by intimacy and commitment but not passion. A personal standard used to evaluate rewards and costs in a social exchange. Form of love characterized by intimacy, passion, and commitment. A reduction in emotional sensitivity to a stimulus. Spreading the responsibility to act among several people; reduces the likelihood that help will be given to a person in need. Treating members of various social groups differently in circumstances where their rights or treatment should be identical. The removal of inhibition; results in acting out behavior that normally would be restrained. Redirecting aggression to a target other than the actual source of one s frustration. An unwarranted positiveness or certainty in matters of belief or opinion. Emotional arousal that occurs when you feel some of another person s pain, fear, or anguish. Observation that we are most likely to help someone else when we feel emotions such as empathy and compassion. interaction that occurs on an equal footing, without obvious differences in power or status. Placing one s own group or race at the center that is, tending to reject all other groups but one s own. A person who studies the natural behavior patterns of animals. Study of the evolutionary origins of human behavior patterns.

5 Frustrationaggression hypothesis States that frustration tends to lead to aggression. Group prejudice Prejudice held out of conformity to group views. Heterosexism Homogamy Individuating information Interpersonal attraction Intimacy Jigsaw classroom Just-world beliefs Liking The belief that heterosexuality is better or more natural than homosexuality. Marriage of two people who are similar to one another. Information that helps define a person as an individual, rather than as a member of a group or social category. attraction to another person. Feelings of connectedness and affection for another person. A method of reducing prejudice; each student receives only part of the information needed to complete a project or prepare for a test. Belief that people generally get what they deserve. A relationship based on intimacy, but lacking passion and commitment. Multiculturalism Giving equal status, recognition, and acceptance to different ethnic and cultural groups. Mutual absorption Mutual interdependence With regard to romantic love, the nearly exclusive attention lovers give to one another. A condition in which two or more persons must depend on one another to meet each person s needs or goals. Need to affiliate The desire to associate with other people. Passion Personal prejudice Prejudice Prosocial behavior Racism Reciprocity Romantic love Scapegoating Deep emotional and/or sexual feelings for another person. Prejudicial attitudes held toward persons who are perceived as a direct threat to one s own interests. A negative emotional attitude held against members of a particular group of people. Any behavior that has a positive impact on other people. Racial prejudice that has become institutionalized (that is, it is reflected in government policy, schools, and so forth) and that is enforced by the existing social power structure. A reciprocal exchange of feelings, thoughts, or things between people. Love that is associated with high levels of interpersonal attraction, heightened arousal, mutual absorption, and sexual desire. Blaming a person or a group for the actions of others or for conditions not of their making.

6 Secure attachment Self-disclosure Self-fulfilling prophecy Selfstereotyping Sexism competition A stable and positive emotional bond. The process of revealing private thoughts, feelings, and one s personal history to others. An expectation that prompts people to act in ways that make the expectation come true. The tendency to apply social stereotypes to one s self. Institutionalized prejudice against members of either sex, based solely on their gender. Rivalry among groups, each of which regards itself as superior to others. exchange Any exchange between two people of attention, information, affection, favors, or the like. exchange theory learning theory stereotypes Status inequalities Stereotype threat Superordinate goal Symbolic prejudice Theory stating that rewards must exceed costs for relationships to endure. Combines learning principles with cognitive processes, socialization, and modeling, to explain behavior. Oversimplified images of the traits of individuals who belong to a particular social group. Differences in the power, prestige, or privileges of two or more persons or groups. The anxiety caused by the fear of being judged in terms of a stereotype. A goal that exceeds or overrides all others; a goal that renders other goals relatively less important. Prejudice that is expressed in disguised fashion. Weapons effect The observation that weapons serve as strong cues for aggressive behavior.