Skip to main content
Social Sci LibreTexts

13.10: Key Terms

  • Page ID
    200484
  • \( \newcommand{\vecs}[1]{\overset { \scriptstyle \rightharpoonup} {\mathbf{#1}} } \)

    \( \newcommand{\vecd}[1]{\overset{-\!-\!\rightharpoonup}{\vphantom{a}\smash {#1}}} \)

    \( \newcommand{\id}{\mathrm{id}}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\)

    ( \newcommand{\kernel}{\mathrm{null}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\range}{\mathrm{range}\,}\)

    \( \newcommand{\RealPart}{\mathrm{Re}}\) \( \newcommand{\ImaginaryPart}{\mathrm{Im}}\)

    \( \newcommand{\Argument}{\mathrm{Arg}}\) \( \newcommand{\norm}[1]{\| #1 \|}\)

    \( \newcommand{\inner}[2]{\langle #1, #2 \rangle}\)

    \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\)

    \( \newcommand{\id}{\mathrm{id}}\)

    \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\)

    \( \newcommand{\kernel}{\mathrm{null}\,}\)

    \( \newcommand{\range}{\mathrm{range}\,}\)

    \( \newcommand{\RealPart}{\mathrm{Re}}\)

    \( \newcommand{\ImaginaryPart}{\mathrm{Im}}\)

    \( \newcommand{\Argument}{\mathrm{Arg}}\)

    \( \newcommand{\norm}[1]{\| #1 \|}\)

    \( \newcommand{\inner}[2]{\langle #1, #2 \rangle}\)

    \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\) \( \newcommand{\AA}{\unicode[.8,0]{x212B}}\)

    \( \newcommand{\vectorA}[1]{\vec{#1}}      % arrow\)

    \( \newcommand{\vectorAt}[1]{\vec{\text{#1}}}      % arrow\)

    \( \newcommand{\vectorB}[1]{\overset { \scriptstyle \rightharpoonup} {\mathbf{#1}} } \)

    \( \newcommand{\vectorC}[1]{\textbf{#1}} \)

    \( \newcommand{\vectorD}[1]{\overrightarrow{#1}} \)

    \( \newcommand{\vectorDt}[1]{\overrightarrow{\text{#1}}} \)

    \( \newcommand{\vectE}[1]{\overset{-\!-\!\rightharpoonup}{\vphantom{a}\smash{\mathbf {#1}}}} \)

    \( \newcommand{\vecs}[1]{\overset { \scriptstyle \rightharpoonup} {\mathbf{#1}} } \)

    \( \newcommand{\vecd}[1]{\overset{-\!-\!\rightharpoonup}{\vphantom{a}\smash {#1}}} \)

    \(\newcommand{\avec}{\mathbf a}\) \(\newcommand{\bvec}{\mathbf b}\) \(\newcommand{\cvec}{\mathbf c}\) \(\newcommand{\dvec}{\mathbf d}\) \(\newcommand{\dtil}{\widetilde{\mathbf d}}\) \(\newcommand{\evec}{\mathbf e}\) \(\newcommand{\fvec}{\mathbf f}\) \(\newcommand{\nvec}{\mathbf n}\) \(\newcommand{\pvec}{\mathbf p}\) \(\newcommand{\qvec}{\mathbf q}\) \(\newcommand{\svec}{\mathbf s}\) \(\newcommand{\tvec}{\mathbf t}\) \(\newcommand{\uvec}{\mathbf u}\) \(\newcommand{\vvec}{\mathbf v}\) \(\newcommand{\wvec}{\mathbf w}\) \(\newcommand{\xvec}{\mathbf x}\) \(\newcommand{\yvec}{\mathbf y}\) \(\newcommand{\zvec}{\mathbf z}\) \(\newcommand{\rvec}{\mathbf r}\) \(\newcommand{\mvec}{\mathbf m}\) \(\newcommand{\zerovec}{\mathbf 0}\) \(\newcommand{\onevec}{\mathbf 1}\) \(\newcommand{\real}{\mathbb R}\) \(\newcommand{\twovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\ctwovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\threevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cthreevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\mattwo}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{rr}#1 \amp #2 \\ #3 \amp #4 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\laspan}[1]{\text{Span}\{#1\}}\) \(\newcommand{\bcal}{\cal B}\) \(\newcommand{\ccal}{\cal C}\) \(\newcommand{\scal}{\cal S}\) \(\newcommand{\wcal}{\cal W}\) \(\newcommand{\ecal}{\cal E}\) \(\newcommand{\coords}[2]{\left\{#1\right\}_{#2}}\) \(\newcommand{\gray}[1]{\color{gray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\lgray}[1]{\color{lightgray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\rank}{\operatorname{rank}}\) \(\newcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\col}{\text{Col}}\) \(\renewcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\nul}{\text{Nul}}\) \(\newcommand{\var}{\text{Var}}\) \(\newcommand{\corr}{\text{corr}}\) \(\newcommand{\len}[1]{\left|#1\right|}\) \(\newcommand{\bbar}{\overline{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bhat}{\widehat{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bperp}{\bvec^\perp}\) \(\newcommand{\xhat}{\widehat{\xvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\vhat}{\widehat{\vvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\uhat}{\widehat{\uvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\what}{\widehat{\wvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\Sighat}{\widehat{\Sigma}}\) \(\newcommand{\lt}{<}\) \(\newcommand{\gt}{>}\) \(\newcommand{\amp}{&}\) \(\definecolor{fillinmathshade}{gray}{0.9}\)
    actor-observer bias
    phenomenon of explaining other people’s behaviors are due to internal factors and our own behaviors are due to situational forces
    ageism
    prejudice and discrimination toward individuals based solely on their age
    aggression
    seeking to cause harm or pain to another person
    altruism
    humans’ desire to help others even if the costs outweigh the benefits of helping
    Asch effect
    group majority influences an individual’s judgment, even when that judgment is inaccurate
    attitude
    evaluations of or feelings toward a person, idea, or object that are typically positive or negative
    attribution
    explanation for the behavior of other people
    bullying
    a person, often an adolescent, being treated negatively repeatedly and over time
    bystander effect
    situation in which a witness or bystander does not volunteer to help a victim or person in distress
    central route persuasion
    logic-driven arguments using data and facts to convince people of an argument’s worthiness
    cognitive dissonance
    psychological discomfort that arises from a conflict in a person’s behaviors, attitudes, or beliefs that runs counter to one’s positive self-perception
    collectivist culture
    culture that focuses on communal relationships with others such as family, friends, and community
    companionate love
    type of love consisting of intimacy and commitment, but not passion; associated with close friendships and family relationships
    confederate
    person who works for a researcher and is aware of the experiment, but who acts as a participant; used to manipulate social situations as part of the research design
    confirmation bias
    seeking out information that supports our stereotypes while ignoring information that is inconsistent with our stereotypes
    conformity
    when individuals change their behavior to go along with the group even if they do not agree with the group
    consummate love
    type of love occurring when intimacy, passion, and commitment are all present
    cyberbullying
    repeated behavior that is intended to cause psychological or emotional harm to another person and that takes place online
    diffusion of responsibility
    tendency for no one in a group to help because the responsibility to help is spread throughout the group
    discrimination
    negative actions toward individuals as a result of their membership in a particular group
    dispositionism
    describes a perspective common to personality psychologists, which asserts that our behavior is determined by internal factors, such as personality traits and temperament
    empathy
    capacity to understand another person’s perspective—to feel what they feel
    foot-in-the-door technique
    persuasion of one person by another person, encouraging a person to agree to a small favor, or to buy a small item, only to later request a larger favor or purchase of a larger item
    fundamental attribution error
    tendency to overemphasize internal factors as attributions for behavior and underestimate the power of the situation
    group polarization
    strengthening of the original group attitude after discussing views within the group
    groupthink
    group members modify their opinions to match what they believe is the group consensus
    homophily
    tendency for people to form social networks, including friendships, marriage, business relationships, and many other types of relationships, with others who are similar
    homophobia
    prejudice and discrimination against individuals based solely on their sexual orientation
    hostile aggression
    aggression motivated by feelings of anger with intent to cause pain
    in-group
    group that we identify with or see ourselves as belonging to
    in-group bias
    preference for our own group over other groups
    individualistic culture
    culture that focuses on individual achievement and autonomy
    informational social influence
    conformity to a group norm prompted by the belief that the group is competent and has the correct information
    instrumental aggression
    aggression motivated by achieving a goal and does not necessarily involve intent to cause pain
    internal factor
    internal attribute of a person, such as personality traits or temperament
    just-world hypothesis
    ideology common in the United States that people get the outcomes they deserve
    justification of effort
    theory that people value goals and achievements more when they have put more effort into them
    normative social influence
    conformity to a group norm to fit in, feel good, and be accepted by the group
    obedience
    change of behavior to please an authority figure or to avoid aversive consequences
    out-group
    group that we don’t belong to—one that we view as fundamentally different from us
    peripheral route persuasion
    one person persuades another person; an indirect route that relies on association of peripheral cues (such as positive emotions and celebrity endorsement) to associate positivity with a message
    persuasion
    process of changing our attitude toward something based on some form of communication
    prejudice
    negative attitudes and feelings toward individuals based solely on their membership in a particular group
    prosocial behavior
    voluntary behavior with the intent to help other people
    racism
    prejudice and discrimination toward individuals based solely on their race
    reciprocity
    give and take in relationships
    romantic love
    type of love consisting of intimacy and passion, but no commitment
    scapegoating
    act of blaming an out-group when the in-group experiences frustration or is blocked from obtaining a goal
    script
    person’s knowledge about the sequence of events in a specific setting
    self-disclosure
    sharing personal information in relationships
    self-fulfilling prophecy
    treating stereotyped group members according to our biased expectations only to have this treatment influence the individual to act according to our stereotypic expectations, thus confirming our stereotypic beliefs
    self-serving bias
    tendency for individuals to take credit by making dispositional or internal attributions for positive outcomes and situational or external attributions for negative outcomes
    sexism
    prejudice and discrimination toward individuals based on their sex
    situationism
    describes a perspective that behavior and actions are determined by the immediate environment and surroundings; a view promoted by social psychologists
    social exchange theory
    humans act as naïve economists in keeping a tally of the ratio of costs and benefits of forming and maintain a relationship, with the goal to maximize benefits and minimize costs
    social loafing
    exertion of less effort by a person working in a group because individual performance cannot be evaluated separately from the group, thus causing performance decline on easy tasks
    social norm
    group’s expectations regarding what is appropriate and acceptable for the thoughts and behavior of its members
    social psychology
    field of psychology that examines how people impact or affect each other, with particular focus on the power of the situation
    social role
    socially defined pattern of behavior that is expected of a person in a given setting or group
    stanford prison experiment
    Stanford University conducted an experiment in a mock prison that demonstrated the power of social roles, social norms, and scripts
    stereotype
    specific beliefs or assumptions about individuals based solely on their membership in a group, regardless of their individual characteristics
    triangular theory of love
    model of love based on three components: intimacy, passion, and commitment; several types of love exist, depending on the presence or absence of each of these components

    This page titled 13.10: Key Terms is shared under a not declared license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by OpenStax.

    • Was this article helpful?