 | Term | Definition |
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Social Psychology |
The scientific study of how individuals behave, think, and feel in social situations |
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Culture |
An ongoing pattern of live, characterizing a society at a given point in history |
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Social Role |
Expected behavior patterns associated with particular social positions (such as daughter, worker, student). |
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Role Conflict |
Trying to occupy two or more roles that make conflicting demands on behavior |
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Group Structure |
The network of roles, communication pathways, and power in a group |
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Group Cohesiveness |
The degree of attraction among group members or their commitment to remaining in the group |
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In-Group |
A group with which a person identifies |
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Out-Group |
A group with which a person does not identify |
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Status |
An individual's position in a social structure, especially with respect to power, privilege, or importance |
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Norm |
An accepted, but often unspoken standard of conduct for appropriate behavior |
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Autokinetic Effect |
The apparent movement of a stationary pinpoint of light displayed in a darkened room |
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Personal Space |
An area surrounding the body that is regarded as private and subject to personal control |
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Proxemics |
Systematic study of the human use of space, particularly in social settings |
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Intimate Distance |
The most private space immediately surrounding the body (18 inches) |
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Personal Distance |
The distance maintained within interacting with close friends (18 inches to 4 feet) |
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Social Distance |
Distance at which impersonal interaction takes place (4-12 feet) |
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Public Distance |
Distance at which formal interactions, such as giving a speech, occur (12 feet and up) |
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Attribution |
The process of making inferences about the causes of one's own behavior, and that of others |
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External Cause |
A cause of behavior that is assumed to lie outside a person |
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Internal Cause |
A cause of behavior assumed to lie within a person - for instance, a need, preference, or personality trait |
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Situational Demands |
Unstated expectations that define desirable or appropriate behavior in various settings and social situations |
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Fundamental Attributional Error |
The tendency to attribute the behavior of others to internal causes (personality, likes, etc...) |
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Actor-Observer Bias |
When making attributions, the tendency to attribute the behavior of others to internal causes while attributing one's own behavior to external causes |
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Self-Handicapping |
Arranging to perform under conditions that usually impair performance, so as to have an excuse for a poor showing |
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Need to Affiliate |
The desire to associate with other people |
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Social Comparison |
Making judgments about ourselves through comparison with others |
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Downward Comparison |
Comparing yourself with a person who ranks lower than you on some dimension |
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Upward Comparison |
Comparing yourself with a person who ranks higher than you on some dimension |
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Interpersonal Attraction |
Social attraction to another person |
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Self-Disclosure |
The process of revealing private thoughts, feelings, and one's personal history to others |
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Social Exchange |
Any exchange between two people of attention, information, affection, favors, or the like |
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Social Exchange Theory |
A theory stating that rewards must exceed costs for relationships to endure |
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Comparison Level |
A personal standard used to evaluate rewards and costs in a social exchange |
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Secure Attachment |
A stable and positive emotional bond |
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Avoidant Attachment |
An emotional bond marked by a tendency to resist commitment to others |
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Ambivalent Attachment |
An emotional bond marked by conflicting feelings of affection, anger, and emotional turmoil |
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Social Influence |
Changes in a person's behavior induced by the presence or actions of others |
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Conformity |
Bringing one's behavior into agreement or harmony with norms or with the behavior of others in a group |
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Social Power |
The capacity to control, alter, or influence the behavior of another person |
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Obedience |
Conformity to the demands of authority |
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Compliance |
Bending to the requests of a person who has little or no authority or other form of social power |
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Foot-in-the-Door |
The tendency for a person who has first complied with a small request to be more likely later to fulfill a larger request |
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Door-in-the-Face |
The tendency for a person who has refused a major request to subse |
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Low-Ball Technique |
A strategy in which commitment is gained first to reasonable or desirable terms, which are then made less reasonable |
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Passive Compliance |
Passively bending to unreasonable demands or circumstances |
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Assertiveness Training |
Instruction in how to be self-assertive |
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Self-Assertion |
A direct, honest expression of feelings and desires |
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Aggression |
Hurting another person or achieving one's goals at the expense or another person |
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Overlearning |
Learning or practice that continues after initial mastery of a skill |
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Broken Record |
A self-assertion technique involving repeating a request until it is acknowledged |
