Social Cognition Models - Eppp Knowledge

1. What is the central claim of Asch's configural model of impression formation?

   Traits are integrated holistically; central traits shift meaning of others. Asch emphasized that impressions form through a gestalt-like process where traits interact, and central ones redefine the interpretation of peripheral ones.

2. In Weiner's model, which attribution dimension refers to stable versus unstable causes?

   Stability. This dimension assesses whether causes are enduring or temporary, influencing expectations about future behavior and outcomes.

3. Which attribution is most likely when consensus is high, distinctiveness is high, and consistency is high?

   Stimulus (entity) attribution. This combination suggests the behavior is common and specific to the stimulus, leading to attributions focused on the entity itself.

4. What is the primacy effect in impression formation?

   Earlier information weighs more than later information in judgments. Initial information has greater impact on impressions due to its role in shaping early interpretations, which subsequent details are assimilated into.

5. What is the fundamental attribution error?

   Overattributing others' behavior to dispositions over situations. This bias reflects a tendency to underestimate situational influences and overestimate stable personality factors when explaining others' actions.

6. What is discrimination in social psychology?

   Unjustified negative behavior toward a group or its members. Discrimination manifests as differential treatment based on group membership, often stemming from underlying prejudices or stereotypes.

7. Which attribution is most likely when consensus is low, distinctiveness is low, and consistency is high?

   Person (dispositional) attribution. This pattern indicates the behavior is unique to the person and general across stimuli, favoring internal dispositional explanations.

8. In Kelley's covariation model, what does high consistency indicate?

   Behavior is stable across time and situations with the stimulus. High consistency shows the behavior is reliable over time, strengthening attributions when combined with consensus and distinctiveness patterns.

9. In Kelley's covariation model, what does high consensus indicate?

   Others behave similarly toward the same stimulus. High consensus suggests the behavior is not unique to the person, pointing toward external causes like the stimulus or situation.

10. In Weiner's model, which attribution dimension refers to internal versus external causes?

    Locus of causality. This dimension differentiates causes originating within the individual from those in the external environment, affecting responsibility judgments.

11. What is a self-fulfilling prophecy in social perception?

    Expectations elicit behaviors that confirm the expectations. This phenomenon happens when perceiver's beliefs about a target lead to actions that cause the target to behave in ways confirming those beliefs.

12. What is the self-serving bias in attribution?

    Success internalized; failure externalized. This attribution pattern protects self-esteem by claiming credit for positive outcomes and blaming external factors for negative ones.

13. What is prejudice in social psychology?

    A negative attitude or affect toward a group and its members. Prejudice involves preconceived emotional evaluations that can distort social judgments and interactions with outgroup members.

14. Which attribution is most likely when consistency is low (regardless of consensus and distinctiveness)?

    Circumstance (situational) attribution. Low consistency implies the behavior is atypical, attributing it to temporary situational factors rather than stable causes.

15. What does Heider's attribution theory propose as the two main causal sources?

    Internal (dispositional) versus external (situational) causes. Heider distinguished between personal intentions and environmental pressures as primary explanations for observed behaviors.

16. What is the actor–observer bias in attribution?

    Own acts: situational; others' acts: dispositional. This discrepancy arises because actors have more situational awareness for their own behavior, while observers focus on the actor's dispositions.

17. Which theory explains prejudice as arising from competition over scarce resources?

    Realistic conflict theory. This theory posits that intergroup hostility emerges from perceived threats to resources, fostering ingroup favoritism and outgroup derogation.

18. What does schema theory propose about social perception?

    Existing schemas guide attention, encoding, and interpretation of others. Schemas act as cognitive frameworks that selectively filter and organize social information, influencing how people perceive and remember others.

19. What is Kelley's covariation model used to determine?

    Whether behavior is attributed to person, stimulus, or circumstances. The model assesses attribution by examining patterns of consensus, distinctiveness, and consistency to infer causal locus.

20. What is a stereotype in social cognition?

    A belief or expectation about attributes of a social group. Stereotypes function as cognitive shortcuts that generalize traits to group members, often leading to biased perceptions and expectations.

21. In Weiner's model, which attribution dimension refers to controllable versus uncontrollable causes?

    Controllability. This dimension evaluates if causes can be influenced by the individual, impacting emotional responses like guilt or anger in achievement contexts.

22. In Kelley's covariation model, what does high distinctiveness indicate?

    Behavior occurs mainly with this stimulus, not others. High distinctiveness implies the behavior is specific to the stimulus, supporting attributions to entity rather than personal traits.

23. Which model explains impression formation as a weighted average of trait information?

    Anderson's information integration (weighted averaging) model. This model posits that overall impressions result from averaging trait values, with weights reflecting their perceived importance in the judgment process.

24. Which trait type in Asch's theory disproportionately organizes an overall impression?

    Central traits. In Asch's framework, these traits dominate impression formation by organizing and altering the meaning of other traits in a holistic manner.

25. What is the halo effect in social perception?

    Global impression biases ratings of specific traits. This perceptual bias occurs when an overall positive or negative impression influences judgments of individual attributes, leading to correlated ratings.

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