Transcript Social Influence: Obedience and Authority Psychology 170 March 7

Social Psychology
Kimberley A. Clow
[email protected]
http://www.ssc.uwo.ca/psychology/undergraduate/psych020-003/
Login: psych20-003
Password: greentea
Outline
Social Psychology

Helping
Who we help
 When we help


Influence of Groups
Social Facilitation
 Social Loafing


Attraction
Beauty
 Love

Social Psychology
Definition
Social psychology is the scientific study of
the way in which people’s thoughts,
feelings, and behaviour are influenced by
the real or imagined presence of other
people
 Emphasizes the situational factors that
affect behaviour

Helping
Who Do We Help?
80
60
% Helping
40
20
0
High
Medium
Low
Genetic Relatedness
None
Social Factors
Similarity
Responsibility
Kitty Genovese
The Process of Helping
Smoke Filled Room
80
70
60
50
% Reporting 40
Smoke
30
20
10
0
0
1
2
3
4
5
Minutes Passed Since Smoke Started
Alone
Three Person Group
6
Decision Stages  Helping
Do Groups Help or Hinder?
What influence do
groups have?



Do you perform better
in a group?
Do you perform worse
in a group?
Do groups alter the
way you behave?
Presence of Others
On wellmastered
or simple
tasks
dominant
response
is right
Physiological Arousal
Dominant Responses
Improved
Performance
On difficult
or complex
tasks
dominant
response is
wrong
Impaired
Performance
Social Loafing
Told to clap or cheer
as loud as you can
Wearing headphones


Hearing others clap or
cheer
Can’t hear themselves
Facilitation vs. Loafing
When Do People Join Groups?
When they believe they
would fail on their own

Stereotypical male vs.
female tasks
When they want
information
When they don’t want to
face an uneasy situation
alone
Another Shocking Study…
Women giving shocks


KKK outfits
Nurse uniforms
Deindividuation

Losing one’s sense of
personal identity

More susceptible to the
cues in the situation?
Attitude Towards Grad School
After discussion, the
group that initially
favored grad school
would be even more
strongly in favor
Definite GO
Conversely, the group
that initially disfavored
grad school would be
even more opposed
Unsure
Definite NO
(Get A Job!)
Before Group
Discussion
After Group
Discussion
What About Attraction?
Influencing Factors

Similarity


Proximity


College dorm study
Familiarity


Personality, attitudes,
interests, physical features
Mere exposure
Physical Attractiveness
Beauty
Which of these three faces do you prefer?
1
2
3
Beauty Across Time
Beauty in the 1950s.
Recognize “her”?
Beauty in the 1980s.
Recognize “her”?
The Matching Principle
People tend to date others of similar
attractiveness and with similar attitudes
Situational Determinants
6.5
6
Opposite Sex
Same Sex
5.5
5
4.5
4
9:00 PM
10:30 PM
12:00 AM
Getting Acquainted Study
Men and women
talk over intercom
Men shown
pictures
Attractive or
unattractive
Beauty Is Good Stereotype
Male’s
Expectations
Male’s
Behavior
Female’s
Behavior
Many Types of Love
Love Changes
People involved in serious relationships
rate beautiful models as less attractive
The more committed the person, the less
they reciprocate interest from another
attractive other
Some people switch attachment styles in
response to relationship experiences
People married to dissimilar partners
change their personalities more over the
years
Problem Factors
Too much dissimilarity
Boredom
Changes in reciprocal evaluations and
attributions
Jealousy
Inequity
Temperament
Exchange Orientation
How to Communicate
Some helpful rules
 Positive framing
 Express appreciation
 Avoid silent treatment
 Don’t pretend to be a psychologist
 Speak for yourself, not your partner
 Say it directly
 Nothing nice to say? Then keep quiet