Mastering Social Psychology
International Edition
Published on 28. December 2006
Book
Paperback/Softback
464 pages
978-0-205-53269-8 (ISBN)
Description
Finally, a briefer version of one of the best-selling textbooks in the social psychology course for those who prefer less detail. Baron and Byrne set the standard for the course with their original book, and new co-author Nyla Branscombe has brought freshness and new insights with her expertise in topics such as prejudice, the self, gender and group processes. The briefer version retains all the hallmarks of the original text: up-to-date coverage of the quickly evolving area of social psychology--balanced in its coverage of fundamentals with current research--and written in a lively, engaging style.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
United States
Publishing group
Pearson Education (US)
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Dimensions
Height: 277 mm
Width: 217 mm
Thickness: 18 mm
Weight
877 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-205-53269-8 (9780205532698)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Previous edition
Robert A. Baron | Donn R. Byrne | Nyla R. Branscombe
Mastering Social Psychology
United States Edition
Book
01/2007
Pearson
€153.25
Article exhausted; check for reprint
Persons
Robert A. Baron is Professor of Psychology and Wellington Professor of Management at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Iowa in 1968. Professor Baron has held faculty appointments at Purdue University, the University of Minnesota, the University of Texas, the University of South Carolina, and Princeton University. In 1982 he was a Visiting Fellow at Oxford University. From 1979 to 1981 he served as a Program Director at the National Science Foundation (Washington, DC). He has been a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and is also a Fellow of the American Psychological Society. In 2001, he was appointed an Invited Senior Research Fellow by the French government, and held this post at the Universite des Sciences Sociales at Toulouse, France.
Professor Baron has published more than one hundred articles in professional journals and thirty-five chapters in edited volumes. He is the author or coauthor of forty-two books, including Behavior in Organizations (8th ed.), Psychology: From Science to Practice, and Entrepreneurship: A Process Perspective. Professor Baron holds three U.S. patents based on his research, and served as president of his own company (Innovative Environmental Products, Inc.) from 1992 to 2000. Professor Baron's current research focuses mainly on the social and cognitive factors that influence entrepreneurs' success, and on various forms of workplace aggression.
Donn Byrne holds the rank of Distinguished Professor of Psychology at the University at Albany, State University of New York. He received his Ph.D. in 1958 from Stanford University and has held academic positions at the California State University
at San Francisco, the University of Texas, and Purdue University, as well as visiting professorships at the University of Hawaii and Stanford University. He was elected president of the Midwestern Psychological Association and of the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality. He headed the personality program at Texas, the social-personality programs at Purdue and at Albany, and was chair of the psychology department at Albany. Professor Byrne is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and a Charter Fellow of the American Psychological Society.
During his career, Professor Byrne has published over 150 articles in professional journals, and twenty-nine of them have been republished in books of readings. He has authored or coauthored thirty-six chapters in edited volumes, and fourteen books, including Psychology: An Introduction to a Behavioral Science (four editions plus translations in Spanish, Portuguese, and Chinese), An Introduction to Personality (three editions), The Attraction Paradigm, and Exploring Human Sexuality.
He has served on the editorial boards of fourteen professional journals, and has directed the doctoral work of fifty-two Ph.D. students. He was invited to deliver a G. Stanley Hall lecture at the 1981 meeting of the American Psychological Association in Los Angeles and a state of the science address at the 1981 meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality in New York City. He was invited to testify at Attorney General Meese's Commission on Obscenity and Pornography in Houston in 1986 and to participate in Surgeon General Koop's Workshop on Pornography and Health in 1986 in Arlington, Virginia. He received the Excellence in Research Award from the University at Albany in 1987 and the Distinguished Scientific Achievement Award from the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality in 1989. In 2002, he participated in a Festschrift honoring his scientific contributions at the University of Connecticut organized by his graduate students (past and present) from Texas, Purdue, and Albany. He delivered the William Griffitt Memorial Lecture at Kansas State University in 2004. Professor Byrne's current research focuses on the determinants of interpersonal attraction, adult attachment styles, and sexually coercive behavior.
Nyla R. Branscombe is Professor of Psychology at University of Kansas. She received her B.A. from York University in Toronto in 1980, a M.A. from the University of Western Ontario in 1982, and her Ph.D. from Purdue University in 1986. Professor Branscombe held a postdoctoral appointment at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1987. In 1993 she was a Visiting Fellow at Free University of Amsterdam. She served as Associate Editor of Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin for three years, and presently serves as Associate Editor of Group Processes and Intergroup Relations.
Professor Branscombe has published more than eighty articles and chapters in professional journals and edited volumes. In 1999, she was a recipient of the Otto Kleinberg prize for research on Intercultural and International Relations from the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues. In 2004, she coedited the volume, Collective Guilt: International Perspectives. Professor Branscombe's current research focuses primarily on two main issues: the psychology of privileged groups, in particular when and why they may feel guilt about their advantages, and the psychology of disadvantaged groups, especially how they cope with prejudice and discrimination.
Professor Baron has published more than one hundred articles in professional journals and thirty-five chapters in edited volumes. He is the author or coauthor of forty-two books, including Behavior in Organizations (8th ed.), Psychology: From Science to Practice, and Entrepreneurship: A Process Perspective. Professor Baron holds three U.S. patents based on his research, and served as president of his own company (Innovative Environmental Products, Inc.) from 1992 to 2000. Professor Baron's current research focuses mainly on the social and cognitive factors that influence entrepreneurs' success, and on various forms of workplace aggression.
Donn Byrne holds the rank of Distinguished Professor of Psychology at the University at Albany, State University of New York. He received his Ph.D. in 1958 from Stanford University and has held academic positions at the California State University
at San Francisco, the University of Texas, and Purdue University, as well as visiting professorships at the University of Hawaii and Stanford University. He was elected president of the Midwestern Psychological Association and of the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality. He headed the personality program at Texas, the social-personality programs at Purdue and at Albany, and was chair of the psychology department at Albany. Professor Byrne is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and a Charter Fellow of the American Psychological Society.
During his career, Professor Byrne has published over 150 articles in professional journals, and twenty-nine of them have been republished in books of readings. He has authored or coauthored thirty-six chapters in edited volumes, and fourteen books, including Psychology: An Introduction to a Behavioral Science (four editions plus translations in Spanish, Portuguese, and Chinese), An Introduction to Personality (three editions), The Attraction Paradigm, and Exploring Human Sexuality.
He has served on the editorial boards of fourteen professional journals, and has directed the doctoral work of fifty-two Ph.D. students. He was invited to deliver a G. Stanley Hall lecture at the 1981 meeting of the American Psychological Association in Los Angeles and a state of the science address at the 1981 meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality in New York City. He was invited to testify at Attorney General Meese's Commission on Obscenity and Pornography in Houston in 1986 and to participate in Surgeon General Koop's Workshop on Pornography and Health in 1986 in Arlington, Virginia. He received the Excellence in Research Award from the University at Albany in 1987 and the Distinguished Scientific Achievement Award from the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality in 1989. In 2002, he participated in a Festschrift honoring his scientific contributions at the University of Connecticut organized by his graduate students (past and present) from Texas, Purdue, and Albany. He delivered the William Griffitt Memorial Lecture at Kansas State University in 2004. Professor Byrne's current research focuses on the determinants of interpersonal attraction, adult attachment styles, and sexually coercive behavior.
Nyla R. Branscombe is Professor of Psychology at University of Kansas. She received her B.A. from York University in Toronto in 1980, a M.A. from the University of Western Ontario in 1982, and her Ph.D. from Purdue University in 1986. Professor Branscombe held a postdoctoral appointment at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1987. In 1993 she was a Visiting Fellow at Free University of Amsterdam. She served as Associate Editor of Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin for three years, and presently serves as Associate Editor of Group Processes and Intergroup Relations.
Professor Branscombe has published more than eighty articles and chapters in professional journals and edited volumes. In 1999, she was a recipient of the Otto Kleinberg prize for research on Intercultural and International Relations from the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues. In 2004, she coedited the volume, Collective Guilt: International Perspectives. Professor Branscombe's current research focuses primarily on two main issues: the psychology of privileged groups, in particular when and why they may feel guilt about their advantages, and the psychology of disadvantaged groups, especially how they cope with prejudice and discrimination.
Content
1. THE FIELD OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: How We Think about and Interact with Others 3
Social Psychology: A Working Definition 5
Social Psychology Is Scientific in Nature 6
Social Psychology Focuses on the Behavior of Individuals 8
Social Psychology Seeks to Understand the Causes of Social Behavior and Social Thought 8
Social Psychology: Its Cutting Edge 12
Cognition and Behavior: Two Sides of the Same Social Coin 12
Social Neuroscience: Where Social Psychology and Neuroscience Meet 13
The Role of Implicit (Nonconscious) Processes 14
Taking Full Account of Social Diversity 15
Answering Questions about Social Behavior and Social Thought: Research Methods in Social Psychology 16
Understanding Research Methods: What's in It for You 16
Systematic Observation: Describing the World around Us 17
Correlation: The Search for Relationships 17
The Experimental Method: Knowledge through Systematic Intervention 19
Interpreting Research Results: The Use of Statistics, and Social Psychologists as Perennial Skeptics 22
The Role of Theory in Social Psychology 23
The Quest for Knowledge and Rights of Individuals: Seeking an Appropriate Balance 25
Summary and Review of Key Points 26
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 27
Key Terms 27
2. SOCIAL COGNITION: Thinking about the Social World 29
Schemas: Mental Frameworks for Organizing-and Using-Social Information 32
The Impact of Schemas on Social Cognition: Attention, Encoding, Retrieval 32
The Self-Confirming Nature of Schemas: When-and Why-Beliefs Shape Reality 34
Heuristics and Automatic Processing: How We Reduce Our Effort in Social Cognition 35
Representativeness: Judging by Resemblance 35
Availability: "If I Can Think of It, It Must Be Important." 36
Anchoring and Adjustment: Where You Begin Makes a Difference 37
Automatic Processing in Social Thought: Saving Effort-But at a Cost! 38
Controlled versus Automatic Processing in Evaluating the Social World: Evidence from Social Neuroscience 39
Potential Sources of Error in Social Cognition: Why Total Rationality Is Rarer Than You Think 41
Negativity Bias: The Tendency to Pay Extra Attention to Negative Information 41
The Optimistic Bias: Our Tendency to See the World through Rose-Colored Glasses 42
Counterfactual Thinking: The Effects of Considering What Might Have Been 44
Thought Suppression: Why Efforts to Avoid Thinking Certain Thoughts Sometimes Backfire 46
Limits on Our Ability to Reason about the Social World: Magical Thinking and Ignoring Moderating Variables 47
Social Cognition: Some Words of Optimism 48
Affect and Cognition: How Feelings Shape Thought and Thought Shapes Feelings 49
The Influence of Affect on Cognition 50
THE SCIENCE OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: MAKING SENSE OF COMMON SENSE--Is Being in a Good Mood Always a Plus?
The Potential Downside of Feeling "Up" 51
The Influence of Cognition on Affect 53
Summary and Review of Key Points 55
Connections 56
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 57
Key Terms 57
3. SOCIAL PERCEPTION: Perceiving and Understanding Others 59
Nonverbal Communication: The Language of Expressions, Gazes, and Gestures 61
Nonverbal Communication: The Basic Channels 62
Recognizing Deception: The Role of Nonverbal Cues 64
THE SCIENCE OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: MAKING SENSE OF COMMON SENSE-Does "Women's Intuition" Exist? And If So, Is It Based on the Ability to Use and Interpret Nonverbal Cues? 66
Attribution: Understanding the Causes of Others' Behavior 68
Theories of Attribution: Frameworks for Understanding How We Attempt to
Make Sense of the Social World 68
Attribution: Some Basic Sources of Error 72
Applications of Attribution Theory: Insights and Interventions 77
Impression Formation and Impression Management: How We Integrate Social Information 79
A True Classic in Social Psychology: Asch's Research on Central and Peripheral Traits 80
Implicit Personality Theories: Schemas That Shape First Impressions 81
Impression Formation: A Cognitive Perspective 82
Other Aspects of Impression Formation: The Nature of First Impressions and Our Motives for Forming Them 83
Impression Management: The Fine Art of Looking Good 84
Summary and Review of Key Points 87
Connections 88
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 88
Key Terms 89
4. ATTITUDES: Evaluating the Social World 91
Attitude Formation: How Attitudes Develop 94
Social Learning: Acquiring Attitudes from Others 94
Classical Conditioning: Learning Based on Association 95
Instrumental Conditioning: Rewards for the "Right" Views 96
Observational Learning: Learning by Example 97
Role of Social Comparison 97
Attitude Functions: Why We Form Attitudes in the First Place 99
The Knowledge Function of Attitudes 99
The Identity Function of Attitudes 99
The Self-Esteem Function of Attitudes 100
The Ego-Defensive Function of Attitudes 100
The Impression Motivation Function of Attitudes 101
Role of the Social Context in the Link between Attitudes and Behavior 102
When and Why Do Attitudes Influence Behavior? 102
Situational Constraints That Affect Attitude Expression 103
Strength of Attitudes 103
Attitude Extremity 103
Role of Personal Experience 104
How Do Attitudes Guide Behavior? 105
Attitudes Based on Reasoned Thought 105
Attitudes and Spontaneous Behavioral Reactions 106
The Fine Art of Persuasion: How Attitudes Are Changed 107
Persuasion: Communicators and Audiences 108
THE SCIENCE OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: MAKING SENSE OF COMMON SENSE-Fear Appeals: Do They Really Work? 108
The Cognitive Processes Underlying Persuasion 111
Resisting Persuasion Attempts 113
Reactance: Protecting Our Personal Freedom 113
Forewarning: Prior Knowledge of Persuasive Intent 113
Selective Avoidance of Persuasion Attempts 114
Actively Defending Our Attitudes: Counter arguing against the Competition 114
Inoculation against "Bad Ideas" 115
Cognitive Dissonance: What It Is and How We Reduce It 116
Is Dissonance Really Unpleasant? 117
Is Dissonance a Universal Human Experience? 117
Dissonance and Attitude Change: The Effects of Induced or Forced Compliance 118
When Dissonance Is a Tool for Beneficial Changes in Behavior 119
Summary and Review of Key Points 121
Connections 122
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 123
Key Terms 123
5. THE SELF: Understanding "Who Am I?" 125
Thinking about the Self: Personal versus Social Identity 127
Who I Am Depends on the Situation 128
Who I Am Depends on Others' Treatment 131
Self-Awareness 132
Possible Selves: The Self over Time 132
Self-Esteem: Attitudes toward the Self 134
The Measurement of Self-Esteem 135
Self-Serving Biases 136
Is High Self-Esteem Always Positive? 137
Do Women and Men Differ in Their Levels of Self-Esteem? 137
Social Comparison: Knowing the Self 138
Self-Presentation and Self-Regulation 141
THE SCIENCE OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: MAKING SENSE OF COMMON SENSE-Is Looking Inward the Best Route to Self-Insight? 142
The Self as Target of Prejudice 144
Emotional Consequences: How Well-Being Can Suffer 144
Cognitive Consequences: Performance Deficits 147
Behavioral Consequences: Stereotype Threat 147
Summary and Review of Key Points 149
Connections 150
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 151
Key Terms 151
6. PREJUDICE: Its Causes, Effects, and Cures 153
The Nature and Origins of Stereotyping, Prejudice, and Discrimination 156
Stereotyping: Beliefs about Social Groups 156
Why Do People Form and Use Stereotypes? 161
THE SCIENCE OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: MAKING SENSE OF COMMON SENSE-Shifting Standards: Does No Difference in Evaluations Indicate No Difference in Meaning? 162
Prejudice and Discrimination: Feelings and Actions toward Social Groups 167
The Origins of Prejudice: Contrasting Perspectives 170
Discrimination: Prejudice in Action 175
Consequences of Exposure to Others' Prejudice 177
Why Prejudice Is Not Inevitable: Techniques for Countering Its Effects 179
On Learning Not to Hate 179
The Potential Benefits of Contact 179
Recategorization: Changing the Boundaries 180
Can We Learn to "Just Say No" to Stereotypes? 180
Social Influence as a Means of Reducing Prejudice 182
Summary and Review of Key Points 183
Connections 184
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 184
Key Terms 185
7. INTERPERSONAL ATTRACTION: Meeting, Liking, Becoming Acquainted 187
Internal Determinants of Attraction: The Need to Affiliate and the Basic Role of Affect 190
The Importance of Affiliation for Human Existence 190
Affect as a Basic Response System 191
Affect and Attraction 192
External Determinants of Attraction: Proximity and Observable Characteristics 195
The Power of Proximity: Unplanned Contacts 195
Observable Characteristics: Instant Evaluations 197
Physical Attractiveness: Judging Books by Their Covers 198
Interactive Determinants of Attraction: Similarity and Mutual Liking 203
Similarity: Birds of a Feather Actually Do Flock Together 203
THE SCIENCE OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: MAKING SENSE OF COMMON SENSE-Complementarily: Do Opposites Attract? 204
Attraction: Progressing from Bits and Pieces to an Overall Picture 207
Mutual Evaluations: Reciprocal Liking or Disliking 208
Summary and Review of Key Points 209
Connections 209
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 210
Key Terms 211
8. CLOSE RELATIONSHIPS: Family, Friends, Lovers, and Spouses 213
Interdependent Relationships with Family and Friends versus Loneliness 215
Family: Where Relationships and Attachment Styles Begin 216
Beyond the Family: Friendships 219
Loneliness: Life without Close Relationships 220
Romantic Relationships and Falling in Love 223
Romance: Moving beyond Friendship 223
Selecting a Potential Mate: Different Criteria for Men and Women 225
THE SCIENCE OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: MAKING SENSE OF COMMON SENSE-Written in the Stars or We Met on the Internet? 226
Love: Who Can Explain It? Who Can Tell You Why? Just Maybe, Social Psychologists 227
Marriage: Happily Ever After--and Otherwise 232
Marital Success and Satisfaction: Similarity, Personality, and Sexuality 233
Love and Marriage: Careers, Parenthood, and Family Composition 234
When Relationships Fail: Causes, Preventives, and Consequences 236
Summary and Review of Key Points 240
Connections 241
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 242
Key Terms 243
9. SOCIAL INFLUENCE: Changing Others' Behavior 245
Conformity: Group Influence in Action 247
Asch's Research on Conformity: Social Pressure-The Irresistible Force? 248
Factors Affecting Conformity: Variables That Determine the Extent to Which We "Go Along" 250
Situational Norms: Automaticity in Normative Behavior 251
The Bases of Conformity: Why We Often Choose to "Go Along" 252
Resisting Pressures to Conform: Why, Sometimes, We Choose Not to "Go Along" 254
THE SCIENCE OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: MAKING SENSE OF COMMON SENSE-Do Women and Men Differ in the Tendency to Conform? 256
Minority Influence: Does the Majority Always Rule? 257
Compliance: To Ask--Sometimes--Is to Receive 258
Compliance: The Underlying Principles 258
Tactics Based on Friendship or Liking: Ingratiation 259
Tactics Based on Commitment or Consistency: The Foot-in-the-Door and the Lowball 259
Tactics Based on Reciprocity: The Door-in-the-Face and the That's-Not-All Techniques 260
Tactics Based on Scarcity: Playing Hard to Get and the Fast-Approaching-Deadline Technique 261
Symbolic Social Influence: How We Are Influenced by Others Even When They Are Not There 262
Obedience to Authority: Would You Harm an Innocent Stranger if Ordered to Do So? 264
Obedience in the Laboratory 264
Destructive Obedience: Why It Occurs 266
Destructive Obedience: Resisting Its Effects 266
Social Influence Goes to Work: Influence Tactics in Work Settings 268
Summary and Review of Key Points 269
Connections 270
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 271
Key Terms 271
10. PROSOCIAL BEHAVIOR: Helping Others 273
Responding to an Emergency: Will Bystanders Help? 275
When a Stranger Is Distressed: Heroism or Apathy? 275
Five Crucial Steps Determine Helping versus Not Helping 276
THE SCIENCE OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: MAKING SENSE OF COMMON SENSE--Do More Witnesses to an Emergency Mean That More Help Is Given? 277
External and Internal Influences on Helping Behavior 281
Situational Factors That Enhance or Inhibit Helping 282
Emotions and Prosocial Behavior 284
Empathy and Other Personality Dispositions Associated with Helping 286
Long-Term Commitment to Prosocial Action and the Effects of Being Helped 289
Volunteering 289
Self-Interest, Moral Integrity, and Moral Hypocrisy 290
How Does It Feel to Be Helped? 291
The Basic Motivation for Engaging in Prosocial Acts 293
Empathy-Altruism: It Feels Good to Help Others 294
Negative-State Relief: Helping Makes You Feel Less Bad 295
Empathic Joy: Helping as an Accomplishment 295
Genetic Determinism: Helping as an Adaptive Response 295
Summary and Review of Key Points 297
Connections 298
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 299
Key Terms 299
11. AGGRESSION: Its Nature, Causes, and Control 301
Theoretical Perspectives on Aggression: In Search of the Roots of Violence 303
The Role of Biological Factors: From Instincts to the Evolutionary Perspective 303
Drive Theories: The Motive to Harm Others 304
Modern Theories of Aggression: The Social Learning Perspective and the General Aggression Model 305
Causes of Human Aggression: Social, Cultural, Personal, and Situational 307
Social Causes of Aggression: Frustration, Provocation, and Heightened Arousal 307
Exposure to Media Violence: The Effects of Witnessing Aggression 309
Violent Pornography: When Sex and Aggression Mix--and Perhaps Explode 311
Cultural Factors in Aggression: "Cultures of Honor" and Sexual Jealousy 312
Personal Causes of Aggression: Type A, Narcissism, Sensation Seeking, and Gender Differences 314
Situational Determinants of Aggression: The Effects of High Temperatures and Alcohol Consumption 317
Aggression in Long-Term Relationships: Bullying and Workplace Violence 320
Bullying: Singling Out Others for Repeated Abuse 320
Workplace Violence: Aggression on the Job 321
The Prevention and Control of Aggression: Some Useful Techniques 323
Punishment: Just Desserts versus Deterrence 324
Cognitive Interventions: Apologies and Overcoming Cognitive Deficits 325
THE SCIENCE OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: MAKING SENSE OF COMMON SENSE-Catharsis: Does "Getting It Out of Your System" Really Help? 326
Forgiveness: Compassion Instead of Revenge 326
Summary and Review of Key Points 329
Connections 330
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 330
Key Terms 331
12. GROUPS AND INDIVIDUALS: The Consequences of Belonging 333
Groups: Why We Join . . . and Why We Leave 335
Groups: Some Basic Aspects 336
The Benefits-and Costs-of Joining 338
Effects of the Presence of Others: From Task Performance to Behavior in Crowds 341
Social Facilitation: Performing in the Presence of Others 341
Social Loafing: Letting Others Do the Work 344
Deindividuation: Submerged in the Crowd 344
Coordination in Groups: Cooperation or Conflict? 346
Cooperation: Working with Others to Achieve Shared Goals 346
Conflict: Its Nature, Causes, and Effects 349
Resolving Conflicts: Some Useful Techniques 350
Perceived Fairness in Groups: Its Nature and Effects 352
Basic Rules for Judging Fairness: Distributive, Procedural, and Transactional Justice 352
Reactions to Perceived Unfairness: Tactics for Dealing with Injustice 353
Decision Making by Groups: How It Occurs and the Pitfalls It Faces 354
The Decision-Making Process: How Groups Attain Consensus 355
THE SCIENCE OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: MAKING SENSE OF COMMON SENSE-Are Groups Really Less Likely Than Individuals to "Go over the Edge"? 355
Potential Dangers of Group Decision Making: Groupthink, Biased Processing, and Restricted Sharing of Information 357
Summary and Review of Key Points 360
Connections 362
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 362
Key Terms 363
**PLEASE NOTE: Module A: Social Psychology in Action; and Module B: Social Psychology Goes to Work, are available in the eBook located on MyPsychLab. www.mypsychlab.com.**
Glossary G-1
References R-1
Name Index I-1
Subject Index
Social Psychology: A Working Definition 5
Social Psychology Is Scientific in Nature 6
Social Psychology Focuses on the Behavior of Individuals 8
Social Psychology Seeks to Understand the Causes of Social Behavior and Social Thought 8
Social Psychology: Its Cutting Edge 12
Cognition and Behavior: Two Sides of the Same Social Coin 12
Social Neuroscience: Where Social Psychology and Neuroscience Meet 13
The Role of Implicit (Nonconscious) Processes 14
Taking Full Account of Social Diversity 15
Answering Questions about Social Behavior and Social Thought: Research Methods in Social Psychology 16
Understanding Research Methods: What's in It for You 16
Systematic Observation: Describing the World around Us 17
Correlation: The Search for Relationships 17
The Experimental Method: Knowledge through Systematic Intervention 19
Interpreting Research Results: The Use of Statistics, and Social Psychologists as Perennial Skeptics 22
The Role of Theory in Social Psychology 23
The Quest for Knowledge and Rights of Individuals: Seeking an Appropriate Balance 25
Summary and Review of Key Points 26
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 27
Key Terms 27
2. SOCIAL COGNITION: Thinking about the Social World 29
Schemas: Mental Frameworks for Organizing-and Using-Social Information 32
The Impact of Schemas on Social Cognition: Attention, Encoding, Retrieval 32
The Self-Confirming Nature of Schemas: When-and Why-Beliefs Shape Reality 34
Heuristics and Automatic Processing: How We Reduce Our Effort in Social Cognition 35
Representativeness: Judging by Resemblance 35
Availability: "If I Can Think of It, It Must Be Important." 36
Anchoring and Adjustment: Where You Begin Makes a Difference 37
Automatic Processing in Social Thought: Saving Effort-But at a Cost! 38
Controlled versus Automatic Processing in Evaluating the Social World: Evidence from Social Neuroscience 39
Potential Sources of Error in Social Cognition: Why Total Rationality Is Rarer Than You Think 41
Negativity Bias: The Tendency to Pay Extra Attention to Negative Information 41
The Optimistic Bias: Our Tendency to See the World through Rose-Colored Glasses 42
Counterfactual Thinking: The Effects of Considering What Might Have Been 44
Thought Suppression: Why Efforts to Avoid Thinking Certain Thoughts Sometimes Backfire 46
Limits on Our Ability to Reason about the Social World: Magical Thinking and Ignoring Moderating Variables 47
Social Cognition: Some Words of Optimism 48
Affect and Cognition: How Feelings Shape Thought and Thought Shapes Feelings 49
The Influence of Affect on Cognition 50
THE SCIENCE OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: MAKING SENSE OF COMMON SENSE--Is Being in a Good Mood Always a Plus?
The Potential Downside of Feeling "Up" 51
The Influence of Cognition on Affect 53
Summary and Review of Key Points 55
Connections 56
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 57
Key Terms 57
3. SOCIAL PERCEPTION: Perceiving and Understanding Others 59
Nonverbal Communication: The Language of Expressions, Gazes, and Gestures 61
Nonverbal Communication: The Basic Channels 62
Recognizing Deception: The Role of Nonverbal Cues 64
THE SCIENCE OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: MAKING SENSE OF COMMON SENSE-Does "Women's Intuition" Exist? And If So, Is It Based on the Ability to Use and Interpret Nonverbal Cues? 66
Attribution: Understanding the Causes of Others' Behavior 68
Theories of Attribution: Frameworks for Understanding How We Attempt to
Make Sense of the Social World 68
Attribution: Some Basic Sources of Error 72
Applications of Attribution Theory: Insights and Interventions 77
Impression Formation and Impression Management: How We Integrate Social Information 79
A True Classic in Social Psychology: Asch's Research on Central and Peripheral Traits 80
Implicit Personality Theories: Schemas That Shape First Impressions 81
Impression Formation: A Cognitive Perspective 82
Other Aspects of Impression Formation: The Nature of First Impressions and Our Motives for Forming Them 83
Impression Management: The Fine Art of Looking Good 84
Summary and Review of Key Points 87
Connections 88
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 88
Key Terms 89
4. ATTITUDES: Evaluating the Social World 91
Attitude Formation: How Attitudes Develop 94
Social Learning: Acquiring Attitudes from Others 94
Classical Conditioning: Learning Based on Association 95
Instrumental Conditioning: Rewards for the "Right" Views 96
Observational Learning: Learning by Example 97
Role of Social Comparison 97
Attitude Functions: Why We Form Attitudes in the First Place 99
The Knowledge Function of Attitudes 99
The Identity Function of Attitudes 99
The Self-Esteem Function of Attitudes 100
The Ego-Defensive Function of Attitudes 100
The Impression Motivation Function of Attitudes 101
Role of the Social Context in the Link between Attitudes and Behavior 102
When and Why Do Attitudes Influence Behavior? 102
Situational Constraints That Affect Attitude Expression 103
Strength of Attitudes 103
Attitude Extremity 103
Role of Personal Experience 104
How Do Attitudes Guide Behavior? 105
Attitudes Based on Reasoned Thought 105
Attitudes and Spontaneous Behavioral Reactions 106
The Fine Art of Persuasion: How Attitudes Are Changed 107
Persuasion: Communicators and Audiences 108
THE SCIENCE OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: MAKING SENSE OF COMMON SENSE-Fear Appeals: Do They Really Work? 108
The Cognitive Processes Underlying Persuasion 111
Resisting Persuasion Attempts 113
Reactance: Protecting Our Personal Freedom 113
Forewarning: Prior Knowledge of Persuasive Intent 113
Selective Avoidance of Persuasion Attempts 114
Actively Defending Our Attitudes: Counter arguing against the Competition 114
Inoculation against "Bad Ideas" 115
Cognitive Dissonance: What It Is and How We Reduce It 116
Is Dissonance Really Unpleasant? 117
Is Dissonance a Universal Human Experience? 117
Dissonance and Attitude Change: The Effects of Induced or Forced Compliance 118
When Dissonance Is a Tool for Beneficial Changes in Behavior 119
Summary and Review of Key Points 121
Connections 122
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 123
Key Terms 123
5. THE SELF: Understanding "Who Am I?" 125
Thinking about the Self: Personal versus Social Identity 127
Who I Am Depends on the Situation 128
Who I Am Depends on Others' Treatment 131
Self-Awareness 132
Possible Selves: The Self over Time 132
Self-Esteem: Attitudes toward the Self 134
The Measurement of Self-Esteem 135
Self-Serving Biases 136
Is High Self-Esteem Always Positive? 137
Do Women and Men Differ in Their Levels of Self-Esteem? 137
Social Comparison: Knowing the Self 138
Self-Presentation and Self-Regulation 141
THE SCIENCE OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: MAKING SENSE OF COMMON SENSE-Is Looking Inward the Best Route to Self-Insight? 142
The Self as Target of Prejudice 144
Emotional Consequences: How Well-Being Can Suffer 144
Cognitive Consequences: Performance Deficits 147
Behavioral Consequences: Stereotype Threat 147
Summary and Review of Key Points 149
Connections 150
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 151
Key Terms 151
6. PREJUDICE: Its Causes, Effects, and Cures 153
The Nature and Origins of Stereotyping, Prejudice, and Discrimination 156
Stereotyping: Beliefs about Social Groups 156
Why Do People Form and Use Stereotypes? 161
THE SCIENCE OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: MAKING SENSE OF COMMON SENSE-Shifting Standards: Does No Difference in Evaluations Indicate No Difference in Meaning? 162
Prejudice and Discrimination: Feelings and Actions toward Social Groups 167
The Origins of Prejudice: Contrasting Perspectives 170
Discrimination: Prejudice in Action 175
Consequences of Exposure to Others' Prejudice 177
Why Prejudice Is Not Inevitable: Techniques for Countering Its Effects 179
On Learning Not to Hate 179
The Potential Benefits of Contact 179
Recategorization: Changing the Boundaries 180
Can We Learn to "Just Say No" to Stereotypes? 180
Social Influence as a Means of Reducing Prejudice 182
Summary and Review of Key Points 183
Connections 184
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 184
Key Terms 185
7. INTERPERSONAL ATTRACTION: Meeting, Liking, Becoming Acquainted 187
Internal Determinants of Attraction: The Need to Affiliate and the Basic Role of Affect 190
The Importance of Affiliation for Human Existence 190
Affect as a Basic Response System 191
Affect and Attraction 192
External Determinants of Attraction: Proximity and Observable Characteristics 195
The Power of Proximity: Unplanned Contacts 195
Observable Characteristics: Instant Evaluations 197
Physical Attractiveness: Judging Books by Their Covers 198
Interactive Determinants of Attraction: Similarity and Mutual Liking 203
Similarity: Birds of a Feather Actually Do Flock Together 203
THE SCIENCE OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: MAKING SENSE OF COMMON SENSE-Complementarily: Do Opposites Attract? 204
Attraction: Progressing from Bits and Pieces to an Overall Picture 207
Mutual Evaluations: Reciprocal Liking or Disliking 208
Summary and Review of Key Points 209
Connections 209
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 210
Key Terms 211
8. CLOSE RELATIONSHIPS: Family, Friends, Lovers, and Spouses 213
Interdependent Relationships with Family and Friends versus Loneliness 215
Family: Where Relationships and Attachment Styles Begin 216
Beyond the Family: Friendships 219
Loneliness: Life without Close Relationships 220
Romantic Relationships and Falling in Love 223
Romance: Moving beyond Friendship 223
Selecting a Potential Mate: Different Criteria for Men and Women 225
THE SCIENCE OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: MAKING SENSE OF COMMON SENSE-Written in the Stars or We Met on the Internet? 226
Love: Who Can Explain It? Who Can Tell You Why? Just Maybe, Social Psychologists 227
Marriage: Happily Ever After--and Otherwise 232
Marital Success and Satisfaction: Similarity, Personality, and Sexuality 233
Love and Marriage: Careers, Parenthood, and Family Composition 234
When Relationships Fail: Causes, Preventives, and Consequences 236
Summary and Review of Key Points 240
Connections 241
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 242
Key Terms 243
9. SOCIAL INFLUENCE: Changing Others' Behavior 245
Conformity: Group Influence in Action 247
Asch's Research on Conformity: Social Pressure-The Irresistible Force? 248
Factors Affecting Conformity: Variables That Determine the Extent to Which We "Go Along" 250
Situational Norms: Automaticity in Normative Behavior 251
The Bases of Conformity: Why We Often Choose to "Go Along" 252
Resisting Pressures to Conform: Why, Sometimes, We Choose Not to "Go Along" 254
THE SCIENCE OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: MAKING SENSE OF COMMON SENSE-Do Women and Men Differ in the Tendency to Conform? 256
Minority Influence: Does the Majority Always Rule? 257
Compliance: To Ask--Sometimes--Is to Receive 258
Compliance: The Underlying Principles 258
Tactics Based on Friendship or Liking: Ingratiation 259
Tactics Based on Commitment or Consistency: The Foot-in-the-Door and the Lowball 259
Tactics Based on Reciprocity: The Door-in-the-Face and the That's-Not-All Techniques 260
Tactics Based on Scarcity: Playing Hard to Get and the Fast-Approaching-Deadline Technique 261
Symbolic Social Influence: How We Are Influenced by Others Even When They Are Not There 262
Obedience to Authority: Would You Harm an Innocent Stranger if Ordered to Do So? 264
Obedience in the Laboratory 264
Destructive Obedience: Why It Occurs 266
Destructive Obedience: Resisting Its Effects 266
Social Influence Goes to Work: Influence Tactics in Work Settings 268
Summary and Review of Key Points 269
Connections 270
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 271
Key Terms 271
10. PROSOCIAL BEHAVIOR: Helping Others 273
Responding to an Emergency: Will Bystanders Help? 275
When a Stranger Is Distressed: Heroism or Apathy? 275
Five Crucial Steps Determine Helping versus Not Helping 276
THE SCIENCE OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: MAKING SENSE OF COMMON SENSE--Do More Witnesses to an Emergency Mean That More Help Is Given? 277
External and Internal Influences on Helping Behavior 281
Situational Factors That Enhance or Inhibit Helping 282
Emotions and Prosocial Behavior 284
Empathy and Other Personality Dispositions Associated with Helping 286
Long-Term Commitment to Prosocial Action and the Effects of Being Helped 289
Volunteering 289
Self-Interest, Moral Integrity, and Moral Hypocrisy 290
How Does It Feel to Be Helped? 291
The Basic Motivation for Engaging in Prosocial Acts 293
Empathy-Altruism: It Feels Good to Help Others 294
Negative-State Relief: Helping Makes You Feel Less Bad 295
Empathic Joy: Helping as an Accomplishment 295
Genetic Determinism: Helping as an Adaptive Response 295
Summary and Review of Key Points 297
Connections 298
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 299
Key Terms 299
11. AGGRESSION: Its Nature, Causes, and Control 301
Theoretical Perspectives on Aggression: In Search of the Roots of Violence 303
The Role of Biological Factors: From Instincts to the Evolutionary Perspective 303
Drive Theories: The Motive to Harm Others 304
Modern Theories of Aggression: The Social Learning Perspective and the General Aggression Model 305
Causes of Human Aggression: Social, Cultural, Personal, and Situational 307
Social Causes of Aggression: Frustration, Provocation, and Heightened Arousal 307
Exposure to Media Violence: The Effects of Witnessing Aggression 309
Violent Pornography: When Sex and Aggression Mix--and Perhaps Explode 311
Cultural Factors in Aggression: "Cultures of Honor" and Sexual Jealousy 312
Personal Causes of Aggression: Type A, Narcissism, Sensation Seeking, and Gender Differences 314
Situational Determinants of Aggression: The Effects of High Temperatures and Alcohol Consumption 317
Aggression in Long-Term Relationships: Bullying and Workplace Violence 320
Bullying: Singling Out Others for Repeated Abuse 320
Workplace Violence: Aggression on the Job 321
The Prevention and Control of Aggression: Some Useful Techniques 323
Punishment: Just Desserts versus Deterrence 324
Cognitive Interventions: Apologies and Overcoming Cognitive Deficits 325
THE SCIENCE OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: MAKING SENSE OF COMMON SENSE-Catharsis: Does "Getting It Out of Your System" Really Help? 326
Forgiveness: Compassion Instead of Revenge 326
Summary and Review of Key Points 329
Connections 330
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 330
Key Terms 331
12. GROUPS AND INDIVIDUALS: The Consequences of Belonging 333
Groups: Why We Join . . . and Why We Leave 335
Groups: Some Basic Aspects 336
The Benefits-and Costs-of Joining 338
Effects of the Presence of Others: From Task Performance to Behavior in Crowds 341
Social Facilitation: Performing in the Presence of Others 341
Social Loafing: Letting Others Do the Work 344
Deindividuation: Submerged in the Crowd 344
Coordination in Groups: Cooperation or Conflict? 346
Cooperation: Working with Others to Achieve Shared Goals 346
Conflict: Its Nature, Causes, and Effects 349
Resolving Conflicts: Some Useful Techniques 350
Perceived Fairness in Groups: Its Nature and Effects 352
Basic Rules for Judging Fairness: Distributive, Procedural, and Transactional Justice 352
Reactions to Perceived Unfairness: Tactics for Dealing with Injustice 353
Decision Making by Groups: How It Occurs and the Pitfalls It Faces 354
The Decision-Making Process: How Groups Attain Consensus 355
THE SCIENCE OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: MAKING SENSE OF COMMON SENSE-Are Groups Really Less Likely Than Individuals to "Go over the Edge"? 355
Potential Dangers of Group Decision Making: Groupthink, Biased Processing, and Restricted Sharing of Information 357
Summary and Review of Key Points 360
Connections 362
Ideas to Take with You-and Use! 362
Key Terms 363
**PLEASE NOTE: Module A: Social Psychology in Action; and Module B: Social Psychology Goes to Work, are available in the eBook located on MyPsychLab. www.mypsychlab.com.**
Glossary G-1
References R-1
Name Index I-1
Subject Index