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Humans beings are social animals. We form impressions of others that guide our future behaviors. We use stereotypes when judging others; these sets of beliefs about members of particular groups reduce the amount of information we process. Moreover, they are very resistant to change because we tend selectively to notice behaviors that confirm our stereotypes.
Attribution involves deciding why certain events occurred and why certain people behaved as they did. Internal attributions see behavior as caused by factors within the individual; external attributions see the causes of behavior as residing outside the individual. We are subject to the fundamental attribution error— the tendency to emphasize internal factors to the exclusion of external or situational factors. For example, we are likely to view our classmate’s failure to turn a paper in on time as a result of his laziness. If we fail to turn in the paper, it is due to a computer glitch, other assignments, etc.
Attitudes are evaluative judgments formed about people, places, or things. Psychologists have developed a number of methods to measure them. Although they are not the only determinants of behavior, they are helpful in making predictions.
If you were in need of emergency help, would you prefer to be in a crowded area or in an area where there was only one potential helper? Psychologists have found that people are less likely to provide assistance in an emergency when others are present than when they are alone. This effect is called the bystander effect.
Aggression is any behavior performed with the intent of doing harm. A number of possible explanations for aggression have been offered. Sociobiology focuses on the inherited nature of aggression; the frustration-aggression hypothesis focuses on aggression as a possible consequence of interference with our goals. A range of environmental factors such as temperature have also been implicated in aggression. Rape is a form of aggression that is underestimated by current statistics.
One of the most significant findings of social psychology involves the power of obedience to authority. Stanley Milgram found that most people will administer electric shock to another person as part of a supposed experiment on learning. The key here is the presence of an authority figure—a scientist. Conformity results from indirect pressure on an individual to change his or her behaviors and thoughts; compliance refers to behavior that is initiated or changed as a result of a request. One of the most intriguing compliance techniques, reciprocity, involves doing something for someone to make that person feel obligated to do something in return. Most salespeople are well aware of this technique.
The mere presence of other people can result in enhanced ability to perform a response—a phenomenon called social facilitation. On the other hand, social loafing occurs when people working on a group task that lacks individual evaluation perform at a lower level than they would if they were alone. Prejudice is judging others solely on the basis of group membership. Discrimination consists of behaviors directed at members of a particular group that affect them adversely. Psychologists have developed programs to reduce prejudice and discrimination.
Social psychology deals with topics that can have a major impact on all of us. The findings of research conducted by social psychologists has the potential to address a number of serious problems such as prejudice and violence.