Social Influence on Beliefs
How do people around us influence
what we think and how we act
Section 2
#6 in notebook
Objectives: the student will
• #What is social cognition and cognitive
Neuroscience?
• #Explain attributes/attribute theory (2 factors)
and the 3 factors in
• Explain Attitudes and familiarity and validity
effects
• Analyze the process why people join a cult…
and coercive persuasion ( BRAIN WASHING)
Who does it?
• Social cognition is an area in social psychology
concerned with social influences on thought,
memory, perception, and beliefs
• Not only what people are doing but what is
going on in head while doing it
New specialty- neuroscience +
cognitive
• Social cognitive neuroscience draws upon
technologies from neuroscience to study the
emotional and social processes underlying
beliefs, prejudices, and social behavior
• Explanations on behavior, formation of
attitudes
chapter 10
Attributions
Attribution theory
Theory that people are motivated to
explain own and others’ behavior by
attributing causes of behavior to
situation or disposition
Fundamental attribution
error
Tendency to overestimate personality
factors and underestimate situational
influence
Attributions
• Attribution theory is the theory that people
are motivated to explain their own and other
peoples behavior by attributing causes of that
behavior to a situation or a disposition
• Who did it and why? (Persons and Action)
explanations #terrible childhood, mental
illness, demon possession
• Two categories of theory
Graphic split
• Situational attribution identifies the cause of
an action as something in the situation or
environment
• Identifying Cause of action as something in
the environment
• “ Joe stole the money because his family is
starving”
Split G.O. style
• Dispositional attribution identifies the cause
of an action as something in the person, such
as a trait or a motive
• “ Joe stole the money because he is born a
thief”
Attributes FACTORS
• Find reasons for others behavior, reveal common
bias: overestimate personality traits AND
underestimate situation
• My kid would never steal, my wife would never
cheat…what about situation?
• Called 1.Fundamental attribution error is the
tendency, in explaining other peoples behavior, to
overestimate personality factors and
underestimate the influence of the situation
• Explained Milgram and Zimbardo- sadistic by
nature
chapter 10
Attributions
Self-serving bias
Tendency to take credit for one’s good actions but to rationalize one’s
mistakes
Just-world hypothesis
Many people need to believe that the world is fair and that justice is
served.
Bad people are punished and good people rewarded.
Explain own behavior
• 2.Self serving bias is the tendency, in
explaining ones own behavior, to take credit
for ones good actions and rationalize ones
mistakes
• Taking credit for good actions, but let situation
account for failures
• “ I won the game because of my skill”
• “ the sun was in my eye so I dropped the ball”
Explain world’s behavior
• 3.Just-world hypothesis is the notion that many
people need to believe that the world is fair and
that justice is served, that bad people are
punished and good people are rewarded
• People are fair, rewarded; bad people punished
• Deity/ God/ Religion/ Karma
• Blame the victim- friend fired, not working hard
enough; woman raped, dressed provocatively;
innocent bystander shot by police, shouldn't have
been in the way
chapter 10
Your turn
Your roommate studies hard for the psychology test, but
does not do very well. After receiving the results, she says
“It really wasn’t a fair test.” What sort of bias is reflected in
this attribution?
1. Fundamental attribution error
2. Self-serving bias
3. Just world hypothesis
chapter 10
Your turn
Your roommate studies hard for the psychology test, but
does not do very well. After receiving the results, she says
“It really wasn’t a fair test.” What sort of bias is reflected in
this attribution?
1. Fundamental attribution error
2. Self-serving bias
3. Just world hypothesis
#3 Attitudes
• Attitude is a belief about people, groups,
ideas, or activities. Can be implicit, we are
aware of them or explicit, we are unaware of
them
• People, groups, ideas or activities
chapter 10
Attitudes
A relatively stable opinion containing beliefs and
emotional feelings about a topic.
Explicit: we are aware of them, they shape conscious decisions
Implicit: we are unaware of them, they influence our behavior in ways
we do not recognize
Types of attitudes=Shifting opinions vs.
bedrock beliefs
• Movies, sports, casual opinions to passionate
convictions
• friend neutral baseball but you are devoted
fan= probably still friends
• But subject gives meaning and purpose to
life= different ball game ( politics and religion)
• Some strict principals, guide lines for
interpretation, some accept rituals, some no
religion or actively rebel
Origin of attitudes# where they come
from
• Psychologists used to think all learned=
parents, experiences, economic
circumstances, environment, social influences
• However some now argue behavioral
genetics- some core attitudes stem from
personality traits that are highly heredible
• Open to experience from personality= strong
genetic correlation
chapter 10
Factors influencing
attitude change
Change in social environment
Change in behaviors
Need for consistency
Cognitive dissonance: a state of tension that develops when a person
simultaneously holds two contradictory cognitions or when a person’s
belief is incongruent with his/her behavior
chapter 10
Influencing attitudes
Attitude change
• New info or experience
• Cognitive dissonance is a state of tension that
occurs when a person simultaneously holds
two cognitions that are psychologically
inconsistent or when a persons belief is
incongruent with his or her behavior
• Prision study
Cognitive dis. Graphic ORGANIZER
Friendly persuasion
• Social influence- friends, advertisers,
politicians
• Believe one thing or another
• Familiarity effect is the tendency of people to
feel more positive toward a person, item,
product or other stimulus that they have often
seen
Since 1912
Attitudes
• Validity effect is the tendency of people to
believe that a statement is true or valid simply
because it has been repeated many times
• See info in movies
• Wait 45 min to swim
• Joseph Gobbles called this technique, the big
lie
Validity effect
Coercive Persuasion
• Suicide bombing- how could someone strap
bomb to body?
• Jim Jones- people temple- 913 people drank
Kool-Aid mixed with cyanide
• David Koresh- cult in Waco, fiery death, shootout
• Heavens gate in San Diego, 38 commit suicide
waiting for space ship
• WHY?
chapter 10
Coercive persuasion
Person is under physical or emotional duress.
Person’s problems are reduced to one simple
explanation, repeated often.
Leader offers unconditional love, acceptance, and
attention.
New identity based on group is created.
Person is entrapped.
Person’s access to information is controlled.
Cult mass suicide= heavens gate
End in Waco
Key in process- six steps
• The person is put under physical or
emotional stress (No eat, sleep or exercise,
dark room)
• The persons problems are reduced to one
simple explanation, which is repeatedly
emphasized (Jews, government, nonbelievers)
• The leader offers unconditional love,
acceptance, and attention (love bath from
group- constant praise and affection)
More in process
• A new identity based on the group is created
(part of chosen, elite, or saved- new name)
• The person is subjected to entrapment(small things then increase weekend, another
weekend, weekly seminar, advanced courses,
contribute money)
• The persons access to information is severely
controlled
Summary
• Attributes
• Attitudes
• Power of persuasion