Social Psychology:
Meeting of the Minds
This multimedia product and its contents are
protected under copyright law. The following are
prohibited by law:
• any public performance or display, including
transmission of any image over a network;
• preparation of any derivative work, including
extraction, in whole or in part, of any images;
• any rental, lease, or lending of the program.
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Today’s topics




Stereotypes and prejudice
Perceiving causes of behavior – attribution
Interpersonal attraction
Dealing with authority, compliance,
obedience and helping
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Social Organizations


Group
Norms





Injunctive norms
Descriptive norms
Perceived norms
Roles
Status hierarchy
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
What is a group?

Two or more people who interact with and
influence one another over a period of
time, and who depend upon one another
and share common goals and a collective
identity.
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Norms

Norms: learned, socially based rules that
prescribe what people should or should not do




We follow them
Expect others to follow them
Hard to verbalize, but we know when we see a
violation
Make situations more comfortable and less
uncertain comfortable  creates social order
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Norms of social behavior: Elevators
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
The Stanford Prison Experiment
Power of the Situation – 12:20-20:00
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Zimbardo’s Prison Experiment
Major factors that enabled brutality:
 Obedience to Authority


Experimenter gave orders to guards and encouraged
tough behavior
Deindividuation

The loss of one’s sense of individuality and a loosening of
normative constraints against deviant behavior



Guards wore uniforms, mirrored sunglasses
Anonimity
Dehumanization

Prisoners stripped, wore prisoner clothes, given numbers
as names
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Zimbardo’s Prison Experiment
Parallels to real-life examples?
 e.g., abuse of Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib



Obedience to Authority: Intimidation practices
from higher-ups, encouraged to “soften” prisoner
Deindividuation: American soldiers wore same
uniforms (anonymity), language barrier
Dehumanization: Iraqi prisoners stripped, kept
in dirty cells, blindfolds/bags over heads, use of
dogs
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Yielding to Others


Conformity
A yielding to perceived group pressure.
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Conformity: Asch’s Studies
Find the matching line
1 2 3
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Match the line on the left to one on
the right:
Suppose everyone in the class said that 1 matched. What would you do?
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Conformity

When people change their behavior or
beliefs in order to match those of other
members of a group.

Ex. Peer pressure…
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Asch’s Studies of Conformity

What did the participant do?

70% conformed at least once!

Most said they knew answer was wrong but didn’t
want to look peculiar
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Obedience: The performance of an
action in response to a direct order.
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
The Milgram Studies: Obedience to
Authority
Teacher and Learner
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Scripted responses of Mr. Wallace,
the learner

75 volts:


150 volts:


cried out that he could not longer stand the pain
300 volts:


demand to be released
180 volts:


moan and grunt
protested that he had a heart condition and
insisted that he would not longer take part in the
experiment
315+:

Ominous silence
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Scripted responses of the
experimenter
Gave these responses in this order, as
needed:
 “Please go on”
 “Teacher, you must go on; your job is to
punish the learner’s mistakes”
 “The experiment requires that you
continue”
 “Teacher you have no other choice”
video
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
The Milgram Studies


Psychiatrists predicted 2% would go to
maximum level
What would you do?
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Degree of obedience



100% compliance until 210 volts
Only 5 % stopped before 300 volts
65% went all the way to 450 Volts!!!
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
The Milgram Studies
Power of the situation 8:00 – 12:00
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Compliance

When people change in behavior because of a
request.

How is compliance brought about?


If you want something, ask!
What about… “If you want something, ask for
something else”!?

Foot in the door technique

Get person to agree to small request then ask for something larger


Why does this work?


Sign to put “drive carefully” on lawn
 17% agree on 1st round
 55% agreed after signing a petition weeks earlier
Commitment
Door in the face procedure

Ask for something big that will surely be denied, then ask for
something smaller…

Appears to be a compromise… (framing!)
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Compliance

Six principles






Friendship/liking
Commitment/consistency
Scarcity
Reciprocity
Social validation
Authority
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Helping


An act that is intended to help another
person
Factors that influence:



Clarity of need
Presence of others
Perceived closeness
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
When we help


An act that is intended to help another
person
Factors that influence:



Clarity of need
Presence of others
Perceived closeness
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Clarity of need

Sometimes it is not clear if/who needs
help…


Notice & Interpret as emergency
Asking for help makes a difference!
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Discovering Psychology
Power of the situation
20:08-20:55
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Questions raised by Milgram & Zimbardo

How can we explain evil acts?




Other examples from history?
Are people ever inherently evil?
Or do situations cause evil?
Ethical issues of this type of research

But is research worthwhile?
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Relationships: Liking



Repeated contact
Similarity
Physical attraction
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Relationships: Loving



Passionate love
Compassionate love
Sternberg’s triangular model of love




Passion
Intimacy
Commitment
Attachment style
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007
Relationships

Making love last





Similarity
More sex than arguments
Intimacy of thoughts and feelings
Shared decision making and daily burdens
Mating preferences


Evolutionary theory
Social exchange theory
“
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2007