PSYC 215 Lecture 2: Social-Psychology-Chapter-Notes-2
Document Summary
Undergrads took part in a two 10 mins sessions in which each of them, along with another participant, described various photographs from popular magazines. Other participant (confederate) rubbed face frequently (in one session) whereas the other confederate shook their foot (in another session) Videotapes taken; participants tended to mimic (conform to) the behavior exhibited by the confederate: reasons for mimicry. Ideomotor action merely thinking about a behavior makes its actual performance more likely: the principle of ideomotor action is based on the fact that the brain regions responsible for perception overlap with those responsible for action. When this principle is applied to mimicry, it means that when we see others behave in a particular way, the idea of that behavior is brought to mind (consciously) and makes us more likely to behave that way ourselves. If the light is perceived alone again, the participants would still use the group frame of reference.