PSYC 1002 Lecture Notes - Positive Illusions, Heart Failure, Physical Attractiveness
30 Apr 2012
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Document Summary
Characteristics attributed to people based on their group membership. Normal cognitive process, involve widely held social schemas of people who share certain characteristics. Discount information that is contrary to what we hold as being true. Why do we need stereotypes: they save cognitive energy, e. g. all judges are honest, all italians are mobsters, all women like to shop, simplify experience and allow for quick and effortless categorization. However, over-generalized, inaccurate, resistant to new information. Perception is subjective; people tend to see what they expect. Self-fulfilling prophecy: a false definition that elicits certain behaviour and ultimately leads to the original false conception to become true: defining role of expectations (oedipus effect, re-defining expectations breaks the cycle of self-fulfilling prophecies. Observational learning: seeing prejudice and then discriminating. Operant conditioning: people who hold prejudicial views don"t confront object, but avoid interaction with those people, so there"s no opportunity to discredit prejudicial views.
