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What makes up an individual's personal self-concept? Social psychologist Jonathan Brown describes one of the most influential historical answers to this question: the self theory of William James.
Building on the notion that culture can affect an individual's self-concept, social psychologist Ziva Kunda describes some interesting East-West differences in the way that people conceive of themselves in relation to other people. Cultural differences also influence the kind of causal attributions that are made for social behavior.
Why is self-esteem important? Social psychologist Mark Leary proposes an interesting answer: that self-esteem evolved as a way for us to monitor ourselves, especially the degree to which other people value their relationships with us. Because of the severe evolutionary consequences of being rejected, self-esteem developed as a way to check our social standing and take action to repair it when necessary.
It has long been taken for granted that there are racial differences in self-esteem, with lower levels of self-regard among African-Americans. Christopher Shea describes recent work that suggests that the issue is not that simple, and that the self-esteem of African-American children and adolescents is just as high as that of white youngsters. The literature indicates, however, that the link between self-esteem and self-concept may be different for the two groups.
Vividness Problem", from How to Think Straight About Psychology, 6th ed., Chapter 4, Allyn and Bacon, 2001.
Another cognitive bias that results from our use of mental heuristics stems from the fact that we are especially likely to retrieve and base conclusions on information that is especially vivid. Keith Stanovich describes how even a single dramatic event can outweigh much more relevant and reliable data, and he offers some ways to overcome this kind of bias.
Psychologist Dan Wegner has for years investigated the issue ofmental control"--the ability to control our own thoughts. Here he describes some findings relevant to what he terms automaticironic" mental processes--in which our attempts to control our thoughts lead to the opposite result, thus undermining our attempts to control our emotions and our efforts to avoid stereotyping.
Writer Erica Goode describes recent work that indicates that fundamental processes of social inference, which have long been thought not to vary across cultures, may in fact differ considerably. For instance, Eastern and Western cultures differ on the kind of casual attributions made for another's behavior.
A common form of cognitive bias (at least in Western culture) is the fundamental attribution error--the tendency to overemphasize a target's personal characters and underestimate the effect of situational variables. Michael Lovaglia describes this error and outlines ways in which this characteristic of the social inference process can be turned to our advantage.
Social inference is the attempt to draw conclusions about people or situations based on observing social behavior. Research suggests that social inference is a multistage process, with observers typically making a quick dispositional attribution to a person in an automatic fashion, followed by a more controlled revision.
Job interviews represent a very special kind of social inference problem: how to determine from a very brief exposure whether the applicant will be dependable, honest, and skilled at the job. In this article, author Malcolm Gladwell outlines some social psychological research that describes a form of job interview that may provide better results than the current practice.
People respond to persuasion attempts in different ways, and one approach to understanding this is the elaboration likelihood model. One of the model's key propositions is that people are sometimes motivated to think carefully about persuasive messages but at other times to react in a less thoughtful manner. Implications for advertising are considered.
Social psychologist Anthony Pratkanis outlines a number of ways in which social psychological persuasion techniques are used tosell" an audience on irrational beliefs.
The attempt to alter health behaviors by providing information to people in order to change their attitudes seems to be ineffective with regard to AIDS prevention. Psychological theories, such as the elaboration-likelihood model and the theory of cognitive dissonance, may help explain why.
Psychologist Alan Elms recalls what it was like to participate in Stanley Milgram's classic studies on obedience, outlining the basic procedures and findings and the early reaction to those results.
One of the most effective forms of persuasion is when a friend sets out to change your mind; it is difficult to resist when the persuader is someone you like. Noted social psychologist Robert Cialdini discusses how and why compliance pressures go up as our liking for the persuader increases.
A factor that can make persuasion attempts more effective involves the strategic way in which the request is made. Michael Lovaglia describes how the foot-in-the-door technique (making small requests before larger ones) can lead to greater compliance, and also how the norm of reciprocity can produce in others a feeling of obligation.
Psychologist Richard Ofshe believes that police interrogation tactics can be so strong that they produce compliance. This article describes Ofshe's work and some of his experiences in trying to apply social psychological insights to the legal system.
Social psychologist Bernardo Carducci describes some findings from his research on shyness. Beyond being the result of certain personality traits (for example, low self-esteem), shyness also seems to result from the social environment. Carducci outlines some of the consequences of shyness and discusses some techniques--both constructive and destructive--for coping with one's shyness.
Recent research on the link between Internet use and social variables such as loneliness have produced contradictory results. Rebecca Clay summarizes the major findings thus far and suggests that the Internet may also provide an opportunity to form new communities that would otherwise be impossible.
Social psychologists have long known about the power of physical attractiveness--more beautiful and handsome people are seen as superior in a number of ways. Recently, however, considerable research has explored exactly what it is that makes someone attractive. Brad Lemley examines research that suggests that a large role is played by evolutionary processes as well as cultural influences.
Social psychology has approached the question of romantic love in a variety of ways. Robert Sternberg outlines a new way of examining love relationships--through the use of stories. The narratives that we tell ourselves about our romantic relationships reveal a lot about our personalities and motivations. In particular, Sternberg argues, it is important for partners to have compatible stories about their love.
Aviva Patz describes the work of Ted Huston, who followed romantic couples from before they were married until 13 years later. Unlike some earlier research on romantic love, Huston found that the level of conflict in the relationship was not necesarily the strongest predictor of divorce. Instead, it was the loss of positive emotions (love, affection) that seemed most important.
Recent research strongly suggests that even people who consider themselves nonprejudiced are likely to have racial stereotypes evoked virtually automatically upon exposure to someone of another race. To inhibit these automatic reactions requires controlled effort.
Prejudice seems to consist of both automatic and controlled processes in the individual. Patricia Devine reviews some of her influential research in this area, revealing that people who see themselves as not prejudiced frequently find themselves wrestling with conflicting impulses: their immediate, prejudiced reaction, and their conscious rejection of that automatic response.
Are people today more tolerant than they were 10 years ago? John Dovidio and Samuel Gaertner examine this question by comparing levels of prejudice (overt racial attitudes) from 1989 and 1999, and also comparing levels of discrimination. Results support the idea that displaying tolerance toward outgroups consists of both automatic and controlled kinds of cognitive activity.
Stereotype Threat" and Black College Students, Claude M. Steele, The Atlantic Monthly, August 1999.
One of the most interesting concepts in contemporary social psychology is the notion ofstereotype threat"--the idea that the fear of confirming a negative stereotype about one's group can lead to changes in motivation and self-concept. Social psychologist Claude Steele indicates that it can have powerful negative implications for minority students.
Given the fact that many stereotypes are factually incorrect, we might imagine that over time they would fade away as their inaccuracy became apparent; however, this seldom happens. Ziva Kunda discusses some of the reasons why this is so, and explains how certain kinds of cognitive biases can nullify thecontact hypothesis"--the notion that simple contact with the stereotyped person or group will overcome the faulty stereotype.
Psychologists have long argued that the mass media contribute to violence and aggression in our society. In recent years attention has been focused particularly on the negative impact that violent video games might have on children and adolescents. Clive Thompson describes his experiences with these games and their effect on him.
The South has had higher homicide rates than other regions of the country for as long as records have been kept. Although various explanations have been put forward, social psychologists Richard Nisbett and Dov Cohen argue for a cultural explanation: that for historical reasons many people in this region have a code of honor that often leads them to treat interpersonal conflicts as matters of pride, which can in turn lead to higher levels of aggression.
Social psychologists Roy Baumeister, Brad Bushman, and W. Keith Campbell argue that the traditional view that aggression is associated with low self-esteem is incorrect, and that self-esteem alone is not a good predictor of violent actions. Instead, they suggest that other aspects of a person's self-concept are more important; in particular, unstable self-esteem and narcissism are both better predictors of aggression.
Psychologists Neil Jacobson and John Gottman present some of the findings from their detailed study of conflict among violent couples. They report that male aggression falls into two categories: thePit Bulls" and theCobras.
Millions of Americans every year engage in an important form of helping: volunteer work. By focusing on AIDS caretakers, Mark Snyder and Allen Omoto examine the motivations that lead to volunteering as well as the experiences that enrich it.
One of the implications of evolutionary psychology is that species close to our own should have been subject to the same historical evolutionary pressures, and that, as a result, some human capacities might be observable in such species. Marc Hauser examines research on whether orangutans, gorillas, and chimpanzees--our closest genetic relatives--might experience moral emotions such as empathy, and whether the helping behavior they sometimes display might be altruistic in nature.
One of the most influential social psychological theories of helping has been the bystander intervention model developed by Darley and Latané. Robert Cialdini describes the model and what led to its initial formulation, and offers some very specific advice on requesting emergency help.
Mandatory Volunteerism" on Intentions to Volunteer, Arthur A. Stukas, Mark Snyder, and E. Gil Clary, Psychological Science, January 1999.
In recent years a number of schools have begun to require volunteer work on the part of students--what is often referred to asservice learning. This article reports on research that sought to determine what effect suchmandatory volunteerism" had on the students' later motivation to volunteer on their own. Interestingly, at least some of the time such mandatory experiences actually reduced the likelihood of later helping by the students.
In the wake of the Columbine tragedy, psychologist Elliot Aronson argues that the most effective solution to violence in our educational institutions would be to change the ways in which children and adolescents typically interact. He advocates the use of thejigsaw classroom, a method for reducing the conflict typical in traditional classroom structures by making cooperation mandatory.
I. L. Janis's theory of groupthink offers one account of how decision making that occurs in groups can lead to disastrous consequences. Using the space shuttle Challenger explosion as an example, this article traces the characteristic cognitive biases of groupthink.
Social psychologist Herbert Kelman has been working for years on a project designed to foster conflict resolution in the Middle East. Using social psychological principles, he has created interactive problem-solving workshops made up of Israelis and Palestinians.
Author Daniel Goleman makes the case that truly effective leadership results from what he terms emotional intelligence. That is, while IQ and technical skills are important, what often separates good leaders from bad ones is a set of aptitudes and personality characteristics that includes self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy, and social skillfulness.
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