Social Perception and Social Reality Why Accuracy Dominates Bias and Self-Fulfilling Prophecy

by Jussim, Lee

• ISBN13: 9780195366600
• ISBN10: 0195366603
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2012-04-06
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

Social Perception and Social Reality contests the received wisdom in the field of social psychology that suggests that social perception and judgment are generally flawed, biased, and powerfully self-fulfilling. Jussim reviews a wealth of real world, survey, and experimental data collected over the last century to show that in fact, social psychological research consistently demonstrates that biases and self-fulfilling prophecies are generally weak, fragile, and fleeting. Furthermore, research in the social sciences has shown stereotypes to be accurate. Jussim overturns the received wisdom concerning social perception in several ways. He critically reviews studies that are highly cited darlings of the bias conclusion and shows how these studies demonstrate far more accuracy than bias, or are not replicable in subsequent research. Studies of equal or higher quality, which have been replicated consistently, are shown to demonstrate high accuracy, low bias, or both. The book is peppered with discussions suggesting that theoretical and political blinders have led to an odd state of affairs in which the flawed or misinterpreted bias studies receive a great deal of attention, while stronger and more replicable accuracy studies receive relatively little attention. In addition, the author presents both personal and real world examples (such as stock market prices, sporting events, and political elections) that routinely undermine heavy-handed emphases on error and bias, but are generally indicative of high levels of rationality and accuracy. He fully embraces scientific data, even when that data yields unpopular conclusions or contests prevailing conventions or the received wisdom in psychology, in other social sciences, and in broader society.

Table of Contents

IntroductionThis Book, Basic Ideas, and the Early Research

IntroductionHow Might Social Beliefs Relate to Social Reality?

IntroductionHow Might Social Beliefs Relate to Social Reality?

The Once Raging and Still Smoldering Pygmalion Controversy

The Awesome Power of Expectations to Create Reality and Distort Perceptions

The Extraordinary Power of Self-Fulfilling Prophecies

The Extraordinary Power of Expectancies to Bias Perception, Memory, and Information-Seeking

The Less Than Awesome Power of Expectations to Create Reality and Distort Perceptions

The Less Than Extraordinary Power of Self-Fulfilling PropheciesConsiderations Based on Common Sense, Daily Life, and a Critical Evaluation of the Early Classic Experiments

You Better Change Your Expectations Because I Will Not Change (Much) to Fit Your ExpectationsSelf-Verification as a Limit to Self-Fulfilling Prophecies

The Less Than Awesome Power of Expectations to Distort Information-Seeking

The Less Than Awesome Power of Expectations to Bias Perception, Memory and Judgment

AccuracyControversies, Criticisms, Criteria, Components, and Cognitive Processes

AccuracyHistorical, Political, and Conceptual Objections

AccuracyCriteria

AccuracyComponents and Processes

The Quest for the Powerful Self-Fulfilling Prophecy

Teacher ExpectationsAccuracy and the Quest for the Powerful Self-Fulfilling Prophecy

Do Self-Fulfilling Prophecies Accumulate or Dissipate?

Stereotypes

On the Pervasiveness and Logical Incoherence of Defining Stereotypes as Inaccurate

What Constitutes Evidence of Stereotype Accuracy?

Pervasive Stereotype Accuracy

Stereotypes and Person PerceptionCan Judging Individuals on the Basis of Stereotypes Ever Increase Accuracy?

Stereotypes Have Been Stereotyped!

Conclusion

Important, Interesting and Controversial Work on Accuracy, Bias, and Self-Fulfilling Prophecies that Did Not Fit Elsewhere

The 90% Full Glass Contests the Scholarly Bias for Bias

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