Social Psychology Short Answers

1. Most individuals enjoy consistency in their thought processes and overall belief systems. The definition of dissonance is when an individual has a discomforting feeling as a result of having two beliefs that are conflicted. Dissonance can happen in an area of life, however, it typically exhibits itself when an individual’s behavior that they generally operate within conflicts significantly with the beliefs that they hold at the core of their identity. Making a decision can cause dissonance, if the decision that has to be made is in direct conflict with the usual operation of what that individual normally does. An individual can reduce their dissonance when they change their beliefs and perceptions regarding the given situation that is causing conflict within them. The conditions where post-decisional dissonance is the greatest is when there is likelihood that the decision was wrong and when we have made a commitment to do something, and then later change our viewpoints regarding that commitment and end up deciding altogether against the commitment. An example of post-decisional dissonance is deciding what college major to select, choosing it and then regretting the choice. There is a tendency for a kind of cognitive beat-up to happen within as the process unfolds regarding that decision. One could look at post-decision dissonance as having second thoughts about something.

2. In order to change the behavior in the child permanently, I would tell my friend to tell the little boy that he has to understand that just because she is not in the room to stop his destructive behavior, does not mean that his destructive behavior will be tolerated. Dissonance works best when an individual understands that one's behavior reflects on their self-image. Therefore, in order for a behavior to change permanently, the individual must be made to feel foolish so to speak and make the change in that behavior. The punishment from my friend will have to be more severe for the little boy to think about the destructive behavior he is exhibiting.

3. The field of psychology maintains that attitudes are learned tendencies that we have in evaluating events, issues, people and objects. These evaluations can either be positive or negative. There is also potential for uncertainty in the evaluations to exist as well. An example of an attitude is people who are racists. The affective component of the racist attitude is how that individual/those individuals feel about another race (their emotions). The cognitive element is the beliefs about what that race will do and how they have formed these beliefs. The behavioral component of the racist attitude is how that attitude is influencing the overall behavior of the racist individual. Attitudes are typically the result of direct personal experience or observation about social norms and roles in society.

4. A fear arousing message is a persuasive tactic added to a message that attempts to arouse fear through the threat of impending harm if the behavior is executed. There is risk in the fear arousing message, vulnerability to the particular risk and then a component of protective action within the fear arousing message. There is an assumption that threatening stimuli of any type can incite fear in individuals. Therefore, social psychologists often believe that fear arousing messages are effective depending upon the circumstances surrounding the fear arousing message and the person. Fear arousing is perception game essentially. The individual who is becoming fearful has the perception that the message is a threat to them and/or everything that they stand for or hold dear. The perception of threat is essentially the perceived vulnerability that is the motivating element that provokes the fearful individual to act in response to the threat or fear arousing message. Other elements that would have to be involved in the fear arousing message in order for it to work would be the degree of severity associated within whatever components triggered the fearful reaction to the message in the first place.

5. Can subliminal messages aid in improving oneself? Self-improvement techniques are very popular in today's society. There is a reason to believe that an improvement can occur through the usage of subliminal messages as these messages contain affirmations that seek to aid in improving one's perception of themselves and their external environment. These perceptions will not instantly change, but through a continual and comprehensive process, a positive impact will be made on the individual who has self esteem issues. The subliminal messages create within the individual the ability to concentrate on changing themselves at their core being due to the enhancing characteristics presented within the messages that enhance their low self-esteem.

6. In most instances, we carry our sense of identity with us and are continually aware of how we are reacting and relating with others. There are ways, though of losing who we are as individuals. Our identity is what make us ourselves and thus, the definition of deindividuation is when there is a loss of individual identity and a gain in the social identity of a particular club or group. Deindividuation in a group has three essential components: anonymity, group size and what is known as diffused responsibility. With anonymity, those within the group are not discovered or rather the individual identity does not exhibit itself; diffused responsibility allows individuals within the group not to be held accountable for their actions individually and group size relates to the size of the group and its relative increase based on the anonymity and diffused responsibility aspects. Deindividuation often leads to riots because crowds provide individuals the opportunity to hide and reduce any form of individual responsibility for the riotous act.

7. Problem solving is a process that seeks to analyze and in effect solve problems. The ultimate objective is to overcome the issues that caused the problem and find an applicable solution that will best resolve the issue. The best solution to resolving a problem is dependent usually on the given circumstance. In the case of detecting the bugs in the software, my group and I would have to use what is known as the problem solving cycle, which is a sequential format for solving problems. The cycle includes identifying the issue, defining why it is an issue; formulating a strategy to resolve the issue; organizing any information that is available to ensure that the best solution is found to solve the problem; allocating the particular resources needed to solve the problem; monitoring the progress that is working towards the solution; and evaluating the results once the solution has been reached to ensure that it was indeed the best solution to the problem.

8. The definition of double bind is an emotionally stressful dilemma in communication that results in an individual or group receiving conflicting messages, where one of the messages negates the other message. This creates a situation where one message is responded to successfully, while the other results in a failed response. This inhertantly creates a situation where the individual is automatically wrong regardless of which message they respond to as a result of the dilemma in communication. The consequences of double bind that make it difficult for women to be successful as leaders is when women are told that they will be respected in positions of authority in one message and then talked about and ignored by their employees and subordinates in another message. Social dilemmas are certain types of situations where the interests of a collective group are at odds with those that have private interests. In other words, these types of situations occur when an individual’s behavior leads to what is known as a suboptimal outcome from the perspective of a collective group. Examples of social dilemmas are eating disorders, whether the death penalty should be allowed, global warming, the use of firearms, and the influence of media on society. Social dilemmas can be resolved through the use of solutions that include motivational, strategic and structural solutions.