Difficulty: Introductory | Prerequisites: Development (temperament), neuroscience basics
This unit bridges two related areas. Personality covers the Big Five traits, locus of control, self-efficacy, self-regulation, temperament, and reciprocal determinism. Social psychology covers attributions, cognitive dissonance, stereotypes, prejudice, discrimination, persuasion, group dynamics, and compliance techniques. Both areas are heavily scenario-based on the exam: you will be given a description and asked to label the personality trait, attribution error, or social phenomenon.
Personality traits (the Big Five) describe stable patterns in how people think, feel, and behave. Social psychology examines how we explain others' behaviour (attributions), how attitudes form and change (persuasion, cognitive dissonance), and how group membership shapes our actions (conformity, groupthink, social loafing).
Big Five personality traits (OCEAN)
Openness: curiosity, willingness to try new things. Baby Adam trying new foods = high openness.
Conscientiousness: organisation, dependability, self-discipline.
Extraversion: assertiveness, positive emotion, sociability. Jon being assertive and active with lots of positive emotion = extraversion. High extraversion in temperament = exploring surroundings in new places.
Agreeableness: cooperativeness, compassion.
Neuroticism: anxiety, emotional instability, self-consciousness. Dan feeling nervous in social situations = high neuroticism. High reactivity temperament = introversion and neuroticism.
Traits
Stable, enduring characteristics that predict behaviour across situations. Sam's compassion and caring nature are traits that predict she would choose a career like nursing.
Locus of control
Your belief about what controls the outcomes in your life.
Internal locus of control: you believe your own efforts determine outcomes. Jenny believes her outcomes are due to her own efforts = internal.
External locus of control: you believe outside forces (luck, others) determine outcomes. Brittany believing employers are not even looking at her resume = external locus of control.
Self-efficacy
Your belief in your ability to succeed at specific tasks. Nick believes he is bad at making friends, so he avoids social events, confirming his belief = low self-efficacy. Brittany believing she will never get an internship = low self-efficacy.
Self-regulation
The ability to control your attention, emotions, and behaviour. Brynn stays focused on tasks while Lynn gets distracted = they differ in self-regulation.
Reciprocal determinism (Bandura)
The idea that behaviour, personal factors (thoughts, beliefs), and the environment all influence one another. Anthony gets positive feedback as a hike guide, which strengthens his belief in his hiking skills = reciprocal determinism.
Behavioural inhibition system (BIS)
The system that triggers avoidance and withdrawal in response to threats or unfamiliar stimuli. Heidi the dog refusing to approach fireworks = behavioural inhibition active.
Dispositional (personal/internal) attribution
Explaining someone's behaviour as due to their personal characteristics (personality, ability).
Situational (external) attribution
Explaining someone's behaviour as due to external circumstances. Brooke blaming her teacher for her failed maths test = situational attribution.
Fundamental attribution error
The tendency to overattribute others' behaviour to their disposition while underestimating situational factors.
Self-serving bias
Taking credit for successes (internal attribution) and blaming failures on external factors.
Actor-observer bias
Attributing your own behaviour to the situation but others' behaviour to their disposition.
Cognitive dissonance
The discomfort felt when your behaviour contradicts your beliefs. Austin thinks of himself as a dedicated student but spends all his time partying, then learns he is at risk of losing his scholarship = cognitive dissonance.
Just-world belief
The belief that good things happen to good people and bad things happen to bad people.
Stereotype
A generalised belief about a group. "Women are bad drivers" is a stereotype.
Prejudice
A preconceived negative attitude toward a group. Andre's students disliking him because he is a Penn State fan = prejudice.
Discrimination
Negative behaviour toward someone based on their group membership. Men not letting women drive = discrimination.
Stereotype threat
The anxiety of confirming a negative stereotype about one's group, which can impair performance.
Elaboration likelihood model (ELM)
Two routes to persuasion:
Central route: persuaded by the quality of the argument (logic, evidence).
Peripheral route: persuaded by superficial cues (appearance, attractiveness). Taylor voting for Mike because he colour-coordinated his tie = peripheral route, NOT central. The true/false question stating it is central is FALSE.
Groupthink
When the desire for group harmony overrides realistic evaluation of alternatives. Grandpa Smith suppressing his dissenting opinion on a jury = groupthink.
Social loafing
Reduced effort when working in a group. Kendall's partners leaving her to do all the work = social loafing.
Social facilitation
Improved performance on simple tasks when others are present.
Deindividuation
Loss of self-awareness and individual accountability in a group setting.
Group polarization
Groups tend to make more extreme decisions than individuals would make alone.
Foot-in-the-door technique
Start with a small request, then escalate. A compliance technique.
Door-in-the-face technique
Start with an unreasonably large request, then follow with a smaller, more reasonable one. Rachel asking for $100, getting rejected, then asking for $50 = door-in-the-face, used for compliance.
Trait | High-scoring behaviour |
|---|---|
Openness | Curiosity, trying new foods, exploring |
Conscientiousness | Organised, dependable, disciplined |
Extraversion | Assertive, active, positive emotion, sociable |
Agreeableness | Compassionate, cooperative, caring |
Neuroticism | Anxious, self-conscious, emotionally reactive |
High extraversion temperament → explores new environments.
High reactivity temperament → introversion and neuroticism.
Self-regulation = ability to stay focused and control behaviour (Brynn vs. Lynn).
Identical twins raised together (Tammy and Sammy) will have more similar personalities than identical twins separated at birth (Tim and Jim). Shared environment adds to genetic similarity.
Timmy blaming a flag football game for failing his exam is a situational attribution, not dispositional. The true/false stating it is dispositional is FALSE.
Brooke blaming the teacher for her test failure = situational attribution.
Austin (dedicated student identity + partying behaviour + scholarship risk) = textbook cognitive dissonance.
"Women are bad drivers" = stereotype (a belief about a group).
Not letting women drive = discrimination (a behaviour toward a group).
Andre's students disliking his Penn State fandom = prejudice (a negative attitude).
Central route = logic and argument quality.
Peripheral route = surface cues (appearance, colour coordination). Taylor's vote based on tie colour = peripheral. The statement that this is central route is FALSE.
Groupthink: suppressing dissent for harmony (Grandpa Smith on jury).
Social loafing: reduced effort in groups (Kendall's lazy partners).
Social facilitation: better performance on simple tasks with an audience.
Situational attribution is not the same as making excuses. It means explaining behaviour through external circumstances. Students sometimes confuse it with dispositional attribution.
Cognitive dissonance is the discomfort, not the behaviour itself. The dissonance is the tension between belief and action.
Prejudice is an attitude. Discrimination is a behaviour. Stereotypes are beliefs. These three are frequently confused.
The door-in-the-face technique starts BIG then goes small. Foot-in-the-door starts small then goes big. The names are counterintuitive.
⚠️ Know all five Big Five traits and be able to match them to scenarios (Jon = extraversion, Dan = neuroticism, Adam the baby = openness).
⚠️ Internal locus of control = own efforts. External = outside forces. Self-efficacy = belief in ability at a specific task.
⚠️ Reciprocal determinism = behaviour, person, and environment all influence each other (Anthony the hiker).
⚠️ Timmy's attribution is SITUATIONAL, not dispositional. The true/false is FALSE.
⚠️ Taylor's vote based on tie colour = PERIPHERAL route. The true/false is FALSE.
⚠️ Door-in-the-face = Rachel asking for $100 then $50 = compliance technique.
⚠️ Groupthink = Grandpa Smith on the jury. Social loafing = Kendall's group project.
⚠️ Stereotype → prejudice → discrimination: belief → attitude → behaviour.
Fill in the blank: Jon is assertive and active with positive emotion. His Big Five trait is __________. Extraversion.
True or False: Timmy blaming a football game for his exam failure is a dispositional attribution. False. It is a situational attribution.
Fill in the blank: "Women are bad drivers" is a __________. Not letting women drive is __________. Stereotype; discrimination.
True or False: Taylor voting for Mike because of his tie colour is an example of the central route of persuasion. False. It is the peripheral route.
Fill in the blank: Rachel asks for $100, gets rejected, then asks for $50. This is the __________ technique. Door-in-the-face.
Q: Austin sees himself as a dedicated student but parties constantly. When his scholarship is at risk, what does he experience?
A: Cognitive dissonance. His behaviour (partying) contradicts his self-image (dedicated student), creating psychological discomfort.
Q: Kendall's group members leave her to do all the work. What social phenomenon is this?
A: Social loafing. Group members reduce their effort because they assume others will pick up the slack.
Q: Anthony gets positive feedback as a hiking guide, which reinforces his belief that he is a skilled hiker. What concept explains this?
A: Reciprocal determinism. His behaviour (guiding hikes), personal beliefs (confidence in hiking ability), and environment (positive feedback from clients) all reinforce one another.
Q: Grandpa Smith suppresses his dissenting opinion to avoid conflict with the jury. What is this?
A: Groupthink. The desire for group consensus overrides his individual judgment.
The Big Five traits connect to temperament in the Development unit (reactivity, self-regulation).
Locus of control and self-efficacy influence coping strategies in the Stress unit (problem-focused coping is more common with internal locus of control).
Attribution errors reappear in understanding prejudice and discrimination, which connects to the Disorders unit (stigma around mental illness).
Observational learning (Learning unit) is foundational to Bandura's social-cognitive theory and reciprocal determinism.
personality, Big Five, OCEAN, openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, neuroticism, traits, locus of control, internal, external, self-efficacy, self-regulation, reciprocal determinism, Bandura, behavioural inhibition, temperament, attribution, dispositional, situational, fundamental attribution error, self-serving bias, actor-observer bias, cognitive dissonance, just-world belief, stereotype, prejudice, discrimination, stereotype threat, elaboration likelihood model, central route, peripheral route, groupthink, social loafing, social facilitation, deindividuation, group polarization, foot-in-the-door, door-in-the-face, compliance, obedience, PSYCH 1100, general psychology, Ohio State