Sociocultural+Level+Analysis

=**SOCIOCULTURAL LEVEL OF ANALYSIS**=

=**General Resources**= Vygotsky's Socialcultural theory of cognition and development another site

**Social Identity Theory (SCLO7) (SIT)**
Lecture from Berkeley on SIT You might need VPN to view from home


 * PPT from class**
 * Another PPT from Crane - simple on SIT....**


 * STANFORD PRISON EXPERIMENT**
 * The official website for the experiment (may need VPN)**
 * overview of the study**
 * Commentary on the experiment (thoughts on ethics by the researcher)**

=PPT on Social Influences=

= Social Influence - COMPLIANCE & Compliance techniques = =**Commitment**= =**Reciprocity**=
 * Authority**
 * Liking**
 * Scarcity**
 * Social Proof**

= Social Influence - CONFORMITY = ASCH'S experiment (1951) Youtube video informational social influence - conform because we like to be right and accept information from others as a evidence normative social influence - conform because we want to be liked referent informational influence - (as supported by SIT )adhering to ingroup norms... conform out of sense of belonging & so form and maintain social identity social comparison (SIT)
 * WHY DO PEOPLE CONFORM?**

Hoefstede's collectivism scale - the higher the score more likely to conform
 * What are the cultural aspects to conformity?**


 * WHAT WOULD YOU DO?**
 * Go to the following link and take the quiz located on the page -- What would you do?**
 * What does this show's scenarios teach us about conformity? Group behavior? Social norms?**


 * cognitive dissonance -**

= Sociocultural Key Terms = Situational and dispositional factors Attribution Social Identity Theory (SIT) Stereotypes Social Learning Theory Compliance Conformity Norms Culture and cultural norms Emic and Etic

=**RESOURCES**= Social Identity Theory Summary Why Groups and Prejudices Form So Easily: Social Identity Theory How Powerful is Social Identity? – A Stanford University Study

=**Information**= //Sociocultural Level of Analysis Learning Outcomes (note: these will be your exam questions!)//
 * Outline principles that define the sociocultural level of analysis.
 * Explain how principles that define the sociocultural level of analysis may be demonstrated in research.
 * Discuss how and why particular research methods are used at the sociocultural level of analysis.
 * Discuss ethical considerations related to research studies at the sociocultural level of analysis.
 * Describe the role of situational and dispositional factors in explaining behavior.
 * Discuss two errors in attribution.
 * Evaluate social identity theory, making reference to relevant studies.
 * Explain the formation of stereotypes and their effect on behavior.
 * Explain social learning theory, making reference to two relevant studies?
 * Discuss the use of compliance techniques.
 * Evaluate research on conformity to group norms.
 * Discuss factors influencing conformity.
 * Define the terms “culture” and “cultural norms.”
 * Examine the role of two cultural dimensions on behavior.
 * Using one or more examples, explain “emic” and “etic” concepts.

Attribution in psychology is to explain behaviors by indicating a cause. The Attribution focuses on two main motivational factors, internal (disposition) and external (situation) attributions, to explain the causes of behaviors (University of Twente).
 * Attribution Theory**
 * Define it** (from a psychological view point)

If a person buys a cone of “tooty-fruity, double-nutty” ice cream when there is only one flavor is left in an ice cream shop, you would tend to attribute the purchase to a situational cause. If a person buys a cone of “tooty-fruity, double-nutty” ice cream out of many flavors, then you would attribute the purchase to a dispositional cause, that he really likes “tooty-fruity, double-nutty” ice cream (Gershaw).
 * Provide a written example of the term** (from a psychological viewpoint)

Graham, Hudely and Williams (1992) documented the linkages of tendencies of emotional reaction in an aggressive ethnic minority such as Black Americans. The research teams identified 44 aggressive young Black adolescents and a matched group of nonaggressive adolescents under teachers supervise among 300 seventh and eighth graders who attended junior high school in an economically depressed community. Each participant was assigned to read a scenario to experience a negative outcome indirectly, and asked 7-scale based questions such as “Did the kid do on purpose?” and “How much anger would you feel?” The intention of the action in each scenario was slightly manipulated by the researchers to be either prosocial, accidental, ambiguous, or hostile. Finally, the researchers found that the aggressive participants were more likely to believe the negative action was promoted in intentions than did the nonaggressive participants, and also the aggressive participants reported more anger than the nonaggressive ones. Grahm and his colleagues deduced a conclusion that emotions mediate the relations between thought and behavior (Graham).
 * Summarize a research study** (yes, the typical summary process) that relates to the term

This research study is linked to attribution because the conclusion can be interpreted as dispositional attribution plays more significant role than situational attribution in guiding behaviors.

SIT (Social Identity Theory) is a theory proposed by Henri Tajfel, which claims that individuals strive to improve their self-image by trying enhance their self-esteem, based on their personal identity ir various social identities. This thery is known to have positive and negative effect on human behavior; negative is that this might lead to discrimination against certain social groups, and positive is that categorization of individuals boosts individuals' self-esteem. There are four ways of constructing social theory; categorization, stereotyping, social identity, and social comparison. Categorization describes humans' intentional and unintentional tendency to categorize. We categorize everything, especially according to the visible traits and experiences. When this behavior is applied to the real life, this will create stereotype. Due to stereotypes, there will be in-group and out-group distinctiveness. In-group members will have very close relationship with one another and will show hostility (or even discriminate against) towards the out-group members. And according to their intra-group relationship and stereotypes, social comparison is formed, causing positive distinctiveness as one of its positive consequences. Positive distinctiveness is a boost of self-esteem, caused by four social identity theory factors.
 * Social Identity Theory**

SIT could easily be found in many real life situations. One of the situations which SIT contributed is a sport game match (any kind of sport) at school. Before starting a game, they are going to have to divide themselves up by tossing a coin for the sake of fairness. After teams have decided, the game begins, and every single members of two teams will unite. Even if they did not know each other well enough to shout at or encourage each other during the match, at that moment everyone is looking forward to one goal: winning. Team members will show certain behaviors such as shouting "nice try!" or "give me a five!" to the in group members while showing hostility and rivalry towards the opposite team members. This sense of belonging will remain long enough even after the match is over.

SIT was first introduced by Henri Tajfel. He and his colleagues conducted many different experiments to test and prove SIT, and Kandinsky and Klee experiment is one of the most powerful experiments they have conducted. Tajfel et al. (1971), randomly divided school boys into two random groups and examined how differently the boys acted. Then the subjects were asked to evaluate the likeability of the all the subjects, and surprisingly, the boys tend to rate the other boys (those who were not in the group) very low while they rated the in group members with high likeability. This study shows that the sense of categorization is strong enough to judge in-group favoritism, and furthermore led to other discoveries.

Social Identity Theory

1. Define it (from a psychological view point)

- Social identity is a person’s sense of who they are based on their group membership(s). http://www.simplypsychology.org/social-identity-theory.html

2. Provide a written example of the term (from a psychological viewpoint)

- There is a categorization of groups for example: Koreans, Christians, girls/boys, Asians…

3. Provide a visual example of the term (from a psychological viewpoint)

- http://www.age-of-the-sage.org/psychology/social/social_identity_theory.html

4. Summarize a research study (yes, the typical summary process) that relates to the term

- Tajfel (1971) observed boys who were assigned to random groups based on their choice of art Kandinsky or Klee. - He Found out that: the boys gave higher grades to the boys who were their members

Define it (from a psychological view point) Textbook: "Stereotype is defined as a social perception of an individual in terms of group membership or physical attributes" - Psychology course companion Own: A certain view point for group of people that shares something common Social categorization (Tajfel, 1969) Crane, J., & Hannibal, J. (2009),Psychology Course Companion. New York : Oxford.
 * STEREOTYPE**

Men are strong and do all the work. Men are the “backbone.” Women aren't as smart as a man. Women can’t do as good of a job as a man. Girls are not good at sports. Guys are messy and unclean. Men who spend too much time on the computer or read are geeks. http://examples.yourdictionary.com/stereotype-examples.html Provide a visual example of the term (from a psychological viewpoint)
 * Provide a written example of the term (from a psychological viewpoint)**

http://brainalchemist.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/stereotype.gif

Darley and Gross (1983)- performed an experiment were the researcher showed two videos of a girl to the participants. In video 1, the girl was shown living in a poor environment (poor stereotype) while in video 2, the girl lived in a rich environment (wealthy environment). After watching the two videos, the participants were to judge which girl would do well in an intelligence test. As a result, most participants choose that the girl living in the wealthy environment would do better than the girl living in the poor environment. Overall, this experiment showed how people generalize and categorize (stereotype) people even if the only detail they received were minor.
 * Summarize a research study** (yes, the typical summary process) that relates to the term

Social Learning Theory (SLT) is a theory that states that people learn within a social context. Models are an important part of Social learning theory. You change your behavior by modeling others. There are three different ways of modeling behavior: Live model: An actual person is showing the desired behavior Verbal instruction: Someone describes the desired behavior and shows you how to engage in it Symbolic model: Real or fictional character models behavior through media (movies, internet, television, papers radio etc.) (http://psychology.about.com/od/developmentalpsychology/a/sociallearning.htm information gathered 2012-09-16)
 * Social learning theory**

A good example of Social learning theory is TV commercials. We observe them and we take in the message. The commercial promotes a certain drink that makes you healthy and good looking or a new cellphone that makes you popular. If the behavior or benefits modeled in the commercial are attractive to you, you will most likely copy them. (http://www.southalabama.edu/oll/mobile/theory_workbook/social_learning_theory.htm 2012-09-16)

Social learning theory is based on the belief that your innate person, your learning environment and the modeled behavior around you cooperates. These three ingredients create the foundation of SLT.

(http://www.southalabama.edu/oll/mobile/theory_workbook/social_learning_theory.htm information gathered 2012-09-16)

The Bobo Doll Experiment (Albert Bandura, 1961, 1963) Albert Bandura performed and experiment demonstrating that children learn and imitate behavior they have observed in other people. The children in his study observed an adult acting violently toward a Bobo doll. When the children were later to play in a room with the doll, they started to imitate the aggressive behavior they had just witnessed. (Cherry, Kendra- psychology guide http://psychology.about.com/od/classicpsychologystudies/a/bobo-doll-experiment.htm information gathered 2012-09-16)


 * Compliance**

Define it (from a psychological view point) Compliance is one of the three types of responses to social influences and it is specifically known as response of submission to a request. The request may be explicit or implicit that the particular person may or may not recognize that he/she is insisted to act in a certain way. Some of the factors such as a feeling of give and take, believability and likeability are known to help arouse people’s compliant behaviors. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compliance_(psychology) http://www.alleydog.com/glossary/definition.php?term=Compliance

Provide a written example of the term (from a psychological viewpoint) Compliance can be motivated by rewards or people’s tendency to avoid punishments. People are also likely to comply when they are in a good mood; furthermore, power or reciprocity norm can also be major factors to motivate compliance. An example of the term, compliance, in a psychological viewpoint can be individuals following instantly along with demands of certain individuals or groups without being persuaded. This behavior can be understood by the specific example of Stage Hypnosis (hypnosis performed in front of a group of audience for entertainment). The participants who were directed on stage for the purpose of entertainment are almost likely to be compliant to the orders of the directors on stage and the audiences present below the stage. This is due to the social pressure on stage and the pressure from the authority and the presence of audiences on stage felt psychologically. Also, the participants may have the tendency to avoid punishments; in this situation, the punishments can be thought as the sense of embarrassment on stage. Thus, they tend to react in compliant manners not thinking about questioning their purposes and behaviors on stage.

http://webspace.ship.edu/ambart/PSY_220/conformoutline.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stage_hypnosis#Role_of_Deception Provide a visual example of the term (from a psychological viewpoint) (Attatched) Images from: Celebrityfashionperfume.com; Michellederosa.wordpress.com

Some factors that help arouse people’s compliant behaviors are a feeling of give and take, tendency to belong, reliability, and positivity. The sociocultural term, compliance has a close relation to marketing. The celebrities presented in the advertisements and the advertisements themselves play huge roles as authorities on customers. Assuming that the celebrities they like have approved the product, the consumers have positive feelings toward that product that they comply with both the celebrities’ and the advertisements’ messages about certain products. Those positive feelings toward the product again reflect customers’ hope of achieving reciprocity norm, believing they would have a favor returned when they have bought the product. Moreover, people’s tendency of belonging again drives them to buy the product in the hopes of affiliating with certain groups of people.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compliance_(psychology)

Summarize a research study (yes, the typical summary process) that relates to the term One of the most famous research studies that relates to the term, compliance is Stanford Prison Experiment. The aim of the research study was to test individuals’ social influence and compliance to authority by applying a prison life situation to the real world. There were 70 applicants and they were checked for psychological problems and crime and drug abuse experiences, and the participants were reduced to 24 American and Canadian males living in Stanford. The participants were divided into two groups: guards and prisoners by flipping a coin. From the time on, prisoners had to stay within the boundary of the artificial prison and the only place they could act freely was the yard. The participants who acted prisoners had chains around their ankles and a stocking which made their head shaved, and they were called by their ID numbers not their actual names.

The result showed that the participants who had the roles of guards felt more aggression toward the ones who acted prisoners. The guards were not allowed to hit the prisoners but they tried to humiliate the prisoners by not allowing them to have basic rights such as going to the bathroom. The prisoners were released after 6 days due to the concern of psychological abuse. The Stanford Prison Experiment basically showed the significance of the power of authority. None of the participants playing guards called in sick or requested to withdraw from the study. The guards basically complied with the researchers’ demands while the prisoners complied with the guards’ orders. Both groups of participants never had to be persuaded by their situations but acted according to the assigned roles and focused on the experiment itself. This research study therefore emphasizes how authority plays a significant role in arousing individuals’ reaction of compliance in any types of situation. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compliance_(psychology)

Definition: Conformity: Conformity can be defined as adjusting one's behavior or thinking to match those of other people or a group standard. source: http://www.alleydog.com/glossary/definition.php?term=Conformity#ixzz26d6rnpzI Provide a written example of the term (from a psychological viewpoint): When you go to class where everybody is sitting on a desk and is facing the board, you will also go and sit facing the board as well. You would not sit in the other direction.
 * Conformity**

Provide a visual example of the term (from a psychological viewpoint) http://fapit.net/imgs/254/conformity.jpg

The experiment was conducted by Nass, Fogg and Moon at Stanford University in 1995. The experiment held twenty eight college students in college who were volunteered to do an experiment involving information in computer screens. The experiment was processed through two conditions: team and individual. In team condition, the participants were to have the tendency to interact with a blue teammate that was called the “blue computer”. In individual condition, the participants were interacting with the computer but only their individual responses were marked. So the participants were told to read a survival situation and rank “12 items in order of importance for survival in the desert”. Then when the subjects were placed in a room with their teammate, they were led to believe in different rankings than their original opinions through the offered information on the computer screens. Then, the computer calculated how much the subjects conformed to the information from the computer. The result showed that the team subjects were affiliated with the computer more than individual subjects did. http://www.stanford.edu/group/commdept/oldstuff/srct_pages/Affiliation_conformity.html
 * Summarize a research study** (yes, the typical summary process) that relates to the term:


 * Norms**

Social norms are described by sociologists as being laws that govern society’s behaviors. Although these norms are not considered to be formal laws within society, they still work to promote a great deal of social control. Shaking hand in a sport match is one of the examples of social norm. This is considered as an informal norm because it is not a LAW that is set, but it is a representation of sportsmanship. There are two types of ways where groups may adapt to: formal norm and informal norm. Formal norm is where norms are written down and implemented by laws, legislation and rules. However, informal norm is things that we do every day which is considered somewhat a routine.

§ Informal: Informal norms are not necessarily laws set in writing, but are more so just routines that people follow in everyday life. These informal norms, if broken, do not invite punishments or sanctions usually, but instead encourage reprimands and warnings. Norms that are widely observed have great moral significance: incest, for example, is generally thought of as wrong in society, but many jurisdictions do not legally prohibit it. § Formal: Formal norms are generally laws that if broken will result in some form of punishment. A large number of these norms we follow naturally such as driving on the right side of the road in the United States or not speeding in order to avoid a ticket. These norms serve to provide safety to the general public.

In Perkins and Berkowitz (1986) research study, it has clearly documented pervasive difference between what students believe to be their peer norms and what are the actual norms. This finding applies to “to both types of norms (commonly held attitudes about correct behavior and the most commonly exhibited behaviors concerning alcohol use)”. When students assume that their peers are permitted and good in drinking, their peers tend to drink more aggressively than they actually do. Other than that, Perkins and Berkowitz found that “more than three-quarters of students believed that one should never drink to intoxication or that intoxication was acceptable only in limited circumstances. Yet almost two-thirds of these same students thought their peers believed that frequent intoxication or intoxication that did interfere with academics and other responsibilities was acceptable”.
 * Research studies**

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norm_(social) http://www.inmagine.com/ins027/ins027036-photo http://www.collegedrinkingprevention.gov/supportingresearch/journal/perkins2.aspx

Social norms are described by sociologists as being laws that govern society’s behaviors. Although these norms are not considered to be formal laws within society, they still work to promote a great deal of social control. Shaking hand in a sport match is one of the examples of social norm. This is considered as an informal norm because it is not a LAW that is set, but it is a representation of sportsmanship. There are two types of ways where groups may adapt to: formal norm and informal norm. Formal norm is where norms are written down and implemented by laws, legislation and rules. However, informal norm is things that we do every day which is considered somewhat a routine. § Informal: Informal norms are not necessarily laws set in writing, but are more so just routines that people follow in everyday life. These informal norms, if broken, do not invite punishments or sanctions usually, but instead encourage reprimands and warnings. Norms that are widely observed have great moral significance: incest, for example, is generally thought of as wrong in society, but many jurisdictions do not legally prohibit it. § Formal: Formal norms are generally laws that if broken will result in some form of punishment. A large number of these norms we follow naturally such as driving on the right side of the road in the United States or not speeding in order to avoid a ticket. These norms serve to provide safety to the general public.

Research studies In Perkins and Berkowitz (1986) research study, it has clearly documented pervasive difference between what students believe to be their peer norms and what are the actual norms. This finding applies to “to both types of norms (commonly held attitudes about correct behavior and the most commonly exhibited behaviors concerning alcohol use)”. When students assume that their peers are permitted and good in drinking, their peers tend to drink more aggressively than they actually do. Other than that, Perkins and Berkowitz found that “more than three-quarters of students believed that one should never drink to intoxication or that intoxication was acceptable only in limited circumstances. Yet almost two-thirds of these same students thought their peers believed that frequent intoxication or intoxication that did interfere with academics and other responsibilities was acceptable”.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norm_(social)

http://www.inmagine.com/ins027/ins027036-photo

http://www.collegedrinkingprevention.gov/supportingresearch/journal/perkins2.aspx

 Culture and Cultural Norms

1. Define it from a psychological view point The basic meaning of culture is the entire gamut of activities, beliefs, lifestyle, habits, rituals, arts, ethics and behavioral patterns of a society. Relating psychology to culture, it can be divided into intra-cultural psychology and inter-cultural psychology. Intra-cultural psychology is an understanding of the cultural basis of behavior by studying the peculiarities of a particular society whereas inter-cultural psychology is finding universal patterns of behavior or beliefs that are common among people of all cultures. Source - http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Psychology-of-Culture&id=1488864

Cultural norms are the agreed-upon expectations and rules shared by people of the same culture that guide their behaviors in any given situation. Source - http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/Cultural-Norms.topicArticleId-26957,articleId-26853.html

2. Provide a written example of the term from a psychological viewpoint Americans regard eye contact while a conversation as an act of politeness and respect while Asians think that it is being rude and impolite. Source - http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/Cultural-Norms.topicArticleId-26957,articleId-26853.html

3. Provide a visual example of the term from a psychological viewpoint This is an image of a Kayan woman wearing neck rings. People of other cultures may think that wearing neck rings that weigh about 10 kilos is impossible or inappropriate, but it is a tradition as well as culture to the Kayans. They believe that it is an act of beauty and a way of protecting themselves from othe tribes. Source - http://www.huaypukeng.com/info_rings.htm, http://www.environmentalgraffiti.com/news-taboo-neck-rings-kayan-women-thailand

4. Summarize a research study the relates to the term Malson and other researchers conducted a research study with young women in multicultural urban contexts in 2002. They interviewed young Asian and white women about their sense of style and their tastes in clothing. Their results showed that the ways in which clothing and particular tastes in clothing and appearance were used to give a sense of belonging to their society (gender, ethnicity, etc.). Source - http://cranepsych.edublogs.org/files/2009/07/turn-to-culture.pdf

 Emic: Insider’s or native’s perspective on culture and their interpretation or reasons behind their behaviour, rituals and activities. ie. what do things mean to a member of a society from their own experience and point of view; looks at behaviors that are culture-specific

Etic: Outsider’s perspective on a community’s culture and their interpretation of custom, behaviour and belief. It is also often used to refer to what things mean from an external analytical, anthropological perspective; universal; behavior compared across specific cultures

From: http://velorum.ballarat.edu.au/~dwaldron/glossary.html

2. Provide a written example of the term

Etic view: Darwainian Explanation says you might have problems when you marry someone with similar genes and give a birth Emic view: In some cultures, it might be a taboo to marry someone outside your family; you have to keep your heritage "pure"

3. Provide a visual example of the term (attached as jpg file) http://www.flanalytics.com/newsletter_909.php

4. Summarize a research study that relates to the term

Mead (1935) researched about cultural variations in gender. In her study of 3 different cultures living close to each other in New Guinea, she found out that:

a) Arapesh people: women and men have same sensitive and non-aggressive behavior b) Mundugamor: both men and women were ruthless, unpleasant, and masculine c) Tchambuli: women were dominant and men were more emotional and concerned about personal appearance

She concluded that gender roles derive from culture, rather than biologically determined of innate sex differences as believed in the West. This is a great research study that shows etic, since Mead applied gender role that are accpeted in the West to other non-Western cultures.

Psychology Course Companion (Oxford) Textbook