Impression Formation.

1
Impression Formation.

• We form impressions of people rapidly so we need
  to make short cuts
• Central Traits- Honesty, friendliness, meanness,
  happiness, introverted, extroverted- traits that
  are stable across time.
• Peripheral Traits- Personality traits which are
  affected by central traits.

2
Primacy Recency Effects

• The study of Jim Luchins(1957) refer to h/out.
• Evidence you are presented with first about a
  person remains strong and has more influence than
  subsequent information.- Primacy effect
• Later information has more influence than earlier
  information- Recency effect

3
Criticisms of Primacy

• In our everyday life we encounter situations
  which provide us with information that prevents
  primacy occurring.
• STEREOTYPING Our assumptions we hold about
  people are strong enough so that we do not even
  register the initial information.I.e accents,
  clothes,ethnicity.

4
Application of Primacy Recency.

• Relationships.
• Jurors.
  
• Interviews

How judgements can Affect individuals.
5
Implicit Personality Theories.

• Our own ideas about which personality traits go
  together.
• Halo effect. Dion (1972)/ Harai Mcdavid (1973)
• Refers to the kind of information we generate
  about a person based on a positive or negative
  factor.
• Personal constructs. Kelley (1955)
• Through our own experiences we develop our own
  theories of what people are like.

6
Application of Halo effects Personal constructs.

• The research does not tell us how we form first
  impressions.
• Sometimes impression is based on verbal
  description and little else- not the same as
  meeting someone.
• The halo effect does have implications for the
  judgements we make about strangers.

7
Stereotyping...

• A rigid generalisation and over simplified set of
  ideas we have about others.
• E.g. All black people can dance
• Women are good homemakers
• Jews are tight-fisted.

8
Study of stereotyping

• Name Razran (1950)
• Method Correlation analysis.
• Procedure Participants were asked to rate
  pictures of girls on a broad range of
  psychological characteristics. Later they were
  asked to rate the same pictures but the girls
  were identified with a name which sounded Irsh/
  Jewish.
• Results-Razran compared original ratings with
  the those linked to ethnicity and found
  differences
• Jewish girls were rated higher on intelligence
  and ambition but lower on niceness
• Conclusion- ratings were based on stereotypes
  held about particular ethnic groups.

9
Social categorisation.

• Tajfel (1971)
• Stereotyping is based upon thought processes
• Differences between groups.
• Similarities in the same group.
• 14 15 yr old boys assigned to groups by
  toss of coin
• Each told if they awarded points to their
  group the other group automatically got the same
  points 2.
• Results Participants chose pairings which
  created biggest difference in points between
  their own and other group ( 7 points for us 1
  point for them!)
• Supporting Tajfel idea that we will
  discriminate against out groups.

10
The effects of stereotyping...

• Can direct our attention to relevant stereotype.
• Tends to discount the information which is
  inconsistent- so we dont break down stereotypes
  they encourage us to keep them going.

11
The effects of stereotyping...

• Explains why we use scapegoats....
• We use stereotypes as a way of justifying
  treating others differently.

12
Evaluation Application......

• (-)Recreated situations (artificial) so they do
  not reflect real life.
• (-)Participants may not tell the truth and give
  politically correct answers
• () Has helped raise awareness about
  prejudice..better understanding of why.

13
Sample Questions

• Explain the difference between central and
  peripheral traits.(3)
• Describe one study in which impression formation
  was investigated (5)
• Explain how a stereotype can lead to a negative
  evaluation (3)