Social Cognition
Social Cognition - examines the effect of social situations or influences on thought, memory & perception.

Attribution Theory - involves understanding the ways in which motivation can alter our perceptions of responsibility for ourselves and others.

Kelly's Attribution Model

Three characteristics lead to personal or situational attributions
 

Consensus Distinctiveness  Consistency  Outcome 
Low - other people don't Low - P does in any event High - P always does  this Personal Attribution 
High - other people do High - P does this only during this event Low - P doesn't always do this Situational Attribution 

Attributions are the implicit or explicit statements about causality and the source of human action or responsibility.

Situational attributions occur when one identifies some environmental factor as the cause of action or behaviour.

Dispositional attributions are made when one's actions are deemed to be the direct result of a personal trait or motive.

Fundamental Attribution Error occurs when one tends to overestimate the dispositional factors and underestimate the situational factors when explaining someone else's behaviour.

Across cultures - Americans make more personal attributions while Indians make more situational attributions.

Self-Serving Bias occurs when one explains one's own failures to the situation and successes to one's own personal characteristics.

-Both tend to be more prevalent in 'western' countries

Just-World Hypothesis occurs when one believes that the world is a fair and just place and that people get what they deserve. >Victim blame.
 

Attitudes and their social origins

Attitudes are relatively stable opinions that we have which are comprised of both cognitive and emotional components.

Vary in strength and flexibility of conviction and arise through social means such as cohort effects where a generational identity emerges: boomers, gen-X or gen-Y

Attitudes often influence behaviour, more often behaviour influences attitudes.

Cognitive Dissonance is said to occur when two contradictory attitudes are being held at the same time, or when behaviour and attitudes diverge. Thought that people are motivated to reduce dissonance.