AP Psychology AMSCO Guided Notes
4.1: Attribution Theory, Locus of Control, and Person Perception
AMSCO Guided Notes
AP Psychology Guided Notes
AMSCO 4.1 - Attribution Theory, Locus of Control, and Person Perception
Essential Questions
- How do attribution theory, locus of control, and personal perception apply to behavior and mental processes?
I. Attribution Theory
1. What is an attribution and how do dispositional and situational attributions differ?
2. How might you make different attributions about a student's success on an exam?
A. Explanatory Style
1. What is the difference between a global explanatory style and a specific explanatory style?
2. How do optimistic and pessimistic explanatory styles differ in how people attribute positive and negative events?
3. What are the mental health consequences of having a pessimistic versus optimistic explanatory style?
B. Cognitive Biases and Attribution
1. What is the actor-observer bias and how does it affect how we explain our own behavior versus others' behavior?
2. What is the fundamental attribution error and how does it differ from the actor-observer bias?
3. What is the ultimate attribution error and how does it apply to minority groups?
4. What are self-serving biases and how do they protect self-esteem?
II. Locus of Control
1. What is locus of control and how do internal and external locus of control differ?
2. What are the characteristics and behaviors of people with an internal locus of control?
3. How does an external locus of control relate to learned helplessness and pessimism?
III. Person Perception
1. What is person perception and why do we form quick judgments about others?
A. The Mere-Exposure Effect
1. What is the mere-exposure effect and how does familiarity influence our preferences?
2. How do advertisers use the mere-exposure effect to influence consumer behavior?
B. Self-Fulfilling Prophecy
1. What is a self-fulfilling prophecy and how can negative beliefs about oneself lead to poor performance?
2. How can a teacher's expectations influence a student's academic performance?
C. Social Comparison
1. What is social comparison theory and what are upward and downward social comparisons?
2. How can upward social comparison affect self-esteem and motivation?
3. What is relative deprivation and how does it relate to social comparison?
Key Terms
actor/observer bias
attribution
attribution theory
dispositional attribution
downward social comparison
explanatory style
external locus of control
fundamental attribution error
internal locus of control
locus of control
mere-exposure effect
optimistic explanatory style
person perception
pessimistic explanatory style
relative deprivation
self-fulfilling prophecy
self-serving bias
situational attribution
social comparison
upward social comparison