Social Psychology
What to know
Social psychology studies how people think about, influence, and relate to one another. Attribution: internal (dispositional) vs. external (situational); the fundamental attribution error overweights disposition for others, while the self-serving bias credits successes to self and blames failures on situations. Attitudes can shape behavior, and cognitive dissonance (Festinger) motivates attitude change to reduce discomfort.
Social influence
Conformity (Asch: line judgments; normative vs. informational influence), obedience (Milgram: authority), compliance (foot-in-the-door, door-in-the-face), and group processes: social facilitation, social loafing, deindividuation, groupthink, and polarization. Bystander effect and diffusion of responsibility explain failures to help; the five-step helping model requires noticing, interpreting, responsibility, competence, and action.
Social relations
Prejudice (attitude) differs from discrimination (behavior); stereotypes are cognitive. In-group/out-group bias, scapegoating, and the contact hypothesis address intergroup relations. Attraction follows proximity, similarity, and physical attractiveness; passionate vs. companionate love differ. Aggression has biological and social-learning roots.
Traps
Don't swap conformity (peer pressure) with obedience (authority commands). Fundamental attribution error concerns others' behavior; self-serving bias concerns your own outcomes. Social facilitation = better performance on simple tasks in presence of others; social loafing = reduced effort in groups.
Rule of thumb
For influence questions, identify the source of pressure: peers → conformity; authority → obedience; gradual commitment → foot-in-the-door.