MCAT Psychological Social Foundations Flashcards: 7a Attitudes Attitude Change Cognitive Dissonance

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This deck focuses on 7a Attitudes Attitude Change Cognitive Dissonance, giving you a quick way to review the definitions, rules, and examples that matter most for MCAT Psychological Social Foundations.

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Flashcard 1: Which route is most likely when motivation and ability to process a message are low?

Answer: Peripheral route. Limited engagement favors reliance on superficial cues over in-depth message evaluation for persuasion.

Flashcard 2: What are the three components of the ABC model of attitudes?

Answer: Affect, Behavior, Cognition. Feelings (affect), actions (behavior), and thoughts (cognition) form attitudes.

Flashcard 3: What does the Implicit Association Test (IAT) primarily measure?

Answer: Strength of implicit associations (implicit attitudes/bias). Measures reaction time differences to reveal unconscious biases.

Flashcard 4: What is the peripheral route to persuasion in the elaboration likelihood model?

Answer: Persuasion via superficial cues (e.g., attractiveness, credibility). Uses heuristics when motivation or ability is low.

Flashcard 5: Identify the primary way people reduce cognitive dissonance.

Answer: Change attitude/belief, change behavior, or add a new consonant cognition. These methods alleviate discomfort by aligning conflicting elements or introducing justifying cognitions.

Flashcard 6: What is the low-ball technique?

Answer: Secure commitment, then raise the cost; compliance often persists. Commitment trap: people maintain consistency despite increased costs.

Flashcard 7: What is the central route to persuasion in the elaboration likelihood model (ELM)?

Answer: Persuasion via careful, effortful processing of message content and evidence. Deep analysis of arguments under high motivation leads to durable, reasoned attitude changes.

Flashcard 8: What is the mere exposure effect?

Answer: Increased liking for a stimulus after repeated exposure. Familiarity breeds preference through repeated encounters.

Flashcard 9: What are the three components of the ABC model of attitudes?

Answer: Affect, Behavior, Cognition. Components represent feelings, actions, and thoughts about attitudes.

Flashcard 10: What is the justification of effort effect?

Answer: Valuing an outcome more after expending high effort to obtain it. Dissonance reduction makes difficult achievements seem more worthwhile.

Flashcard 11: What is the peripheral route to persuasion in the elaboration likelihood model?

Answer: Attitude change via cues (e.g., attractiveness) rather than arguments. Uses shortcuts when motivation or ability to process is low.

Flashcard 12: What is the distinction between explicit and implicit attitudes?

Answer: Explicit: conscious; implicit: automatic, often unconscious associations. Measured by self-report vs. reaction time tasks.

Flashcard 13: What best characterizes the central route to persuasion in the ELM?

Answer: Attitude change via careful, effortful processing of arguments. Requires motivation and ability to analyze message content.

Flashcard 14: Which ELM route is most likely when motivation and ability to process are both high?

Answer: Central route. High involvement enables systematic argument evaluation.

Flashcard 15: What is the affective component of an attitude?

Answer: Emotions or feelings toward an attitude object. The emotional response that shapes our evaluations.

Flashcard 16: What does the cognitive component of an attitude refer to?

Answer: Beliefs or thoughts about the attitude object. It includes the knowledge, opinions, and ideas that form the intellectual foundation of an attitude.

Flashcard 17: What is attitude formation by operant conditioning?

Answer: Attitudes shaped by reinforcement or punishment of attitude-consistent behavior. Reinforcement strengthens attitude-aligned behaviors, while punishment weakens inconsistencies, shaping attitudes over time.

Flashcard 18: What is self-perception theory?

Answer: People infer attitudes by observing their own behavior and context. "If I did it, I must believe it" - behavior shapes attitudes.

Flashcard 19: What is attitude strength?

Answer: How durable and impactful an attitude is on thought and behavior. Strong attitudes resist change and guide behavior more consistently.

Flashcard 20: What is the overjustification effect?

Answer: External rewards reduce intrinsic motivation for a behavior. External incentives undermine internal enjoyment.

Flashcard 21: What is effort justification as a form of cognitive dissonance reduction?

Answer: Valuing an outcome more after expending high effort to obtain it. Justifies effort by increasing perceived value of the outcome.

Flashcard 22: What is the mere exposure effect on attitudes?

Answer: Repeated exposure increases liking, even without conscious awareness. Familiarity from repetition enhances positive evaluations subconsciously, influencing attitude formation.

Flashcard 23: What is the elaboration likelihood model (ELM) peripheral route to persuasion?

Answer: Low elaboration; persuasion via cues (attractiveness, credibility, emotion). Uses shortcuts when motivation or ability to process is low.

Flashcard 24: What is the affective component of an attitude?

Answer: Feelings or emotions toward the attitude object. The emotional response component of attitudes.

Flashcard 25: Identify the route in the Elaboration Likelihood Model used with low motivation or ability.

Answer: Peripheral route. Superficial cues (source attractiveness) when unmotivated/unable.

Flashcard 26: What is the theory of planned behavior, in one sentence?

Answer: Behavior is predicted by attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control. This model predicts intentions and actions by integrating personal evaluations, social influences, and control perceptions.

Flashcard 27: Which attitude component is targeted by changing emotions or mood?

Answer: Affective component. Targets feelings and emotional responses.

Flashcard 28: What is a subjective norm in the theory of planned behavior?

Answer: Perceived social pressure to perform or not perform a behavior. It represents the influence of perceived expectations from others on one's intentions to engage in behaviors.

Flashcard 29: What is an explicit attitude?

Answer: A conscious, self-reported evaluation. Explicit attitudes are deliberate and can be verbally expressed.

Flashcard 30: Identify the concept: someone convinces themself they like a boring task after being paid $1 to praise it.

Answer: Induced compliance (insufficient justification). $1 provides insufficient external justification for lying.

Flashcard 31: What is classical conditioning in attitude formation?

Answer: Pairing a neutral stimulus with a valenced stimulus to create an attitude. Associates neutral objects with positive/negative stimuli.

Flashcard 32: What is effort justification?

Answer: Valuing an outcome more after expending high effort to obtain it. Dissonance reduction by increasing perceived value after effort.

Flashcard 33: What is the induced compliance paradigm in cognitive dissonance research?

Answer: Attitude change after acting against beliefs with insufficient justification. Minimal reward for counterattitudinal behavior maximizes dissonance.

Flashcard 34: In induced compliance, which produces more attitude change: small reward or large reward?

Answer: Small reward (insufficient justification). Less external justification creates more internal attitude shift.

Flashcard 35: What is the central route in the elaboration likelihood model (ELM)?

Answer: Persuasion via careful, effortful processing of arguments. High motivation/ability leads to systematic argument evaluation.

Flashcard 36: What are the three components of an attitude in the ABC model?

Answer: Affect, behavior, cognition. ABC stands for affect (feelings), behavior (actions), cognition (thoughts).

Flashcard 37: What is the attitude-behavior relationship most strengthened by: high or low situational constraints?

Answer: Low situational constraints. Minimal external barriers enable attitudes to more directly guide and predict corresponding behaviors.

Flashcard 38: What is classical conditioning in attitude formation?

Answer: Pairing a neutral stimulus with a positive/negative stimulus to create an attitude. Associates neutral object with emotional response through pairing.

Flashcard 39: Which attitude component is targeted by changing actions or behavioral intentions?

Answer: Behavioral component. Targets how we act or intend to act.

Flashcard 40: Which change best reduces dissonance: change behavior, change belief, or add justification?

Answer: Any of the three can reduce dissonance; choose the easiest available. All methods work; people choose path of least resistance.

Flashcard 41: What is attitude formation by observational learning (modeling)?

Answer: Adopting attitudes by watching others and the outcomes of their behavior. Observing models and their behavioral outcomes allows vicarious learning of attitudes without direct experience.

Flashcard 42: What is the elaboration likelihood model (ELM) central route to persuasion?

Answer: High elaboration; persuasion via strong arguments and careful processing. Requires motivation and ability to process message content.

Flashcard 43: What is an implicit attitude?

Answer: An automatic evaluation that may not be consciously accessible. Implicit attitudes operate outside conscious awareness or control.

Flashcard 44: What is induced compliance in cognitive dissonance research?

Answer: Attitude change after freely performing a counterattitudinal behavior. Insufficient justification leads to attitude shift.

Flashcard 45: What is an attitude in social psychology?

Answer: An evaluation (positive or negative) of a person, object, or idea. Encompasses feelings, actions, and thoughts about the target.

Flashcard 46: What is the attitude-behavior gap in social psychology?

Answer: Attitudes do not always predict behavior, especially across contexts. Situational factors often override attitude influence.

Flashcard 47: What is the theory of planned behavior's main predictor of behavior?

Answer: Behavioral intention (from attitudes, norms, perceived control). Ajzen's model integrating multiple behavioral determinants.

Flashcard 48: Which route of persuasion typically produces more durable attitude change: central or peripheral?

Answer: Central route. Deep processing creates stronger, longer-lasting attitudes.

Flashcard 49: What best characterizes the peripheral route to persuasion in the ELM?

Answer: Attitude change via cues (attractiveness, authority), not arguments. Superficial processing relies on heuristics, not content quality.

Flashcard 50: Identify the concept: behavior changes first, then attitude shifts to match the behavior.

Answer: Cognitive dissonance reduction (attitude change to fit behavior). Classic dissonance: realigning beliefs to justify actions.

Flashcard 51: What is self-perception theory (Bem) as an alternative to cognitive dissonance?

Answer: People infer attitudes by observing their own behavior and context. We look to our actions to understand our own attitudes.

Flashcard 52: What is the Yale attitude change model's key focus for persuasion variables?

Answer: Source, message, audience characteristics. Classic model examining who says what to whom.

Flashcard 53: Which change reduces dissonance by altering a belief to fit behavior?

Answer: Attitude change (change the cognition). Modifies belief to match behavior, resolving inconsistency.

Flashcard 54: Which scenario best illustrates cognitive dissonance: "I smoke" and "Smoking harms health"?

Answer: Holding both cognitions simultaneously creates dissonance. Conflicting beliefs about harmful behavior creates psychological tension.

Flashcard 55: According to cognitive dissonance theory, what is the typical motive after inconsistency?

Answer: Reduce dissonance by changing attitude, behavior, or justification. People seek consistency to eliminate uncomfortable tension.

Flashcard 56: What is the central route to persuasion in the elaboration likelihood model?

Answer: Attitude change via careful, effortful processing of arguments. Requires motivation and ability to process message content.

Flashcard 57: What is cognitive dissonance?

Answer: Psychological discomfort from inconsistent attitudes and behaviors. Tension arises when beliefs and actions don't align.

Flashcard 58: What is the mere exposure effect?

Answer: Repeated exposure increases liking, even without conscious awareness. Familiarity breeds preference through repeated encounters.

Flashcard 59: Which produces greater dissonance: high external justification or low external justification?

Answer: Low external justification. Insufficient justification creates more need to rationalize.

Flashcard 60: What is the central route to persuasion in the elaboration likelihood model?

Answer: High elaboration; attitude change based on strong arguments. Requires motivation and ability to process message content.

Flashcard 61: What is an attitude in social psychology?

Answer: An evaluation (positive or negative) of a person, object, or idea. Encompasses feelings, actions, and thoughts about the target.

Flashcard 62: Which option best reduces cognitive dissonance after a counterattitudinal act?

Answer: Change attitude to match the behavior. Justifying behavior by aligning beliefs reduces dissonance.

Flashcard 63: Which route of persuasion tends to produce more durable attitude change: central or peripheral?

Answer: Central route. Deep processing creates stronger, longer-lasting attitudes.

Flashcard 64: What is postdecision dissonance?

Answer: Dissonance after choosing between options; bolstering chosen option. Reduces regret by enhancing chosen option's attractiveness.

Flashcard 65: Identify the condition that increases dissonance after a choice: many options or few options?

Answer: Many options (more attractive forgone alternatives). More alternatives = more dissonance about rejected choices.

Flashcard 66: What is the definition of cognitive dissonance?

Answer: Psychological discomfort from inconsistent attitudes, beliefs, or behaviors. Festinger's theory: we're motivated to reduce this tension.

Flashcard 67: What is operant conditioning as a mechanism of attitude formation?

Answer: Attitudes shaped by reinforcement and punishment consequences. Rewards strengthen positive attitudes; punishments create negative ones.

Flashcard 68: What is attitude formation by classical conditioning?

Answer: Learning an attitude by pairing a neutral stimulus with an affective stimulus. This process associates emotional responses with neutral stimuli through repeated pairings, forming conditioned attitudes.

Flashcard 69: What is the central route to persuasion in the elaboration likelihood model?

Answer: Persuasion via careful, effortful processing of message arguments. Requires motivation and ability to analyze content.

Flashcard 70: If an audience is distracted and unmotivated, which ELM route is most likely?

Answer: Peripheral route. Low motivation/ability leads to superficial cue processing.

Flashcard 71: What is induced compliance (forced compliance) in cognitive dissonance?

Answer: Attitude change after acting against beliefs with insufficient external justification. Lacking external reasons for counterattitudinal actions prompts internal attitude shifts to reduce inconsistency.

Flashcard 72: Identify the dissonance-reduction strategy: changing behavior vs changing attitude vs adding cognitions.

Answer: Any of these can reduce dissonance: behavior change, attitude change, or added cognitions. Three main strategies exist to restore psychological consistency.

Flashcard 73: Which option best predicts dissonance: large reward or small reward for counterattitudinal behavior?

Answer: Small reward (insufficient justification produces greater dissonance). Insufficient justification heightens internal conflict, driving greater attitude change to resolve dissonance.

Flashcard 74: Which change reduces dissonance by adding a new belief that justifies behavior?

Answer: Add consonant cognitions (rationalization). Justifies behavior with new supporting thoughts.

Flashcard 75: In Festinger and Carlsmith's paradigm, what payment condition produces more attitude change?

Answer: Smaller reward (insufficient justification). Creates dissonance requiring attitude change to justify.

Flashcard 76: Identify the standard ways to reduce cognitive dissonance.

Answer: Change attitude, change behavior, or add consonant cognitions. Three main strategies to restore cognitive consistency.

Flashcard 77: Which route of persuasion is more likely to produce durable attitude change?

Answer: Central route processing. Deep processing creates stronger, lasting attitudes.

Flashcard 78: What is the insufficient justification effect?

Answer: Small external reward leads to internal attitude change. Without sufficient external justification, people justify internally.

Flashcard 79: Which theory best fits: "I must like it because I keep doing it" with low arousal discomfort?

Answer: Self-perception theory. It accounts for attitude inference from repeated behaviors without the arousal associated with dissonance.

Flashcard 80: What is the self-perception theory of attitude formation?

Answer: People infer attitudes by observing their own behavior. "I must like it if I'm doing it" - behavior shapes attitude.

Flashcard 81: What is the peripheral route in the elaboration likelihood model (ELM)?

Answer: Persuasion via cues (attractiveness, authority) not arguments. Low motivation/ability relies on superficial heuristics.

Flashcard 82: Which produces more dissonance: freely choosing a counterattitudinal act or being forced?

Answer: Freely choosing the act. Choice creates internal justification need, increasing dissonance.

Flashcard 83: Identify the ELM route: a motivated audience evaluates evidence quality and logic carefully.

Answer: Central route. Motivation enables systematic evaluation of argument quality.

Flashcard 84: What is the cognitive component of an attitude?

Answer: Beliefs or thoughts about an attitude object. The rational, knowledge-based aspect of attitude formation.

Flashcard 85: What is postdecisional dissonance?

Answer: Dissonance after choosing between alternatives, reduced by re-evaluating options. People justify choices by increasing chosen/decreasing rejected value.

Flashcard 86: Which change reduces dissonance by minimizing the importance of the conflict?

Answer: Trivialization (reduce perceived importance). "It's not that important anyway" reduces discomfort.

Flashcard 87: What is the behavioral component of an attitude?

Answer: Actions or behavioral intentions toward the attitude object. Observable responses reflecting attitude expression.

Flashcard 88: What is the difference between an explicit attitude and an implicit attitude?

Answer: Explicit: conscious; implicit: automatic/unconscious associations. Explicit requires awareness; implicit operates below consciousness.

Flashcard 89: What is effort justification in cognitive dissonance theory?

Answer: Valuing an outcome more because much effort was required to obtain it. High effort creates dissonance if the reward seems unworthy, leading to increased valuation to justify the investment.

Flashcard 90: What does the behavioral component of an attitude refer to?

Answer: Actions or behavioral tendencies toward the attitude object. It describes predispositions to act in certain ways, linking attitudes to observable actions or intentions.

Flashcard 91: What is observational learning in attitude formation?

Answer: Adopting attitudes by watching models and their outcomes. Vicarious learning shapes attitudes without direct experience.

Flashcard 92: Which attitude component is targeted by changing beliefs or information?

Answer: Cognitive component. Targets thoughts and beliefs about the attitude object.

Flashcard 93: What is the peripheral route to persuasion in the elaboration likelihood model (ELM)?

Answer: Persuasion via superficial cues (e.g., attractiveness, credibility) rather than content. Shallow processing relies on heuristics like source appeal, yielding temporary attitude shifts.

Flashcard 94: What is the self-perception theory of attitude formation?

Answer: People infer attitudes by observing their own behavior. Bem's theory: we deduce feelings from actions.

Flashcard 95: What is classical conditioning as a mechanism of attitude formation?

Answer: Pairing a neutral stimulus with valence to create an attitude. Associates emotional response with previously neutral object.

Flashcard 96: What is the peripheral route to persuasion in the elaboration likelihood model?

Answer: Low elaboration; attitude change based on cues (e.g., attractiveness). Uses shortcuts like source credibility when processing is limited.

Flashcard 97: What is the lowball technique?

Answer: Secure agreement, then raise the cost; commitment increases compliance. Exploits commitment consistency after initial agreement.

Flashcard 98: What is postdecisional dissonance?

Answer: Dissonance after choosing between alternatives, reducing by bolstering the choice. After decisions, enhancing the chosen option's value minimizes regret and resolves dissonance from alternatives.

Flashcard 99: Which theory best explains attitude inference when internal cues are weak: self-perception or dissonance?

Answer: Self-perception theory. Applies when attitudes are ambiguous or unformed.

Flashcard 100: What is the low-ball technique?

Answer: Secure commitment, then raise the cost to maintain compliance. Exploits commitment bias after initial agreement.