TMA05 D120: Encountering Psychology in Context
Study Guide (2026/2027 Syllabus)
Parts A & B
Part A: Core Concepts, Ethics, and Methods
Section 1: Foundations of Social Psychology
1. Define the "situationist perspective" in social psychology.
ANSWER ✓ The situationist perspective emphasizes that the immediate social
environment (the situation) often has a more powerful influence on an individual's
behaviour than their stable personality traits or personal history.
2. What is the fundamental attribution error?
ANSWER ✓ The fundamental attribution error is the tendency to overestimate the
influence of personal/dispositional factors and underestimate the influence of
situational factors when explaining the behaviour of others.
3. Explain the concept of "construal."
ANSWER ✓ Construal refers to how an individual interprets, perceives, and understands
the social world. It is not about objective reality but their subjective construction of it,
which drives their behaviour.
4. According to Kurt Lewin, what is the formula for behaviour?
ANSWER ✓ Lewin's formula is B = f(P, E), meaning behaviour is a function of the person
and their environment.
5. What is the "Milgram paradigm"?
ANSWER ✓ The Milgram paradigm refers to a series of experiments on obedience
where participants were instructed to administer what they believed were electric shocks
to a learner. It demonstrated people's willingness to obey an authoritative figure, even
when acting against their personal conscience.
6. Name three factors that influenced obedience in Milgram’s experiments.
ANSWER ✓ 1. Proximity of the victim (learner). 2. Proximity and legitimacy of the
authority figure. 3. The presence of dissenting peers.
7. What did the Stanford Prison Experiment (Zimbardo) aim to demonstrate?
ANSWER ✓ It aimed to demonstrate how the power of a situation, specifically the
assigned social roles of "prisoner" and "guard," could lead to pathological behaviour
and the dehumanization of others.
, 8. Define "cognitive dissonance" (Festinger).
ANSWER ✓ Cognitive dissonance is the psychological discomfort experienced when
holding two or more conflicting cognitions (e.g., beliefs, attitudes) or when one’s
behaviour is inconsistent with one’s beliefs. This motivates individuals to reduce the
inconsistency.
9. Give an example of how someone might reduce cognitive dissonance.
ANSWER ✓ After smoking a cigarette despite knowing it causes cancer, a person might
reduce dissonance by changing their cognition to "smoking isn't that dangerous" or
adding a new cognition like "I exercise regularly, so it's fine."
10. What is "social identity theory" (Tajfel)?
ANSWER ✓ Social identity theory posits that a person’s sense of who they are is based
on their group memberships (in-groups). The drive for self-esteem leads to in-group
favouritism and out-group discrimination.
11. What is the minimal group paradigm?
ANSWER ✓ A research method where participants are arbitrarily assigned to groups
(e.g., based on a coin toss) to show that even this minimal categorization is enough to
trigger in-group bias and out-group discrimination.
12. Define "pluralistic ignorance."
ANSWER ✓ A situation where a majority of group members privately reject a norm, but
incorrectly assume that most others accept it, leading them to conform to the perceived
norm.
13. What is the difference between normative and informational social influence?
ANSWER ✓ Normative influence is conformity based on the desire to be liked and
accepted by the group. Informational influence is conformity based on the desire to be
correct, assuming others have accurate knowledge.
14. What were the key findings of Asch’s line judgement studies?
ANSWER ✓ Asch found that a significant number of participants conformed to an
incorrect majority at least once, demonstrating the power of normative social influence,
even in an unambiguous situation.
15. What is "groupthink" (Janis)?
ANSWER ✓ A psychological phenomenon where the desire for group harmony and
consensus overrides a realistic appraisal of alternatives, often leading to poor decision-
making in cohesive groups.
16. Define "altruism."
ANSWER ✓ Prosocial behaviour that is motivated by a selfless concern for the well-
being of others, often at a cost to oneself.
17. What is the "bystander effect"?
ANSWER ✓ The phenomenon where the presence of others inhibits helping behaviour.
The greater the number of bystanders, the less likely any one individual is to help.
Study Guide (2026/2027 Syllabus)
Parts A & B
Part A: Core Concepts, Ethics, and Methods
Section 1: Foundations of Social Psychology
1. Define the "situationist perspective" in social psychology.
ANSWER ✓ The situationist perspective emphasizes that the immediate social
environment (the situation) often has a more powerful influence on an individual's
behaviour than their stable personality traits or personal history.
2. What is the fundamental attribution error?
ANSWER ✓ The fundamental attribution error is the tendency to overestimate the
influence of personal/dispositional factors and underestimate the influence of
situational factors when explaining the behaviour of others.
3. Explain the concept of "construal."
ANSWER ✓ Construal refers to how an individual interprets, perceives, and understands
the social world. It is not about objective reality but their subjective construction of it,
which drives their behaviour.
4. According to Kurt Lewin, what is the formula for behaviour?
ANSWER ✓ Lewin's formula is B = f(P, E), meaning behaviour is a function of the person
and their environment.
5. What is the "Milgram paradigm"?
ANSWER ✓ The Milgram paradigm refers to a series of experiments on obedience
where participants were instructed to administer what they believed were electric shocks
to a learner. It demonstrated people's willingness to obey an authoritative figure, even
when acting against their personal conscience.
6. Name three factors that influenced obedience in Milgram’s experiments.
ANSWER ✓ 1. Proximity of the victim (learner). 2. Proximity and legitimacy of the
authority figure. 3. The presence of dissenting peers.
7. What did the Stanford Prison Experiment (Zimbardo) aim to demonstrate?
ANSWER ✓ It aimed to demonstrate how the power of a situation, specifically the
assigned social roles of "prisoner" and "guard," could lead to pathological behaviour
and the dehumanization of others.
, 8. Define "cognitive dissonance" (Festinger).
ANSWER ✓ Cognitive dissonance is the psychological discomfort experienced when
holding two or more conflicting cognitions (e.g., beliefs, attitudes) or when one’s
behaviour is inconsistent with one’s beliefs. This motivates individuals to reduce the
inconsistency.
9. Give an example of how someone might reduce cognitive dissonance.
ANSWER ✓ After smoking a cigarette despite knowing it causes cancer, a person might
reduce dissonance by changing their cognition to "smoking isn't that dangerous" or
adding a new cognition like "I exercise regularly, so it's fine."
10. What is "social identity theory" (Tajfel)?
ANSWER ✓ Social identity theory posits that a person’s sense of who they are is based
on their group memberships (in-groups). The drive for self-esteem leads to in-group
favouritism and out-group discrimination.
11. What is the minimal group paradigm?
ANSWER ✓ A research method where participants are arbitrarily assigned to groups
(e.g., based on a coin toss) to show that even this minimal categorization is enough to
trigger in-group bias and out-group discrimination.
12. Define "pluralistic ignorance."
ANSWER ✓ A situation where a majority of group members privately reject a norm, but
incorrectly assume that most others accept it, leading them to conform to the perceived
norm.
13. What is the difference between normative and informational social influence?
ANSWER ✓ Normative influence is conformity based on the desire to be liked and
accepted by the group. Informational influence is conformity based on the desire to be
correct, assuming others have accurate knowledge.
14. What were the key findings of Asch’s line judgement studies?
ANSWER ✓ Asch found that a significant number of participants conformed to an
incorrect majority at least once, demonstrating the power of normative social influence,
even in an unambiguous situation.
15. What is "groupthink" (Janis)?
ANSWER ✓ A psychological phenomenon where the desire for group harmony and
consensus overrides a realistic appraisal of alternatives, often leading to poor decision-
making in cohesive groups.
16. Define "altruism."
ANSWER ✓ Prosocial behaviour that is motivated by a selfless concern for the well-
being of others, often at a cost to oneself.
17. What is the "bystander effect"?
ANSWER ✓ The phenomenon where the presence of others inhibits helping behaviour.
The greater the number of bystanders, the less likely any one individual is to help.
