Class 12 Psychology - ANDHRA-PRADESH
Attitude and Social Cognition
The chapter 'Attitude and Social Cognition' in Class 12 Psychology explores how we form impressions of others, understand their behavior, and develop mental predispositions toward people, objects, and ideas. For Andhra Pradesh (BSEAP) board exams, students must master key topics like the ABC components of attitude, processes of attribution, impression formation, and cognitive dissonance. This chapter carries significant weight in both objective and descriptive sections, testing your ability to apply psychological theories to real-world social interactions and everyday human behavior.
Start Learning FreeKey Concepts
Attitude
A state of the mind, a set of views, or thoughts regarding some topic (called the attitude object), having cognitive, affective, and behavioral components.
Social Cognition
The process through which we interpret, analyze, remember, and use information about the social world to make judgments and decisions about other people.
Attribution
The process of assigning causes to people's behavior, which can be internal (dispositional) or external (situational).
Cognitive Dissonance
A psychological state of conflict experienced when an individual holds two or more contradictory beliefs, ideas, or values simultaneously, leading to an urge to restore consistency.
Impression Formation
The process by which we integrate various pieces of information about another person into a unified overall perception or impression.
Stereotype
A generalized belief or expectation about a particular group of people, which may lead to prejudice and discrimination.
Important Formulas
Board Exam Info
In the Andhra Pradesh (BSEAP) Class 12 Psychology board examination, this chapter typically carries around 8 to 12 marks. Questions frequently appear as 2-mark very short answers (e.g., defining cognitive dissonance), 4-mark short answers (e.g., components of attitude or factors influencing attitude change), and occasionally as part of 8-mark essay questions focusing on attribution errors or social cognition processes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Prejudice is an attitude or affective feeling (usually negative) toward a group and its members, whereas discrimination refers to the actual behavioral expression or negative treatment directed toward that group.
Prejudice is an attitude or affective feeling (usually negative) toward a group and its members, whereas discrimination refers to the actual behavioral expression or negative treatment directed toward that group.
How can attitudes be changed?
Attitudes can be changed through persuasive communication, the cognitive dissonance route (making behavior inconsistent with current beliefs), and exposure to new information or out-group members (contact hypothesis).
What is the fundamental attribution error?
It is the tendency of people to overemphasize internal, dispositional factors and underemphasize external, situational factors when explaining other people's behavior.
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