Page 541 - Understanding Psychology

Social Perception
Reader’s Guide
Exploring Psychology
First Meeting
We told a waitress that we had come to see Mr. Malcolm X. . . . In a moment Malcolm appeared at the rear door. His aura was too bright and his masculine force affected me physically. A hot desert storm eddied around him and rushed to me, making my skin contract, and my pores slam shut. He approached, and all my brain would do for me was record his coming. I had never been so affected by a human presence. . . .
“Ladies, Salaam aleikum.” His voice was black baritone and musical. Rosa shook hands, and I was able to nod dumbly. Up close he was a great red arch through which one could pass to eternity. His hair was the color of burning embers and his eyes pierced. . . .
—from The Heart of a Woman by Maya Angelou, 1981
s Main Idea
We explain the behavior of others by making judgments about them. Our judgments are influenced by our percep- tions of others.
s Vocabulary
• primacy effect
• stereotype
• attribution theory
• fundamental attribution error
• actor-observer bias
• self-serving bias
• nonverbal communication
s Objectives
• Explain how we use first impressions
and schemas.
• Describe several factors that influence
how we interpret others’ behavior.
Maya Angelou, a writer, remembers her first impression of 1960s Black Muslim leader Malcolm X. What influenced her first impression of Malcolm X? Based on what she knew and her own thoughts and feelings, Angelou instantly appraised him.
We often cannot explain our own behaviors. How then do we explain the behavior of others? It takes people very little time to make judgments about one another. From one brief conversation or even by watching a person across a room, you may form an impression of what someone is like, and first impressions influence the future of a relationship. If a person
Chapter 18 / Individual Interaction 527