SOCIAL COGNITION: THE WAY WE THINK ABOUT OTHERS
Rosa Rodríguez Bailón - Soledad M. Palacios (2013)
Summary:
1. INTRODUCTION
In this chapter, we explore how we process and use the vast amount of social information we receive to understand and act on our
interactions. From how we handle information about a friend's sexual orientation to how we form automatic impressions of those
around us, we look at the cognitive processes that underlie our social perceptions and actions.
We discuss how we develop mental representations based on available information, as well as the importance of social inference
and interactions in the way we perceive others. In addition, we review classical approaches that attempt to explain how we come
to form general impressions about people and the relevance of social interactions in this process.
In short, we explore how we manage social information in order to understand and behave effectively in our social environment.
2. WHAT IS SOCIAL COGNITION? A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF ITS HISTORY AND THE TOPICS IT DEALS WITH
In our exploration of social cognition, we dive into the study of how people interpret what they perceive in other people and in
themselves. This process involves using a number of psychological processes to obtain and process information about people in
general and, for example, to form snap judgments about them. Over time, this field has undergone significant changes, from its
introduction into the literature in 1954 to subsequent methodological and theoretical innovations.
Early social psychologists tended to focus on the analysis of individuals' internal processes in relation to their social environment,
but gradually the importance of social aspects in forming perceptions and judgments was recognized. It is argued that social
cognition is shared and socially constructed, influenced by cultural and socialization factors. For example, it has been observed
that people in privileged positions tend to perceive the less privileged more homogeneously, reflecting the influence of power
relations on the interpretation of social reality.
In addition, it is recognized that social cognition is not only limited to individual perception, but also involves interaction between
individuals and groups. This means that our cognitions can be influenced by the information we receive from others, as well as the
way we perceive others. This focus on shared, socially constructed social cognition reflects the understanding that social reality is
not static, but dynamic and shaped by multiple factors.
Therefore, when studying social cognition, we seek to better understand the behaviour and thinking of individuals in their social
context, recognizing the influence of social, cultural, and interaction factors on the formation of perceptions and judgments.
3. SOCIAL INFORMATION PROCESSING: ATTENTION, AWARENESS, CONTROL, AND EFFICACY IN SOCIAL COGNITION
In this section, we will analyze how we process information, that is, how we handle what comes to us from the outside in order to
be able to use it when we need it.
Let's think about this situation: a teacher is testing his students, having previously examined a large number of male students and
then one female student. The latter gets a higher grade than the rest of the students who were previously examined. In my opinion,
the teacher's decision to assign him this higher grade has been consciously considered, based on a rigorous analysis of all his
answers.
So far, 70% of the self-evaluations of people on the basis of their behaviour, who were able to camouflage those behaviors, in our
example the teacher could go so far as to say that the evaluation has influenced the gender of the student compared to her
previous classmates. However, for the remaining 30%, the absence of us being aware of these processes is called into question and
more research begins to show that there is a wide variety of mental processes that can be carried out without awareness or
intention on the part of individuals.
In the 1970s, a distinction began to be made between automatic and controlled processes (Shiffrin and Schneider, 1977). According
to this first division, automatic processes are unintentional, uncontrollable, effortless, and highly effective. In contrast, controlled
processes are intentional, conscious, can be completed and modified with the will of individuals, and require considerable effort.
However, in the 1980s, some authors highlighted evidence showing that very few cognitive processes met all the requirements
assigned to automatic or controlled processes, and that most shared characteristics of both.
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, In this way, we establish that our judgments and evaluations can be clearly affected by automatic processes of which we are not
aware. These automatic processes can influence our perceptions and behaviors in significant ways, even without us being aware
of it.
4. THE WAY WE ORGANIZE, STORE, AND REMEMBER INFORMATION ABOUT OTHERS
Within cognition, lines of research that emphasize the processes of impression formation seem to have dominated. According to
this line of research, perception is a different process when it comes to perceiving other people, as it involves subjective judgments
and evaluations (Fiske & Taylor, 1991). Social perception is considered to have a significant influence on how relationships are
established between people and how the knowledge acquired about them is used (Leyens et al., 1981). In this section, we will
focus on research that analyzes the processes of impression formation, specifically talking about the way we represent social
schemes. These schemas allow us to have a pleasant feeling that we understand the world around us relatively well. Below, we
will define these representation schemes and discuss their characteristics.
4.1. SOCIAL SCHEMES
Schemas are mental structures that represent our knowledge about a group of stimuli that share certain attributes (Fiske & Taylor,
1991). They allow us to understand situations even when we have a limited amount of information. For example, adolescents
entering high school may have a situation in which they expect to find more demanding teachers and more difficult subjects,
although they also crave more freedom in that context. Without schemas, our world would be meaningless, as they help us make
sense of the vast amount of information around us, make sense of our experience, and communicate with others.
Schemas serve several functions, such as classifying objects or people within a group. For example, learning how to classify things
by colours from a young age. Classification is an important function of schemas, as it allows us to treat different objects, people,
or situations as if they were the same, based on the prior knowledge we have about that group.
In addition, schemas allow us to infer additional characteristics of a particular example in relation to the group to which it belongs.
For example, if we know someone and classify them as part of the group of Andalusians, we are likely to infer certain characteristics
about that person, such as love for their land.
Schemas also influence our interpretation of people and situations in our daily lives. We use different schemas to perceive the
same person or situation, which can radically change our interpretation. For example, we might interpret the behaviour of a woman
crying at a funeral as sadness, but the same behaviour at a wedding would be interpreted as joy.
These schemes are often shared within the same culture, which facilitates communication between people. For example, when
we describe a skinhead to a friend, we don't need to explain in detail what it looks like, since it is likely that our friend shares the
same schema about that type of person.
In short, schemas are cognitive structures that help us understand and make sense of the world around us, classify objects and
people, infer additional characteristics about them, and interpret everyday situations. These schemas are activated and used
adaptively according to the context and our personal goals, influencing our perception and behaviour.
4.1.2. THE USE OF SOCIAL SCHEMES
When we interact with a woman on the bus, we can use different schemas to interpret the information based on the cues we
perceive from her. Some people tend to use more in-between schemas, which don't focus exclusively on characteristics such as
gender or age, but on more general traits or easily observable cues, such as physical appearance or contextual situation. In addition,
mood influences the use of these schemes; For example, if we are in a bad mood, we are more likely to use schemas related to
bad luck to interpret negative situations.
In terms of judgments and impressions about people, we tend to more often use schemas that are more accessible in our minds.
These schemas allow us to form quick and automatic impressions of others. However, sometimes we need to use more detailed
and specific schemes based on particular information about individuals, rather than relying solely on general schemes.
There are different reasons why people may choose to use more detailed outlines. For example, they may aim to be more accurate
in their perceptions, which can increase the cognitive cost, but also the reliability of their judgments and evaluations. In addition,
individual variables such as cognitive complexity, need for cognition, and orientation toward cognitive closure can also influence
the choice to use more detailed or general schemas. In short, while schemas are useful and accurate in many situations, sometimes
we need to draw on more specific information to form accurate judgments and evaluations about others.
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