HPS304 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Ideal Standard, Social Comparison Theory, Social Exchange Theory
Document Summary
Relates to the process where information about the social world is encoded, stored and retrieved and applied to social contexts. Social knowledge is stored as mental structures: schemas. Schemas: mental representations of the social world that guide our emotions & behaviours. Schemas can be activated on a conscious/unconscious level. 3 critical aspects of relationship cognitions: content/structure/process. Process: how cognitions guide and shape the way we function in relationships. Theory: 2 parts of the mind: store beliefs and values. Represent general ideas, theories, assumptions or expectations about relationships. Can also represent specific/narrow expectations about the functioning of a relationships. General & specific beliefs seem to affect the specific experiences that individuals anticipate in relationships. Affect the way we experience things in relationships. The way you think things should pan out. Constitute standards/ideals about the relationship that should be maintained/met. Relates to what individuals think, should, wish, would occur in relationships.
