See MENTAL AGE.

In SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, this is a way of explaining deviant BEHAVIOUR by focusing on the reactions of other people to the person they label deviant. When combined with SELF-FULFILLING PROPHECY, labelling theory has also been used to account for psychotic behaviour. Thus, if a person is labelled PARANOID, everything they do is interpreted in the light of the paranoia and invariably taken as evidence for the correctness of the original diagnosis.

General term for an area of SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY concerned with why people are attracted to each other.

See GAIN-LOSS THEORY OF INTERPERSONAL ATTRACTION.

See ELABORATED CODE and RESTRICTED CODE.

A term introduced by LEWIN to describe the totality of the physical and psychological factors in the environment of an individual or group at any one time.

A test for COLOUR BLINDNESS in which the subject has to pick out a pattern against a complex background of different colours. People with normal COLOUR VISION can perceive the pattern and colour blind people cannot.

Generally, the unquestioned assumptions an individual uses in thinking about the PERSONALITY of another person: specifically, the characteristics that tend to be associated with each other in judging someone’s personality. For example,’warm’ usually goes with ‘outgoing’ ‘sociable’ and ‘good-humoured’: ‘cold’ with ‘withdrawn’,’reserved’ and ‘humourless’.

In SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, a technique for strengthening a person’s attitude and his resistance to persuasion by exposing him to a small dose of the opposing attitude.

The goals or standards of performance a person sets for himself.

The process of examining and reporting on the contents of one’s own MIND.