Mark Zanna
Encyclopedia
Mark Zanna, Ph.D.
(Yale
), FRSC
, is a social psychologist
at the University of Waterloo
. He is well-known for his work on attitudes and intergroup relations.
in the 1970s concerned whether cognitive dissonance theory or self-perception theory
best accounted for how people's attitudes change. While at Princeton University
, Zanna and Joel Cooper conducted a landmark experiment that resolved the discrepancy in favor of cognitive dissonance. They demonstrated that arousal
is necessary for some instances of attitude change—a precondition specified by dissonance theory but not by self-perception theory.
Zanna also demonstrated the existence of self-fulfilling prophecies within intergroup interactions. At the time, one explanation for why White Americans tended to be hired more often than African Americans was that African American candidates tended to perform poorly in job interviews (i.e., that it was due to actual performance, not prejudice on the part of White interviewers). Zanna and his fellow researchers demonstrated that it was actually non-verbal cues
on the part of White interviewers that elicited poor performance from African American candidates. That is, interviewers expected African American candidates to perform poorly and treated them more coldly, causing poor performance in response.
In a subsequent experiment, the researchers demonstrated that White candidates performed just as poorly when the interviewer treated them the way the previous African American candidates had been treated.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
(Yale
YALE
RapidMiner, formerly YALE , is an environment for machine learning, data mining, text mining, predictive analytics, and business analytics. It is used for research, education, training, rapid prototyping, application development, and industrial applications...
), FRSC
Royal Society of Canada
The Royal Society of Canada , may also operate under the more descriptive name RSC: The Academies of Arts, Humanities and Sciences of Canada , is the oldest association of scientists and scholars in Canada...
, is a social psychologist
Social psychology
Social psychology is the scientific study of how people's thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of others. By this definition, scientific refers to the empirical method of investigation. The terms thoughts, feelings, and behaviors include all...
at the University of Waterloo
University of Waterloo
The University of Waterloo is a comprehensive public university in the city of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The school was founded in 1957 by Drs. Gerry Hagey and Ira G. Needles, and has since grown to an institution of more than 30,000 students, faculty, and staff...
. He is well-known for his work on attitudes and intergroup relations.
Research
A major debate among attitude researchersAttitude (psychology)
An attitude is a hypothetical construct that represents an individual's degree of like or dislike for something. Attitudes are generally positive or negative views of a person, place, thing, or event— this is often referred to as the attitude object...
in the 1970s concerned whether cognitive dissonance theory or self-perception theory
Self-perception theory
Self-perception theory is an account of attitude change developed by psychologist Daryl Bem. It asserts that people develop their attitudes by observing their behaviour and concluding what attitudes must have caused them. The theory is counterintuitive in nature, as the conventional wisdom is that...
best accounted for how people's attitudes change. While at Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, Zanna and Joel Cooper conducted a landmark experiment that resolved the discrepancy in favor of cognitive dissonance. They demonstrated that arousal
Arousal
Arousal is a physiological and psychological state of being awake or reactive to stimuli. It involves the activation of the reticular activating system in the brain stem, the autonomic nervous system and the endocrine system, leading to increased heart rate and blood pressure and a condition of...
is necessary for some instances of attitude change—a precondition specified by dissonance theory but not by self-perception theory.
Zanna also demonstrated the existence of self-fulfilling prophecies within intergroup interactions. At the time, one explanation for why White Americans tended to be hired more often than African Americans was that African American candidates tended to perform poorly in job interviews (i.e., that it was due to actual performance, not prejudice on the part of White interviewers). Zanna and his fellow researchers demonstrated that it was actually non-verbal cues
Nonverbal communication
Nonverbal communication is usually understood as the process of communication through sending and receiving wordless messages. Messages can be communicated through gestures and touch , by body language or posture, by facial expression and eye contact...
on the part of White interviewers that elicited poor performance from African American candidates. That is, interviewers expected African American candidates to perform poorly and treated them more coldly, causing poor performance in response.
In a subsequent experiment, the researchers demonstrated that White candidates performed just as poorly when the interviewer treated them the way the previous African American candidates had been treated.
Awards
- 1997 - Society for Personality and Social PsychologySociety for Personality and Social PsychologyThe Society for Personality and Social Psychology is an academic society for personality and social psychologists with over 4500 members worldwide. SPSP serves as Division 8 of the American Psychological Association and publishes the journals Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin and...
, Donald T. CampbellDonald T. CampbellDonald Thomas Campbell was an American social scientist. He is noted for his work in methodology. He coined the term "evolutionary epistemology" and developed a selectionist theory of human creativity.- Biography :...
Award - 1999 - Fellow of the Royal Society of CanadaRoyal Society of CanadaThe Royal Society of Canada , may also operate under the more descriptive name RSC: The Academies of Arts, Humanities and Sciences of Canada , is the oldest association of scientists and scholars in Canada...
, Social SciencesSocial sciencesSocial science is the field of study concerned with society. "Social science" is commonly used as an umbrella term to refer to a plurality of fields outside of the natural sciences usually exclusive of the administrative or managerial sciences...
Division - 2007 - Society of Experimental Social PsychologySociety of Experimental Social PsychologyThe Society of Experimental Social Psychology is a scientific professional organization of social psychologists. SESP has over 700 members worldwide.-History:...
, Distinguished Scientist Award - 2011 - Izaak-Walton-Killam Award, Social Sciences Killam Prize