• Discuss what is meant by "social cognition" and list the basic assumptions that most social psychologists have with respect to cognitive processes.
  
  
• State the basic purpose and function of schemas as well as the three basic processes that they influence.
  
  
• Consider how our schemas may (or may not) be altered in the face of new information.
  
  
• Discuss how the self-fulfilling prophecy may operate in certain applied settings, such as classroom environments.
  
  
• Explain why we often use heuristics and the consequences of their use. Contrast two different types of heuristics.
  
  
• Discuss the nature of automatic processing in social thought.
  
  
• Examine why we tend to show a negativity bias—particularly from an evolutionary or biological perspective.
  
  
• Consider the prevalence of the optimistic bias, its consequences and when this bias typically is NOT shown.
  
  
• Understand why sometimes our tendency to do a minimal amount of cognitive work may be justified.
  
  
• Identify the effects that counterfactual thinking may have on our mood and general well-being.
  
  
• State the meaning of "magical thinking" as well as the three principles that pertain to this pattern of cognition.
  
  
• Explain what thought suppression is , why it can be—but often is NOT—effective, and identify the individual difference characteristic that is particularly susceptible to the negative effects of thought suppression.
  
  
• Provide a rationale for why we actually do a fairly good job in processing social information.
  
  
• Consider how affect can influence cognition by discussing mood-dependent memory, mood congruence effects, mental contamination, and the effect of being in a good mood on social behavior.
  
  
• List the three ways that cognition can influence affect.

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