Introduction to Social Psychology

Question 1

Define Social Psychology (Allport) !

Answer 1

Social Psychology is the SCIENTIFIC STUDY of how THOUGHTS, FEELINGS, and BEHAVIOURS are INFLUENCED by the ACTUAL, IMAGINED, or IMPLIED PRESENCE OF OTHERS

Question 2

What do some additional definitions include? !

Answer 2

Seeks to understand the nature and causes of behaviour in social situations

Influence individual and group behaviour

Study of the RECIPROCAL INFLUENCE of the individual and their social context

Study of social thinking, influence, relations, and identities

Question 3

Outline a brief history of social psychology

Answer 3

First experiments reported in 1898 (but ideas/interest much older)

–> David Hume (mid 1700s): worked on explanations for behaviour and prejudice
–> Wundt (mid 1800s): worked on using laboratories (first experiments)
–> Le Bon (mid 1800s): crowd behaviour
–> Gordon Allport (early-mid 1900s): role of personality to understand prejudice

Question 4

What are were the main criticisms (1960s-1970s), and who put ‘social’ back into the field !

Answer 4

Serious question based around how well social psychology reflected and acknowledged the social, historical, cultural, and political concerns and values of people being studied.

Especially:
1. Over reliance on experimental methods
2. Excessive emphasis on individuals as individual rather than as part of complex social contexts

Tajfel and Moscovici - put social back into the area
- Tajfel: social identity theory (influence of social groups
- Moscovici: role of language in social communication

Question 5

What is critical social psychology? !

Answer 5

Movement promoting social psychology that:
- recognises its own political, social, and historical situatedness, and that of the participants/researchers
- pursues social change and reform

It is influenced by…
1. Social Constructivism - an approach to how reality is formed: that all cognitive functions originate in social interaction
2. Discursive Psychology - proposes a view of language as ‘social action’: phenomena is constructed in discourse

Question 6

What is the quantitative approach to social psychology?

Answer 6

Aimed at studying the relationships BETWEEN VARIABLES
- variables are expressed numerically and relationships are explored via statistical analysis
- research question - theory - hypothesis - method

Question 7

What is the qualitative approach to social psychology?

Question 8

What are the strengths and weakness of different research approaches ! (INCLUDE: GROUNDED THEORY !)

Question 9

Outline human values in social psychology !