Lecture 1: Introduction Flashcards
1
Q
What is differential psychology?
A
- Explains observable and psychological differences between individuals
- Used to predict and then used in interventions
- 3 pillars of individual differences:
- -> Our abilities
- -> Personality
- -> Interest
2
Q
What is social psychology?
A
- Study of social processes
- Way people perceive social world and how world perceives us
- Influences by tragedies and historical debates
3
Q
Fundamental principles of social psychology
A
- Construction of reality = ontology
- -> Is there one universal reality that can be known/partly known/competing realities?
- Pervasiveness of social influence:
- -> Other people influence our behaviour and vice versa
- Cant disengage social from person
4
Q
Person-situation debate
A
- Situation most important VS individual more important
- Doctrine of traits = social environment doesn’t matter, trait will always win
- Doctrine of situationism = situation dictates behaviour
- Interactionist
- Reciprocal determinism = where person and situation are fully interdependent
5
Q
Person-situation debate: trait activation theory
A
- Situation activates parts of personality within the setting that’s already there
- Judge and Zapata (2015) = traits more predictive when situation less structures and more predictive when situation activates them
6
Q
Role of history and philosophy
A
- Volkerpsychologi = link between language and social knowledge
- Psychophysics = moved towards measurement and objectivity
- Structuralism (Wundt) = concepts of mind and mental processes, introspection
- Functionalism (James) = attention based on actual behaviour and outcome
- Individualism = Europe and USA split = Europe focussed on social approach (collectivism) and USA on harder sciences (individualist culture) = looks at split
- Behaviourism
- Cognitive
- Turn to language = USA and Europe reconnect, led to qualitative psychology, critical of experimental methods
