Introduction to Social Psychology Definition, Scope, and Core Concerns

Introduction to Social Psychology Definition and Scope ● ● ● Social psychology is the scientific study of how individuals think, feel, and behave in social contexts, whether real or imagined. Key figure: Lewin (1946) emphasized the importance of experiments in testing social psychological questions and developing theories about social influence. Social psychology is distinct from sociology, cognitive psychology, clinical psychology, and personality psychology, although there are overlaps between these fields. Key Concerns of Social Psychologists ● ● ● ● ● Combatting stereotypes and prejudice Resisting negative influences from others Building and maintaining positive relationships Helping individuals achieve their goals Understanding the factors leading to the rejection of scientific information Relevance of Social Psychology ● ● ● Application of scientific findings to improve personal life Impact of social psychology on everyday interactions and decisions Examples of how laptop use can affect academic performance through distractions and note-taking methods Historical Development of Social Psychology Birth of Social Psychology ● ● Systematic study began in the late 1800s, focusing on how the presence of others influences behavior. Notable studies by Triplett (1898) and Ringelmann (1913) highlighted social facilitation and social loafing effects. Evolution in Research ● ● WWII era prompted inquiries into human behavior during atrocities, leading to significant contributions by Sherif, Lewin, Asch, Milgram, Festinger, and Allport. Initial research primarily conducted in North America, later expanding to include diverse methods and cultural contexts. Replication Crisis ● ● Contemporary challenges include the replication crisis, where many studies fail to replicate their findings. Initiatives like the Open Science Collaboration aim to address replication issues and enhance research credibility. Themes and Approaches in Social Psychology Core Themes ● ● ● ● ● ● ● Integration of Emotion, Motivation, and Cognition in understanding social behavior Consideration of Genetic and Evolutionary Perspectives Exploration of Cultural influences on social interactions Adoption of Interdisciplinary Approaches for comprehensive insights Examination of the Social Body and Brain in shaping behavior Embracing New Technologies and Online Environments for research Adherence to New Standards and Practices in conducting social psychology research Conducting Social Psychology Research ● ● ● Importance of Research Literacy in interpreting and consuming research findings The Research Process involves generating ideas, formulating hypotheses, testing them, and iteratively developing theories. Characteristics of a Good Theory include causal relationships, coherence, parsimony, testability, generative capacity, and problem-solving ability. Types of Research in Social Psychology ● ● ● Basic Research focuses on understanding human behavior and testing theoretical hypotheses. Applied Research aims to address real-world issues and solve social problems, often informed by basic research. Defining and Measuring Variables involves operational definitions, construct validity, and various measurement methods like self-reports, observations, and technology. Conducting Social Psychology Research Research Design ● ● ● Descriptive Research methods include observational studies, archival studies, and surveys for describing behaviors and attitudes. Correlational Research examines relationships between variables using correlation coefficients, emphasizing that correlation does not imply causation. Causal Research, primarily through experiments, establishes causal relationships between variables by controlling and manipulating factors. Experimental Design ● ● ● Components of an Experiment: Independent variable (IV), Dependent variable (DV), Control Condition, and Subject Variables. Ensuring Internal Validity by minimizing confounds and experimenter biases, and External Validity by testing in diverse contexts and populations. Ethical considerations in research, including informed consent, debriefing, and adherence to research standards and practices. Additional Research Methods ● ● ● Meta-analysis as a valuable tool for combining and analyzing results from multiple studies. Considerations of cultural influences on research methods and findings. Ethical standards in research, guided by policies like the Tri-Council Policy Statement 2 (TCPS 2). Self-Perception and Self-Awareness The Self and Self-Concept ● ● ● ● ● The self refers to an individual's identity and consciousness. The Cocktail Effect allows people to focus on information about themselves, like hearing their name in a crowded room. Self-concept is the collection of beliefs an individual holds about their personal attributes. Self-schemas are specific beliefs guiding the processing of self-relevant information, such as gender identity. Aschematic individuals lack well-developed self-schemas for certain topics, like not strongly favoring dogs or cats. Self-Recognition and Self-Awareness ● ● ● Self-recognition involves the ability to identify oneself, demonstrated by great apes and humans but not by cats or dogs. Self-awareness encompasses thinking about oneself and recognizing oneself in a mirror. Humans and great apes exhibit self-awareness by recognizing themselves in mirrors. Ways of Self-Knowledge ● ● Introspection involves examining one's mental and emotional processes. Self-knowledge can be gained through perceptions of one's behaviors, comparisons with others, and autobiographical memories. Introspection and Affective Forecasting ● ● ● ● Affective forecasting is predicting emotional responses to future events. People tend to overestimate the intensity and duration of emotional responses (impact bias). Humans exhibit emotional resilience and adaptability, leading to underestimation of external influences on emotions. We are proficient at providing explanations for our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. Perceptions of Behaviors and Motivations ● ● ● Daryl Bem's self-perception theory suggests that people learn about themselves by observing their behaviors. Self-perception theory helps interpret behaviors when internal cues are ambiguous. Facial feedback hypothesis states that changes in facial expressions can influence emotions.