Unit 1: Introduction Flashcards
Define social psychology.
Social psychology is the scientific study (uses the scientific method) of how individuals think, behave and feel in a social context. Aims to establish general principles that apply across a variety of situations. Emphasizes the behaviour of the individual in the group context rather than group factors. The social context does not have to be real or present - it can also be the implied or imagined presence of others.
How is social psychology different from other fields of psychology?
Social psychology emphasizes the social nature of individuals. Something falls in the field of social psychology when the thoughts, feelings, and behaviours of individuals either 1) concern other people or 2) are influenced by other people.
How is social psychology different from sociology?
Sociology focuses on the group level while social psychology focuses on the individual level. Also, social psychologists are more likely to conduct experiments in which they manipulate one variable and determine the effects of this manipulation using quantitative research methods.
How is social psychology different from clinical psychology?
The distinction between social psychology and clinical psychology is that social psychologists study the typical ways that individuals think, feel, behave and influence each other while clinical psychologists study psychological difficulties or disorders.
How is social psychology different from personality psychology?
The distinction between social psychology and personality psychology is that social psychology seeks to understand how social factors influence people regardless of their different personalities (how different situations cause different behaviours) while personality psychology seeks to understand the differences between individuals that remain stable across situations (cross-situational consistency).
How is social psychology different from cognitive psychology?
The distinction between social psychology and cognitive psychology is that cognitive psychologists study mental processes such as thinking, learning, remembering and reasoning while social psychologists are interested in how cognitive processing is relevant to social information and social behaviour.
Describe how social psychological findings may be distinguished from common sense or traditional folk wisdom.
Social psychology uses the scientific method to test theories. Common sense is sometimes inaccurate and does not stand up to systematic testing.
List the major periods in the history of social psychology.
The birth and infancy of social psychology: 1880s to 1920s
A call to action: 1930s to 1950s
Confidence and crisis: 1960s to mid-1970s
An era of pluralism: mid-1970s to 1990s
Who are considered the founders of social psychology?
Max Ringelmann, Norman Triplett, William McDougall, Edward Ross and Floyd Allport
Describe Ringelmann and Triplett’s contributions to social psychology.
Max Ringelmann and Norman Triplett independently conducted and published the first social psychology research articles looking at social influences on performance (i.e., performance outcomes when performing athletes and tasks alone versus in the presence of others).
Describe McDougall, Ross and Allport’s contributions to social psychology.
William McDougall, and Edward Ross and Floyd Allport published the first two textbooks on social psychology establishing it as a distinct field of study.
When did the field of social psychology become a distinct field of psychology?
Social psychology became a distinct field of study in 1908 when the two textbooks were published and the first social psychology course was offered at a university (McGill) in 1913.
What was the major focus of social psychological research from the 1930s to the 1950s?
The major focus of social psychological research from the 1930s to the 1950s were questions about what causes violence, prejudice and genocide, conformity and obedience, and a host of other social problems and behaviours influenced by the effects of Hitler’s rise to power and WWII.
Describe Kurt Lewin’s contributions to social psychology.
1) Behaviour is a function of the interaction between the person and the environment - known as the interactionist perspective.
2) Social psychological theories should be applied to important, practical issues.
Explain why the 1960s to the mid-1970s was a period of confidence and crisis for social psychology.
This was a period of confidence because the foundation of the field of social psychology has been laid and it was expanding rapidly, with more funding from the Canadian government provided to programs.
This was a period of crisis because a debate emerged about the ethics, validity, and generalizability of laboratory experiments. Critics argued that certain practices were unethical, experimenter expectations influenced participant behaviour (results), and theories tested were limited in their historical and cultural generalizability.
