Welcome to Psychology 3201: Introduction to Social Psychology

1
Welcome to Psychology 3201 Introduction to
Social Psychology

• Please pick-up a syllabus and a quiz at the back
  of the room.

2
When I say Good Evening!, please respond
appropriately.
3

• Why did (or didnt) you say, Good evening?
• Take 1 minute to brainstorm reasons.

4

• Why did (or didnt) you say, Good evening?
• Take 1 minute to brainstorm reasons.
• Now take 2 minutes to
• introduce yourself to two class members,
• exchange ideas about why you did (or didnt)
  respond

5
Broad Themes of the Course

• How individuals thoughts, feelings, and
  behaviors are influenced by other people -- the
  SOCIAL influences.

6
Broad Themes of the Course

• How the social world influences the individual
• ones thoughts and feelings about the world
• ones thoughts, feelings, and actions toward
  other people
• ones thoughts and feelings about oneself
• ones attitudes, values, and beliefs

7
Broad Themes of the Course

• How the social world influences relationships
• everyday interpersonal interactions
• close relationships
• helping others
• prejudice
• cultural influences

8
Broad Themes of the Course

• Applications of this information
• legal issues
• health issues

9
Who are We?

• Instructor
• Austin Baldwin
• Discussion Leader
• Brad Lippmann
• Teaching Assistant
• Chris Miller

10
Goals for the Course

• 1. Introduce you to how social psychologists view
  the world.

11
Goals for the Course

• 1. How social psychologists view the world
• 2. Discuss the importance of using scientific
  methods to understand and predict human behavior.

12
Goals for the Course

• 1. How social psychologists view the world
• 2. Importance of scientific methods
• 3. Persuade you that human behavior is malleable
  and is responsive to changes in the social
  situation.

13
Goals for the Course

• 1. How social psychologists view the world
• 2. Importance of scientific methods
• 3. Human behavior is responsive to changes in the
  social situation.
• 4. Identify the utility of social psychological
  approaches and knowledge to your own life
  experiences.

14
How Will We Meet Our Goals?

• Readings
• Aronson, Wilson, Akert textbook

15
How Will We Meet Our Goals?

• Readings
• Aronson, Wilson, Akert textbook
• Current Directions, Ruscher Hammer (Eds.)

16
How Will We Meet Our Goals?

• Readings
• Aronson, Wilson, Akert textbook
• Current Directions, Ruscher Hammer (Eds.)
• Influence, Cialdini

17
How Will We Meet Our Goals?

• Lectures
• material related to the text, but generally
  different
• attendance not required, but essential
• if you miss class, get notes from someone else
• PowerPoint slides will be available on the course
  website
• http//www.psych.umn.edu/courses/spring05/baldwina
  /psy3201/default.htm

18
How Will We Meet Our Goals?

• Discussion Sections
• group discussion on the weekly readings
• weekly writing assignment
• earn up to 10 points each week

19
How Will We Meet Our Goals?

• Exams
• There will be 3 exams
• Monday, February 21
• Monday, April 4
• Monday, May 9

20
How Will We Meet Our Goals?

• Exams
• will include both multiple choice and short essay
  questions
• worth 75 points each (225 total)
• will not be cumulative
• make-up exams only with prior approval

21
How Will We Meet Our Goals?

• Discussion Section Points
• weekly writing assignments
• worth 5 points each week
• must be typed
• no late assignments will be accepted
• however, you will be able to drop your two lowest
  scores

22
How Will We Meet Our Goals?

• Discussion Section Points
• weekly writing assignments
• participation points
• earn 3 points each week
• make sure you are in attendance and participating
• you will be able to drop your two lowest scores

23
How Will We Meet Our Goals?

• Homework Assignments
• two 25 point homework assignments
• first due 2/9, second due 4/11
• details about the assignments given one week
  prior

24
How Will We Meet Our Goals?

• Grading
• 3 exams _at_ 75 points each 225 points
• discussion sections 120 points
• homework assignments 50 points
• Total 395 points

25
How Will We Meet Our Goals?

• Extra Credit
• participation in REP studies
• earn 1 point for every 30 minutes of
  participation
• earn a maximum of 10 REP points
• will be added to your total at the end of the
  term
• http//www.psych.umn.edu/research/rep/

26
Some Course Policies

• You are responsible for the information on the
  syllabus.

27
Some Course Policies

• You are responsible for the information on the
  syllabus.
• Grading disputes must be addressed within one
  week of receiving the work back.

28
Some Course Policies

• You are responsible for the information on the
  syllabus.
• Grading disputes must be addressed within one
  week of receiving the work back.
• If you have any special needs, please talk to me
  this week.

29
Social Psychology A First Look

• Take 5 minutes to complete the quiz.
• Answer True/False to each of the 15 questions.

30
Social Psychology A First Look

• Tabulate the number of correct responses.

31
Social Psychology A First Look

• 1. The greater the rewards were promised for
  engaging in an activity, the more we will come to
  value and enjoy that activity.
• FALSE smaller rewards more value, enjoyment
• Cognitive Dissonance, Weeks 6 7

32
Social Psychology A First Look

• 2. Human beings are the only animals who have a
  sense of self.
• FALSE Some primates also have a sense of self.
• The Self, Week 5

33
Social Psychology A First Look

• 3. Some facial expressions are universal -- used
  and understood by people all over the world.
• TRUE Evidence for a small number of basic
  emotions.
• Social Perception, Week 4

34
Social Psychology A First Look

• 4. In such an individualistic culture as the
  United States, people find it amazingly easy to
  violate social norms.
• FALSE Still very difficult to violate social
  norms.
• Conformity, Week 10

35
Social Psychology A First Look

• 5. The more exposure you have to a persuasive
  message, the more likely you are to be persuaded.
• TRUE and FALSE True up to a point, but one can
  become irritated by too much repetition.
• Attitudes and Persuasion, Weeks 7 8

36
Social Psychology A First Look

• 6. People with low self-esteem or low
  intelligence are in general more gullible or
  persuadable than others.
• FALSE Self-esteem and intelligence dont matter,
  but issue specific knowledge does.
• Attitudes and Persuasion, Weeks 7 8

37
Social Psychology A First Look

• 7. Once formed, stereotypes are very difficult to
  change.
• TRUE A number of cognitive and motivational
  forces make it hard to change a stereotype.
• Social Cognition, Week 3
• Stereotyping, Prejudice, Discrimination, Week
  11

38
Social Psychology A First Look

• 8. A persons level of aggression is relatively
  stable throughout life.
• TRUE Although type of aggression may change, the
  relative level remains quite stable.
• Aggression, Week 16

39
Social Psychology A First Look

• 9. Being in a bad mood can actually increase
  peoples tendency to help.
• TRUE Helping may be motivated by a desire to rid
  oneself of the bad mood.
• Prosocial Behavior, Week 15

40
Social Psychology A First Look

• 10. Were more likely to receive help when there
  is only one other person around than when there
  are a lot of people around.
• TRUE Every additional person present reduces the
  likelihood that someone will help.
• Prosocial Behavior, Week 15

41
Social Psychology A First Look

• 11. In general, old people are more lonely than
  young people.
• FALSE Except for the very old, older people tend
  to be less lonely.
• Interpersonal Relationships, Weeks 14 15

42
Social Psychology A First Look

• 12. Opposites attract (e.g., an assertive person
  and a submissive person).
• FALSE Across lots of domains, similarity leads
  to attraction.
• Interpersonal Relationships, Weeks 14 15

43
Social Psychology A First Look

• 13. Compared to women, men are more influenced by
  the physical attractiveness of a potential
  partner.
• FALSE Although women report being less
  influenced by attraction, actual behavior doesnt
  differ.
• Interpersonal Relationships, Weeks 14 15

44
Social Psychology A First Look

• 14. It is very difficult to discredit eyewitness
  testimony.
• TRUE Almost impossible to discredit once it is
  given.
• Social Psychology and the Law, Weeks 12 13

45
Social Psychology A First Look

• 15. Self-serving illusions (e.g., thinking you
  are better that you actually are) are more common
  in poorly adjusted people.
• FALSE Illusions tend to be associated with good
  mental health.
• Social Psychology and Health, Week 16

46
What is Social Psychology?

• Social psychology involves the use of scientific
  methods to explore the ways in which a persons
  thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced
  by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of
  others.
• Gordon Allport, 1954
• Note both a WHAT and a HOW definition

47
What is Social Psychology?

• Social psychology involves the use of scientific
  methods to explore the ways in which a persons
  thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced
  by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of
  others.
• Gordon Allport, 1954
• WHAT study of affect, behavior, and cognition
  (the ABCs of social psychology)

48
What is Social Psychology?

• Social psychology involves the use of scientific
  methods to explore the ways in which a persons
  thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced
  by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of
  others.
• Gordon Allport, 1954
• WHAT focus on situational forces, especially
  other people

49
What is Social Psychology?

• Social psychology involves the use of scientific
  methods to explore the ways in which a persons
  thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced
  by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of
  others.
• Gordon Allport, 1954
• HOW the use of scientific methods

50
What is Social Psychology?

• Social psychology involves the use of scientific
  methods to explore the ways in which a persons
  thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced
  by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of
  others.
• Gordon Allport, 1954
• suggests a cause - effect equation
• cause (other people) - effect (an individual)

51
What is Social Psychology?

• Level of Analysis

(from Fiske, 2004)
52
Two Fundamental Axioms

• People create their own reality.
• Princeton vs. Dartmouth study (Hastorf
  Cantrill, 1954)

53
Two Fundamental Axioms

• People create their own reality.
• Situations influence peoples thoughts, feelings,
  and behaviors.
• rationing of meats during WWII (Lewin, 1952)
• lecture use of other meats (e.g., beef hearts,
  kidneys) tied to war effort, nutrition, and
  budgets
• small group discussion about housewives like
  themselves -- asked to raise hands

54
Situations Influence Peoples Thoughts, Feelings,
and Behaviors
of individuals serving type of food never
served before
55
Situations Influence Peoples Thoughts, Feelings,
and Behaviors

• Interactionist Formula -- Lewin
• b f (p,e)

56
Why Emphasize the Situation?

• We tend to overemphasize personality.
• e.g., political candidates

57
Why Emphasize the Situation?

• We tend to overemphasize personality.
• We tend to underestimate the power of the
  situation.
• woman drops folder full of papers (Isen Levin,
  1972)
• dime in public phone vs. no dime
• no dime 4 helped
• dime 88 helped

58
Why Emphasize the Situation?

• We tend to overemphasize personality.
• We tend to underestimate the power of the
  situation.
• Explanations based solely are personality are
  incomplete.

59
What is Social Psychology?

• Allport
• not just behavior, but also thoughts and feelings
• focus on the situation, especially other people
• uses scientific methods
• Two Fundamental Axioms
• People create their own reality.
• Situations influence peoples thoughts, feelings,
  and behaviors.

60
Next Time

• Social psychology as a science
• How do social psychologists attempt to understand
  the world?