Elements of Social Psych

Elements of social and applied
psychology
J.E. Stockdale, A.E.M. Seaborne and B. Franks
2790079
2009
Undergraduate study in
Economics, Management,
Finance and the Social Sciences
This guide was prepared for the University of London External System by:
Dr Jan Stockdale, BSc, PhD, CPsychol, AFBPsS, Senior Lecturer in Social Psychology,
The London School of Economics and Political Science.
Dr Ric Seaborne, BSc, MSc, PhD, formerly Lecturer in Psychology, The London School
of Economics and Political Science.
Dr Bradley Franks, BSc, MSc, PhD, Senior Lecturer in Psychology, The London School of
Economics and Political Science.
This is one of a series of subject guides published by the University. We regret that due
to pressure of work the authors are unable to enter into any correspondence relating
to, or arising from, the guide. If you have any comments on this subject guide,
favourable or unfavourable, please use the form at the back of this guide.
This subject guide is for the use of University of London External students registered for
programmes in the fields of Economics, Management, Finance and the Social Sciences
(as applicable). The programmes currently available in these subject areas are:
Access route
Diploma in Economics
Diploma in Social Sciences
Diplomas for Graduates
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BSc Accounting with Law/Law with Accounting
BSc Banking and Finance
BSc Business
BSc Development and Economics
BSc Economics
BSc Economics and Finance
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BSc Geography and Environment
BSc Information Systems and Management
BSc International Relations
BSc Management
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BSc Mathematics and Economics
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Published by: University of London Press
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Contents
Contents
Chapter 1: Introduction
What this unit is about
Why study social and applied psychology?
Introducing social and applied psychology
Aims of the unit
Learning outcomes
The structure of the guide
The subject guide
Key terms
Reading
The examination
Key steps to improvement
Overview
Syllabus
Part A: What is social psychology?
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Chapter 2: The scope and development of social psychology

Aim and learning outcomes
Essential reading
Further reading
References cited
Introduction
2.1 What is psychology?
2.2 What is social psychology?
2.3 The origins and current scope of social psychology
2.4 The role of theory
2.5 Different emphases in social psychology
2.6 Overview
Key terms
A reminder of your learning outcomes
Sample examination questions
Chapter 3: Research in social psychology
Essential reading
Further reading
References cited
Introduction
3.1 Investigating social psychological phenomena
3.2 Experimental studies
3.3 Field research
3.4 Survey studies
3.5 Quantitative and qualitative data
3.6 Investigating people and investigating society
3.7 Validity and realism
3.8 Reliability and replication
3.9 Ethical issues
3.10 The use of deception in social psychological studies
3.11 Overview
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Key terms
Chapter 4: Applying social psychology
Essential reading
Further reading
References cited
Introduction
4.1 Applications of social psychology
4.2 Example 1: stereotypes
4.3 Example 2: pro-social behaviour
4.4 Overview
Key terms
Chapter 5: Social psychology in action
Essential reading
Further reading
References cited
Introduction
5.1 Scenario 1: health and illness
5.2 Scenario 2: workplace experiences
5.3 Overview
Key terms
Part B: Understanding the social world
Chapter 6: Self, identity and impression management
Aims and learning outcomes
Essential reading
Further reading
References cited
Introduction
6.1 Self and identity components and distinctions
6.2 Functions of the self
6.3 Self-presentation: Goffman impressions and expressions
6.4 Impression management and embarrassment
6.5 Self-monitoring
6.6 Self-esteem
6.7 Self, culture and diversity
6.8 Overview
Key terms
Feedback to Activity 6.5
Chapter 7: Social perception and cognition
Essential reading
Further reading
References cited
Introduction
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Contents
7.1 Social information processing

7.2 Configural and primacy effects in impression formation
7.3 Conscious and non-conscious judgements
7.4 Self-fulfilling beliefs
7.5 Implicit personality theory
7.6 Impression formation and culture
7.7 Overview
Key terms
Feedback to Activity 7.2
Chapter 8: Attribution
Essential reading
Further reading
References cited
Introduction
8.1 Attributions and causes
8.2 Person and situation attributions
8.3 Attribution theories
8.4 Biases and errors in attributions
8.5 What do attribution theories explain?
8.6 Applications of attribution
8.7 Attribution and culture
8.8 Overview
Key terms
Chapter 9: Attitudes
Essential reading
Further reading
References cited
Introduction
9.1 Attitudes and their importance in social psychology
9.2 Nature and structure of attitudes
9.3 Formation and function of attitudes
9.4 Cognitive consistency and dissonance
9.5 Attitude measurement
9.6 Can attitudes predict behaviour?
9.7 Recent models of the attitude-behaviour link
9.8 Culture and attitudes
9.9 Overview
Key terms
Part C: Social influence
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Chapter 10: Groups and group performance

Essential reading
Further reading
References cited
Introduction
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10.1 Definitions of groups

10.2 Formation and structure of groups
10.3 Minimal group experiments
10.4 Explanations for the minimal group effects
10.5 Group norms
10.6 Social facilitation, social loafing and social labouring
10.7 Group performance and the nature of the task
10.8 Group membership and group decision-making
10.9 Causes of polarisation
10.10 Which groups show polarisation and which do not?
10.11 Groupthink: a failing of real-life policy-making groups
10.12 Self-categorisation and acceptance of group norms
10.13 The operation of juries
10.14 The effect of crowds on individual members
10.15 Overview
Key terms
Chapter 11: Majority and minority influence and obedience
Essential reading
Further reading
References cited
Introduction
11.1 Is conformity a good thing?
11.2 Majority influence
11.3 Sherif and the autokinetic effect
11.4 Aschs findings
11.5 When do people conform in majority situations?
11.6 Why do people conform in majority situations?
Normative and informational social influence
11.7 Minority influence
11.8 Processes operating in minority influence
11.9 Referent informational influence
11.10 Obedience
11.11 Acquiescence to requests from another person
11.12 Conformity, obedience and culture
11.13 Overview
Key terms
Chapter 12: Attitude change and persuasive communications
Essential reading
Further reading
References cited
Introduction
12.1 Persuasion and attitude change
12.2 Attitude change and the consistency assumption
12.3 Dual-process models of attitude change
12.4 Changing attitudes
12.5 Resistance to attitude change
12.6 Advertising, persuasive communications and attitude change
12.7 Mass media impacts on audiences
12.8 Overview
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Contents
Key terms
Chapter 13: Strategic interaction, negotiation and conflict resolution
Essential reading
Further reading
References cited
Introduction
13.1 Social dilemmas and competition
13.2 Negotiation strategies and their impact
13.3 Conflict behaviour, escalation and de-escalation
13.4 Mediation, contact and co-operation
13.5 International conflict and negotiations
13.6 Societal and cultural aspects of negotiations
13.7 Overview
Key terms
Part D: Social relations
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Chapter 14: Language and non-verbal communication

Essential reading
Further reading
References cited
Introduction
14.1 Interpersonal communication
14.2 Verbal communication
14.3 Paralinguistic communication
14.4 Non-verbal communication
14.5 Deception and self-presentation in communication
14.6 Diversity and communication
14.7 Electronic communication
14.8 Social skills and communication skills training
14.9 Social skills and communication in the workplace
14.10 Overview
Key terms
Chapter 15: Diversity and relationships
Essential reading
Further reading
References cited
Introduction
15.1 Sources of diversity
15.2 Cultural diversity
15.3 Gender diversity
15.4 Attraction and friendship choices
15.5 Theories of attraction
15.6 Diversity and relationships
15.7 Understanding relationships and their significance
15.8 Overview
Key terms
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Chapter 16: Prejudice and discrimination
Essential reading
Further reading
References cited
Introduction
16.1 Prejudice and discrimination
16.2 What causes prejudice?
16.3 Person-centred theories
16.4 Cognitive analyses of prejudice
16.5 Intergroup explanations of prejudice
16.6 Social identity and prejudice
16.7 Societal sources of prejudice
16.8 Targets of prejudice and discrimination
16.9 Reduction of prejudice and discrimination
16.10 Overview
Key terms
Chapter 17: Organisational behaviour and leadership
Essential reading
Further reading
References cited
Introduction
17.1 Organisations and the work environment
17.2 Conflict and power at work
17.3 Group dynamics and interpersonal relationships at work
17.4 Organisational culture
17.5 Diversity in organisations
17.6 Leaders and leadership
17.7 Leadership traits and behavioural style
17.8 Transactional and transformational leadership
17.9 Contingency theories
17.10 Leadership as a group process
17.11 Overview
Key terms
Chapter 18: Review and prospect
Essential reading
References cited
Introduction
18.1 Social psychology and its applications
18.2 Applying social psychology: benefits and challenges
18.3 Social psychology: future prospects
18.4 Overview
Key terms
Appendix 1: Sample examination paper
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What this unit is about
This unit, Elements of social and applied psychology, provides an
overview of key areas of social psychology and their application. Social and
applied psychology are wide-ranging subjects and the unit is necessarily
selective in its coverage. However, it aims to address issues of both
theoretical interest and practical importance, thereby aiding our
understanding of how people behave, think, interact and communicate in
social settings.
There are no formal prerequisites to take this unit but some of the concepts
to which you will be introduced will resonate with those you may have
encountered in courses in statistics and sociology.
The syllabus is designed to introduce you to some of the major theories and
research findings in social and applied psychology. It comprises four
elements:
1. What is social psychology?
2. Understanding the social world
3. Social influence
4. Social relations
Part A, What is social psychology?, provides an overview of the
scope and development of social psychology and outlines its major research
methods. This section then draws on selected examples to examine how
social psychology can be used to understand real-world issues and to
illustrate social psychology in action.
Part B, Understanding the social world, focuses on how we see
both ourselves and others, how we present ourselves to others, how we
acquire and organise social knowledge, and how we interpret our own and
others behaviour. This section also introduces the notion of attitudes and
explores how they relate to behaviour.
Part C, Social influence, considers the nature of groups and how they
affect task performance and decision-making and examines various forms
of social influence, including majority and minority influence and
obedience. This section then considers the processes involved in attitude
change and persuasion. It also examines the nature of strategic interaction,
focusing especially on what happens when people are faced with a conflict
of interest with others.
Part D, Social relations, examines various aspects of social
interaction. It begins by considering the role of language and non-verbal
communication in our interactions with others. It then considers diversity,
with special reference to gender, the nature of attraction and the formation
and maintenance of relationships. The section then examines the nature
and impact of prejudice and discrimination. It concludes with an
examination of how people behave in organisations and the nature and
significance of leadership.
The logic of this division into four elements is simple the subject guide
begins with an introduction to some of the key principles of social
psychology, supported by illustrative examples of how some of these
principles can be applied; this is followed by an exploration of how we
acquire, organise and use knowledge about our social world; then we
consider how other people influence how we feel, think and respond in
social situations; and, finally, we look at various aspects of how we
communicate, form relationships, react negatively to others and behave in
organisational settings. However, any division is to some extent arbitrary
and it is important to recognise that many, if not all, of the various aspects
of social and applied psychology covered in this unit are interlinked. This
means that some topics are mentioned in more than one section, but often
with a different slant reflecting the particular emphases of the chapters in
which they are discussed.
Why study social and applied psychology?

Have you ever wondered how you form an impression of someone you are
meeting for the first time? Or contemplated what kind of impression you
give others? Or why you behave in one way when you are with a group of
your friends and another way when you are with members of your family?
Have you ever speculated about why someone reacted in what you
considered to be an unexpected way? What about whether groups perform
tasks better than people working alone or whether the decisions made by
committees are different from those made by individuals? Or, what about
the qualities needed to be a leader or the sources of satisfaction and stress
that organisations provide to their employees? Have you considered
whether we can apply what we know about human social behaviour to
help understand peoples decisions about diet and exercise, consumer
behaviour or friendship choices?
If you have ever asked yourself questions such as these, or any other
questions about the vagaries of human social behaviour, then you should
enjoy studying social and applied psychology.
Social psychologists study a wide diversity of phenomena; they are
interested in all aspects of thought and behaviour that are influenced by
the real or imagined presence of other people. Social psychologists want to
understand the processes that influence the way in which we construe
social situations and behave within them. The fact that we are inherently
social beings means that virtually all aspects of our lives, whether private or
public, are affected by our dealings and relationships with others.
At one level we are all nave or intuitive psychologists we all have ideas
about how people respond to social settings, why people do things and how
we are influenced by the presence of others. But, although common sense
may give us some insight into human social behaviour, social psychologists
use scientific methods to gather information about behaviour in a
systematic and unbiased way. An appreciation of the principles and
processes which underlie our social interactions can help us both to
understand why people act in the way that they do and to address some of
the issues which concern us in todays world.
One word of warning. Do not expect that studying social psychology will
give you total insight into either your own behaviour or that of other
people. People are very complex organisms and social settings often merely
serve to accentuate this complexity. There may be several competing, and
apparently equally valid, explanations for peoples behaviour or, on certain
occasions, someones behaviour may defy explanation. Social psychology is
still a young and developing discipline and there are numerous gaps in our
knowledge and many unanswered questions. But that is part of the fun and
fascination of studying social psychology.
Introducing social and applied psychology

There are numerous definitions of social psychology but a commonly quoted
definition is that proposed by Allport (1935): the scientific investigation of
how the thoughts, feelings and behaviours of individuals are influenced by
the actual, imagined or implied presence of others. So, social psychology
takes a scientific approach to studying how humans think, act and react in
social settings. It constructs theories about how our social world works; from
these it generates predictions or hypotheses, which are then tested. This
involves the collection of data which are used to determine whether the
theory gives the best possible explanation of the research findings or whether
the theory requires modification in order to do so.
Another way of thinking about social psychology is in terms of the range of
topics studied by social psychologists. As you will see from the content of this
unit, the list is extensive. Everything from attribution to attitudes, conformity
to conflict, persuasion to prejudice, self-presentation to stress, and zero-sum
games to xenophobia. However, it is important to recognise that many of the
topics of interest to social psychologists are also of interest to those working
within related disciplines, such as sociologists, social anthropologists or
political scientists. Social psychology is made distinctive by virtue not just of
the phenomena that are studied but how they are studied and the ways in
which such phenomena are explained.
Increasingly, social psychologists have come to recognise that although the
study of an individuals thoughts, feelings and actions is a core aspect of
social psychology, there is a need to pay more attention to the environment,
its culture and its institutions that is, the more social aspects of social
psychology. This shift in emphasis has led social psychology to take a broader
perspective and to adopt a more outward-looking approach to the study of
the way social life functions. This means considering the social settings,
organisations and institutions that shape our outlooks and actions and
appreciating the interdependence of individuals and their socio-cultural
context. Although the dominant focus of this unit is on the way individuals
understand and deal with their social world and are affected by their social
and cultural experiences, we shall also make reference to the more social or
societal approach to social psychology.
Aims of the unit

This unit has five major aims. The unit aims to:
provide an overview of the scope of social psychology and its major
methodological approaches
identify the key ideas and processes people use in understanding their
social world
assess the impact of group membership and social influence on peoples
behaviour
evaluate the role of social relations in our societies
illustrate how social psychological knowledge and principles can be
applied to real-world issues.
Learning outcomes
On completing this unit and the relevant reading, you should be able to:
describe key concepts, theories and methodological approaches used in
social psychology
outline the processes used in understanding our social world

assess how people behave in groups and the role of social influence
analyse the processes and phenomena involved in social relations
critically evaluate how social psychology can be applied to social issues
and can aid our understanding of human behaviour in real-world
settings.
The structure of the guide

The guide is divided into 18 chapters, grouped into four parts, preceded by
an introduction and followed by an overview.
Introduction
This provides an introduction to the unit and information about the
subject guide and the examination.
Part A: What is social psychology?

In this chapter we examine the nature and scope of social psychology
and identify factors which influence social behaviour. We highlight key
theoretical perspectives in social psychology and discuss the role of
theory in psychological research.
We consider the various research methods used by social psychologists
and outline their advantages and disadvantages. This discussion
introduces you to notions such as reliability, validity and realism, and
highlights ethical issues in research.
In this chapter we illustrate how theories, concepts and findings from
social psychology can be used to try to understand current real-world
issues. We use two examples. The first introduces the notion of
stereotypes and examines how they affect the way we see and respond
to other people. The second focuses on pro-social or helping behaviour
and highlights those factors that encourage people to help others and
those that promote non-intervention or bystander apathy.
Chapter 5: Social psychology in action
In this chapter we discuss the challenges and benefits of applying social
psychological principles to practical problems. We use two illustrative
examples. In the first we look at social psychological aspects of health
and illness. In the second, we examine how social psychology is used to
understand workplace experiences, in particular, stress and job
satisfaction.
Part B: Understanding the social world

Chapter 6: Self, identity and impression management
We consider who we are, how we see ourselves and how we present
ourselves to others. We look at the concepts of self and identity, and

consider strategies that people adopt to manage the impressions they
make on others.
Chapter 7: Social perception and cognition
We consider how we perceive others and form impressions of what they
are like. We go on to examine the role of cognition in understanding our
social world, paying special attention to our reliance on categories,
schemas and stereotypes to organise our social knowledge. We also
illustrate how our use of heuristics (cognitive short cuts) and other
cognitive strategies can lead to errors and bias in the judgments that we
make when processing social information.
Chapter 8: Attribution
In this chapter we discuss the process of attribution (how people explain
their own and others behaviour) and highlight sources of error and
bias. We also consider theories of attribution and their application.
Chapter 9: Attitudes
We examine the nature, formation and functions of attitudes and
introduce notions of cognitive consistency and dissonance. We go on to
examine the relation between attitudes and behaviour and assess recent
theories of the attitude-behaviour link. We also introduce you to social
representations (shared understandings of our social world) which may
aid our comprehension of how people evaluate and act in social
environments.
Part C: Social influence

Chapter 10: Groups and group performance
We discuss what constitutes a group, and the nature and impact of
group norms and cohesiveness. We examine how being in a group can
affect both the effort people put into a task and task performance. We
also consider how group decision-making compares with decisions made
individually and highlight situations which can lead to defective
decisions.
Chapter 11: Majority and minority influence and obedience
Here we consider different scenarios in which social influence can
occur: majority influence, minority influence and obedience. We also
examine experimental evidence about the nature and extent of the
influence exerted. We introduce you to the various forms of majority
social influence normative, informational and referent informational
influence and compare majority and minority influence. We highlight
the difference between compliance and conversion. We also discuss the
practical and ethical implications of experimental work on obedience.
Chapter 12: Attitude change and persuasive communication
In this chapter we consider techniques of attitude change and
persuasion and the factors and processes involved and we discuss the
merits of competing theoretical explanations. We illustrate how
principles of attitude change and persuasion may be applied to
advertising and promoting health-related behaviour.
Chapter 13: Strategic interaction, negotiation and conflict resolution

Here we examine the nature of strategic interaction and negotiation,
highlighting the factors which determine whether people choose to
compete or co-operate when faced with a conflict of interest.
Part D: Social relations

Chapter 14: Language and non-verbal communication
In this chapter we examine interpersonal communication, highlighting
the complementary roles of language and non-verbal communication.
Chapter 15: Diversity and relationships
Here we consider the nature and impact of diversity, with special
reference to gender. We then examine what makes people attractive and
how we form and maintain relationships with others. We also discuss
theories of attraction and what happens when relationships break down.
Chapter 16: Prejudice and discrimination
We examine the meaning of prejudice and discrimination and discuss
theories about their origins and how they might be reduced. We also
consider the relation between prejudice and intergroup conflict,
highlighting situations in which such conflict can arise and how it can
be resolved, with special reference to multiculturalism.
Chapter 17: Organisational behaviour and leadership
In this chapter we consider how people behave in organisations. In
particular, we examine the nature and origins of leadership.
Chapter 18: Review and prospect
This final chapter provides a brief summary of the subject guide content
and considers the future development of social psychology.
The subject guide

Aim of the guide
This subject guide is designed to lead you through the material. It offers
direction about the range of topics to be covered and the important concepts,
research findings and theoretical perspectives which link together to provide
an understanding of social psychological principles and their application. The
subject guide is divided into four parts which, in turn, are divided into
chapters, each of which deals with a substantive area of social psychology or
its application. As you read each chapter and associated sources, it is essential
that you think about and discuss with others the material that you have read
so that you develop your ability to think critically and imaginatively, learn to
integrate theory and research findings and apply what you learn to the world
around you. The more actively you are involved in your own learning the
more enjoyable it will be and the more successful its outcome.
How to use the guide

1. Read through the text of the chapter.
2. Then read those parts of the essential texts that are recommended in
that chapter. If you are able to do so, read some of the supplementary
material that is suggested as further reading. You will find specific
advice on what sources to read throughout the chapter in the form of

sidenotes.
3. As you read, think about the issues that are raised in the text. In each
chapter there will be specific activities for you to complete these are
designed to help you to understand key issues and to achieve the
planned learning outcomes. But also think about any other questions
that come to mind and try to relate these questions to experiences in
your own society.
4. In each chapter, identify the key theorists and researchers for each
topic there will be a small number of names that it would be useful for
you to be able to recall.
5. Think about the sample questions at the end of the chapter they are
similar to those on the examination paper. Then draft answer plans and
write down how you might answer each of the sample questions.
Writing things down is a good way of structuring your thoughts and
also helps you to find out whether you understand the relevant
concepts, theories and empirical research.
We advise you to read the chapters in the order they are presented in the
guide, as later chapters build on the material introduced in earlier chapters.
Try to link the subject guide chapters as you study. Although the material in
the subject guide is divided into discrete chunks, this is designed to make
the material more digestible, and it is a mistake to think of the chapters as
self-contained units, unrelated to each other.
The chapters are designed to introduce you to key concepts, theories and
research in social and applied psychology. If you work your way through
the subject guide and follow the associated readings, you should be ready
to take the examination.
Key terms
At the end of each chapter you will find a list of key terms. These key terms
will be useful as index entries or search terms if you choose to consult titles
suggested as Further reading or other relevant texts or online sources. Also,
after completing the chapter and relevant reading, we suggest you try to
outline the essential features of each of the key terms in order to check that
you have understood the material. If you are unclear about any of the key
terms listed, we suggest you go over the material again.
Reading
The subject guide should not be seen as the only source of information
about social and applied psychology. You should follow the recommended
reading; the subject guide is not a substitute for this material. You are
expected to produce your own notes based on your reading of the essential
texts and other supplementary material. It is important to read as widely as
possible if you are to derive maximum benefit from your studies.
There is no single text that covers all the material included in the subject
guide. We have therefore identified three essential texts for the unit but you
are not expected to buy all three of these. There are also supplementary
sources which are optional. You will also find it helpful to read these and
other relevant sources, including articles in the media, particularly those
which relate social psychology to issues which are important within your
own countries and communities. Many of the concepts and principles will
be clearer if you can see how they relate to your own societies.
Essential reading
Three main texts have been selected for this unit. The first two texts are:
Hogg, M.A. and G.M. Vaughan Social Psychology. (Harlow: Prentice Hall,
2008) fourth edition [ISBN 9780132069311].
Myers, D. Social Psychology. (Boston/London: McGraw-Hill, 2008) ninth
edition [ISBN 9780073310268].
Both of these textbooks provide a review of the main areas of social

psychology and either would be suitable for purchase. Which one you
choose will depend on the style of writing and format you prefer.
The third text is:
Matsumoto, D. and L. Juang Culture and Psychology. (London: Thomson
Wadsworth, 2008) fourth edition [ISBN 9780495097877].
This textbook is valuable in that it takes a cross-cultural perspective to

social psychology and its applications.
Although you are not required to purchase all three of these texts, it is
likely that you will need to purchase at least one of the essential texts and
it is important that you should consult all of them during your studies.
Further reading
This is a full list of all further reading for this unit; the start of each chapter
gives you specific direction.
To help you read extensively, all External students have free access to the
University of London Online library where you will find the full text or an
abstract of some of the journal articles listed in this guide. You will need to
use the same username and password to access this resource that you are
sent to use for the Student Portal. The Online library can be accessed via
the Student Portal at https://my.londonexternal.ac.uk/
Journal articles
Baumeister, R.F., J.D. Campbell, J.I. Krueger and K.D. Vohs Does high selfesteem cause better performance, interpersonal success, happiness, or
healthier lifestyles?, Psychological Science 4(1) 2003, pp.144.
Berscheid, E. Interpersonal relationships, Annual Review of Psychology (45)
1994, pp.79129.
Dittmar, H. Are you what you have?, The Psychologist 17(4) 2004, pp.20610.
Gergen, K.J. The social constructionist movement in modern psychology,
American Psychologist (40) 1985, pp.26675.
Van Vugt, M. The Psychology of Social Dilemmas, The Psychologist (6) 1998,
pp.28992.
Books
Anselmi, D.L. and A.L. Law Questions of Gender: Perspectives and paradoxes.
(New York: McGraw-Hill, 1998) second edition. [ISBN 9780070060173]
especially Chapters 1, 4, 5 and 10.
Archer, J. and B. Lloyd Sex and Gender. (Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press, 2002) second edition [ISBN 9780521632300].
Argyle, M. Social Skills Chapter 5, pp.76104, in Mackintosh, N.J. and A.M.
Colman (eds) Learning and Skills. (London: Longman, 1995) [ISBN
9780582278097].
Arnold, J., C.L. Cooper and I.T. Robertson Work Psychology. Understanding
Human Behaviour in the Workplace. (London: Pitman, 2004) [ISBN
9780273655442].
Aronson, E. The Social Animal. (New York: Worth Publishers, 2008) tenth
edition [ISBN 9781429203166] Chapters 2, 7, 8 and 9.
Aronson, E., T.D. Wilson and M.B. Brewer (1998). Experimentation in social
psychology. Chapter 3 in Gilbert, D.T., S.T. Fiske & G. Lindzey (eds) The
Handbook of Social Psychology. Volume I.(McGraw-Hill) [ISBN
9780195213768] pp.99142.
Augoustinos, M., I. Walker and N. Donaghue Social Cognition. An Integrated
Introduction. (London: Sage 2006) second edition [ISBN 9780761942191].
Baron, R.A., N.R. Branscombe and D. Byrne Social Psychology (Allyn & Bacon,
2008) twelfth edition [ISBN 9780205581498] Chapters 2 and 3.
Barrett, L., R. Dunbar and J. Lycett Human Evolutionary Psychology.
(Basingstoke: Palgrave, 2002) [ISBN 9780333725580] Chapter 4.
Batson, C.D. (1998) Altruism and prosocial behaviour. In Gilbert, D.T., S.T.
Fiske and G. Lindzey (eds.) The Handbook of Social Psychology. Volume II.
(New York: McGraw Hill, 1998) [ISBN 9780195213768].
Baumeister, R.F., The self. Chapter 15 in Gilbert, D.T., S.T. Fiske and G.
Lindzey (eds) The Handbook of Social Psychology. Volume I.(McGraw-Hill)
[ISBN 9780195213768].
Berscheid, E. and H.T. Reis Attraction and close relationships in Gilbert, D.T.
S.T. Fiske and G. Lindzey (eds.) The Handbook of Social Psychology. Volume
II. (New York: McGraw Hill, 1998) [ISBN 9780195213768].
Brannon, L. Gender: Psychological Perspectives. (Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon,
2007) fifth edition [ISBN 9780205521142] Chapters 6, 7, 9 and 12.
Brown, R. Group Processes. (Oxford. Blackwell, 2002) second edition [ISBN
9780631218524] Chapters 1, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8.
Brown, R. Social Psychology. (Free Press, 2003) second edition [ISBN
9780743253406] Chapter 14 pp.737743.
Bull, P. Non-Verbal Communication. Chapter 5, pp.7898, in Argyle, M. and
A.M. Colman Social Psychology. (London: Longman, 1995) [ISBN
9780582278042].
Cooper, C., P. Dewe and M. ODriscoll Organizational Stress: A Review and
Critique of Theory, Research and Applications. (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage,
2005) [ISBN 9780761914815].
Cooper, P. Eating disorders. Chapter 4 in Lazarus, A.A. and A.M. Colman
(eds) Abnormal Psychology. (London: Longman, 1995) [ISBN
9780582278073].
Crisp, R.J. and R.N. Turner Essential Social Psychology. (London: Sage 2007)
[ISBN 9780761942153].
DePaulo, B. M., & H.S. Friedman Nonverbal communication. Chapter 19 in
Gilbert, D.T., S.T. Fiske and G. Lindzey (eds) The Handbook of Social
Psychology. Volume II. (New York: McGraw Hill, 1998) [ISBN
9780195213768].
Duck, S. Human Relationships: An introduction to Social Psychology. (London:
Sage, 1992) second edition [ISBN 9780803983809 (pbk)].
Eagly, A and S. Chaiken Attitude structure and function. In Gilbert, D.T., S. T.
Fiske and G. Lindzey (eds) The Handbook of Social Psychology. Volume I.
(McGraw-Hill) [ISBN 9780195213768] pp.269322.
Eagly, A and S. Chaiken The Psychology of Attitudes. (Fort Worth, TX: Harcourt
Brace Jovanovich, 1993) [ISBN 9780155000971].
Fiske, A.P., S. Kitayama, H.R. Markus and R.E. Nisbett (1998) The cultural
matrix of social psychology. In Gilbert, D.T., S.T. Fiske, and G. Lindzey
(eds) The Handbook of Social Psychology. Volume II. (New York: McGraw
Hill, 1998) [ISBN 9780195213768].
Fiske, S.T. Stereotyping, prejudice and discrimination. In Gilbert, D.T., S.T.
Fiske and G. Lindzey (eds.) The Handbook of Social Psychology. Volume II.
Fraser, C. and B. Burchell Introducing Social Psychology (London: Polity Press,
2001) [ISBN 9780745610948] Chapters 5, 8, 9, 14, 15.
Gatchel, R.J. Stress and coping. Chapter 5 in Parkinson, B. and A.M. Colman
(eds) Emotion and Motivation. (London: Longman, 1995) [ISBN
9780582278080].

Gilbert, D.T. Ordinary personology. Chapter 20 in Gilbert, D.T., S.T. Fiske, &
G. Lindzey (Eds) The Handbook of Social Psychology. Volume II. (New York:
McGraw Hill, 1998) [ISBN 9780195213768].
Gill, R. Discourse analysis in Bauer, M.W. and G. Gaskell (eds) Qualitative
researching with text, image and sound. A practical handbook. (London:
Sage, 2000) [ISBN 9780761964803].
Graumann, C.F. Introduction to a History of Social Psychology, in Hewstone,
M.W., M.W.W. Stroebe, J.-P. Codol and G.M. Stephenson (eds.) Introduction
to Social Psychology: A European Perspective. (Oxford: Blackwell, 2001)
third edition [ISBN 9780631204374].
Hepburn, A. An introduction to critical social psychology. (London/Thousand
Oaks/New Delhi: Sage, 2003) [ISBN 9780761962106].
Hewstone, M., W. Stroebe and K. Jonas (eds) Introduction to Social Psychology.
A European Perspective. (Oxford: BPS/Blackwell, 2008) fourth edition
[ISBN 9781405124003].
Higgins, E.T. Self-discrepancy theory: What patterns of self-beliefs cause
people to suffer? in Berkowitz, L. (ed.) Advances in experimental social
psychology. (Vol 22, 1989, pp. 93136) (New York: Academic Press) [ISBN
9780120152216].
Hinton, P. Stereotypes, Cognition and Culture. (Hove: Psychology Press, 2000)
[ISBN 9780415198653].
Buchanan, D. and A. Huczynski Organizational behaviour: an introductory text.
(London: Prentice Hall, 2008) sixth edition [ISBN
9780273708353].Chapters 710, 19 and 21.
Jonas, K., A.E. Eagly & W. Stroebe Attitudes and Persuasion. Chapter 1 in
Argyle, A. and A.M. Colman (eds.) Social Psychology. (London: Longman,
1995) [ISBN 9780582278042].
Jones, E.E. Major developments in five decades of social psychology, in
Psychology. Volume I. (McGraw-Hill) [ISBN 9780195213768].
Jones, E.E., and T.S. Pittman (1982) Towards a general theory of strategic
self-presentation in Suls, J. (ed.) Psychological Perspectives on the Self.
(Volume 1, pp. 23362) (Hillsdale, N.J.: Erlbaum) [ISBN
9780898591972].
Kenrick, D.T., S.L. Neuberg and R.B. Cialdini Social Psychology: Goals in
interaction. (Boston, Mass.: Allyn & Bacon, 2007) fourth edition [ISBN
978025517152] Chapter 13.
Kimmel, M.S. The Gendered Society. (New York: Oxford University Press, 2000)
[ISBN 9780195125870] especially Chapters 3, 4, 5, 8 and 9.
Krauss, R.M. and C.-Y. Chiu Language and social behaviour. Chapter 18 in
Gilbert, D.T., S.T. Fiske, & G. Lindzey (Eds) The Handbook of Social
Psychology. Volume II. (New York: McGraw Hill, 1998) [ISBN
9780195213768].
Moghaddam, F.M. Social Psychology: exploring universals across cultures. (New
York: WH Freeman and Company, 1998). [ISBN 0716728494].
Muchinsky, P.M. (2000) Psychology Applied to Work: An introduction to
industrial and organisational psychology. (Belmont, CA: Wadsworth)
seventh edition [ISBN 9780534596316].
Pinker, S. How the mind works. (New York: Norton, 1997) [ISBN
9780393045352] Chapter 7.
Pruitt, W.D. Social conflict. Chapter 27 in Gilbert, D.T., S.T. Fiske and G.
Lindzey (eds) The Handbook of Social Psychology. Volume II. (New York:
McGraw Hill, 1998) [ISBN 9780195213768].
Sabini, J. Social Psychology. (New York/London W.W.Norton and Company,
1995) second edition [ISBN 9780393966091] Chapters 1, 4, 6, 8, 12, 16
and 17.
Salovey, P., A.J. Rothman, & J. Rodin Health behaviour. Chapter 31 in Gilbert,
D.T. S.T. Fiske, & G. Lindzey (Eds) The Handbook of Social Psychology.
Volume II. (New York: McGraw Hill, 1998) [ISBN 9780195213768].
10
Smith, E.R. and D.M. Mackie Social Psychology. (Psychology Press, 2007)
[ISBN 9781841694092] Chapters 5, 8, 12 and 14 and Chapter 1 especially
pp.320.
Snyder, M. The self-monitoring of expressive behavior, Journal of Personality
and Social Psychology (30) 1974, pp.52637.
Stangor, C. (ed.) Stereotypes and prejudice: Essential readings. (Philadelphia:
Psychology Press, 2000) [ISBN 9780863775888].
Statt, D.A. Psychology and the World of Work (Basingstoke, Hants: Palgrave
Macmillan, 2004) second edition [ISBN 9781403901552] Chapters 5, 8,
13, 14, 17 and 18.
Sutherland, V. and C. Cooper Strategic Stress Management (London: Macmillan
(now Palgrave Macmillan), 2002) [ISBN 9780333774878].
Tesser, A. Advanced Social Psychology. (Boston, Mass: McGraw Hill, 1995)
[ISBN 9780070633926].
Tetlock, P.E. Psychology and world politics. Chapter 35 in Gilbert, D.T., S.T.
Fiske, & G. Lindzey (Eds) The Handbook of Social Psychology. Volume II.
Wegner, D.M. and J.A. Bargh Control and automaticity in social life. Chapter
10 in Gilbert, D.T., S.T. Fiske, and G. Lindzey (eds) The Handbook of Social
Psychology. Volume I.(McGraw-Hill) [ISBN 9780195213768].
Web links
When reading around a topic, you are advised to consult a range of
different resources, including sites on the world wide web. Some useful
sites are listed below.
Psychology and social psychology societies
American Psychological Association: www.apa.org
American Psychological Society links page:
http://www.psychologicalscience.org/about/links.html
Asian Association of Social Psychology: www.sites.psych.unimelb.edu.au/aasp
Australian Psychological Society: www.psychology.org.au
British Psychological Society: www.bps.org.uk
Glossaries/dictionaries/encyclopedias
On-line glossary/dictionary of psychological terms (1):
http://www.richmond.edu/%7Eallison/glossary.html
http://www.psybox.com/web_dictionary/dictionaryWebindex.htm
http://www.alleydog.com/glossary/psychology-glossary.cfm
Encyclopedia of Psychology: http://www.psychology.org/
Social and applied psychology resources links

A regular e-list from the BPS of interesting and/or topical recent research;
requires registration: http://www.bps.org.uk/publications/rd.cfm
Applied Psychology and Social Psychology Resources:
http://www.vanguard.edu/faculty/ddegelman/amoebaweb/
Presentations and discussions of classic and important publications in
psychology: http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/
Psychology-related Teaching and Learning Resources:
http://www.psywww.com/
Social Psychological Network: www.socialpsychology.org
Social Psychological Resources: http://www.socsciresearch.com/r9.html
Social Psychology Quarterly: http://www.stanford.edu/group/spq
Society for Personality and Social Psychology: http://www.spsp.org
Social Psychology Teaching and Learning Resources (1):
http://jonathan.mueller.faculty.noctrl.edu/crow/
11

Social Psychology Teaching and Learning Resources (2):
http://www.oklahoma.net/~jnichols/teaching.html
Thorough discussion of social influence, attitude change and many other
issues in applied social psychology: http://changingminds.org/
News from a Social Psychological perspective:
http://www.units.muohio.edu/psybersite/news/
Social psychology textbook companion web sites

Aronson, E., T. Wilson and R.M. Akert Social Psychology (Harlow: Prentice
Hall, 2002) fourth edition. http://wps.prenhall.com/hss_aronson_demo_4
Baron, R.A. and D. Byrne Social Psychology. (Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon
2003) tenth edition.
http://wps.ablongman.com/ab_baronbyrne_socialpsych_10/0,4608,18566
0-,00.html
Kenrick, D., S. Neuberg and R. Cialdini Social Psychology: Unraveling the Mystery.
(Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon, 2003) second edition.
http://cwabacon.pearsoned.com/bookbind/pubbooks/kenrick2_ab/index.
html
Taylor, S.E., L. Peplau and D. Sears Social Psychology. (Harlow: Pearson, 2003)
eleventh edition.
http://wps.prenhall.com/hss_taylor_social_11/0,5490,401072-,00.html
Smith, E.E., S. Nolen-Hoeksema, B. Fredrickson and G. Loftus Atkinson and
Hilgards Introduction to Psychology. (Fort Worth: Harcourt Brace, 2003)
fourteenth edition
http://www.wadsworth.com/cgi-wadsworth/course_products_wp.pl?fid=
M20bproduct_isbn_issn=0155012258&discipline_number=24
Notes on web sites:

1. For any specific topic, you should look at any appropriate links and
pages listed on the sites under all four headings above.
2. Web sites do occasionally close down; their listing here is not a
guarantee that a site will be functioning should you try to access it.
3. You should also try entering the key words for the topic in which you
are interested into an internet search engine: for example,
http://scholar.google.com/ attempts to search through academic sites and
pages only.
4. You should take care not to accept all of the information on web sites at
face value not all of them originate from reliable sources, and can
therefore be misleading. The sites listed above are generally reliable and
accurate; other sites may be less so.
The examination
Important: The sample examination paper at the end of the subject guide
indicates the format and structure of the examination paper from 2010
onwards. Students are told about any changes to examination papers for
the following year in the final paragraph of the Examiners commentary; for
example, any changes to the 2011 examination paper will be set out at the
end of the 2010 Examiners commentary for this unit.
You can download the annual Examiners' commentaries from the University
of London website at
www.londonexternal.ac.uk/current_students/programme_resources/lse/
exams.shtml or from the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) which can be
accessed via the Student Portal at https://my.londonexternal.ac.uk/
You will need to use the same username and password to access this
resource that you are sent to use for the Student Portal.
12
Format of the examination (from 2010)

The examination is three hours long and comprises four sections. You
should answer four questions from Section A (10 marks each) and two
questions from Sections B, C and D, with not more than one from any one
of these three sections (30 marks each).
For each of the four questions answered from Section A, you are expected
to write between one and three paragraphs (maximum one page). For each
of the two questions answered from Sections B, C and D, you are expected
to provide well-structured, essay-type answers.
Planning your time in the examination

It is very important that you allocate your time appropriately such that you
are able to answer the required number of questions. It is much easier to
get some marks on all of the questions than to get all of the marks on some
of the questions. This means it is very difficult to get a satisfactory mark if
you fail to answer the correct number of questions. You should also note
that you cannot obtain more marks by answering more than the required
number of questions.
Although questions are not marked on the basis of length it is difficult to
get high marks for very short answers to questions in Sections B, C and D.
Equally, an excessively long answer will not guarantee a high mark. Try to
allocate your time appropriately so that you devote an approximately equal
amount of time (5055 minutes) to each of the two questions you select
from Sections B, C and D.
What are the Examiners looking for?

Elements of social and applied psychology covers a wide range of
topics: theoretical perspectives and methods, understanding the social
world, social influence and social relations. The examination paper reflects
the breadth of the syllabus and requires candidates to have a knowledge of
at least two of the three substantive areas as well as a general
understanding of key issues.
Section A (short questions) and Sections B, C and D (essay questions)
require different approaches.
Section A, which covers the entire syllabus and requires eight short
answers, is looking for evidence that you have grasped some of the
essential concepts, methods and theories in social and applied psychology
and can present this knowledge clearly and concisely. A good answer need
not exceed one page in length, provided its content is correct and directly
relevant to the question asked.
Sections B (Understanding the social world), C (Social influence) and D
(Social relations), which require two essay answers, are seeking evidence
that you not only understand the issues but can also present your ideas in a
coherent and structured way and can support your arguments with
empirical evidence.
In all sections, reference should be made to relevant theorists and empirical
studies where appropriate.
What does the examination test?

The examination tests a range of competencies, including:
ability to analyse the question and comprehend what is required
understanding as well as knowledge
13
breadth of reading
capacity to draw on relevant material
familiarity with keys issues/debates and major theories/theorists
ability to construct arguments
ability to support arguments appropriately by citing relevant theories/
research findings
ability to select/evaluate evidence
analytical/critical skills
clarity of expression
time management.
So, the examination is not a test of how much you can remember of the
material presented in the subject guide. Rather, it is a test of your
understanding of social and applied psychology, gained from reading a
wide range of sources, and of your ability to apply your knowledge and
insight to answer the questions posed on the examination paper.
You will get credit for your knowledge and understanding of the issues
and for your ability to:
present your ideas and arguments in a coherent and structured way
support your arguments with empirical evidence
analyse and integrate material
be critical and to weigh up the evidence for competing explanations
relate issues raised in this unit to your own society
apply the principles and processes you have encountered to practical
issues and real world concerns.
In preparing for the examination, you will find it helpful to practise
answering sample questions within the time limits set.
Before you are examined, you will be sent past examination papers and
associated Examiners commentary for this unit. The Examiners
commentaries contain valuable information about how to approach the
examination and so you are strongly advised to read them carefully. Past
examination papers and the associated commentaries are valuable
resources when preparing for the examination. Both question papers
and commentaries for the last three years are available online. You
should also consult the Examination section of your Handbook.
Key steps to improvement

Answer the question asked
Read the examination paper carefully make sure you appreciate what
the questions are asking and do not just focus on one word/phrase.
You should answer the question on the paper, not the one you wish had
been on the paper!
For example, you will get zero marks if you answer a question using
only information about the attitude-behaviour link when the question
asked you to discuss attribution.
14
Select material relevant to the question

Many candidates have a good understanding of the relevant material
but fail to use the material to construct an answer which addresses the
issues raised by the question.
You should use the material you know to address the question directly
rather than writing all you know about a topic.
This means that, in developing your answer to the question, you should
identify material that is relevant to addressing the question and omit
material that is tangential or not relevant to the question.
Cite empirical evidence

You should cite relevant empirical evidence to support the views you
express.
If you know the name of a relevant theorist/researcher, then do cite
them; similarly, if you know the year or the decade when the work was
carried out, then do include it, e.g. Smiths (2000) theory; in the
1990s, Smith carried out research
Relating issues to your own society can be valuable.
But, if you are using examples from your own society as evidence for or
against a particular theoretical approach, these examples should be in
the public domain personal anecdote is not sufficient.
Read widely
The subject guide provides an introduction to social and applied
psychology it should not be seen as providing a sufficient basis for
performing well in the examination.
You should read beyond the subject guide and incorporate the
additional reading into your answers.
Develop your argument

You are expected to develop your argument in the context of the
question asked.
This means you should not just regurgitate the material in the subject
guide.
Your approach needs to be critical and analytic, rather than merely
descriptive.
Questions frequently ask you to evaluate a theory or to compare two or
more explanations do not be afraid to use your critical judgment when
weighting up the evidence for competing accounts.
The arguments and supporting evidence you present should lead to a
conclusion relevant to the question.
Structure your answer

You should not leave it to the final paragraph of your answer to outline
your argument.
The introductory paragraph should set the scene by identifying key
issues and outlining your argument.
You need to develop and substantiate the argument in the main body of
the answer, demonstrating critical insight and citing appropriate
empirical evidence.
15
Do not simply list theories and/or empirical phenomena. You should

aim to relate each theory or phenomenon to the argument you are
developing and you should indicate which are the most important issues
and which are less important.
You should try to keep your paragraphs succinct and to address one
main issue per paragraph. One way of doing this is to introduce the
topic in the first sentence of a paragraph, then add relevant knowledge
in the following sentence(s), and conclude or wrap up the paragraph
by linking the point you are making to the argument that you are
developing. You might expect to have three or four such paragraphs per
page.
In the final paragraph of your essay, you should draw your ideas
together, summarise the main points of your argument and provide a
conclusion on the basis of the material you have covered. It can be
helpful to relate your conclusion back to the introductory paragraph,
demonstrating that you have presented the argument that you planned
to put forward.
However, there is no single correct way of answering a question
equally good answers may be structured in contrasting ways.
Overview
You do not have to read every word of the essential texts or all of the
further reading suggested in the subject guide. You may find some topics
more interesting and/or more difficult than others. This may mean that you
do more work on some chapters than on others the choice of how you
distribute your available study time is yours.
But, it is important to recognise that the subject guide is just that it is an
introduction to a wide-ranging subject area and is not designed to be
comprehensive. Remember that the subject guide is there to direct your
learning about social and applied psychology and is not a set of
examination notes. It does not, by itself, contain sufficient material to
enable you to achieve a good mark in the examination.
It is essential that you support your learning by reading as widely as
possible and by thinking about how social psychological principles apply in
the real world. To help you read extensively, all external students have free
access to the University of London online library where you will find either
the full text or an abstract of many of the journal articles listed in this
subject guide (see p.8).
Do prepare thoroughly for the examination plan your revision, allow
sufficient time to cover the relevant material and practise answering
questions within appropriate time limits. You need to go into the
examination confident that you will do justice to yourself. The guidance
provided above will help you achieve this goal.
Syllabus
What is social psychology?
The nature and scope of social psychology; factors which influence social
behaviour; theoretical perspectives and the role of theory in research;
research methods in social psychology; reliability, validity and realism;
ethical issues in research; the challenges and benefits of applying the
knowledge and principles of social psychology to practical problems,
especially in organisations and workplace settings.
16
Understanding the social world

Concepts of the self; self-perception; self presentation; performance style
and self-presentation strategies; the dramaturgical model. Perception of
others and impression formation. Cognitive strategies: heuristics, biases
and fallacies; the impact of schemata and stereotypes. Attributions and
attributional style; attribution theory; sources of error and bias. Attitudes:
their nature, formation and functions; cognitive consistency and
dissonance; the relation between attitudes and behaviour; recent models
of the attitude-behaviour link; the nature and impact of social
representations.
Social influence
Groups: roles, norms and cohesiveness. Group influence: task performance;
problem solving; decision-making. Conformity; normative influence,
majority and minority pressure and its impact; compliance and acceptance.
Obedience to authority; experimental studies; factors affecting obedience
and their implications. Attitude change and persuasive communication;
analyses of the factors involved in the persuasion process, with special
reference to the media and advertising and the role of social psychology in
promoting health-related behaviour.
Social relations
Interpersonal communication: the role of language and non-verbal cues.
Diversity, with special reference to gender. Relationships and theories of
attraction. Altruism and pro-social behaviour. Prejudice and discrimination:
the role of competition, social categorisation, social learning and social
cognition. Intergroup conflict and conflict resolution, strategic interaction
and negotiation, with special reference to multiculturalism. The work
setting, organisational behaviour, job satisfaction, leadership. Stress and
illness; life events and work as sources of stress.
17
Chapter 2: The scope and development of

social psychology
The aim of this chapter is to trace the development of social psychology
and to assess its current nature and scope.
On completing this chapter and the relevant reading and activities you
should be able to:
describe the nature and development of social psychology
outline the current scope of social psychology
provide examples of the range of factors that influence social behaviour
discuss the role of theory in social psychological research and the
development of the discipline.
Essential reading
2008) fifth edition. Chapter 1 and pp.41927.
Myers, D. Social Psychology. (Boston/London McGraw-Hill, 2008) ninth
edition. pp.317.
Further reading
Gergen, K.J. The Social Constructionist Movement in Modern Psychology,
American Psychologist (40), 1985, pp.26675.
Gill, R. Discourse analysis in Bauer, M.W. and G. Gaskell (eds) Qualitative
Researching with Text, Image and Sound. A Practical Handbook. (London:
Sage, 2000).
Graumann, C.F. Introduction to a History of Social Psychology in Hewstone,
M.W., M.W.W. Stroebe, J-P Codol and G.M. Stephenson (eds) Introduction
to Social Psychology: A European Perspective. (Oxford: Blackwell, 1996)
second edition.
Hepburn, A. An introduction to critical social psychology. (London/Thousand
Oaks/New Delhi: Sage, 2003).
Jones, E.E. Major developments in five decades of social psychology in
Psychology. Volume 1. (New York: McGraw Hill, 1998).
Smith, E.R. and D.M. Mackie Social Psychology. (New York: Worth Publishers,
2007) Chapter 1, especially pp.320.
References cited
Allport, F.H. Social Psychology. (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1924).
Allport, G.W. (1935) quoted in Hogg and Vaughan (2002) p.2.
Allport, G.W. (1954) The Historical Background of Modern Social Psychology
in Gilbert, D.T., S.T. Fiske and G. Lindzey (eds) The Handbook of Social
Psychology. Volume 1. (New York: McGraw Hill, 1998) [ISBN 0195213769]
pp.356.
Farr, R.M. The Long Past and the Short History of Social Psychology,
European Journal of Social Psychology, 21(5), 1991, pp.37180.
Farr, R.M. The Roots of Modern Social Psychology. (Oxford: Blackwell 1996)
[ISBN 0631152512].
21

Farr, R.M. and S. Moscovici (eds) Social representations. (Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 1984) [ISBN 0521248000].
Gergen, K. Social Psychology as History, Journal of Personality and Social
Psychology 26(2), 1973, pp.30920.
Gergen, K. Social Psychology, Science and History, Personality and Social
Psychology Bulletin (2), 1976, pp.37383.
Himmelweit, H.T. Societal Psychology: Implications and Scope in Gaskell, G.
and H.T. Himmelweit (eds) Societal Psychology. (London: Sage, 1990)
[ISBN 080393436X].
Johnson R.D. and L.L. Downing Deindividuation and valence of cues: effects
on prosocial and antisocial behaviour, Journal of Personality and Social
Psychology (37), 1979, pp.153238.
McDougall, W. An Introduction to Social Psychology. (London: Methuen, 1908).
McGuire, W.J. The Vicissitudes of Attitudes and Similar Representational
Constructs in Twentieth Century Psychology, European Journal of Social
Psychology (16), 1986, pp.89130.
Mead, G.H. Mind, Self and Society. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press,
1934). [ISBN 0226516687].
Miller, G.A. Psychology: The Science of Mental Life. (Harmondsworth: Penguin,
1966) [ISBN 0937431060].
Moscovici, S. Attitudes and opinions, Annual Review of Psychology 1963,
pp.23160.
Moscovici, S. Theory and Society in Social Psychology in Israel, J. and H.
Tajfel (eds) The Context of Social Psychology: A Critical Assessment.
(London: Academic Press, 1972) [ISBN 0123751500].
Purkhardt, S.C. Transforming Social Representations. A Social Psychology
of Common Sense and Science. (London: Routledge, 1995)
[ISBN 0415079608].
Tajfel, H. Human Groups and Social Categories: Studies in Social Psychology.
(Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1981) [ISBN 0521280737].
Tajfel, H. Social Psychology of Intergroup Relations, Annual Review of Social
Psychology (33), 1982, pp.139.
Tyler, L.E. More stately mansions psychology extends its boundaries, Annual
Review of Psychology (32), 1981, pp.120.
Watson, R.I. Jnr. Investigation into Deindividuation using a Cross-Cultural
Survey Technique, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (25), 1973,
pp.34245.
Zimbardo P.G. The Human Choice: Individuation, Reason and Order versus
Deindividuation, Impulse, and Chaos in Arnold, W.J. and D. Levine (eds)
Nebraska Symposium on Motivation. Volume 17. (Lincoln, NE: University of
Nebraska Press, 1969) pp.237307.
Introduction
This chapter provides a brief history of psychology and examines the nature
and development of social psychology. It traces how psychology has
changed from the study of mental experience through the science of mental
life to the scientific study of behaviour and the thoughts, feeling and
motivation underlying such behaviour. Social psychology began to emerge
as an independent entity early in the twentieth century but it was in the
1930s that social psychology became firmly established. Since then, social
psychology has developed as a discipline in its own right and has expanded
to encompass all forms of social interaction. In all fields within social
psychology, empirical research provides us with a range of insights into
peoples behaviour and the factors that affect it. Theory plays an important
pivotal role in such research, generating research questions and predictions
to be tested, and the resulting interplay of theory and research is
fundamental to the development of social psychology. The discipline has
22
developed in somewhat different ways in the United Kingdom and other

countries in Europe, compared with the United States, and this has led to
both lively debate and an increasing recognition of the need to consider
cultural context when discussing the origins of social behaviour.
2.1 What is psychology?

Defining any field of study is a difficult task. Psychology is no exception
and, as one psychologist has observed, it has a way of outgrowing its
formal definitions (Tyler, 1981). Although psychology has been defined in a
variety of ways, one of the simplest and clearest is that offered by Miller
(1966): the science of mental life. There has, however, been an increasing
tendency to define psychology as the scientific study of behaviour and its
causes, while recognising that behaviour includes not only public actions
which can be observed but covert behaviours such as thoughts, images and
feelings. This change of emphasis has been brought about both by the
realisation that thoughts and other internal processes can be scientifically
studied and by the increased availability of techniques for doing so. The
goals of psychology are thus to describe, understand, predict and modify
behaviour and mental processes.
The range of topics covered by psychology is very wide and includes some
which have engaged the attention of most people, such as How can I learn
efficiently? and How do I raise children effectively?, as well as more
specialised issues such as How do brain states influence consciousness?
and How can phobic behaviour be modified? Virtually all of us are
interested in some of these processes and want to make sense of them; and
to that extent we are all lay psychologists.
But whereas most people develop their understanding of human behaviour
and experience by casual observation, psychologists set out to collect
evidence using rigorous and systematic procedures in order to derive
verifiable conclusions.
Psychology is one of a family of disciplines, referred to as the social
sciences, which seek to analyse human behaviour objectively and to
identify consistent behavioural patterns. While there are similarities in
approach among the social sciences, there are also important differences of
emphasis. Of all the social sciences, psychology relies most heavily on
scientific observation and experimentation, but it is also the most personal,
in that it focuses more on individuals and processes within the individual.
Activity 2.1
List three activities you have carried out today and consider which psychological
processes were involved.
Here is an example: reading the newspaper.
In order to read the newspaper you have to be able to see the newsprint
but more importantly you have to be able to translate the symbols on the
printed page into words and understand their meaning and syntax. This
requires that you have acquired the ability to read through a variety of
complex cognitive processes, including perception, learning, memory,
thinking and reasoning, and their biological underpinnings. The ability to
read is also affected by a range of individual differences or personal
characteristics, such as mental abilities and personality factors, by
environmental and situational factors, such as the guidance and stimulation
received from your teachers, family and others around you. Some of these
factors become clearer when we think of people who cannot read.
23
There are three main reasons why a person may not be able to read. First,
they may be too young. Babies and small children cannot read, even if
exposed to teaching, because their brains have not developed sufficiently.
Second, there are people who have never learnt to read because they have
not been to school or been given the opportunity to learn in some other
way; this emphasises the role of experience in being able to read. Finally,
there are some people who are of appropriate general intellectual level,
and have been to school, but who seem unable to acquire the ability to
read because of some specific brain deficiency; an obvious example is
dyslexia. This disability shows the importance of detailed brain functioning
in the acquisition of particular behavioural skills.
But of course, how you interpret what you read will also depend upon your
past experience and your social knowledge system the beliefs you have
about the world around you, your emotional reactions to others and events
and your interpretation may not be the same as those around you. It will
also be influenced by your family, community and social values. This leads
us to a consideration of social psychology, the particular branch of
psychology with which we are concerned in this unit.
2.2 What is social psychology?

The complexities of definition are accentuated in the case of social
psychology by its diversity and rapid rate of change. The literature offers
a range of definitions of this sub-discipline of psychology. For example,
as highlighted in Chapter 1, early in its development social psychology was
defined by Gordon Allport (1935) as the scientific investigation of how
the thoughts, feelings and behaviours of individuals are influenced by the
actual, imagined or implied presence of others.1
This definition, of course, emphasises how we are affected by others; but
we also relate to, and influence, other people, and later definitions have
tended to lay stress on how our social and cognitive processes affect the
way we perceive, influence and relate to others.2
Activity 2.2
Take a copy of todays newspaper and find three examples where behaviour may have
been influenced by the actual, implied or imagined presence of others.
So, the major aim of social psychologists is to understand the variety of
factors that affect the actions of individuals in a wide range of social
settings. For example, our beliefs, attitudes and feelings affect how we see
ourselves and others and the inferences we draw about those with whom
we interact. How we behave is influenced by the characteristics of the
social setting quite apart from, or in addition to, how we may feel at the
time. We are also affected by our social relationships, our cultural standards
and values and the groups to which we belong (whether or not other
members of those groups are present).
Activity 2.3
Identify some of the factors which affect the following instances of social behaviour.
1. Giving a presentation for example, to fellow students, to colleagues at work or
at a public meeting.
2. Expressing your opinion about something you have read in the newspaper or
seen on the television to someone you do not know very well.
3. Forming an impression of someone you have met for the first time.
24
See Hogg and Vaughan

(2008) pp.47 for a
description of social
psychology.
See Myers (2008) pp.317

and Smith and Mackie (1995)
pp.39 for further discussion
of the nature of social
psychology.
Let us take an example. Think about taking people out for a meal. What
factors might affect how you might behave in this social situation? You are
likely to behave differently depending upon:
How well you know the people you are likely to be more relaxed with
people you know well.
Whether or not you want to impress them if you do want to make a
positive impression you are likely to adopt certain strategies to ensure
this is the impression they gain.
The setting the style of restaurant, how good the food is, the cost of
the meal, and so on.
The kind of day you have had whether you are happy or stressed.
How your guests behave whether they are outgoing and talkative, or
quiet and difficult to talk to.
2.3 The origins and current scope of social psychology

Social psychology emerged as an independent entity early in the last
century, with the publication of two texts containing the words social
psychology in their titles. The first, by William McDougall, published in
1908, took the view that social behaviour was determined by a small
number of innate tendencies or instincts, a view which is not supported by
most social psychologists today. The approach taken by the second, written
by Floyd Allport and published in 1924, is much closer to that adopted by
social psychology as we now know it. Allport argued that social behaviour
originates from and is influenced by a range of factors including the
presence and behaviour of others. Perhaps most importantly this text
reported research which had been conducted on topics such as recognising
emotions from facial expressions, social conformity and the impact of
audiences on task performance. Social psychology became firmly
established during the 1930s with the development of the systematic
investigation of these and other topics.
An underlying assumption in the development of social psychology has
been the belief that some aspects of human nature are the same in all
cultures and across history. So, although we want to understand the extent
to which our behaviour changes in different social and cultural contexts, we
are fairly confident that there are some important and basic aspects of
human nature which are not affected by changes in social circumstances.
Indeed, if there were no common bases for comparison, differences and
similarities across cultures could not be assessed at all. This means that
social psychologists are interested in variations in social reactions and their
origins and in the consistency or predictability of human behaviour.
In the 25 years after the Second World War, social psychology continued to
be an active growing field of scientific enquiry. Attention continued to be
focused on the influence of groups and group membership on individual
behaviour but the field expanded into virtually every area of social
interaction. In the introduction to the very influential Handbook of Social
Psychology published shortly after the Second World War Gordon Allport
(1954) argued strongly that we can improve our social welfare via the
systematic application of social science and, in particular, social psychology.
This optimistic view of social psychology is held even more strongly today.
The 1954 edition of the Handbook of Social Psychology also assigned great
importance to the role of methodology in the complex field of social
psychology, and development of research methods in this area is still
continuing today (see Chapter 3).
25
In the last 25 years the development of social psychology has continued

with the addition of new areas of research such as attribution how we
infer the causes of the behaviour of others and of ourselves the study of
gender roles and gender-role stereotyping and the study of helping or prosocial behaviour. Underlying the recent developments in social psychology
have been two major themes. The first has been an increasing emphasis on
using our knowledge of cognitive processing to understand the complexities
of social phenomena. The second discernable trend is an increasing interest
among social psychologists in analysing current social problems and
applying their knowledge to practical issues, such as organisations and
workplace settings. These trends reflect an increasing awareness of the
need to draw on our knowledge of basic psychological theory and research
in order to help understand the complexities of our social world.
2.4 The role of theory

2.4.1 The interplay of theory and research
How do social psychologists choose what to study? Observation of our
social world often generates questions which are translated into research.
The many aspects of social interaction which are intriguing and sometimes
surprising frequently stimulate research to try to find out more about them.
Moreover, each research study itself tends to give rise to more questions
than it answers.
Perhaps the most important source of research in social psychology is
theory. Ultimately the goal of social psychology goes beyond describing
social behaviour; it seeks to explain behaviour and to understand why
people behave in social situations in the way that they do. Social
psychological theories are conceptual frameworks or sets of ideas which
help us to understand and to guide the process of discovering new facts
about our social world. The majority of theories within social psychology
are relatively narrow in scope and have different domains of application;
social behaviour does not lend itself easily to simple, all-embracing
theories. However, there are areas where contrasting explanations are
offered by different theories. When this happens research is carried out to
produce evidence for one or other of the theoretical approaches.
2.4.2 An illustrative example crowd behaviour

An example of this is provided by attempts to understand crowd
behaviour.3
It is widely recognised that people behave differently when they are in
large crowds than when they are alone or in small groups (see Chapter 10).
People in crowds seem to behave less as individuals than as members of a
uniform, compliant mass, and behaviour is more emotional and volatile.
Violence and anti-social activity are often characteristic of crowd situations
and we need an explanation for this behaviour as most people are
(presumably) normally law-abiding and peaceable.
One type of explanation deriving from Le Bon, who was writing in the late
nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, emphasised the anonymity
provided by the crowd which makes it possible for people to discard
personal responsibility for their actions. He laid stress on the violent and
uncontrolled aspects of crowd behaviour and believed that the presence of
large numbers of people allowed emotions and ideas to spread rapidly
through a process of contagion and had the further effect of producing
aggressive feelings by a process of suggestion.
26
See Hogg and Vaughan (2008)

pp.41927 for a discussion of
crowd behaviour.
Zimbardo (1969) refined and developed this approach using the term
deindividuation to denote the anonymity and loss of personal identity and
of accountability for ones actions supposedly produced by being a member
of a crowd.
It is difficult to carry out systematic research on large crowds but studies
have been conducted of peoples behaviour when they were in what was
believed to be a deindividuated state. This raises the general
methodological problem of devising operations which will translate a
theoretical definition in this case deindividuation into observable
events which can be researched. Obviously this is more difficult in some
cases than in others.
In one series of experiments, Zimbardo decided to produce a state of
deindividuation by asking participants to wear large formless coats
including hoods over their heads with holes for their eyes and mouth.
Wearing these garments, all the participants looked the same and were not
recognisable as individuals. In these circumstances, it is reasonable to
suppose that they might experience some loss of personal identity. While
dressed like this, the participants were asked to carry out the ostensible
experimental task which was to administer apparent electric shocks to
other people who were supposedly carrying out a learning assignment. No
shocks were actually administered this is an example of deception and
the experimental procedure raises ethical issues which will be discussed
fully in Chapter 3 (see Sections 3.9 and 3.10).
This experimental condition was contrasted with a control or individuated
condition in which the same participants carried out the identical task but
without the concealing garments and while wearing labels bearing their
names. It was found that participants wearing the concealing clothing
administered electric shocks of nearly twice the length of those dispensed
when appearing as themselves with name tags. Deindividuation
operationalised in this way did seem to lead to more aggressive behaviour
towards the learners.
In this experiment Zimbardo manipulated deindividuation directly by
requiring subjects to act either as themselves or in disguise. Watson
(1973) used a different method of investigating the issue. He examined
anthropological records to find out how people from different cultures
prepared themselves for warfare. He found that some cultures adopted a
form of ritual covering before going to fight while others did not. He
considered that those who used face painting or masks to change their
appearance before battle were deindividuated. Watson also divided cultures
into those who were brutal or cruel toward their enemies and those who
were not. He found that of the 13 cultures who were prone to torture or
mutilate their opponents, 12 adopted disguises and so were deemed
deindividuated. But, only three of the less cruel cultures were categorised
as deindividuated. This shows a strong association between wearing some
form of disguise or screening device and aggression towards the enemy
though, of course, as the relationship is only correlational it does not have
the causal impact of Zimbardos experiment.
While both of these studies support the view that deindividuation leads to
more anti-social behaviour, not all research endorses this position. An
experiment by Johnson and Downing (1979) used a modification of
Zimbardos experimental technique in which there were two types of
gowns. The robes worn by half the female participants resembled those
4
worn by the Klu Klux Klan and were therefore associated with prejudiced
and aggressive behaviour. The robes worn by the other participants were
described as nurses uniforms borrowed from a hospital. In addition, half of
The Klu Klux Klan was started

after the American Civil War as a
secret society advocating white
supremacy. Its name was derived
from the English word clan and
the Greek word kyklos, meaning
circle. This group has engaged in
terrorist acts against religious
groups, homosexuals and
members of black and minority
ethnic groups.
27
each group of participants had their names displayed on the outside of

their gowns so that those subjects were not deindividuated. Everyone was
then asked to administer shocks to imitation learners as in Zimbardos
experiment. Whereas those dressed as Klu Klux Klan members imposed
higher levels of shock than those dressed as nurses, the deindividuated Klu
Klux Klan participants did not give higher levels of shock than the
individuated Klu Klux Klan participants. Among those dressed as nurses,
the deindividuated participants administered lower shock levels than
individuated participants and gave the lowest level of all the four groups in
the study.
These results make it clear that deindividuation does not, of itself, lead to a
higher level of aggressive behaviour. But, it can have an effect, in this case
reducing the levels of aggression among participants dressed as nurses,
while not changing the behaviour of those dressed in Klu Klux Klan outfits.
So, research focused on deindividuation has shown that it is a significant
psychological phenomenon with a wider range of consequences than was
first thought. It seems to make people susceptible to social influences or
norms (uniformities of attitude or behaviour operating in particular
situations or groups) in the immediate environment and perhaps less
governed by more general rules, such as the tendency to behave in an
orderly manner. This could account for much crowd behaviour, including
not only aggression but also what many people would consider moral and
other positive actions, such as environmental groups demonstrating in
favour of green issues.
All accounts of the process of deindividuation, including more recent
models which emphasise the contribution of reduced self-awareness to the
condition, stress some form of loss whether it is of individual uniqueness,
identity , awareness and/or inhibition. However, the observation that crowd
behaviour is not always undirected, disorderly and chaotic has led to
newer, competing theories which suggest that at least some forms of crowd
activity may be more adequately explained in terms of local norms and
social identity deriving from membership of the social group (see Section
10.14).
This example illustrates the interplay of theory and research theory
generates research which, in turn stimulates theoretical development. This
then generates more research and the cycle continues until researchers are
satisfied with the explanatory power of the theoretical framework they
have generated. However, the cycle will begin again if new evidence leads
them to question existing explanations.
Activity 2.4
Think about the way you interact with your friends and family, and focus on any social
situation in which their behaviour or reactions to you were unexpected. Now think about
what happened and try to answer the following questions:
1. What was surprising or puzzling about their behaviour?
2. Why did you find their behaviour puzzling? What would you have expected them
to do in the circumstances?
3. Why do you think they behaved as they did? For example, was there anything
about the social setting that might have influenced their behaviour?
Alternatively, are you aware of anything that had happened previously that might
have affected their reactions on this occasion? Or, can you think of any other
explanation?
4. How might you test whether your explanation of their behaviour is correct?
28
2.5 Different emphases in social psychology

2.5.1 Historical underpinnings
Many of the central topics of social psychology, such as the study of
attitudes, the effect of group membership on individual behaviour, and
attribution theory, had their origin in the United States. To a large extent,
much of the social psychology studied and researched in the world is
American social psychology. There are a number of reasons for this.
Although psychology, and social psychology, began in Europe, the discipline
was seized on with enthusiasm in the United States where the greater
resources and more extensive commitment to higher education ensured its
rapid growth (along with many other scientific and scholarly pursuits).5
In addition, social psychology was eclipsed on the continent of Europe
(excluding the United Kingdom) during the Second World War. Many of the
practitioners fell foul of fascist regimes, both before and during the war,
and a significant number of influential social psychologists emigrated to the
United Kingdom and the United States.
See Jones (1998) for a review

of major developments in social
psychology in the last half of the
twentieth century from a North
American perspective. For a
contrasting view, see Graumann
(1996). See also Hogg and
Vaughan (2008) pp.2634.
After the war there was a resurgence of work in social psychology, much of
it in the American tradition (i.e. proceeding on the basis of rigorous
experimentation and having as a theoretical basis the functioning of the
individual). But some developments in Europe followed a different path.
These developments emphasised the social dimension of social psychology.
The articulation of these two emphases the individual and the social
within social psychology is a matter of fundamental debate and has led to
the development of two distinct forms of social psychology: psychological
social psychology and sociological social psychology, with common roots
but different ancestors (Farr, 1991; 1996).
2.5.2 Psychological and sociological forms of social psychology

Psychological social psychology focuses on the cognitive structures and
processes of individuals. This approach emphasises the primacy of
individual processes and functions in explaining the operation of social
systems and reflects the pre-eminence of the individual in the American
and British tradition of psychological research.
Sociological social psychology emphasises the determining function of
social systems, institutions and groups for individual behaviour. This
approach derived from the belief that a theory of society should be the
starting point for social psychological theorising (e.g. Mead, 1934) and the
growing concern following the Second World War that social psychology in
Europe was too reliant on the American tradition. Social psychologists,
such as Tajfel and Moscovici, considered that the social psychology that was
developing at that time was too individualistic, too behaviourist and too
dependent upon a particular methodological approach the experiment
where individuals were divorced from their social context and removed to
the laboratory so their behaviour could be observed under controlled
conditions. They wanted a more social psychology than that which had
emerged in the United States and which had been imported into Europe.
Adoption of this perspective led Tajfel (1981; 1982) to emphasise the social
dimension of individual and group behaviour, in other words emphasising
the extent to which experience and behaviour is embedded in and shaped
by the properties of the culture and society in which we live, in particular
group membership. Moscovici (1972) argued that society has its own
29
structure which is not definable in terms of the characteristics of individuals

and that we need to look at shared understandings at cultural and subcultural levels. Such views lead to the argument that social psychology
must include theoretical and empirical analyses of the relations between
individual psychological functioning and social processes and structures
which shape this functioning and are shaped by it. This perspective resulted
in work on topics such as stereotypes, prejudice, intergroup behaviour and
social influence.
However, concerns about the status of social psychology remained and
contributed to a major crisis of confidence and period of heightened selfdoubt in the late 1960s and 1970s. Worries about the progress and
maturity of the discipline of social psychology focused on several issues.
One was whether the social psychological research then conducted was
ethical there was particular concern about the use of deception. Another
issue was the extent to which laboratory research was affected by artefacts
such as experimenter effects outcomes resulting from cues to the
hypotheses under investigation inadvertently given by the experimenter.
There were also concerns that social psychology was overly reductionist
that is, by explaining social psychological phenomena mainly in terms of
individual psychology, it failed to address the essentially social nature of
human experience.
An associated worry was that social psychology was overly positivistic
that is, it adhered to a model of science that was inappropriate for the
study of peoples social lives and for gaining insights into their subjective
experience. Gergen (1973; 1976) has been one of the most vociferous
critics of social psychologys scientific focus. Gergen claims that behavioural
data are dependent upon their cultural and historical context and that, in
the extreme, knowledge is entirely relative to the individual knower.
These criticisms have produced some radical alternatives to traditional
social psychology, such as social constructivism, discourse analysis and
critical social psychology:
Social constructionism argues that we create our social reality through
our actions and the ways in which we describe and interpret those
actions. According to this perspective, facts are dependent upon the
language communities in which they are generated and any description
of the nature of reality is dependent upon the cultural and historical
locations of that description. So, actions, meaning and words create
how we see and deal with the world.6
Discourse analysis refers to a variety of different approaches to the study
of texts put another away, discourse analysis involves the identification
of patterns within language in use. All of these approaches reject the
idea that language is merely a neutral way of describing or reflecting
the world. Rather they take the view that discourse is of fundamental
7
importance in constructing social life.
Critical social psychology involves questioning assumptions which are
taken for granted, especially our notions of power, inequality and
difference, and searching for ways in which the practice of social
psychology can help people to achieve greater freedom and fulfilment.8
These and other innovative approaches differ from one another but share
an emphasis on understanding people as whole human beings who are
constructed historically, embedded in their social and cultural context, and
who try to make sense of themselves and their world.
30
See Gergen (1985) for a brief

introduction to social
constructionism within
psychology.
See Gill (2000) for an overview

of discourse analysis.
See Hepburn (2003) for an

introduction to critical social
psychology.
2.5.3 Societal psychology

This stress on the importance of the social and cultural context in
understanding social experience underpins the idea of societal psychology
which owes much to Hilde Himmelweit the first Professor of Social
Psychology at LSE and the author of the classic study Television and the
Child, the first analysis of childrens viewing habits in the 1950s. Societal
psychology focuses on the study of social phenomena, institutions and
culture and their relation with members of society. Examining the societal
and cultural forces that shape peoples outlooks and actions highlights the
contribution that social psychology can make to understanding society, the
social life of its members and contemporary social problems.
Himmelweit (1990) outlined a number of key features of the societal
perspective. These included the need to study human beings in a sociocultural context. She argued that different cultural priorities and styles will
affect how political, legal, educational and other institutions develop and
how individuals think, feel and behave. Also, the same behaviour can have
very different meanings depending upon the cultural context. For example,
people born into and socialised to function in an individualistic, selfcontained culture, such as North America or Britain, are likely to be
different from those belonging to a collective, embedded culture, such as
Singapore, Thailand and other countries in South East Asia (see Section
15.2.2).
Himmelweit also argued that we need to understand how people interpret
what is happening around them that is, how they make sense of their
social world. For example, we need to understand the processes that occur
when a new idea out there becomes part of peoples conceptualisation of
the world around them. The theory of social representations associated
with the French psychologist Moscovici is of some help in understanding
how people incorporate new ideas into their world view and the role of the
media in encouraging shared representations (Farr and Moscovici, 1984;
Purkhardt, 1995).
Social representations are beliefs about an area of experience that are
widely shared within a social group or culture. Much work on social
representations has focused on how particular theories, such as
psychoanalysis, are simplified, changed and understood through discussion
within the group. A more recent example would be the notion of global
terrorism. Prior to the events of 11 September 2001 there was little
understanding of this concept but now many groups have a shared
understanding of its defining features through media coverage and
discussion of relevant events. Moscovici (1963) defined a social
representation as the elaboration of a social object by the community for
the purpose of behaving and communicating (p.251). Social
representations are a good example of the sociological form of social
psychology because, as McGuire (1986) has pointed out, the concept of
social representations highlights how alike group members are, while the
American individualist tradition stresses their differences.
A fundamental tenet of the societal perspective is acceptance of the need to
make social psychology more outward looking studying individual
thoughts, feelings and actions can be very valuable but if social psychology
is to realise its full potential we need to appreciate the importance of the
social and cultural dimensions in human experience. One consequence of
this emphasis on social experience and the need to see people in the
societal and cultural context in which they live, is the emergence of new
research methods. These methods tend to emphasise in-depth subjective
analysis known as deconstruction of individual accounts of social
31
experience, where subjectivity is seen as a virtue rather than as a barrier to

good research. Reliance on such methods means that we need to think
about how values enter the research process and affect the products of that
process. Also, we need to consider the ethical implications of our work and
be sensitive to the well-being of our research participants.
2.6 Overview
Social psychology is the scientific field which seeks to understand the
nature and causes of social behaviour. It is the field of psychology which
examines how our thoughts, feelings and behaviour are influenced by other
people. Others influence us not only when they are physically present but
by their implied or imagined presence. Although informal observation of
social behaviour and speculation about its origins has gone on since time
immemorial, the scientific study of social behaviour emerged only in the
early part of the twentieth century. Once established as an independent
field of study, within the broader discipline of psychology, it expanded
rapidly and now seeks to examine all aspects of social behaviour. There has
also been a growing emphasis on the application of social psychological
principles to significant real-life problems.
Much social psychological research is guided by theories which are logical
frameworks designed to explain why certain psychological phenomena
occur. Theories are used to generate hypotheses which are tested in
research. The theories are then modified in the light of the research
findings and new research initiated which in turn feeds back into the social
psychological theory.
However, social psychology now embraces not just psychological social
psychology which emphasises the primacy of individual behaviour the
view that dominates the North American tradition but also sociological
social psychology. This form of social psychology, which derives from
Europe, emphasises the social and cultural bases of social experience and
had led to the development of both new subjects of study and innovative
research methods. Many of these methods are not based on the premises of
scientific social psychology; rather they seek to understand how people
themselves experience and make sense of their social lives.
Key terms
These key terms will be useful as index entries or search terms if you
choose to consult titles suggested as Further reading or other relevant texts
or online sources. After completing the chapter and relevant reading, we
suggest you try to outline the essential features of each of the key terms
listed below in order to check that you have understood the material. If you
are unclear about any of the key terms listed, we suggest you go over the
material again.
Psychology definitions
Social psychology definitions
32
History of social psychology
Social psychology theory
Research in social psychology
Crowd behaviour
Psychological social psychology
Sociological social psychology
Societal psychology

should be able to:
describe the nature and development of social psychology
outline the current scope of social psychology
provide examples of the range of factors that influence social behaviour
discuss the role of theory in social psychological research and the
development of the discipline.

Short answer questions
1. What is social psychology and what are the aims of social psychologists?
2. What is psychology and what distinguishes psychology from other social
sciences?
33

The aim of this chapter is to provide an introduction to the range of datacollection methods and research techniques used in social psychology and
to the methodological and ethical issues commonly faced by social
psychologists.
On completing this chapter and the relevant reading and activities, you
should be able to:
outline the data-collection methods and research techniques available to
social psychologists
list the key features, advantages and disadvantages of the various
research methods
discuss problems commonly encountered in conducting research
describe the ethical issues facing social psychologists.
Essential reading
2008) fifth edition. Chapter 1, especially pp.720.
Wadsworth, 2008) fourth edition. Chapter 2.
edition. Chapter 1, especially pp.1729.
Further reading
edition. Chapter 9, especially p.339.
Aronson, E., T.D. Wilson and M.B. Brewer Experimentation in social
psychology in Gilbert, D.T., S.T. Fiske and G. Lindzey (eds) The Handbook
of Social Psychology. Volume 1. (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1998)
pp.99142.
Moghaddam, F.M. Social Psychology: Exploring Universals Across Cultures. (New
York: WH Freeman and Company, 1998). Chapter 2.
Sabini, J. Social Psychology. (New York: W.N. Norton and Co, 1995) Chapter 1,
especially pp.315.
References cited
American Psychological Association. Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code
of Conduct (2003). Available at:
http://www.apa.org/ethics/code2002.html#8_07
Bauer, M. and G. Gaskell (eds) Qualitative Researching with Text, Image and
Sound. (London: Sage, 2000) [ISBN 0761964819].
British Psychological Society Guidelines for Minimum Standards of Ethical
Approval in Psychological Research (2004). Available at:
http://www.bps.org.uk
Hayes, N. (ed.) Doing Qualitative Analysis in Psychology. (London: Psychology
Press, 1997) [ISBN 0863777406].
Karau, S.J. and K.D. Williams Social Loafing: A Meta-Analytic Review and
Theoretical Integration, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (65),
1993, pp.681706.
35

Krupat, E. and R. Garonzik Subjects Expectations and the Search for
Alternatives to Deception in Social Psychology, British Journal of Social
Psychology (33), 1994. pp.21122.
Latan, B., K.D. Williams and S.G. Harkins Many Hands make Light Work:
The Causes and Consequences of Social Loafing, Journal of Personality and
Social Psychology (37), 1979, pp.82232.
Latan, B. and S. Wolf The Social Impact of Majorities and Minorities,
Psychological Review (88), 1981, pp.43853.
Orne, M.T. On the Social Psychology of the Psychology Experiment with
Particular Reference to Demand Characteristics and their Implications,
American Psychologist (17), 1962, pp.77683.
Rosenthal, R. Experimenter Effects in Behavioural Research. (London: Wiley,
1976) [ISBN 0470013915].
Sharpe, D., J.G. Adaire and N.J. Roese Twenty Years of Deception Research: A
Decline in Subjects Trust?, Personal and Social Psychology Bulletin (18),
1992, pp.58590.
Introduction
This chapter examines the range of research methods available to social
psychologists that permit them to investigate systematic relations within the
field of human social behaviour. These research methods have various
advantages and disadvantages which affect the choice of research method.
The chapter introduces key concepts such as independent and dependent
variables, experimental control, quantitative and qualitative data, validity
and realism and discusses the trade-offs that exist among them. We also
consider the nature of the research process and the role that theory plays in
guiding research. Another focus is the range of ethical problems that social
psychologists face and the ethical principles that should guide their
research.
3.1 Investigating social psychological phenomena

In attempting to understand social psychological phenomena, a variety of
different research methods have been employed.1 These range from
rigorously-controlled experimental studies which have the aim of testing
general theoretical predictions, to open-ended interviews or focus groups
which aim to describe the specific beliefs of a given group of people about
an issue. In all such research, social psychologists face the key problem of
how to relate their research findings to the phenomena that they are
interested in.
A major first step in beginning research is to operationalise the
phenomenon of interest. In broad terms, this involves providing a tractable
definition of the variable that one wishes to investigate. Such a definition
should be amenable to manipulation (i.e. to being deliberately varied by
the researcher if it is the independent variable: see Section 3.2.1 below),
or that can be measured empirically (if it is the dependent variable: see
Section 3.2.2). For example, one may be interested in prejudice as a
phenomenon, and specifically in the hypothesis that such prejudice would
be reduced by contact between the holder of a prejudiced belief and a
person against whom they are prejudiced. This would require a measurable
definition of prejudice, so that the level of prejudice before and after
contact can be compared, and a definition of contact that can be
manipulated, so that the degree of contact can be varied to determine if the
hypothesis is correct.
Such operational definitions take intuitive and theoretical characterisations
of phenomena and translate them into useable empirical indicators.
36

pp.714 for an overview of
methodological issues in social
psychological research.
Patterns and changes in those empirical indicators are then used as the
basis to infer that the real world phenomena themselves behave according
to the same patterns and changes; that is, the results are translated back
into our understanding of the world. Social psychologists must, however, be
cautious in extrapolating their research findings to the real world. The
operationalisation of most phenomena involves a simplified and controlled
version of reality, and this must always be borne in mind when interpreting
social psychological findings. And the participants in social psychological
research have very often been undergraduate students, whose typicality of
other populations on many variables is assumed rather than demonstrated.
For these reasons, it is always a matter of translating social psychological
research results with appropriate qualifications and hedges to fit the
world, rather than merely extrapolating them wholesale.
The complexity of social psychological phenomena suggests that the use of
a variety of research methods is necessary to collect data, for two reasons.
First, because a given phenomenon may lend itself more straightforwardly
to the use of one method rather than others. Second, because the specific
question or issue regarding that phenomenon may be better addressed by
one method rather than others.
What kinds of research questions are typically investigated in social
psychology? In broad terms, they can be divided into the following types,
according to their aims:
Specific descriptive questions for example, attempting to characterise
the nature of a phenomenon, or to map its occurrence in a location or
situation: these can be thought of as what questions.
For example, we might ask what kinds of understanding people have
about genetic modification and its impact on the safety of food;
obtaining an in-depth understanding may be helped by holding focus
groups where people can discuss and develop their thoughts in
interaction with other people; or we might engage in participant
observation of people shopping for food, allowing more informal
questions and answers to develop in the setting in which the issue is
most pertinent.
Correlational questions for example, discovering correlations that
indicate when a phenomenon usually occurs, or with which people:
these are usually when or how questions. The outcome goes beyond
the answers to descriptive questions by allowing researchers to predict
when, where or with whom a given phenomenon occurs.
For example, we might ask how prevalent are the different kinds of
attitudes towards genetic modifications and food safety, and whether
the different attitudes are correlated with other factors such as age,
education, political beliefs, and so on.
General causal or explanatory questions for example, finding out
which conditions cause the phenomenon, or testing whether a causal
prediction is supported in a broader population: these are why
questions. The outcome goes beyond the answers to correlational
questions by allowing researchers to understand which aspects of the
correlated states of affairs cause each other (as opposed to being merely
accidentally correlated with each other).
For example, we might investigate whether changing the information or
the food products that people have available to them causes them to
change their consumption and/or beliefs about food safety (i.e.
answering the question of why people change their consumption and/or
beliefs).
37
Different research methods are usually more successful in answering each

of these different question types. Descriptive questions may be most
adequately answered by field research methods, or by those which produce
qualitative data. Correlational questions may be best addressed by survey
methods, which yield quantitative data. Finally, causal or explanatory
questions can be best answered by using experimental methods that also
involve the production of quantitative data. The overall implication is that
there is no single best way of carrying out research in social psychology;
rather, different methods are appropriate for different kinds of research,
and each has its advantages and disadvantages. Moreover, the selection of a
method to address one kind of question always has opportunity costs in
terms of the kinds of questions that, as a result of using that method,
cannot be addressed. We now look at each of these methods in turn,
beginning with the most widely employed.
3.2 Experimental studies

In much social psychological research we look for causal explanations for
particular aspects of social behaviour or thought. The procedure is often to
create a hypothesis, which is an idea about what causes a given form of
behaviour stated in a form that can be tested. We test the hypothesis using
an experiment if possible and, if not, by some other appropriate research
method.2
A hypothesis commonly takes the form if A then B. An example from
within social psychology is that the more people there are in a group, then
the less hard each will work (social loafing); or that the more people there
are in a group expressing a particular opinion, then the more a new
member will tend to agree with them.
Both these hypotheses postulate that group size is a factor related to social
loafing on the one hand and increased agreement by the new group
member on the other. In order to test these hypotheses it will be necessary
to vary group size and see what effects (if any) this has on the degree of
social loafing or the strength of agreement. In such studies the group size
would be termed the independent variable and degree of social loafing or
strength of agreement the dependent variable.
The most powerful research technique, which can only be used when the
research worker has the means to control the necessary variables, is
experimental research. In an experiment the research worker varies one
characteristic of the environment, the independent variable, to see what
effect it has on the phenomenon being studied, the dependent variable.
Obviously this is a major research tool; if the experimenter can control the
independent variable, exclude all extraneous variables and measure what
happens to the dependent variable, he or she is in a position to explain, at
least to some extent, what is causing the phenomenon in which he or she is
interested.
While a fully controlled study in the laboratory is the ideal method, or at
least the touchstone for types of investigation, other strategies such as
surveys or field studies are used when appropriate for the particular
problem.
The control of variables within an experiment is necessary so that justified
statements can subsequently be made about what causes what, or at least
about what is related to what. And the first concern in an experiment is the
status of the independent variable which must be unambiguous and totally
within the power of the experimenter.
38
Sabini (1995) pp. 315 provides

an introduction to the scientific
study of behaviour. Myers (2008)
pp.1718 summarises the key
issues in forming and testing
hypotheses in social psychology.
See also Moghaddam (1998)
pp.2528.
3.2.1 Independent variable

For example, if we wish to test a hypothesis that people in a group work
less hard than those working alone we may decide to have a number of
people working together, let us say eight, and then compare their average
performance with the average performance of eight people working
3
separately.
In this experiment the independent variable would be whether or not the
people being experimented on the participants worked in a group or
worked alone. In practice we may decide that to compare one set of people
working in a group of eight with another set of eight people working alone
would not give us enough readings and we might decide to have several
groups of eight participants and an equivalent number of participants
working alone, but for the moment let us concentrate on a single group of
eight and an equal number of people working alone.
See Myers (2008)

pp. 2328 for an outline of
experimentation in social
psychology. See also Moghaddam
(1998) pp.3743.
In order to ensure that this study is a valid experiment it would be

necessary to control all other factors in the situation all other variables
so that the only differences in the situations in which the two sets of
participants work is the independent variable of group versus non-group. In
this particular experiment the set of participants working in a group of
eight would be termed the experimental group and the set of eight
participants working alone, who are the comparison set, are termed the
control group.
It is obvious that such factors as the difficulty of the tasks facing the
participants in the experimental and control conditions must be the same
and the experimenters instructions must be equivalent. If one group is told
to work as hard as possible so must the other group. Much of this is
elementary, but it is necessary to be very careful in designing an experiment
as things can be overlooked. For instance, if one were investigating the
accuracy with which the length of rods of different sizes can be estimated it
is important to remember that rods of different lengths will have different
weights, which provide additional (uncontrolled) information.
So the conditions under which the two groups work, such as the level of
illumination, the temperature and the ambient sound must all be equal.
The control of all relevant variables is one aspect of conducting valid
4
experiments. The other is random assignment of participants to the control
and experimental groups. We may have successfully controlled all the
conditions under which the two groups work but we have not controlled all
the personal characteristics of the two groups.
Aronson (2004)
pp.33538 provides a discussion
of random assignment.
Some fairly obvious properties of the participants can be specified. We

might decide to have a fairly narrow age-range and, depending on the
availability of people willing to be participants, we could choose people
between the ages of, say, eighteen and twenty-five or any other age range it
seemed practical and suitable to choose. We might specify educational
level, but, however many criteria we were able to use in selecting
participants, variations in all sorts of known and unknown attributes would
remain. Participants could vary in intelligence, perseverance, interest in the
experimental task, ability to work with other people and in a large number
of other factors which might affect their performance in the experiment.
None of these (especially the unknown ones) can be controlled and so the
only way to reduce and, with luck, remove the chance of their interfering
with the experimental results is to assign participants randomly to the
control and experimental groups. In that way the probability of getting lazy
or diligent participants will be equal for the two groups and, the more
39
participants there are, the greater the likelihood of getting about the same
number of participants of each kind in each group. At least with random
assignment one can be sure that no systematic process will bias the
selection of participants for the two groups.
When this particular hypothesis has been tested (e.g. Karau and Williams,
1993, and Latan, Williams and Harkins, 1979) it has been found that
social loafing is a remarkably robust effect caused partly by a motivation
loss as numbers increase and partly by a co-ordination loss as group
members interfere with each others efforts (see Chapter 10).
A test of the other hypothesis, that the more people there are in a group
expressing a given opinion the more a new member would agree with
them, would also use group size as the independent variable and some of
the same considerations would apply, but an important additional factor
would be the relation of the other group members to the new member. It
would be necessary to ensure that all groups were equally unknown to the
new member as the relationship between new members and the existing
group has been shown to be a factor in the influence exerted by the group.
Studies of the relationship between group size and degree of influence (e.g.
Latan and Wolf, 1981) show that there is an increase in the agreement of
the new member as the group increases in size but each additional member
of the group contributes less pressure than the one before (see Chapter 11).
It is clear that great care has to be taken when choosing and manipulating
the independent variable and there are also apparent independent variables
which are virtually unusable such as married versus single. Such a
dichotomy leaves unsettled the position of widowed and divorced people,
people in long-term relationships who have not married, people in
polygamous and polyandrous relationships and doubtless many others.
There are also independent variables which in one sense are unambiguous,
and which it is sometimes desirable to use, which are almost fatally
confounded with other variables. Age is a variable of this kind, it might be
desirable to examine the effect of age on learning ability, for example, but,
while it is perfectly possible to choose a group of participants all aged 20
and another group aged 60, it has to be recognised that many other
variables change along with age the two groups were educated at
different times and even dietary changes over time may have an effect.
Once the independent variable has been organised the experimenter has to
decide on the form of the dependent variable and how it is to be measured.
3.2.2 Dependent variable

The purpose of the experiment is to see whether, and by how much, the
dependent variable changes with different values of the independent
variable. So, unless the dependent variable can be clearly measured, the
experiment is worthless.
In the example of social loafing, experimenters have used several
measures of performance. In some experiments participants were asked
to pull as hard as they could on a rope arranged so that the total force
exerted could be measured or they were asked to shout or clap as
loudly as they could, the total noise being measured. In these
experiments it was only necessary to ensure that the total group effort
was measured in the same way on each trial so that the average output
per member of the group (which was the dependent variable) would be
measured in the same way each time. In the example of agreement and
group size it was necessary to decide how the group members would
present their opinions and what would constitute agreement on the
40
part of the new member. Much of this may seem common sense but it is
important to emphasise that the procedure of measuring the dependent
variable must be specified in advance, so that decisions about a given
score do not have to be made after the experiment has been carried
out.
While experimental studies are in many ways the best method of
conducting research in social psychology there are times when this is not
feasible. For example, there are certain variables that we simply cannot
manipulate in any obvious sense (such as the race or gender of
participants); and there are other variables that cannot be manipulated for
ethical reasons (for example, if we were interested in the effects of
cigarette smoking on health, we could not allocate people randomly to
smoke cigarettes!). In such cases, it is necessary to employ groupings that
occur naturally, and so to examine the pattern of relationships between
variables as they already exist in the world. This gives rise to the use of
alternative research strategies, and one of these is field research.
Activity 3.1
Design an experiment to test the hypothesis that it is more effective to spend four
separate half-hours studying a topic than a single period of two hours.
1. What is the independent variable?
2. What is the dependent variable? How will it be measured? What would you
expect to find?
3. Are there any other variables that you think might confound the impact of the
independent variable? Can they be controlled for? How?
4. How would participants be chosen?
5. How would they be assigned to the experimental groups?
3.3 Field research

Field research is a strategy in which research is conducted in what is
sometimes called the real world (i.e. outside the laboratory) often without
the experimenter manipulating anything which is the equivalent of an
independent variable. In some cases a partial manipulation is possible by
selection of circumstances or participants and in such cases the field
research is described as quasi-experimental research. One area in which
quasi-experimental research is carried out is in the area of smoking
behaviour and its relation to illness. A true experimental design would
involve, among other things, selecting a large number of participants,
allocating them at random to smoking (experimental) and non-smoking
(control) groups and then observing how many in each group became ill
and with what illnesses. Obviously for many reasons, both practical and
ethical, this is not a possible scenario. In order to try to establish whether
there is a relationship between smoking and illness, selective observations
5
of a quasi-experimental kind are made.
For instance, it was at one time unfashionable for women to smoke and at
that time the incidence of lung disease in women was lower than that in
men. As smoking in women has increased the incidence of lung disease in
women has increased. Such an observation has some of the characteristics
of an experimental strategy, but its quasi nature is emphasised when we
remember that over the period when smoking in women has increased so
have other things, such as the proportion of women in paid work. And the
different stresses associated with full-time employment may also have an
effect on disease.
See Aronson, Wilson and

Brewer (1998) for a detailed
discussion of some of the main
varieties of experiments and
quasi-experiments used in social
psychology.
41
Often field studies are associated with particular form of data collection
such as, for example, participant observation. This usually involves the
research worker becoming a member of the group of participants whose
behaviour is being studied and may sometimes, although not always,
necessitate the research worker pretending to be just an ordinary member
of the group. In any such research technique the observer has the difficult
task of separating observations of the participants from interpretations of
these observations and, in order to improve the quality of data collection
with this strategy, use is often made of structured observation techniques
in which what is to be noted is carefully specified in advance.6
Both experimental studies and field research techniques use the behaviour
of the participants as the dependent variable but it is also possible to ask
participants what they believe about a given topic. This is the research
technique used in the opinion or attitude survey.
See Moghaddam (1998)

pp.3134 for a summary of the
key methods of field research.
3.4 Survey studies

Surveys are often carried out for descriptive purposes (for example to find
out what a given category of people believe about a particular issue), but
they can also have more of an explanatory purpose in that correlations
between characteristics of the respondents and the particular responses
7
they give can be measured. However, it is important to be aware that
correlation and causation are not the same thing that is, two variables
may be strongly correlated, but this does not necessarily indicate that one
causes the other. There are four major possible explanations that could
account for variables X and Y being correlated:
Myers (2008) pp.1823 gives a

description of survey techniques
1. X causes Y (i.e. if X did not occur, Y would not occur), or

2. Y causes X (i.e. if Y did not occur, X would not occur), or
3. both X and Y are caused by some additional third variable, Z, or
4. X causes Z, and Z then causes Y (so that, even if X occurs, Y will not
occur if Z does not also occur).

So a correlation (or association) tells us that two variables are associated or
connected to each other, but does not tell us why they are associated with
8
each other. It is not possible to infer causation from correlation.
A survey is essentially a set of standard questions asked of a sample of
people. The two main design tasks are therefore to select the questions and
to choose the sample of people to whom the questions are to be directed.
The questions in general are obviously dictated by the research purpose.
But much detailed care has to go into choosing the exact form of the
questions to be asked. It is necessary to avoid biased questions; for
example, in attempting to discover attitudes towards the war in Iraq, one
would probably not ask, Why was the war in Iraq a mistake?
It is necessary to decide whether the questions should be open-ended,
which allows the respondents to choose their own response and may be
suitable for an exploratory survey, or should be fixed-response, in which
case the respondent chooses one of a fixed set of answers and which
obviously permits easier analysis. Having devised the questionnaire it is
necessary to select the respondents. It is normally the case that not all the
people in whose responses one is interested will be surveyed, because there
are usually too many of them. This means that the task is to design an
appropriate sample and, although this is an exercise of some technicality,
the essential purpose is to ensure that every member of the total population
whose responses one wants to measure has an equal chance of being
42

and Moghaddam (1998)
correlation versus causation.
selected for the sample. The size of the sample is obviously an issue of
importance: broadly, the larger the sample the better the chance of getting
a correctly representative response but the cost will go up with the size of
the sample. One of the ways to reduce the sample size while guaranteeing
that all major variables within the population are appropriately represented
in the sample is to use a stratified random sample. If, for example, it is
suspected that age affects the likely response it would be appropriate for
the sample to have the same age distribution as the population (i.e. the
same proportion of respondents between ages 2030 and 3040 as the
parent population). Ensuring an appropriate sample is not always easy but
it is a major part of the task in survey methodology and its success is part
of establishing external validity or generalisability of the survey results.
Some of the contrasts between correlational and experimental research
methods are summarised in Table 3.1.
Random sampling of participants?
Experimental
Correlational
Yes
Yes
Random assignment of participants Yes

to groups?
No (groups usually to
vary naturally)
Researcher manipulates
independent variable?
Yes
No (varies naturally)
Establishes causality?
Yes
No
Tests multiple relations between

variables at once?
No
Yes
Exploratory or descriptive
as well as explanatory?
No
Yes
Table 3.1: Contrasts between correlational and experimental research

methods
Activity 3.2
Think of a topic that is currently controversial it might be a political, economic or social
issue about which people have widely differing views. Try designing a short questionnaire
that could be used to assess peoples opinions on this topic.
1. Would you use open-ended or closed questions? If you choose closed questions,
what kinds of answers will you permit (e.g. binary Yes/No versus a scale from
Strongly Agree through Neither Agree nor Disagree to Strongly Disagree)? Why?
2. How will you ensure that your questions do not bias the responses of
participants?
3. What sample would be appropriate for this study? Would you anticipate any
difficulties on obtaining a good response rate from your chosen sample?
3.5 Quantitative and qualitative data

In the research methods noted above, there is a common aim of generating
quantitative data that can be used to answer the research questions.
Quantitative data allow the researcher to assess how much of a given
variable is present in the sample for example, how many people hold a
given belief, or how strong the average belief is. In experimental research,
the causal impact of the independent variable is normally assessed in terms
of the quantitative change it induces in the dependent variable; and in
survey research, the correlations between two variables are assessed in
terms of the increases or decreases in the quantity of one in relation to the
increase or decrease in the other.
43
A general aspect of such methods is that the researcher has a clear idea, in
advance, of the range of responses that participants might make. In order
to design a questionnaire, for example, the researcher needs to know the
set of possible attitudes that might be expressed (for closed questions) or
the kinds of issues on which people might have attitudes (for open-ended
questions). So quantitative measures are most appropriate where the
researcher already has a clear picture of the area to be researched, and
wishes to investigate it more deeply or systematically.
However, there may be areas in which the researcher does not have such
detailed prior knowledge to draw upon, or in which using highly structured
techniques might lead to a distorted picture of the phenomenon. An
example of the first case might be social responses to rapidly changing
circumstances or technologies. For example, assessing peoples responses to
the introduction of genetic engineering may first of all require an
understanding of what people think such technologies are, how they think
they might be used, and what they think might be their costs and benefits.
Given the very wide ramifications of such technologies, a precise set of
questions framed in advance is simply in danger of missing out on
significant information. An example of the second case might be rather
personal or sensitive topics. For example, the epidemic status of HIV/AIDS
in parts of the world has enormous consequences for the relevant
populations. However, many of the issues that surround the topic sexual
practices, gender roles, their connections to personal morality and religion,
and so on might be rather too sensitive or personal to incorporate into a
large-scale questionnaire. Having to employ predetermined categories of
response for thoughts which are very subtle and context-sensitive, may
thereby lead people to respond in ways that they think would be socially
desirable.
For research in these kinds of areas which would involve building up a
rich descriptive picture of some phenomenon researchers have in recent
years turned increasingly to techniques that generate qualitative data (see
Hayes, 1997). Two principal techniques for generating such data are semistructured individual interviews and focus groups. A semi-structured
interview typically involves the interviewer designing a topic guide, which
may incorporate quite general questions or issues that they want to discuss;
the general approach is to use this topic guide to encourage a free flow of
information in which the interviewee can talk freely about the issues and is
able to introduce any information that they deem relevant. Such settings
often allow participants to talk about personal or sensitive issues in their
own terms. A focus group usually involves between four and eight
participants who are encouraged by a facilitator to discuss an issue openly
and again without restrictions on the kinds of connections that they make.
The use of such qualitative techniques is very often allied to more
sociological forms of social psychology (see Chapter 2).
Given that there is no attempt to control the details of each exchange, nor
to limit how the discussions develop, it would not be legitimate to attempt
to amalgamate the results to produce a quantitative account. Instead,
researchers are often concerned to attempt to elucidate specific reasons or
meanings that are latent in, or underlie, the comments made by
participants. Such latent meanings or themes may not generalise to other
participants. As a result, it may be said that qualitative techniques have the
advantage over other techniques that they may offer very detailed, rich
descriptions of a specific phenomenon, where the major results usually
more closely resemble the participants perspective rather than the
theorists. However, they have the major disadvantage that the findings are
44
restricted to the specific person, time and place of collection, and so cannot
be used to generalise to other people, times or places. In this way, they may
help to provide answers to descriptive questions, but are not relevant to
correlational or causal questions.
3.6 Investigating people and investigating society

We have seen above that the techniques employed by social psychologists
are widely applied to collect data concerning overt behaviour and about
beliefs or opinions. However, in addition to suggesting that researchers
should employ qualitative techniques in collecting data about behaviour
and beliefs, sociological approaches to social psychology have also
encouraged a focus on collecting data regarding certain aspects of society
itself.
One particular avenue is to attempt to analyse the kinds of symbols and
information circulating in society or culture. This has largely been carried
out by analysing contents of the mass media (see relevant chapters in
Bauer and Gaskell, 2000). Quantitative media analysis may involve content
analysis (counting the frequency of occurrence of key words or phrases in a
sample of newspapers), or thematic analysis (counting the frequency of
occurrence of specific themes or ideas in a sample of newspapers). In this
way, social psychologists can get an understanding of the prevalence of
certain kinds of ideas in the media. For example, analyses of the gender
biases in advertising have been carried out in this manner. The mass media
are a major source of social influence and pressures (see Chapter 12), and
in an important sense can contribute to the social construction of what is
taken to be real. Hence, having an understanding of their form and content
is important to understanding social influence. More qualitative approaches
to analysing media contents may take the form of discourse analysis, which
seeks to relate the specific contents of newspapers or other media outputs
to power differentials in society, and may view the media as powerful tools
for maintaining social inequalities.
3.7 Validity and realism

A general problem in research concerns the degree to which the study is
representative of the situation to which the research worker wishes to
generalise the results. The degree to which the results of a study can safely
be generalised to apply to settings and parameters outside those of the
original study, such as to other populations, times, places, similar tasks, and
other measurement instruments, is termed the external validity of the
study. A high degree of external validity is clearly a desirable quality of any
social psychology study.9
Assessing external validity can be a complex matter. One way in which
external validity may be achieved is by ensuring that the study has high
mundane realism that is, that the situation and setting of the study
and the way in which its variables relate to each other matches those of
the real-world situation which its results are intended to reflect.
However, even if a study lacks mundane realism, there are still other
ways in which its results might achieve external validity. Aronson10 has
pointed out that a study which is low in mundane realism can also be
(indeed must be) high in what he terms experimental realism. This is a
characteristic of the study which leads the participant to take the
situation seriously and become involved in the experimental procedure.
In this way, the psychological processes that the participant uses in the

for a brief discussion of
generalising from laboratory
studies to real world settings.
See Matsumoto and Juang
(2008) Chapter 2 for a
discussion of the impact of
culture on validity in research.
10
See Aronson (2004) p.339.
45
study should reflect those that they would use in the relevant real world
situation. There is, however, a further twist to this. Psychological realism
(the extent to which the psychological processes triggered in an
experiment are similar to psychological processes occurring in everyday
life) can be high even when both experimental and mundane realism are
low. For example, if the processes are relatively automatic (and so not
under control of participants), then the realism of the situation and the
extent of the participants involvement or motivation will have little
impact on whether the processes are elicited.
External validity regarding survey studies has often been thought of in
respect of a distinction that mirrors that between mundane realism on the
one hand, and experimental and psychological realism on the other hand.
This is a distinction between face validity and construct validity. Face
validity refers to the apparent appropriateness of a question or set of
questions to address the question it is intended to address, at a subjective
level. That is, do the questions in the survey seem, on the surface, to reflect
the issue of interest? Face validity is independent of construct validity,
which is the degree to which the questions do accurately reflect the
conceptual question of interest. This depends on the fit between the
participants responses to the questions, and the social psychological model
of the phenomena that those questions are intended to address. As with
psychological realism, the assessment of construct validity depends upon
further theoretical assumptions that cannot be assessed by the participants
subjective understanding of the questions or their motivation to answer
them.
An equally important concept in social psychological research is internal
validity, which refers to the extent to which the manipulation of the
independent variable has in fact caused the observed variations in the
dependent variable. All research in social psychology faces a dilemma in
that the demands of external and internal validity may be in conflict. There
is a trade-off between having enough control over the situation to ensure
that no extraneous variables influence the results, and making sure the
results can be generalised to everyday life. Generally, the better the
experimental situation and the greater the degree of control of variables
the less likely the experimental situation is to be representative of the real
world. There is thus a trade-off between internal validity and external
validity. This general problem exists for all research workers concerned
with applied research and often a partial solution is to carry out both
experimental and field studies. If a study employs both methods, and they
converge on the same results, then one can be correspondingly more
confident that internal and external validity have been achieved via the
combination of methods.
Moreover, there are times when a high degree of experimental realism (that
is, a high level of commitment of participants to the study) can in fact
undermine external and internal validity. This is because experiments (in
fact, all studies in which participants are aware that they are being studied)
are social situations, and as such are susceptible to all of the issues that are
the focus of this subject guide. In particular, the social situation can lead
participants to be reactive carrying out experiments on people is not the
same as experimenting on inanimate matter and participants in an
experiment often have an attitude towards the experiment and its possible
results. Broadly, people in experiments are sensitive to what Orne (1962)
called demand characteristics. These are any features of a study or the
situation in which it is carried out, which participants use to try to work out
what is expected of them, and consequently lead them to behave in a way
46
that does not reflect the way they would behave outside of that study.
These features in a sense demand a certain response, so that people will
try to behave in a manner which will confirm what they think (rightly or
wrongly) the hypothesis of the experimenter to be.
It is not only the participants in experiments who may behave in ways
which may contaminate the data collection and reduce internal validity.
The experimenter may also convey his or her expectancy to the participants
(without being aware of this) and the experimenters expectancy can
change the way the participants behave (Rosenthal, 1976). This has been
called the experimenter effect. It can mean that any observed differences
(e.g. between an experimental and control group) may arise from the
experimenter inadvertently treating those groups differently (perhaps in
matters as apparently trivial as tone of voice or other non-verbal gestures).
Resolving these problems can be complex and costly. One solution is to use
a double-blind procedure. A double blind study is one in which neither the
participant nor the experimenter knows whether the participant is a
member of the control group or the experimental group. Similarly, for
questionnaires and qualitative data, anyone involved in coding the data for
analysis would also be unaware of the treatment group to which each
participant belonged. It therefore requires the involvement of a third party
who does know which participants are allocated to which group.
3.8 Reliability and replication

No one study is ever perfect, so one important aspect of social
psychological research is that results should be replicable. In principle,
replication involves repeating the same research design, with the same kind
of participants giving their responses under the same kinds of conditions. If
the original finding was not an artefact of some extraneous variables, then
such a replication should yield the same pattern of results (e.g. the same
relationship between control and experimental group results). We would
not expect completely identical results, because all measurement is subject
to random errors, which can be expected to vary from one testing to
another. Moreover, conceptual replications (also known as systematic
replications) are also common these are cases in which the same overall
design is employed, but where one or more key aspects of the original are
altered. The aim here is to gain greater insight into the external validity of
the phenomenon under investigation to see how far the findings can be
generalised. For example, applying a single method to a different
population of participants will be informative about how far the original
results can generalise beyond the sample and population that were used in
the original experiment; or applying a single method but changing the way
the independent variable or situation is varied will be informative about
how far the results can generalise to different situations beyond that used
in the first experiment. In this way, each new study adds new information
to the last.
A similar role as played by replication in experiments, is played in survey
research by reliability. This is the requirement that survey questions or
scales measure what they claim to be measuring in a consistent manner.
That is, the degree to which a survey instrument measures the same way
each time it is used, under the same conditions with the same participants,
and the testing procedure is free from random errors of measurement. This
suggests that a reliable questionnaire should give similar results for a set of
participants tested at different times under the same set of circumstances.
47
The two concepts of reliability and validity are distinct yet related. While
high reliability does not warrant validity (that is, a study could reliably
measure something that is irrelevant to the variable of interest), a study
cannot achieve validity without reliability.
It will be evident that the issues regarding validity, realism, replication and
reliability will tend to impact on laboratory and field research in different
ways; some key differences that they tend to have (though not in all cases)
are noted in Table 3.2.11
Control over variables?
Laboratory
Field
High degree of control
Low degree of control
Internal validity and

High probability
establishment of causality?
Low probability
Random assignment to
groups?
High probability
Low probability
Mundane realism?
Low probability
High probability
External validity?
Low probability
High probability
Experimenter effects and

demand characteristics?
High probability
Low probability
Replication and reliability High probability

of results?
Low probability
11

reliability and validity.
Table 3.2: Key differences between laboratory and field research
3.9 Ethical issues

Given that social psychological research is itself social psychological, it is
important that such research operates in accordance with an appropriate
code of ethics which requires it to respect the dignity and rights of their
participants.12 These guidelines vary from country to country, but they tend
to enshrine the same general aims of not exposing participants to harm, of
obtaining appropriate consent from participants before they get involved in
research, and preserving their rights to privacy. In more detail, the key
principles articulated by the British Psychological Society (2004) are:
1. Protection of participants: this carries the requirement that human
participants should not be exposed to the risk of harm (whether physical
or psychological) when taking part in research; researchers are also
required to maintain participants dignity and rights throughout the
research process.
2. Informed consent: no participant should be required to take part in
research without first granting their consent to do so; this also requires
that participants be given enough information about the study to be
able to make a decision about whether or not they wish to participate. It
is this principle that creates a dilemma for social psychologists, as we
shall see below, since it can be at odds with the requirement that
participants be unaware of the hypotheses being tested in a study.
3. No coercion: in recruitment of participants, there should be no coercion
or pressure brought to bear on people to make them participate;
participation should be a free choice.
4. Right to withdraw: participants have the right to withdraw from a study
at any point, without giving a reason and without facing any penalty,
and also to request that their data are not used as part of the study.
48
12
pp.1719.
5. Anonymity and confidentiality: any information gathered about

individuals must be treated with the utmost confidentiality (i.e. not
divulged to third parties without the participants consent), and each
participants data should be held anonymously (one method is to
separate the participants name or any other identifying information
from the data once they have been collected, such that the data are only
identifiable by code numbers.)
6. Appropriate exclusion criteria: researchers should protect the well-being
of their participants by applying appropriate criteria for excluding
vulnerable or at-risk people from their research.
7. Monitoring: researchers should monitor the welfare of their participants
throughout the process of research, to ensure that they are protected at
every stage (with the requirement to stop at any point should an
individuals welfare be threatened).
8. Duty of care: researchers should ameliorate any negative effects of their
research on participants. Minimally, this requires providing participants
with a thorough debriefing at the end of the research. This is especially
important where deception has been employed in the design (see 3.10
below). In cases where there has been the possibility of more significant
negative impacts (e.g. where participants have displayed significant
distress), appropriate professional help should be provided.
9. Additional safeguards for research with vulnerable populations: where
participants may be reasonably thought to be more vulnerable than
ordinary adults, special safeguards must be put in place. For example, in
researching with schoolchildren under the age of 18, prior written
consent must be obtained from parents, who are permitted to withdraw
their children from the study at any time without explanation.
The American Psychological Association (2003) has a similar set of
13
criteria. Perhaps their main departure from the British Psychological
Society is in their explicit emphasis on the limits to using deception, which
is largely implicit in the British Psychological Societys principle of informed
consent. The American Psychological Association requires that psychologists
should not employ deception unless they have determined that its use is
justified by the studys significant prospective scientific, educational, or
applied value and that effective non-deceptive alternative procedures are
not feasible. They should also not deceive prospective participants about
research that may reasonably be expected to cause physical pain or severe
emotional distress. Where such deception is employed, participants should
be debriefed and the role of deception explained at the earliest possible
point; participants are then free to withdraw their data from the study
should they so wish.
13

for a summary of the similar key
principles advocated by the
American Psychological
Association.
3.10 The use of deception in social psychological studies

Social psychologists do not differ from researchers in many other branches
of psychology in their use of systematic observation and experimentation
and in their reliance on theories of human behaviour. However, they do
face particular problems because of their need sometimes to conceal the
true purpose of their studies from those participating in them. The reason
for this is that knowing the true purpose of an investigation will frequently
change peoples behaviour; if this arises, the study will contribute little or
nothing to our understanding of human social behaviour.
49
This use of deception poses ethical problems because, among other things,
it is incompatible with the principle of informed consent. On the one hand,
it seems eminently reasonable to deceive participants temporarily about the
true purpose of a research study. Deception can serve both to reduce the
likelihood of participants inferring the hypothesis under investigation by
minimising the demand characteristics of the setting (i.e. the situational
cues which may enable participants to deduce the true nature of the study)
and to avoid participants giving socially desirable or other artificial
responses that they would not otherwise give. For example, if we wish to
examine the extent to which people hold racially prejudiced attitudes or
any other set of attitudes which are deemed socially undesirable, then
telling our participants about the topic under investigation is likely to result
in their modifying their behaviour such that they avoid expressing any
attitudes that are likely to give the experimenter a poor impression of them.
On the other hand, deceiving or misleading participants, although it may
be the only way in which the researchers can obtain access to the
information they require, does raise important ethical issues.
There is always the possibility that deception or, at least, the knowledge
of having been deceived even if it is only temporary, may have a
detrimental psychological impact on the people exposed to it, causing stress
or other forms of discomfort. Moreover, there is the basic question of
whether social psychologists are ever justified in telling lies to people even
in the cause of scientific enquiry.
Although social psychologists remain divided on the issue of using
deception in their research, the majority view as indicated by the ethical
principles noted in Section 3.9 is that temporary deception is acceptable,
provided certain safeguards are met. Clearly, research participants should
be provided with as much information about the study as is feasible given
the nature of the research questions being addressed, prior to their decision
to take part. In addition, all participants should be thoroughly debriefed
after they have participated. The debriefing should provide participants
with a full explanation of the major features of the study, including its true
aims and the reasons for the need to temporarily mislead participants. A
basic guiding principle is that after the research study participants should
be in the same or in a better mental state than before participating. Studies
support the view that informed consent and thorough debriefing generally
serve to minimize the potential dangers of deception.
Deception continues to be commonly used in social psychological research
but the debate about its acceptability continues (Sharpe, Adair and Rose,
1992). Some researchers have questioned its widespread use (Krupuk and
Garonzik, 1994). It is important to appreciate that some social
psychological research studies were conducted before ethical guidelines
were formulated and would not be approved today.
Activity 3.3
Look back at the studies you outlined in answer to Activities 3.1 and 3.2.
1. What kinds of ethical issues would arise in carrying them out?
2. Would either study seem to require the use of deception?
3. Is it possible to balance the need to fulfil appropriate ethical principles with the
aim to obtain data that are not affected by participants awareness of the issues
under investigation? Or would you need to redesign the studies in order to avoid
encountering ethical problems?
50
3.11 Overview
Conducting social psychological research involves a series of steps designed
to understand further the nature of the phenomenon in question. The type of
understanding that is sought relates to the kinds of questions that are asked.
Such questions range from seeking a detailed description of a given
phenomenon, to testing predictions about social behaviour. In the latter case,
hypotheses or testable predictions about social behaviour, often stimulated
by informal observation of everyday experience but usually guided by
theories of why such behaviour occurs, are subjected to systematic
investigation. Each of the methods available to collect information necessary
to test a hypothesis has various advantages and disadvantages. The method
or methods of data collection will depend on the nature of the research
question but it is often advisable to test a hypothesis using a variety of
methods. The range of methods used in social psychology includes:
laboratory experiments
field experiments
quasi-experimental research
field or observational studies
surveys
interviews and focus groups
analyses of media and texts.
In a laboratory experiment, the research randomly assigns participants to
experimental conditions, manipulates one or more independent variables
and measures one or more dependent variables. Field experiments, because
they take place in natural settings, offer greater realism but less control than
laboratory experiments. Quasi-experimental research examines behaviours
under different conditions but does not allow the experimenters full control
over the independent variable. Field studies involve systematic observation
of peoples behaviour, usually in natural settings. Surveys collect information
by asking participants to answer a series of questions. Interviews and focus
groups involve flexible interactions with participants to obtain detailed
information from their own perspective, often in the form of nongeneralisable, qualitative interpretation of what they say. Analyses of media
and texts can be quantitative or qualitative, and aim to discern the content
and patterns of the symbolic information that is circulating in society.
The use of temporary deception, in order to prevent participants changing
their behaviour and thereby invalidating the research findings, poses
particular ethical questions for social psychology. However, most social
psychologists consider that misleading participants about the true nature of a
research study is permissible, at least on a temporary basis, where the
benefits of its use outweigh the costs and providing appropriate safeguards
(i.e. informed consent and thorough debriefing) are adopted.
Key terms
These key terms will be useful as index entries or search terms if you choose
to consult titles suggested as Further reading or other relevant texts or
online sources. After completing the chapter and relevant reading, we
material again.
51
Research questions in social psychology
Social psychological research methods
Experimental studies
Independent variable
Dependent variable
Field research
Survey studies
Interviews/focus groups
Quantitative data
Qualitative data
External validity
Internal validity
Mundane realism
52
Experimental realism
Psychological realism
Demand characteristics
Experimenter effect
Double-bind procedure
Reliability
Replication
Research ethics
Deception
Informed consent

On completing this chapter and the relevant reading and activities, you
should be able to:
outline the data-collection methods and research techniques available to
social psychologists
list the key features, advantages and disadvantages of the various
research methods
discuss problems commonly encountered in conducting research
describe the ethical issues facing social psychologists.
53

1. When might ethical considerations hamper social psychological
research?
2. What are internal and external validity and how are they related?
3. What factors need to be considered when designing and conducting a
survey?
4. Outline the major research methods used in social psychology.
54

The aim of this chapter is to illustrate, using two examples, how theories,
concepts and findings from social psychology can be used to help
understand current real-world issues.
should be able to:
outline the nature and functions of stereotypes
provide examples of stereotypes
describe the impact of stereotyping on the way we see and respond to
others
describe the key features and major theories of pro-social behaviour
identify those factors which affect whether or not people help others.
Essential reading
Stereotypes
Hogg, M.A. and G.M. Vaughan Social Psychology. (Harlow: Prentice Hall, 2008)
fifth edition. pp.546, 35367, 37273, 40714, 41418.
Wadsworth, 2008) fourth edition. pp.37389.
Myers, D. Social Psychology. (Boston/London: McGrawHill, 2008) ninth edition.
Chapter 9.
Pro-social behaviour
2008) fifth edition. Chapter 14.
edition. Chapter 12.
Further reading
Stereotypes
Aronson, E. The Social Animal. (New York: Worth, 2008) tenth edition.
Chapter 7.
Brannon, L. Gender: Psychological Perspectives. (Boston, Mass.: Allyn and
Bacon, 2002) third edition. Chapter 7, especially pp.15267.
Fiske, S.T. Stereotyping, prejudice and discrimination in Gilbert, D.T., S.T.
Fiske and G. Lindzey (eds) The Handbook of Social Psychology. Volume 2.
(New York: McGraw Hill, 1998) fourth edition.
York: W.H. Freeman and Company, 1998) Chapters 9 and 12.
Smith, E.R. and D.M. Mackie Social Psychology. (New York: Worth, 2007)
Chapter 5, especially pp.52439, 16075 and Chapter 14.
Stangor, C. (ed.) Stereotypes and Prejudice: Essential Readings. (Philadelphia:
Psychology Press, 2000).
55
Pro-social behaviour, helping behaviour and altruism

edition. Chapter 2 pp.3845.
Barrett, L., R. Dunbar and J. Lycett Human Evolutionary Psychology.
(Basingstoke: Palgrave, 2002) Chapter 4.
Batson, C.D. Altruism and Prosocial Behaviour in Gilbert, D.T., S.T. Fiske and
G. Lindzey (eds) The Handbook of Social Psychology. Volume 2. (New York:
McGraw Hill, 1998) fourth edition.
Fraser, C. and B. Burchell Introducing Social Psychology. (Cambridge: Polity
Press, 2001) Chapter 9, pp.16278.
York: WH Freeman and Company, 1998) Chapters 9 and 12.
Pinker, S. How the Mind Works. (New York: Norton, 1997) Chapter 7.
Smith, E.R. and D.M. Mackie Social Psychology. (New York: Worth, 1995)
Chapter 12, especially pp.50127.
References cited
Stereotypes
Mackie, D.M., D.L. Hamilton, J. Susskind and F. Rosselli Social Psychological
Foundations of Stereotype Formation in Macrae, C.N., C. Stangor and M.
Hewstone (eds) Stereotypes and Stereotyping. (New York: Guilford Press,
1996) [ISBN 1572300531].
Williams, J.E. and D.L. Best Measuring Sex Stereotypes: A Thirty-Nation Study.
(Beverly Hills, CA: Sage, 1982) revised edition [ISBN 0803918372].
Pro-social behaviour, helping behaviour and altruism

Darley, J.M. and B. Latane Bystander Intervention in Emergencies: Diffusion
of Responsibility, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (8), 1968,
pp.37783.
Piliavin, J.A., J.F. Dovidio, S.L. Gaertner and R.D. Clark III Emergency
Intervention. (New York: Academic Press, 1981) [ISBN 0125564503].
Introduction
This chapter uses two examples to illustrate how theories, concepts and
findings from social psychology can be used to try to understand current
real-world issues.
The first example introduces the notion of stereotypes and examines how
they affect the way people see and respond to others. Stereotypes are a
very important and pervasive feature of how we make sense of the world
around us. These simplified ideas about groups men, women, the British,
students, bank managers and so on have both advantages and
disadvantages. On the one hand, stereotypes help to make the world more
manageable and understandable but, on the other, they provide an
oversimplified, and sometimes misleading, picture. An appreciation of how
people stereotype others can help us to understand prejudice and
discrimination and other aspects of intergroup relations.
The second example focuses on pro-social or helping behaviour. Why do
people choose to help others and what circumstances encourage such
behaviour? What are the barriers to intervention? Who is likely to help
and who is likely to receive help? Answers to these questions involve a
number of important social psychological concepts such as norms,
conformity and empathy. Knowledge of pro-social behaviour and its
associated costs and rewards can help us to understand who is likely to
help and when. It can also help us to appreciate the social dynamics of
56
emergencies and the phenomena of non-intervention and bystander

apathy.
4.1 Applications of social psychology

We use two examples to demonstrate how social psychology can help to
understand real-world issues. These examples have been chosen for
particular reasons.
The first example, stereotypes, takes a key aspect of the way in which we
process information about the world around us and outlines how it has
been used to aid our understanding of our attitudes and behaviour to
different groups in our society. The starting point in this first example is
therefore a concept (stereotypes) and a process (stereotyping) and the
focus of the analysis is the role that stereotypes and stereotyping play in
generating negative attitudes and discriminatory behaviour.
The second example looks at forms of helping behaviour and the conditions
under which they are observed (and not observed) and identifies what
social psychological concepts and processes might help us to understand
whether or not people choose to help others and their motives for doing so.
The starting point in this second example is therefore a phenomenon
(helping behaviour) and the focus of the analysis is the underlying social
psychological determinants of helping behaviour.
Both of these approaches starting with concepts and processes and
starting with phenomena are useful in appreciating the origins and
impact of behaviour in social settings.
4.2 Example 1: stereotypes

4.2.1 What are stereotypes?
People are very ready to characterise groups of people on the basis of a
small number of basic attributes, such as whether they are male or
female, young or old, British, American, Singaporean or another
nationality. These simplified evaluations of social groups and their
members may be positive or negative and they are widely shared. The
content of stereotypes often includes such characteristics as physical
appearance, personality traits, typical interests and aspirations, and
preferred activities and occupations. Some may be based on fact often
in exaggerated form although others are unfounded. Because
stereotypes are generalisations about the supposed characteristics of
groups, they are not necessarily predictive of the characteristics or
behaviour of any member of those groups.
Stereotypes are often acquired at an early age, before the child has direct
knowledge of the target groups to which they refer. They are relatively
stable and slow to change and any changes that do occur often reflect
wider, social, political and economic changes. Stereotypes become more
prominent and more hostile when there are social tensions and conflict
between groups. Stereotypes can be thought of as shared schemas about
social groups which guide our processing of information about members of
those groups. Stereotypes contribute to cognitive economy they simplify
the world around us but may be misleading and can contribute to
prejudice and discrimination.
Stereotyping is the process by which we assign identical characteristics to
any member of a social group, regardless of the actual variation among
57
members of that group. Stereotyping is not an intentional act of abuse but

it is important to recognise that stereotypes held about a subordinate or
minority group are commonly negative.1
Activity 4.1
Identify two groups, one of which is a minority group (group X) and one of which a
majority group (group Y). For each of these two groups (X and Y) ask three of your
friends the following questions:
1. What do people in this group look like?
2. What are their three main identifying personality traits?
3. What other attributes or behaviours do you associate with them?
4. How do you feel about people in this group?
Now, summarise the image or mental picture of each of the two groups, X and Y.
How do the stereotypes of the two groups differ? Do they differ in their negativity? What
about the accuracy of their content?
4.2.2 How are stereotypes acquired?

Stereotypes can be learned through personal experience with group
members. Such stereotypes may be biased because of inaccurate
perceptions or undue influence of extreme instances. For example, because
a minority of group members behave in a radical or otherwise immoderate
manner, all of the group may be perceived in the same way. The content of
stereotypes can be affected by the emotions generated by interaction with
members of a group. For example, interacting with someone from an ethnic
group other than your own may generate uncertainty, apprehension and
anxiety these feelings will feed into your stereotype of this group. Also,
the behaviour of group members is often influenced by their social roles but
is attributed to the inner characteristics this process is known as
correspondence bias. For example, in many societies, the lowest socioeconomic group, irrespective of its nationality or ethnicity, is seen as lazy,
dirty, ill-educated and so on. These characteristics reflect the social role
rather than the dispositions of the group members.
Stereotypes can also be acquired indirectly through interactions with family
or friends and via the media. Many stereotypes are deeply ingrained in the
social norms of a culture that is, they reflect the generally accepted ways
of thinking, feeling or behaviour in a society. This means that as people
grow up, they are exposed to derogatory group labels, jokes about
particular groups and other simplified overgeneralisations. They therefore
learn the stereotypes which underlie such words and actions and the
associated prejudices. The media (television, newsprint, magazines, film
and drama) also reflect and reinforce prevalent stereotypes.
Stereotypes are frequently formed in situations where not much is known
about the target group. So, we have stereotypes about a group of which we
are not members (i.e. out-group) not about a group to which we belong
(i.e. in-group). One feature of stereotyping is the accentuation effect. This
is the process by which categorisation of people (or objects) into different
categories results in the accentuation or overestimation of certain
perceptual similarities and dissimilarities on the dimensions associated with
the categorisation. The accentuation effect involves both an overestimation
of perceptual similarities among people in the same category and an
overestimation of differences between people from different categories on
those dimensions seen to be related to the categorisation i.e. stereotypical
dimensions. For example, the classification of people into young and old
58

pp.34550 and Myers (2008)
pp.32426 for discussion of the
nature of stereotypes and
stereotyping.
may lead to an overstatement of the degree to which the young are seen as
interesting, noisy and up-to-date and the degree to which the old are seen
as boring, quiet and out-of-touch. At the same time, the extent of the
differences between the two groups on these stereotypical dimensions will
be inflated. This exaggeration of stereotypical similarities within groups and
differences between groups is one consequence of the process of social
categorisation (i.e. the classification of people as members of different
social groups).
Social categorisation has been shown to play a fundamental role in
intergroup behaviour and has led to the development of social identity
theory. This theory of intergroup-relations argues that our membership of
social groups provides us with a social identity and that we seek a positive
social identity by comparing the group to which we belong (in-group) with
2
the group of which we are not members (out-group) (see Chapter 10).
Members of the out-group are typically perceived as the same or more
homogeneous than is actually the case, while in-group members are seen as
more differentiated. This is known as the relative homogeneity effect. One
explanation for its occurrence is in terms of the degree of familiarity of the
two groups: we are less familiar with the out-group and so are less able to
differentiate among the group members. However, the effect also appears
to be affected by the majorityminority status of the in-group. There is
some evidence that while majorities display the usual out-group
homogeneity effect (i.e. they rate the out-group as more homogeneous than
the in-group) minorities do the reverse and display an in-group
3
homogeneity effect.
4.2.3 Common stereotypes

Research suggests that sex, race and age are the most prevalent bases for
stereotyping (Mackie, Hamilton, Susskind and Rosselli, 1996). 4 But, other
attributes (such as ethnicity, nationality, religion, socio-economic class,
sexual preference and physical and mental health) also generate
stereotypes.5 Groups that are commonly targets of negative stereotyping
frequently experience stereotype threat. This is the feeling that you will be
judged and treated in terms of the stereotypes that apply to your group and
you will therefore confirm these stereotypes through your behaviour. For
example, if you are female then you may have the feeling that you will
seen as gullible, yielding and illogical and therefore will behave in ways
that are congruent with this expectation, with the result that you are
judged unsuitable for a senior management position.6
The stereotypes which are widespread in a society often serve to justify
existing economic and social inequalities, by portraying groups as deserving
their positions and roles on the basis of their assumed characteristics.

pp. 40714 and Myers (2008)
pp.31722 for outlines of social
identity theory.

pp.5456, 41418 for
descriptions of the cognitive and
perceptual processes involved in
stereotyping. See also Matsumoto
and Juang (2008) pp.37389 and
Smith and Mackie (1995)
pp.17794.
See Matsumoto and Juang

(2008) pp.38187 for discussion
of the content of stereotypes
especially those relating to racial
and national groups.

pp.35367 for discussion of
stereotypes and their contribution
to common targets of prejudice
and discrimination. Also see
Myers (2008) pp.30811 for a
discussion of gender stereotypes
and gender prejudice.

pp.37273.
Although there is considerable social pressure against the expression of

stereotypical beliefs about national, ethnic or religious groups, such beliefs
have not disappeared and continue to influence our behaviour. The fact
that we may have a stereotypical view of the English as reserved and
difficult to get to know may influence the way in which you respond to an
English person when you meet them. Similarly, you are likely to have a
mental image of the typical professor or student which will affect your
expectations of and interaction with members of these two groups.
Gender stereotypes are particularly confidently held and are deeply
embedded in most cultures. Most people describe women as warm,
sensitive, emotional, dependent and people-oriented, while men are
considered dominant, independent, task-oriented and aggressive. These
59
stereotypes are found in similar forms in Europe, North and South America,
Asia, Africa and Australia (Williams and Best, 1982). However, there are
subtle differences with some cultures being less traditional in their views
than others. In these cultures, the liberated women stereotype,
incorporating such stereotypically masculine traits as aggressiveness,
ambition and self-confidence, is more likely to emerge. Research suggests
that less traditional gender stereotypes are held by societies with a higher
proportion of women working outside the home and in the universityeducated population.7
Activity 4.2
See Brannon (2002) Chapter 7,

gender stereotypes. See also
Moghaddam (1998) pp.41533.
Interview two men and two women and ask them to answer the following questions:
1. In their experience, what are men like and what are women like?
2. How should men behave and how should women behave?
3. How should men not behave and how should women not behave?
Examine the two sets of responses and then consider the following issues:
a) What do the responses tell you about the stereotypes about females?
b) What do the responses tell you about the stereotypes about males?
c) How do the stereotypes about males and females differ in your society?
d) How do the stereotypes about males differ between men and women?
e) How do the stereotypes about females differ between men and women?
f) How traditional are the stereotypes of males and females in your society?
4.2.4 The impact of stereotyping

Once established, stereotypes are activated by obvious cues (e.g. skin
colour), use of group labels (e.g. students), or the presence of a group
member, especially as a minority in a social situation or work setting (e.g.
the only female at a company meeting). But, some stereotypes are used so
often that they come to mind automatically. Stereotypes can lead to snap
judgments or quick decisions about group members, especially when we
feel under pressure because of time constraints or the complexity of the
information we have to process. We are also more likely to rely on
stereotypes when we are affected by strong emotions, such as anger or
anxiety.
Even when we put time and effort into our decisions, we are influenced by
stereotypes. People tend to look for evidence to support their stereotypical
views, rather than for evidence that is not consistent with these views. Also,
they tend to interpret ambiguous evidence to fit the stereotypes they hold
we tend to see what we want or expect to see. So, people tend to feel
confident that their stereotypes are correct because the information they
collect produces apparent consistency and because socially shared
stereotypes are seen as validating our views. Stereotypes can also become
self-fulfilling prophecies, by leading people to act in ways that confirm their
expectations. For example, when we ask a man about soccer or his job and
a woman about fashion or her family we are eliciting stereotype-confirming
behaviour. Self-fulfilling prophecies operate in education, the workplace
8
and social settings.
Stereotyping can have both psychological and practical consequences.
Some of these outcomes are beneficial, while others may be harmful. By
simplifying our social environment through contributing to cognitive
parsimony and the reduction of uncertainty stereotyping can be a
valuable aid in processing and interpreting information about the world
60
See Smith and Mackie (1995)

how stereotypes influence
peoples thinking and behaviour.
See Myers (2008) pp.34445 for
a discussion of the self-fulfilling
nature of stereotypes.
around us. Equally, stereotyping can lead to exaggerated uniformity and

rigid expectations. The translation of those cognitions can be prejudiced
attitudes and discriminatory behaviour.9 It is not only negative stereotypes
that can be damaging. Positive stereotypes people who live in Hollywood
are rich, women are good listeners and are emotionally supportive, men are
protective of women can set unrealistic high standards and inappropriate
expectations. Whatever their content positive or negative characteristics,
accurate or inaccurate descriptions and irrespective of whether they apply
to our own group or to other groups, stereotypes play a major role in our
daily lives.
See Myers (2008) Chapter 9,

especially pp.31142 for an
overview of the relation between
stereotypes and prejudice/
discrimination. See also Fiske
(1998) and Stangor (2000).
Stereotypes are introduced here as an example of a how a key concept in

social psychology can help us to understand how we see and respond to
others in our everyday lives. Here we expect you to have grasped the
nature and function of stereotypes, be able to provide common examples of
stereotypes and be aware of the positive and negative consequences of
stereotyping. We shall encounter stereotypes again later in the subject
guide. In Chapter 7, stereotypes are cited as a type of schema i.e. a set of
beliefs about a social group (see Section 7.1.1). Here the emphasis is on the
role of stereotypes in the way we process information about our social
world. In Chapter 15 we consider how gender stereotypes that is, beliefs
about the characteristics of men and women affect our notions of
masculinity and femininity (see Section 15.3.1). In this case, we want you
to appreciate the significance of gender stereotypes in various facets of our
lives but especially in the workplace (see Section 15.3.3). In Chapter 16,
we consider, in more detail, the role of stereotypes in generating prejudice
(see Section 16.4). Here we want you to recognise that, although
stereotypes can be valuable aids to dealing with the wealth of information
in our social world, they can also contribute to negative attitudes to
particular groups and discriminatory behaviour toward the group members.
Activity 4.3
Identify six sets of stereotypes which you use or with which you are familiar:
1. A positive stereotype (e.g. Americans are rich).
2. A negative stereotype (e.g. the British are unfriendly).
3. What you consider to be an accurate stereotype.
4. What you consider to be an inaccurate stereotype.
5. A stereotype which applies to a group to which you belong.
6. A stereotype about a group to which you do not belong.
Now record when and how you use each of these stereotypes and list the potential
beneficial and harmful consequences of their use.
4.3 Example 2: pro-social behaviour

4.3.1 What is pro-social behaviour?
Although the terms pro-social behaviour, helping behaviour and altruism
are often used interchangeably, there are some subtle differences in
meaning. Pro-social behaviour refers to behaviour that is valued positively
by society. A common example of pro-social behaviour is helping behaviour
acts that intentionally help others, such as aiding a stranger in need or
providing emotional or practical support to a friend. Altruism is a particular
kind of helping behaviour in which the actions performed are motivated
solely by the desire to benefit the recipient and without any expectation of
personal gain.
61
Helping behaviour became a concern of social psychologists following the

murder of a young woman, Kitty Genovese, in New York City in 1964.
Despite a number of neighbours hearing her screams for help and turning
on their lights, nobody called the police until some considerable time had
elapsed and the victim of the attack was dead. An obvious question is
whether this apparent indifference or apathy and failure to intervene is
unusual or whether it is typical in such circumstances.
Research by Darley and Latane (1968) suggested that bystanders will
intervene only if they notice an incident, interpret it as an emergency,
assume responsibility for taking action, know the appropriate action to
take, and decide to take action. At each stage, the presence of other people
can deter an individual from making a decision that will lead to them
helping. People in groups are less likely than a solitary individual to notice
an unusual situation or to define it as an emergency. Moreover, when
people believe that others are aware of someones distress as was the case
in the Kitty Genovese murder responsibility is distributed or diffused
across the group and any single individual is less likely to help than when
they believe they bear sole responsibility for taking action.
This bystander effect the fact that any particular bystander is less likely to
give help with other bystanders present has been shown to emerge in a
range of situations, including making an emergency phone call, picking up
dropped money or other items, aiding a stranded motorist, helping
someone having an epileptic seizure, donating blood, and contributing
money or time. The effect appears to involve two separate processes:
pluralistic ignorance and diffusion of responsibility. Pluralistic ignorance is
the state of affairs that obtains when bystanders assume nothing is wrong
because other people present seem to see nothing amiss. Its occurrence
highlights the social and shared nature of much of our behaviour we rely
on the actions of others to decide what is appropriate behaviour in a
particular setting. This is as true of emergency situations as any other, more
mundane contexts. Diffusion of responsibility refers to decrease in the
degree of responsibility felt by each person in association with the number
of people present. When people believe responsibility to act is shared with
10
others (i.e. diffused), then they feel less personal responsibility to act.
Activity 4.4
1. Think of two situations where you have helped a person who looked as if they
needed help or where you have seen someone else help a person in need of
assistance.
2. Now think of two situations where you have not helped a person who looked as
if they needed help or where you have seen someone else failing to help a
person in need of assistance.
3. Analyse the four situations in terms of what the problem appeared to be,
whether the incidents were noticed and interpreted as an emergency, and the
action taken by you (or the person you observed). How many other people were
present? What role, if any, do you think the bystander effect played in
determining your response or that of others in the four scenarios?
4.3.2 Why do we help others?

One reason for helping others is altruism an unselfish regard for others
welfare. Under certain circumstances, human beings do appear to behave
in an altruistic manner for example, donating blood, pulling an injured
person from a derailed train or providing support for someone with a
prolonged terminal illness can all be seen as purely altruistic acts. People
62
10

pp.52830 and pp.54146 and
Moghadddam (1998) p.296303
for discussion of the nature of
helping behaviour and analysis
of the bystander effect. See also
Aronson (2004) pp.3845 and
Fraser and Burchell (2001)
pp.16270.
display altruism in different ways and a common distinction is between

heroic altruism, which is short-term, requires a visible, often physical action
to help individual strangers, and nurturant altruism, which requires a longerterm commitment, is private rather than public and often involves helping
family or friends by listening or otherwise providing support. Altruism may
be linked to empathy feeling pain when you see someone in distress and
relief when suffering is alleviated which can also motivate helping.
Evolutionary psychology proposes that some forms of altruism such as
caring for and protecting our children promotes survival and thereby helps
to perpetuate our genes. This evolutionary perspective on altruism is
supported, for example, both by evidence that children whose mother has
died are most likely to be cared for by those who share the childrens genes
such as grandmothers, aunts and other relatives and by the fact that, when
faced by danger, people seek to save those who bear the closest relationship
to them.11
However, altruism may not be the only explanation of helping behaviour.
Another reason is self-interest. According to social exchange theory, we seek
to maximise the rewards of any interaction and to minimise its costs (See
Section 15.5.2). So, if we are trying to decide whether or not to become a
blood donor, we may weigh up the costs of so doing (discomfort, time,
anxiety) against the associated benefits (approval from others, feeling
worthy, reduced guilt). If the perceived rewards of helping exceed the
anticipated costs you are likely to help by giving blood. Piliavin, Dovidio,
Gaertner and Clark III (1981) apply this cost-benefit approach to understand
bystander behaviour in emergency situations. According to the bystandercalculus model, the bystander becomes physiologically aroused by the sight
of someone in distress, labels this arousal as emotion and then calculates the
perceived costs and benefits of providing help, compared with those
associated with not helping.
Social expectations also influence helping behaviour. Through the process of
socialisation, we adopt the reciprocity norm whereby we are expected to help,
not harm, those who have helped us. We also learn the social responsibility
norm that we should help people who need our help, even if the costs
outweigh the benefits. Although many of the popular explanations for prosocial behaviour suggest we are guided by self-interest, this pessimistic view
may reflect, at least in part, the emphasis on individualism and self-centred
motives in Western societies. However, the more optimistic alternative that
true altruism exists remains a real possibility and the motives for helping
12
others continue to be a matter of considerable interest and debate.
Activity 4.5
This activity involves two tasks:
1. Go to a local historical building or beauty spot wearing one arm in a sling or
bandage. Take a camera. Ask five people to assist you in taking a photograph,
explaining that your injured arm prevents you from doing so. When each person
has responded either helped you or refused ask them the reason for their
response. Record how many of the people were willing to assist you and assess
their co-operativeness (5 = very co-operative; 1 = not at all co-operative). Also,
record the reported reason for their response.
11
See Barrett, Dunbar and Lycett
(2002) Chapter 4 and Pinker
(1997) Chapter 7 for discussions
of altruism from an evolutionary
standpoint.
12
pp.53041, Moghaddam (1998)
pp.30313 and Myers (2008)
explanations for helping
behaviour. See also Smith and
Mackie (1995) pp.50127.
2. Go to a shopping centre (where you are not known) again with one arm in a sling
or bandaged and wearing shoes or trainers with laces, with one lace undone. Ask
five people to help you by re-tying your shoe lace. When each person has
responded either helped you or refused ask them the reason for their
response. A word of advice, make sure that people do not see you untying your
shoe lace and asking for it be re-tied they may get suspicious! Again, record
63
how many of the people were willing to assist you and assess their cooperativeness (5 = very co-operative; 1 = not at all co-operative). Also record the
reported reason for their response.
Now consider the outcomes from the two settings. Were there any differences in the
numbers willing to help in the two situations or in the co-operativeness of the two
groups of people? What about their reported reasons for their responses? Thinking of
what you have learned about helping behaviour, how would you explain your findings?
4.3.3 When do people help others and when do they not?

Research into helping behaviour suggests that we are most likely to help
someone when:
the victim appears to need and deserve help
the victim is similar to us in some way
the emergency situation is in a small town or rural area
we have just observed someone else being helpful
we are not in a hurry
we are not preoccupied with our own concerns
we are feeling guilty
we are in a good mood and are feeling happy.
However, helping behaviour does appear to vary across different cultures
and the pattern of such behaviour seems to be associated with socialisation
practices. Looking at helping behaviour from a cultural perspective
highlights the need both to recognise how the meaning of help is
dependent upon the cultural context and to see helping behaviour as part
of the wider moral system that links individuals in social relationships.
Culture establishes the implicit and explicit rules that guide both those
13
who seek help and those who receive it.
Activity 4.6
Consider each of the situations below.
1. You see a broken-down car by the side of a busy road with the female driver
crying.
2. You are asked to have your bone marrow typed to see if you are a match for a
close relative needing a bone marrow transplant.
3. You see an elderly gentleman trip over on the other side of the street there is
nobody in the street but you.
4. You see a young boy, aged about 4 years, wandering in a shopping centre
apparently without any adult looking after him.
For each one, assess:
a) Would you help?
b) If yes, why?
c) If no, why not?
To what extent do the theoretical explanations of helping behaviour account for your
decision?
4.4 Overview
Stereotypes shape the information we seek out and use to make judgments
about social groups. They play a fundamental role in the way we see the
world and behave within it. Stereotypes are pervasive and powerful both at
the individual level and within society where they reflect the social roles
64
13

pp.54759, Moghaddam (1998)
pp. 31421 and Myers (2008)
personal and cultural aspects of
helping behaviour and other
forms of pro-social behaviour. See
also Fraser and Burchell (2001)
pp.17078.
that groups fulfil. Stereotypes are often a useful heuristic when making
judgments of others but they can be misleading and can lead to prejudice
and discrimination.
Helping behaviour is influenced by a multiplicity of factors and there is a
variety of theories about the motivations for helping. Some models focus on
the situation in particular the presence of other potential helpers which is
seen as leading to diffusion of responsibility others look at the costs and
benefits associated with helping or not helping. Some people argue that
helping is motivated by altruism the desire to benefit others with no
expectation of personal gain or reward.
Analysis of these two areas of social psychology highlights the interplay
between the theoretical concepts and models and the research findings in
understanding behaviour that is part of our daily repertoire.
Key terms
These key terms will be useful as index entries or search terms if you
choose to consult titles suggested as Further reading or other relevant texts
or online sources. After completing the chapter and relevant reading, we
material again.
Stereotypes
Gender stereotypes
Social categorisation
Social identity theory
In-group
Out-group
Relative homogeneity effect
Stereotype threat
65
Prejudice
Discrimination
Pro-social behaviour
Helping behaviour
Altruism
Bystander effect
Reciprocity norm

should be able to:
outline the nature and functions of stereotypes
provide examples of stereotypes
describe the impact of stereotyping on the way we see and respond to
others
describe the key features and major theories of pro-social behaviour
identify those factors which affect whether or not people help others.

1. What are stereotypes and why are they important?
2. What is pro-social behaviour?
Essay questions
1. Evaluate the role that common stereotypes play in peoples lives.
2. Why do we help others?
66

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Elements of social and applied

Chapter 2: The scope and development of social psychology

79 Elements of social and applied psychology

7.1 Social information processing

Chapter 10: Groups and group performance

79 Elements of social and applied psychology

10.1 Definitions of groups

Chapter 14: Language and non-verbal communication

79 Elements of social and applied psychology

A reminder of your learning outcomes

79 Elements of social and applied psychology

Why study social and applied psychology?

Introducing social and applied psychology

Aims of the unit

79 Elements of social and applied psychology

outline the processes used in understanding our social world

The structure of the guide

Part A: What is social psychology?

Part B: Understanding the social world

ourselves to others. We look at the concepts of self and identity, and

Part C: Social influence

79 Elements of social and applied psychology

Chapter 13: Strategic interaction, negotiation and conflict resolution

Part D: Social relations

The subject guide

How to use the guide

advice on what sources to read throughout the chapter in the form of

79 Elements of social and applied psychology

Both of these textbooks provide a review of the main areas of social

This textbook is valuable in that it takes a cross-cultural perspective to

79 Elements of social and applied psychology

Social and applied psychology resources links

79 Elements of social and applied psychology

Social psychology textbook companion web sites

Notes on web sites:

Format of the examination (from 2010)

Planning your time in the examination

What are the Examiners looking for?

What does the examination test?

79 Elements of social and applied psychology

Key steps to improvement

Select material relevant to the question

Cite empirical evidence

Develop your argument

Structure your answer

79 Elements of social and applied psychology

Do not simply list theories and/or empirical phenomena. You should

Understanding the social world

Chapter 2: The scope and development of social psychology

Chapter 2: The scope and development of

79 Elements of social and applied psychology

Chapter 2: The scope and development of social psychology

developed in somewhat different ways in the United Kingdom and other

2.1 What is psychology?

79 Elements of social and applied psychology

2.2 What is social psychology?

See Hogg and Vaughan

See Myers (2008) pp.317

Chapter 2: The scope and development of social psychology

2.3 The origins and current scope of social psychology

79 Elements of social and applied psychology

In the last 25 years the development of social psychology has continued

2.4 The role of theory