History of Social Psychology

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Questions and Answers

What critical issue with psychological studies did WAGENMAKER et al identify regarding Bem's research?

Inadequate sample sizes

Overly stringent statistical analysis

Use of liberal statistical analysis (correct)

Inconsistent methodological approaches

Which are the two types of replications discussed in the context of research studies?

Field and Laboratory

Direct and Indirect

Qualitative and Quantitative

Exact and Conceptual (correct)

What percentage of replications was reported to be unsuccessful during the Open Science Collaboration's effort?

10%

39%

50%

25% (correct)

Which of the following describes a major problem related to the original research data in the context of replication?

Original data was falsified Signup and view all the answers

What is a key purpose of conducting replications in research studies?

To prevent false positives Signup and view all the answers

Who is considered the father of Social Psychology and Experimental Psychology?

Floyd Allport Signup and view all the answers

What significant theory did Norman Triplett found in Social Psychology?

Social Facilitation Theory Signup and view all the answers

Which psychologist's work primarily focused on the interaction between personality and social psychology?

Kurt Lewin Signup and view all the answers

What was one major critique made by Sumners in his work on psychology?

The applicability of Western IQ tests to other cultures Signup and view all the answers

Which event prompted significant studies into conformity and obedience in Social Psychology?

World War II Signup and view all the answers

What did the Cognitive Revolution challenge in psychology?

Behaviorism as a complete explanation of behavior Signup and view all the answers

What type of research did Lewin advocate for in contrast to traditional laboratory methods?

Field studies Signup and view all the answers

What was a major question raised in Social Psychology during the 1960s to 70s?

Whether lab observations apply to real life Signup and view all the answers

What concept describes the phenomenon where the presence of others enhances individual performance?

Social Facilitation Signup and view all the answers

According to Zajonc's drive theory, what effect does the presence of others have on performance for tasks that are difficult and new?

Performance declines Signup and view all the answers

Which factor is considered a limitation of the drive theory of social facilitation?

It lacks a definition of dominant and non-dominant responses Signup and view all the answers

What is one consequence of the replication crisis in psychology?

There is a lack of credible research findings Signup and view all the answers

Which personality type is most likely to perform better in social situations, according to Uziel's findings?

Self-assured individuals Signup and view all the answers

Which historical study is associated with social facilitation through the behaviors of chickens?

Bayer 1929 Signup and view all the answers

What term represents the impact of environmental influences on performance as proposed by drive theory?

Psychological Arousal Theory Signup and view all the answers

Which type of studies became popular from the 1970s to the 2000s, emphasizing the inclusion of diverse participants?

Field studies Signup and view all the answers

What is a key ethical consideration mentioned in the context of experiments?

Informed consent Signup and view all the answers

In the Fishing Line Kids Test, how did children's performances differ based on group presence?

Pulled in fish faster in social groups Signup and view all the answers

What is a consequence of utilizing small sample sizes in research?

Results may not reflect the population Signup and view all the answers

Which statement is true regarding the effects of certain research outcomes?

They can vary based on culture or events Signup and view all the answers

What is a potential issue with the quality of research replication?

Many studies do not report their methods accurately Signup and view all the answers

What does data dredging, or P-hacking, involve?

Changing the hypothesis after conducting research to validate results Signup and view all the answers

Which strategy can potentially protect against cognitive biases in research?

Employing blinding in the research process Signup and view all the answers

What is one goal of promoting study pre-registration in research?

To enhance the overall quality of the study Signup and view all the answers

Collaboration in research primarily aims to address which issue?

High statistical power to decrease false positives Signup and view all the answers

What role does independent methodology support play in research?

It promotes multidisciplinary trials and removes conflicts of interest Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Aristotle emphasized the influence of society on human development.
Comte believed that individuals are both the product and producer of their social environment.
Wilhelm Wundt established the first psychology lab in 1879, separating psychology from philosophy and biology.
Norman Triplett is considered the founder of social psychology, publishing the first social psychology paper in 1898. His work led to the Social Facilitation Theory.
Floyd Allport is known as the father of both social psychology and experimental psychology. He focused on individual dispositions during the 1920s and 30s.
World War II significantly impacted social psychology, prompting research on conformity, obedience, and authority; researchers began using controlled experiments.
The Cognitive Revolution challenged behaviorism by emphasizing the role of thoughts and mental states in human behavior.
Kurt Lewin proposed an interactionalism perspective, highlighting the interplay between personality and environment. He advocated for field research and studies on propaganda resistance.
The 1960s and 70s saw the emergence of prominent social psychology experiments like the Stanford Prison Experiment by Zimbardo and Milgram's obedience studies.
A crisis of confidence arose over the generalizability of lab findings to real-life situations, along with ethical concerns regarding experimental practices.
Pluralism in the 1970s and 80s integrated lab research with correlational research, promoting field studies and inclusivity in research participants.
Ethical standards were established, focusing on informed consent and a collectivist perspective in psychology.

Norman Triplett's initial work on social facilitation focused on cyclists, exploring various theories to explain the enhanced performance in the presence of others.
Floyd Allport coined the term "social facilitation" in 1924, defining it as the enhancement of behavior due to the presence of others.
Numerous animal studies have shown social facilitation in different species, including chickens and ants.
Pessin's research (1933) on memorization of nonsense words demonstrated the opposite effect, showing social inhibition, where performance was hindered in the presence of others.

Zajonc's (1965) Drive Theory explains social facilitation and inhibition through arousal. Arousal facilitates dominant responses (easy tasks) but inhibits non-dominant responses (new or difficult tasks).
Michaels et al. (1982) confirmed Zajonc's theory through their study of pool players, showing novice players performed worse with an audience, while experts performed better.

Criticisms of Drive Theory

The theory lacks objective criteria for defining task difficulty.
Limited meta-analytic support suggests that the presence of others only accounts for 3% of the variance in performance.
Inconsistent results and the lack of consideration for individual differences in personality are limitations of the theory.

Individual and Dispositional Factors

Uziel (2002) emphasizes the role of personality in social facilitation. Individuals with high self-assurance and social comfort show enhanced performance, while those with negative and social inhibition tendencies show inhibited performance.

Replication Crisis

John Ioannidis (2005) argued that most published research findings are likely false due to scientific practices.
Daryl Bem (2011) published controversial findings about ESP, creating a debate over the scientific validity and reliability of research.
The Open Science Collaboration (2015) found that many published studies failed to replicate, highlighting a systemic issue in scientific research.

Reasons for Non-Replication

Original data falsification, driven by "publish or perish" pressure and the file-drawer problem, contributes to false findings.
Small sample sizes fail to represent the overall population, making results less generalizable.
The absence of universal effects can be due to cultural or temporal differences, making findings specific to certain groups or contexts.
Methodological flaws in replications, including deviations from the original method, can lead to inconsistent results.
Data dredging (p-hacking) involves manipulating data or hypotheses to achieve statistically significant results, compromising research integrity.
Conflicts of interest, particularly from funding sources, can influence research findings and bias results.
Lack of collaboration limits the power of research designs and reduces the generalizability of the results.

Priming Theory

Priming theory describes how exposure to a stimulus influences the response to a subsequent stimulus, often unconsciously.
Examples include priming words related to age or stereotypes.
However, recent research by Lynott et al. (2014) challenges the validity of priming effects.

Measures to Improve Research

Open science practices promote transparency, reproducibility, and efficiency in research, aimed at increasing knowledge and critical analysis skills.
Protecting against cognitive biases involves using blinding techniques to prevent researcher, data collector, and participant biases.
Improving methodological training addresses common misconceptions about statistical concepts, focusing on clear and simple explanations.
Independent methodology support can be achieved through multidisciplinary trials and review committees.
Collaboration and team science enhance research power and generalizability by using larger samples and diverse populations.
Study pre-registration improves research quality and transparency by documenting planned research methods.

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Description

Explore the evolution of social psychology from Aristotle's insights to the Cognitive Revolution. Discover key figures like Wilhelm Wundt, Norman Triplett, and Floyd Allport, and their contributions to the field. Understand how historical events like World War II shaped research methodologies and concepts within social psychology.