Introduction to Social Psychology

• Social psychology studies how people think about, influence, and relate to each other.

Social Cognition

• Encompasses perception of self and others.
• Involves judgements and attitudes.

Social Interface

• Includes conformity, persuasion, and group influence.

Social Interaction

• Covers friendships, attraction, aggression, and helping behaviors.

Differences from Other Fields:

• Sociology focuses on groups and societies, rather than individual impacts.
• Traditional psychology centers on individual development and traits.
• Anthropology studies individual cultures and their evolution.

Importance of Social Groups

• There are four theoretical frameworks attempt to explain why social interactions are vital.

Evolutionary Perspectives

• Explain how social groups aided survival and reproduction for ancestors.
• Natural selection involves passing on characteristics that promote survival.
• Sexual selection involves passing on characteristics that promote reproduction.

Sociocultural Perspectives

• Seek causes of social behavior in larger social group influences.
• Social norms are socially defined rules for appropriate behavior.
• Culture includes shared beliefs, customs, habits, and language among people.

Social Learning Perspectives

• Focus on past learning experiences as determinants of social behaviors.
• Conditioning refers to how past behaviors have been rewarded or punished.
• Imitation involves behaviors learned from others.

Social Cognitive Perspectives

• Focus on mental processes behind social experiences.
• Attention involves what we focus on during socialization.
• Interpretation means deciphering social situations and cues.
• Memorization refers to what we selectively remember from social interactions.

Goal-Oriented Social Behavior

• Social behavior is often goal-oriented.
• Fundamental motives include connecting with others.
• Fundamental motives include maintaining a positive self-image.
• Fundamental motives include gaining and maintaining social status.
• Fundamental motives include ensuring personal safety.
• Fundamental motives include providing care to people around you.

Social Psychology as a Science

• Social psychology is a scientific discipline.
• It uses theories supported by data (scientific method).
• The scientific method relies on empiricism, using physical evidence for conclusions.
• Objectivity involves basing ideas on real-world information.
• Subjectivity involves basing ideas on personal opinions and biases.
• A testable hypothesis states a presumed relationship between variables.
• A good theory is supported by solid and valid data.

Scientific Inquiry Goals

• Description: Defining the behavior, often through descriptive observational studies that note behavior.
• Prediction: Determining when the behavior occurs, often through rational correlational studies that identify variable associations.
• Cause Control: Determining what causes the behavior through experiments, which manipulate an independent variable to see if it changes a dependent variable.
• Explanation: Determining why the behavior occurs using converging operations—multiple research methods to study the same concept.

This chapter provides an overview of social psychology, covering social cognition, influence, and interaction. It distinguishes social psychology from sociology, traditional psychology, and anthropology. The importance of social groups and evolutionary perspectives are also explored.