PSYCH 135: Introduction to Social Psychology Winter 2024 Lecture Notes PDF

PSYCH 135: Introduction to Social Psychology WINTER 2024 What do you notice? What do you wonder? Today Introduce the course Answer your questions Weekly checklist Introducing the Course Purpose: Introduce you to social psychology ◦ What is social psychology? ◦ What are some classic findings? What’s...

PSYCH 135: Introduction to Social Psychology WINTER 2024 What do you notice? What do you wonder? Today Introduce the course Answer your questions Weekly checklist Introducing the Course Purpose: Introduce you to social psychology ◦ What is social psychology? ◦ What are some classic findings? What’s the cutting edge? ◦ How can I study human behavior? ◦ How can I affect human behavior? ◦ Why do humans do what we do? ◦ Is this different from other social animals? Introducing the Course Purpose: Introduce you to social psychology ◦ What is social psychology? ◦ What are some classic findings? What’s the cutting edge? ◦ How can I study human behavior? ◦ How can I affect human behavior? ◦ Why do humans do what we do? ◦ Is this different from other social animals? Overarching Goals ◦ Introduce you to social psychology ◦ Give you the foundations (e.g., classic topics + studies) ◦ Develop the tools to think critically about the field ◦ Get you excited about it Overarching Goals Humans are weird. Look at everyday behaviors as the beautiful mysteries they are… Introducing the Course Structure ◦ Lecture + readings ◦ BruinCast audio ◦ Slides made available after the lecture ◦ Discussion sections (20% of your grade) ◦ Deep dives + exercises ◦ Reflection paper, advertisement ◦ Exam review sessions ◦ 2 Exams (not cumulative) (80% of your grade) ◦ Multiple choice, timed, online ◦ 3 Extra Credit opportunities Introducing the Course Readings, Assignments, and Lectures ◦ Readings ◦ Kenrick et al. textbook provides a foundation (Inclusive Access) Things I care about most from the book Major theories ◦ Not every little hypothesis ◦ But major, successful ideas Classic findings ◦ Not every study ◦ But the ones that showed something important ◦ Note: I’m making Chapter Summaries available to you Introducing the Course Readings, Assignments, and Lectures ◦ Readings ◦ Kenrick et al. textbook provides a foundation (Inclusive Access) ◦ Popular science articles (BruinLearn) ◦ Videos (BruinLearn) ◦ Assignments ◦ 1-page Reflection paper (SciComm section) ◦ Emailing TA link to an ad (Persuasive Messages section) ◦ See BruinLearn/Syllabus Introducing the Course Readings, Assignments, and Lectures ◦ Lectures ◦ Not “here’s what you need to know from the book”-type lectures ◦ Your reading is a starting point ◦ I’ll emphasize some things ◦ But mostly, we’ll go beyond the book to introduce cutting-edge research and situate social psychology in the broader scientific context ◦ Typically organized to probe big “why” questions about human social behavior Introducing the Course Readings, Assignments, and Lectures ◦ Lectures ◦ Typically organized to probe big “why” questions about human social behavior ◦ Asking this question will focus us on some areas of and approaches to social psychology over others ◦ Social psychology is HUGE ◦ Via lecture (plus the textbook, assignments, + section), you will encounter the major, foundational ideas in the mainstream ◦ …while also focusing us (because we have to) Questions? Introducing the Course Discussion sections ◦ Can try to switch via the discussion board on BruinLearn ◦ Attendance counts—but so does participation (more!) ◦ Can skip one session without penalty ◦ Unless something dire happens, you’ll lose points for other missed sections Introducing the Course Exams ◦ Two exams ◦ Synchronous, Timed (75min) ◦ Online via BruinLearn ◦ Primarily multiple-choice questions ◦ Open-note, open-book ◦ Why? ◦ You can always look up definitions, but I want you to engage with the material and apply the ideas ◦ As a consequence, most questions are applied (not simple, look-up-thedefinition questions) Questions? Introducing the Course Email Policy and Office Hours ◦ Email Policy is what works best for large courses like this one 1. Ask in person—discussion section, after class, office hours 2. If appropriate, ask a peer 3. Still nothing? Email one of the other TAs to set a time to talk (Zoom or inperson) 4. Still nothing after completing steps 1-3? Email Dr. Krems. ◦ Office hours ◦ You can go to ANYONE’s office hours. Any TA. Me. Anyone. ◦ (My Tuesday Zoom hours…give me time to get back to the office) Introducing the Course Weekly Checklists ◦ There to help you stay on track ◦ Each week on BruinLearn ◦ Tells you want you have to do in the course that week Introducing the Course: Things to know This course that will flex your interdisciplinary muscles and ask you to think critically about humans as evolved social animals. Introducing the Course: Things to know This course that will flex your interdisciplinary muscles and ask you to think critically about humans as evolved social animals. This course necessarily contains material that, by its nature, may be shocking and perhaps even offensive to some class members. None of this is presented gratuitously. Introducing the Course: Things to know This course that will flex your interdisciplinary muscles and ask you to think critically about humans as evolved social animals. This course necessarily contains material that, by its nature, may be shocking and perhaps even offensive to some class members. None of this is presented gratuitously. But we will talk about topics that have been politicized and can be less comfortable to discuss (e.g., prejudice). I will always be honest with you about what the data tell us—even when we don’t want the data to tell us what they tell us. Introducing the Course: Things to Know You can ask questions! If you have a question, someone else probably does too… You’re going to be wrong sometimes Introducing the Course: Things to Know There’s a lot we still don’t know! ◦ I’ll present you some possibilities ◦ I’ll introduce you to how social psychologists think about these questions You can get involved in addressing these questions! Talk to your stellar TAs! Introducing the People Ben Haggerty (he/him) Office Hours: Wednesdays 12pm-1pm in 5533 Pritzker Hall Thursdays 10am-11am on Zoom (link) Who I am: 5th year Social Psychology PhD student Marriage & Close Relationships Lab Study how couples’ social environments (friends, family, neighborhoods, etc.) affect their intimate relationships and how relationships affect social environments Personal: Tennis, golf, running, reading, cooking, and watching lots of sports. Currently obsessed with Suits (like everyone else) and always obsessed with the Dodgers (even though the Phillies are better) A little about me! My name is Jacqueline Perez (she/her). I am a fourth-year doctoral student in the Social Psychology Area at UCLA, but I also earned my Bachelor’s degree in Psychology at UCLA in 2019 as a first-generation college student! Work: I study how family and couple functioning differs across races and changes over time as a result of socioeconomic adversity. Personal: I am Vegan and am obsessed with animals--most notably my rescue fur baby, Parker. Outside of work & school, I like to go hiking, paddle boarding, cook, sew spend time with family (especially my nephews), watch Formula 1, and travel! Office Hours: Mondays at 10 AM on Zoom ○ https://ucla.zoom.us/j/95870047123 ?pwd=UklWVHllWnZqTmp4d0dEaFNE SUxadz09 Thursdays at 3 PM in person (*on Zoom weeks 1, 2, and 7): ○ 5533 Pritzker Nina Rodriguez (she/her) Office Hours: Tuesday 2-3 pm, Pritzker Rm 5526; Friday (zoom) 2:303:30 pm 3rd year Social Psychology PhD student Social Minds Lab Conflict in interpersonal relationships, emotions, friendships Scary movies & videogames, trying new recipes, reading, trying to get into kpop Social psychology Behavioral ecology Animal behavior Cognitive + evolutionary anthropology How does the mind maximize the benefits + minimize the costs of our relationships? How women navigate their social relationships Stereotypes + stigma Friendship Introducing Professor Krems Questions? Week 1 Checklist 1. Lecture 1: Welcome and Overview o Attend Lecture (or use Bruincast audio + slides) 2. Lecture 2: Introducing Social Psychology o Attend Lecture (or use Bruincast audio + slides) o Read Chapter 1 Before you go… Stand normally Before you go… Give Professor Krems the finger Before you go… No, really Before you go… Give Professor Krems the finger Week 1 Checklist 1. Lecture 1: Welcome and Overview o Attend Lecture (or use Bruincast audio + slides) 2. Lecture 2: Introducing Social Psychology o Attend Lecture o Read Chapter 1