Social Psychology

The Science of the Social Side of Life

Human beings are a truly social species….
• Each of us is connected to and influenced by other people, even if we’re not
always consciously aware of all the ways we are affected by them.

• Connecting with others – both as individuals and as part of social groups – is a

major predictor not only of happiness and well-being but also of physical health.

• Social contact is a central aspect of our lives. In a very basic sense, it helps define
who we are and the quality of our existence.
 Social Psychology
• Social Psychology is the branch of psychology that studies all aspects of our social existence –
everything from love and helping people on one hand, to prejudice, exclusion, and violence on the
other.

• Social Psychologists also investigate how groups influence us, how the social context we find
ourselves in affects the way we make decisions, and how we explain and the actions of other
people.

• How we think about ourselves at any given point in time – our identity – is shaped by our relationships
with other people, which in turn guides our social behaviour.

• Social Psychology focuses on explaining influences on the individual’s thought and behaviour.

• Social Psychologists have accumulated an impressive body of knowledge about how people think,
feel, and behave, along with the circumstances that influence those responses.
Definition
• Social psychology is the scientific study of how a person’s thoughts,
feelings, and behaviour are influenced by the real, imagined, or
implied presence of other people.

• In other words, we define social psychology as the scientific field

that seeks to understand the nature and causes of individual
behaviour, feelings, and thoughts in social situations.
Nature of Social Psychology
Social Psychology is scientific in nature.

• In reality, the term science does not refer to a special group of highly
advanced fields.

• Rather, it refers to two things:

• a set of values and

• several methods that can be used to study a wide range of topics.

• Social Psychology adopts these values and methods in its field.

Hence, to the extent it does, it is scientific in nature.
Core Values

We will focus on the core values that all fields must adopt to be considered
scientific in nature. Four of these are most important:

1. Accuracy: A commitment to gathering and evaluating information

about the world (including social behaviour) in as careful precise, and
error-free a manner as possible.

2. Objectivity: A commitment to obtaining and evaluating such information

in a manner that is as free from bias as humanly possible.

3. Skepticism: A commitment to accepting findings as accurate only to the

extent they have been verified over and over again. Notice the
importance of replication.
4. Open-Mindedness: A commitment to changing one’s views – even views
those that are strongly held – if existing evidence suggests that these views
are inaccurate.

• Social psychology, as a field, is deeply committed to these values

and applies them in its efforts to understand the nature of social
behaviour.

• Considering intuition, faith, and unobservable forces to be sufficient for

reaching conclusions, is the opposite of what is true in social
psychology.
Social Psychologists
attempt to answer
questions about social
behaviour and social
thought through
Systematic Research.
Goals of Research in Social Psychology
1. Description:
A major goal is to provide careful and systematic descriptions of social
behaviour that permit social psychologists to make reliable generalizations
about how people act in various social settings.
Ex: Are men more aggressive than women.

2. Causal Analysis:
Much research in psychology seeks to establish cause and effect relationship,
because scientific inquiry in the research is to establish cause and effect
relations.
Ex: Does college education make students more liberal in their social attitudes.
3. Theory Building:
Third goal is to develop theories about social behaviour which help social
psychologists understand why people behave the way they do. This can
further lead to suggest new predictions that can be tested in further research.

4. Application:
Knowledge gained by the above three attempt can help to solve everyday
social problems.

Now let’s look into the specific techniques or methods of research they
use in social psychology.
Methods used in Social Psychology
1. Systematic Observation – describing the world around us
• One basic technique for studying social behaviour involves carefully observing
behaviour as it occurs – known as systematic observation.
• It is not the kind of informal ‘people watching’ but rather accompanied by careful,
accurate measurement of a particular behaviour across people.

1.1 Naturalistic Observation

• Observation of people’s behaviour in natural settings is known as naturalistic observation.
• Such observation requires the researcher to make no attempts to change the behaviour of the
persons being observed, and take great pains to avoid influencing the people who are being
observed in any way.
• The researcher would simply record what is happening in each context/situation, and might
even try to hide behind natural barriers so as to not affect the behaviour of the people they are
watching.
1.2 Survey Method
• Another method that entails a form of systematic observation is known as survey method.
• Surveys are used for many purposes, and social psychologists often use this method to assess attitudes
toward a variety of social issues.
• Here, researchers ask large no. of persons to respond to questions about their attitudes or behaviour.
• Surveys offer several advantages. Information can be gathered about thousands or even hundreds of
persons with relative ease, and the responses of different categories of people can be compared.
Ex: Do men and women differ in their reported satisfaction with life?
• In fact, surveys can now even be conducted online, through the internet. Ex: Google forms, Survey
Monkey, etc.
• In order to be useful as a research tool, surveys must meet certain requirements.
• First, the persons who participate must be representative of the larger population about which
conclusions are to be drawn (appropriate sampling technique).
• Another issue is that the way in which the items are worded can exert strong effects on the outcomes
obtained.
• Results obtained are accurate only to the extent the issues relating to sampling and wording are
carefully addressed.
 Systematic
Observation

Naturalistic
Survey Method
Observation
2. Correlation – the search for relationships
• Some events appear to be related to the occurrence of others – as one changes, the other changes
too.
• Ex: You’ve noticed that people who drive new expensive cars tend to be older than the people who
drive old, inexpensive ones.
• When two events or attributes (age of person and age of car) are related in this way, they are said to
be correlated.
• Social psychologists refer to such changeable aspects as variables (as they can take different
values).
• In correlational method, social psychologists attempt to determine whether, and to what extent,
different variables are related to each other.
• This involves carefully measuring each variable and then performing appropriate statistical tests to
determine whether and to what degree the variables are related.
• When a correlation exists, it is possible to predict one variable from information about the other
variable.
• The ability to make such predictions is one important goal of all branches of science, including social
psychology.
• However, they are not conclusive w.r.t. cause-and-effect relationships, which leads researchers to
prefer the next method in other instances.
3. Experimental Method - knowledge through systematic intervention
• Correlational method is very useful for making accurate predictions, but less useful when you want to
be able to explain why these relationships exist.
• In order to attain the goal of explanation, social psychologists employ a method of research known as
experimentation or the experimental method.
• This approach involves the following strategy - one variable is changed systematically, and the effects
of these changes on one or more other variables are carefully measured.
• If systematic changes in one variable produce changes in another variable, it is possible to conclude
with reasonable certainty that there is indeed a causal relationship between these variables – that
changes in one do indeed cause changes in the other.
• In its most basic form, the experimental method involves 2 key steps:
i. The presence or strength of some variable believed to affect an aspect of social behaviour is systematically changed, and
ii. The effects of such changes (if any) are carefully measured.

• The factor systematically varied by the researcher is termed the independent variable, while the aspect
of behaviour studied is termed as dependent variable.
• In a simple experiment, different groups of participants are randomly assigned to be exposed to
contrasting levels of the independent variable (ex: low, moderate, high), and then carefully measure
their behaviour to determine whether it does infact vary with these changes in the independent
variable.
• If it does, the researcher can tentatively conclude that the independent variable does
indeed cause changes in the behaviour being studied.
• In experimentation, the independent variable is systematically changed by the researcher.
In contrast, in correlational method, variables are not altered in this manner, rather
naturally occurring changes in them are simply observed and recorded.
• An important condition in experimentation is that all participants are randomly assigned to
experimental conditions, so that all participants have an equal chance of being exposed
to each level of the independent variable.
• Another important condition is that all factors other than the independent variable that
might (also) affect participants behaviour must be held constant.
• Because the experimental method is so valuable in answering this kind of ‘why’ question, it
is frequently the method of choice in social psychology, and considered ‘the gold
standard’. But it isn’t perfect.
• Since it is often conducted in laboratory settings that are quite different from the locations
in which social behaviour actually occurs, the question of external validity often arises – to
what extent can the findings of experiments be generalized to real-life social situations?
4. Field Method
• Experiments are not only confined to the laboratory. They are also conducted in
naturalistic settings.
• For example given a situation; wherein an individual requires help, how many
people come forward to help and why?
• Field experiments have greater external validity (not being artificial but genuine)
than laboratory experiment.
• They are less likely to be influenced by ‘demand characteristics’ as participants
typically have no idea that they are taking part in a study.
• The Advantage and Disadvantage of Field Method are:
• The situation is not nearly as controlled as in a laboratory situation and so the
impact of external influences cannot be ruled out.
• It is also not possible to randomly assign participants to conditions.
 • With systematic observation, behaviour is carefully
observed and recorded. In naturalistic observation,
such observations are made in settings where the
behaviour naturally occurs, without any intervention
on the part of the researcher.
• Survey methods often involve large no. of persons
who are asked to respond to questions about their
attitudes or behaviour.
• When the correlational method of research is
employed, two or more variables are measured to
determine how they might be related to one
another. The existence of even strong correlations

Quick Summary of all the

between variables does not indicate that they
causally related to each other.
• Experimentation involves systematically altering one
methods or more variables (independent variables) in order to
determine whether changes in this variable affect
some aspect of behaviour (dependent variables).
• Successful use of experimental method requires
random assignment of participants to conditions
and holding all other factors that might also
influence behaviour constant so as to avoid
confounding variables.
• When the experiment takes place in a natural setting
rather than a laboratory, it is known as field method.
They are less likely to be influenced by ‘demand
characteristics’ as participants typically have no
idea that they are taking part in a study, giving it
greater external validity.
• Bear in mind that there is no single
‘best’ method of conducting
research in social psychology.
• Rather, social psychologists, like all
other scientists, choose the method
that is most appropriate for studying
a particular topic.
• All methods offer advantages and
disadvantages, so the guiding
principle is that the method is most
appropriate to answering the
questions being investigated is the
one that should be used.
• When a set of studies use rather
different methods having different
strengths and weakness, pointing
toward the same conclusion, our
confidence that the answer is
correct will be higher.
Scope of Social
Psychology
• The subject social psychology dates back to the pre-
historic times when man started living in groups and
began to be influenced by other members of the groups.
• The scope of social psychology is reflected in the diverse
themes that have been studied by social psychologists
and in the variety of different organisations that employ
social psychologists.
• The key areas in social psychology are as follows –
 SOCIAL LEARNING
• Learning of an individual is
greatly influenced by social
environment.
• Some of the learning takes
place on the basis of
individual capabilities and
much of it takes place
because of its association of
the individual with the
society.
• Social psychology shows the
role that social
influence has on the
behaviour and decision
making of individuals.
ATTITUDE AND ATTITUDE
CHANGES
• The study of attitudes is one
of the major research areas
in social psychology.
• Social psychologists are
interested in the
components of attitudes ,
and how attitudes develop
and change .
• Researchers have
described 3 core
components of attitudes,
often referred as the ABC’S
of attitudes - A for affective,
B for behavioral, and C for
cognitive.
SOCIAL COGNITION
• The area of social cognition
addresses the question of how
perception, memory, language
and thinking are influenced by
the social environment.
• How do people form their first
impression of other individuals?
How do people process positive
versus negative information
about themselves?
• Among other thing, insights from
social cognition have been
applied in selection and
evaluation of personnel,
marketing, questionnaire
construction and risk
communication.
 PRO-SOCIAL GROUP BEHAVIOUR INTERPERSONAL SELF AND SOCIAL IDENTITY PREJUDICE AND
BEHAVIOUR RELATIONS DISCRIMINATION
• The behaviour of • How do people come
• Pro-social behaviour groups is the • Social to know and • Prejudice,
is another major largest study psychologists understand discrimination and
research area of areas in social study themselves? How do stereotypes exist in
social psychology. psychology. how interperso these self perceptions any social groups.
• Pro-social • Most people nal relations affect our social • The social
behaviours are realize that affect people interactions? psychologists are
those that involve groups tend to by looking at • Social psychologists are interested in the
helping and behave attachment, interested in learning origins, causes and
cooperating. differently from liking, love and more about how this effects of these types
• Researches often individuals. attraction. inner life influences our of attitudes and
look at reasons why • Social • How these outer life and social social
people help others psychologists close relations behaviour. categorisations.
or why they often look at affect • Self esteem, self
sometimes don’t issues such as individuals? awareness and self
cooperate or help group dynamics, expression are just a few
others. leadership, group of the factors that
decision making, influence our social
cooperation, experience in the way
group conflicts. we feel, behave and
understand.