Social Psychology- scientific study of how people think about, influence, and relate to one another. (Social thinking, Social influence, Social relations)

Compare and Contrast:

Personality Psychology: focuses on individual; how differences in character traits influence behavior

Sociology: Focuses on group; how various overarching factors (e.g. class conflict, competition btw ethnic groups) influence general patterns of behavior; concerned with topics such as: social class, social structure, and social institutions

Social Psychology: Focuses on the individual; how a person’s social situations (e.g. other people in the environment, their attitudes and their behaviors) affect that person’s behavior.

Goals of the scientific method:

  1. Description
  2. Prediction
  3. Understanding

Characteristics of the scientific method:

  • Empirical Approach- Knowledge is gain exclusively through direct observations
  • Systematic, Controlled Observation
  • Unbiased, Objective Reporting
  • Clear Operational Definition- e.g. you cant measure aggression; however you can measure the # of times a brother hits a sister
  • Valid and Reliable Measurement
  • Testable Hypothesis
  • Critical, Skeptical Attitude
  • Self-correcting- multiple observations, multiple methods of studying similar phenomena

Theory– Integrated set of principles that explain and predict observed events (e.g. obedience to authority)

Hypothesis-Testable proposition that describes a relationship that may exist between events

Field Research- Everyday situations (Dutton and Aron Attraction study) Laboratory Research-Controlled situation (Milgrams Obedience study)

Experimental Research- Seeks clues to cause-effect relationships by manipulating one or more variables

Positives

    • Control
    • Can imply causation

Negatives

    • Limited in the range of theories that can be tested
    • May be artificial

Correlation Research- Naturally occurring relationships among variables

  • Positives:
    • Examine a broader range of phenomena
    • Naturalistic setting
    • Often easier, cheaper, faster
  • Negatives:
    • Does NOT imply causation (3rd variable problem)

Independent Variable- Experimental factor that a researcher manipulates

Dependent Variable- Variable being measured; depends on manipulations of the independent variable

Extraneous Variable- Variable that affects the dependent variable and is not the independent variable Experimental Control-