PSY220H5 Chapter Notes - Chapter 1: Social Desirability Bias, Informed Consent, Demand Characteristics
Document Summary
Social psychology: is the scientific study of how people think about, influence, and relate to one another. Compared to sociology (the study of people in groups and societies), social psychology focuses more on individuals with methods that more often use experimentation. It is an environmental science that focuses on how the social environment influences behavior. Major themes in social psychology: we construct our social reality (social thinking) We humans have an urge to explain behavior, to attribute it some cause and therefore, to make it seem orderly, predictable, and controllable: our social institutions are powerful, sometimes perilous (social thinking) Institutions influence leaders in times of crisis, gamblers at the table, jurors in their assessment of guilt, and personal directors when eyeing applicants. Thinking, memory and attitudes all operate on two levels one conscious and deliberate, the other unconscious and automatic (dual processing: social influences shape behavior (social influences)
