PSY220H1 Chapter : CH1 Textbook Notes
Document Summary
Field dedicated to understanding the causes and consequences of social interactions between individuals or groups. Social psychology is the scientific study of how individuals" thoughts, feelings, and behaviours are influenced by other people (gordon allport 1985) So long as someone is being affected in any way by other people, including their imagined presence or actions, the situation is relevant to social psychology. Social psychologists are interested in how other people affect every aspect of individuals" lives, including thoughts (cognitions), feelings (affect) and behaviours. Ultimate goal: understand why various kinds of actions toward other people occur or don"t occur e. g. conformity, aggression, helping, discrimination. It is necessary to look at the world through the actor"s eyes. Whatever you believe to be the other person"s motive will determine how you behave. Social construals: individuals" perceptions of a situation, how they construe (perceive, interpret) the situation. Like any other science, social psychology involves collecting data to test predictions.
