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Defining Social Psychology: History and Principles

1 February, 2016 - 09:56

Learning Objectives

  1. Define social psychology.
  2. Review the history of the field of social psychology and the topics that social psychologists study.
  3. Summarize the principles of evolutionary psychology.
  4. Describe and provide examples of the person-situation interaction.
  5. Review the concepts of (a) social norms and (b) cultures.

The field of social psychology is growing rapidly and is having an increasingly important influence on how we think about human behavior. Newspapers, magazines, websites, and other media frequently report the findings of social psychologists, and the results of social psychological research are influencing decisions in a wide variety of areas. Let’s begin with a short history of the field of social psychology and then turn to a review of the basic principles of the science of social psychology.