Descriptor Details

  • Descriptor Title
    Introduction to Social Psychology
  • C-ID Number
    170
  • Units
    3.0
  • Date of Last Revision
    10/12/2017 11:43:55 PM GMT+0000

General Description

This course considers individual human behavior in relation to the social environment. The power of the situation, other individuals, and the social group will be examined.  Emphasized topics include: aggression, prejudice and stereotypes, interpersonal attraction, attitudes and attitude change, conformity, group phenomena, gender roles, cultural norms, person perception, and social cognition.

Prerequisites

No information provided

Corequisites

No information provided

Advisories

English, one level below transfer (i.e., eligibility for English composition) and reading (a course with an exiting skill of ability to read a college level text)

Content

The course includes the following topics:

  1. self-concept
  2. aggression
  3. prejudice (and stigma) and stereotypes
  4. prosocial behavior
  5. interpersonal relationships, including attraction
  6. attitudes, attitude formation, and attitude change
  7. group processes and decision-making
  8. gender roles
  9. multiculturalism
  10. cultural norms
  11. person perception (e.g., attribution theory)
  12. social cognition
  13. social emotion
  14. obedience to authority
  15. social and physical environments

All topics will be covered from the perspective of a scientific analysis of human behavior.  Of necessity this will require an overview of ethics and research methods.

Lab Activities

N/A

Objectives

At the conclusion of this course, the student should be able to:

  1. Analyze elements of a scientific approach to understanding human behavior in a psycho-social context
  2. Identify biological and cultural influences on social behavior
  3. Discriminate between individual differences and sociocultural influences
  4. Explain the major scientific studies which form the basis for current theories of social psychology
  5. Describe the ways in which principles gleaned from social psychological research apply to real world problems and issues
  6. Apply models of intervention into social behavior designed to address social problems (e.g., those based on gender, ethnic, racial, or cultural differences and those based on disability)
  7. Compare basic concepts and theories across the areas of social psychology

Evaluation Methods

Written assignments

Examinations

Other assignments (student projects, video, observational reports, etc.)

Textbooks

Myers: Social Psychology (current edition)

Aronson: Social Psychology (current edition)

Publisher (and other) supported web-sites providing direct experiential content re: social psychology (e.g., implicit attitudes scale).

Descriptor Administration

  • Public Review Needed
    No
  • Next Descriptor Review
    No information provided
  • Resubmission Requirements for Courses
    No information provided
  • Resubmission Deadline
    No information provided
  • Comments

    Most four-year institutions will treat this course as generic lower division psychology elective units.

  • Notes

    No information provided

  • Keywords

    Psychology, social, psych